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A lot of these answers aren't satisfying. I love in NV and see a LOT of offroad vehicles all the time so let me break it down. There are different kinds of ways to trick out an vehicle for offroad. One is 'rock crawling'. These aren't anything like an expedition cruiser. They are mostly Jeeps with BIG tires and Lots of armor and roll cages and stuff. They are designed to go at most on an over night and their focus is to go over big rocks that mere mortals can't hope to conquer. Another type is "Baja". These guys want to go out to the desert, mostly flat and go very fast. The vehicles have a wide stance and fast suspension. They are mostly trucks, like Ford Raptors. Expedition is something else from both of those. We want to go a long way, we want to camp out and we want to have all the gear we need ready at hand.
Each of theses is an optimization. You can build out something to do some of each, maybe even all of those... but mostly people pick the way they want to enjoy off road, and optimize their vehicle for that. In the grand scheme expedition vehicle are built to go a long way, carry plenty of gear and cover reasonably tough terrain. We don't go out of our way to drive over a bolder (like a rock crawler) just because we can. We just go around if we need to. We don't drive super crazy fast offroad, because we are there to enjoy the view. Ideally a expedition rig can go just a BIT farther off pavement than a truck with a camper. It can go a lot farther than an RV. The short version is that an expedition rig is designed to go some place cool and bring enough stuff to hang out and enjoy that cool place. It is also about priorities. If I want to know what to mod on my vehicle next I look at priorities. If was a crawler, upgrading the skid plates would be high on my list. I prefer expedition so instead I went for the ARB awning and skid plates are far down the list. Basically if I asked what is most important, wider tires, skid plates, extra gas can, or a tent, each kind of off roader would have different priorities. Crawlers don't want a roof tent, it will make them more top heavy. Baja guys don't want a roof tent, it will be more drag (and top heavy). Expedition guys all drool over a nice roof tent and thing about the awesome places they could wake up in it.
Just saw this post again. I don't think I mention that about 1/4 mile down the road a Turkey Vulture flew right in front of us and landed in a joshua cactus, by the time I got the camera back out it was gone. You don't see stuff like that if you stay on the freeway.My Expedition Rig
Some years they have nested in my north barn. I often get to see them up close. They clean up the road kill along the highway. Bald eagles also do their part eating the road kill. I see them much less often. Nearly a deer a week gets killed on the stretch of highway next to my farm. It has a pair of curves that gets the deer to run the wrong way and they get hit.I don't think I mention that about 1/4 mile down the road a Turkey Vulture flew right in front of us and landed in a joshua cactus, by the time I got the camera back out it was gone.
So this would be your idea of the perfect expedition vehicle? I am not sure how it would do across Africa!
I joke... but really if you apply the idea that only classic expeditions are legitimate then there truly can be no more expeditions because we have to many amenities now days. UNLESS your perfect expedition vehicle is a spaceship or a submarine.
It is not about being able to camp further off the road... it is about what you do while you at there
I'm going on an expedition to Trader Joe's in my stock FJ40. Anything could happen...Yeah, looks good to me.
I joke as well, but i think an expedition is supposed to have been going to a place that is essentially undiscovered. Regular, mapped and sometimes even maintained 4x4 trails don't count.
I'm going on an expedition to Trader Joe's in my stock FJ40. Anything could happen...
This why the term "overlanding" is used a lot.Alexander Mackenzie (explorer) - Wikipedia
Lewis and Clark Expedition - Wikipedia
Franklin's lost expedition - Wikipedia
Magellan–Elcano circumnavigation - Wikipedia
Those are the kinds of things I think of when I think of expedition. Going car camping a little further from the road, while very much an enjoyable experience, is not an expedition.