Ride along as HotCars contributor Michael Van Runkle heads out to the desert with two Mitsubishi Monteros to see how they perform on the iconic Mojave Road Recreational Trail. With a stock "blister-fender" and a heavily modified '94 SR, day one on the Mojave Road starts out on a levee of the Colorado River between Needles, CA, and Laughlin, NV.
Getting to a campsite at Fort Paiute for the night requires navigating some confusing directions, plenty of rocks and sand, plus a few steep breakover obstacles. In comparison to a brand-new Jeep Gladiator Rubicon, both of these 1990s classics manage to get through the terrain without too many scary moments—now if only the GoPros could handle the heat, too.