Four-wheel-driving is an understandably popular activity for many Australians, and it’s only getting more and more common. Along with the explosion in 4WD popularity there has been an equally exponential growth in 4WD accessories, add-ons and products in the market. With the huge range of products available, it can be hard knowing how to go about buying the right 4WD accessories online.
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The need for 4WD accessories
The appeal of owning and using a 4WD is being able to access many, many more exotic and exciting outdoor locations by vehicle. Whether due to sand, water, mud, rocks, or logs, a 4WD is enabled to take you almost anywhere you want to go. Ready to drive down a secluded beach in search of the ultimate wave? No problem. Want to turn down that bush-track that your mate’s sedan can’t possibly traverse? Easy.
The various accessories should all contribute to your outdoor driving adventures. Afterall, a 4WD is not the cheapest of cars available so if you’re going to invest in one, it’s worth making the most of it. The right accessories, if bought from a reputable and reliable online retailer like Trailer Parts Direct, will help elevate your next adventure to unprecedented levels of excitement and joy.
Additionally, many accessories may not just be of a practical or leisurely nature. There are various products designed to help make your vehicle and your four-wheel-driving as safe as possible. This is why you need to research the accessories you require and the various makes and models carefully. If you buy subpar and unreliable products, you could find yourself in hot water (sometimes almost literally).
This guide is designed to help you when buying four-wheel-drive accessories online.
What do you need?
It can be easy to either get overly excited about the potential of 4WD modifications and accessories, or to become so overwhelmed you’re too stunned to actually make the required buying decision. In either case, it’s important you stop and think about what you’ll be doing with your vehicle and therefore what you’ll need.
Where do you plan on heading off to? If you’re an avid surfer and are planning on doing a lot of driving on sand, you need to consider the type of tyres suited for the pressure required for sand driving. If you’re planning on camping regularly, a roof top tent could be the right answer for you. From roo bars to recovery gear for getting bogged, from UHF radios to extra fuel and water tanks, and from solar panels to extra suspension or wheel carriers, there’s an almost inexhaustible amount of accessory and modification options.
If you’re not sure where to start or what you’ll be doing, we suggest getting in touch with some 4WD retailers. They’ll be the experts on what products are good for which sorts of activities.
How much are you spending?
Budget. Budget. Budget. Determining how much you’re willing to spend on speccing out your 4WD will help put a limit and a direction on your online accessory buying. For example, you might be interested in decking your vehicle out ready for camping. If you’re on a tighter budget, cheaper awnings may be more affordable than more expensive and robust roof top tents.
What’s your payload?
A payload is the carrying capacity of a vehicle, in this case: your 4WD. Not every vehicle has the same payload capacity and, once you start modifying your vehicle, the payload may change. 4WDs in particular can have widely ranging carrying capacities and overdoing it with excessive weight can be dangerous, damaging to your vehicle or make the very act of driving your 4WD illegal.
Safety and compliance
A 4WD offers great power in driving but, as the cliche saying goes, that power comes with enhanced responsibility. Different states around the country have different rules and compliance regulations with regards to things like tyre size or roof height. You may need specific certifications or licenses as well. It’s important you check what you need compliance wise when searching for the right accessories.
Safety should always be a concern as well. If you get stuck you need to have the accessories to either dig yourself out, call for help or access much needed fuel, water and food. There are even little things that you might not think about, like rocks being flicked into your windscreen from passing vehicles on the road. Yes, there’s an accessory for that too!
Don’t go overboard
You’re excited to stock up on gear and accessories, we get it. But remember that it is possible to over do it and overly modify your 4WD. In a best case scenario, you could just waste money on items and products you don’t need and are never going to use. And that’s the best case scenario.
Modification accessories or modifications not made in the right order could ruin or damage your vehicle. This would be a much more costly mistake. Battery charges, engine modifications, new suspension, wheel types – if you’re not sure exactly that you need and what’s right for your intended usage, we recommend doing thorough research and speaking to some 4WD pros before doing independent online buying.
Conclusion: research, research, research
It’ll be tempting to go for broke and try to turn your 4WD into the most impressive looking and kitted out vehicle on the road. It can also be easy to make uninformed or silly mistakes by buying the wrong accessories or the right accessories from an unreliable and non-trustworthy supplier.
Conducting rigorous and extensive research will help you determine what you need, what you don’t need, what you should get and what you really shouldn’t. In addition to buying online, all of your research can be done too (you are ready this afterall). There’s always the option of having a chat with the customer service team of a 4WD retailer. They’ll help you to understand your vehicle, what accessories are out there and how to evaluate the right choice.
Buying the best and most reliable 4WD accessories online can be an overwhelming and complicated process, but there’s no reason why it has to be. Simply visit Trailer Parts Direct to view a comprehensive range of high quality accessories at competitive prices.
And, most importantly, keep safe and have fun on all of your adventures
