We love a nice surprise, especially when it involves a classic Chevy. Such is the case with the following off-road video, starring a custom Chevy Corvair wagon playing the part of hero as it rescues a stuck Toyota Tacoma pickup.
Coming to us from the Matt’s Off Road Recovery YouTube channel, we’ve seen Matt’s crew in action before, including a hairy cliff-side rescue for a stolen GMC Sierra and a beachside rescue for a Chevy Silverado HD. Now, Matt and the gang are headed to Moab in eastern Utah to rescue a stuck Toyota Tacoma, and they’re bringing their recently built Chevy Corvair off-road rig along for the ride.
The majority of the video is Matt and his team headed out to the rescue, and includes some gorgeous Utah scenery and dusty trail cruising. Out on the rough stuff, the custom Chevy Corvair off-roader looks like it’s in its element, easily bashing over obstacles and clawing at the sandy terrain, all while the beautiful desert landscape rolls by.
Matt and his team reach the stuck Toyota around the five-minute mark, finding the poor pickup deep in some soft, muddy clay. Rather than join the Tacoma in the muck, the crew wisely keep to the edges of the lake bed where the ground isn’t quite as squishy, breaking out the winch to pull the Tacoma out.
It’s a tricky rescue, but Matt and his team pull it off no problem. Towards the end of the video, we get a rundown on the custom Chevy Corvair off-roader, including some of the specs and upgrades. According to the owner, the Corvair features a 5.3L LS V8 engine, is running 5.13 gears and an NP205 transfer case with a 1.96:1 ratio, which, as Matt points out, is way too high. Rather, Mat is looking to install a new 3.8:1 ratio, but unfortunately, the part is on backorder for now. There’s also a TCI torque converter, 38-inch tires, wheels from a Hummer, a rear-mounted fuel cell, and of course, a massive suspension lift.
Hit play for all the details.
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Comments
The Tacoma, loaded to the max and the Chev with no load. Any Toyota 4 wheel drive could have pulled it with no issue.
Your point is what, exactly? This wasn’t about Toyota vs Chevy. The point of this is to consider why you would venture out into the muck in a loaded down Tacoma! Try learning something from someone else’s mistake for a change.
It’s all about the weight (and tires), a light retrieval vehicle with large wide tires is less prone to sinking in and is also why they have very little tread on the tires, no since scooping the ground away. Look at the tires on a tractor pull rig, near no tread.
Why didn’t you mention that it was a two team effort? It’s the Corvair and the Tacoma from FabRats that are winching the stuck Tacoma together. Matt did an awesome build, but this particular rescue was done with some help.
I guess Nader was wrong after all!