Words to live by - With more chassis manufacturers today than ever before, and new ones popping up around every turn, such a quote could be taken with a grain of salt. That is, unless that quote came from a company with a history and reputation like Chenowth Racing Products... which it did... and which they have. "We're not just a frame building company - there is a science behind all this…" ...said Mike Thomas, owner, who bought the family-oriented chassis company in 1980 and maintains that tradition to this day. Over the years, Chenowth has been involved in just about all aspects of the off-road world, but they've focused their attentions on what they know, and love best - building "buggies." When he's not out building better buggies, Mike spends time attending meetings with the other six founding members of the Off Road Business Association ( ORBA ) in an effort to combat environmentalists and their extremist views.
The first step in creating the new "Explorer". The bottom half of the frame.
From Baja 1000-winning Class 1 "Unlimited' cars" to the lightweight rockets that scorch the dunes of Glamis, to Desert Storm-proven military assault vehicles, the off-road world's premiere chassis manufacturer relies on a combination of their considerable experience in the field and the most modern technology available. The fruits of their labors are arguably among the finest pieces of hardware on the dirt today. Before building any new buggy, the engineers employ CAD Engineering programs to determine stress levels on all parts of the car and then they perform computerized stress-testing to coincide with the various situations that the car may see under actual use. This helps the company create a better-built car with the needed reinforcement in the necessary areas - not where they "think" they need it, and thus adding unnecessary weight. 5 models to choose from, including their newest, the "Explorer" New for 2001 is the Explorer, which was created for the "average guy". Using traditional "beam car" technology, the Explorer provides the buggy enthusiast with race-level features without the costs and complexity associated with the latest competition-bred "A-Arm" configurations.
The second step - building the upper half of the frame.
By using the traditional VW type beam in a variety of widths and trailing arm lengths, the big Chenowth is able to extract obscene levels of performance for the end user, and still keep it affordable. "It's not only about wheel travel" Has the day of the beam car passed? Hardly. The onset of A-arm/long travel cars has resulted in a serious performance gain across the board. Unfortunately there's a big difference between "pure" wheel travel and "proper" wheel travel. With literally decades of combined experience with beam and A-Arm cars, Chenowth could have simply abandoned the traditional chassis concept and re-established itself as an A-Arm only company. As any well-run company does, Chenowth studied the market and listened when customers said they wanted an affordable, buggy that would also perform to their satisfaction. Based on this research, and a litle good ol' gumshoe detective work, they quickly realized not everyone could afford, needed, or even wanted the level of performance that A-Arms could provide. "Many of the other car builders focus on wheel travel only." Many of the new buggy-builders out there focus on wheel travel and believe thats all it takes to sell their product. In a marketplace filled with big travel numbers and exaggerated claims, the reality is that beam construction also serves to keep the Explorer maintainable. Standardization of parts available "off the shelf" result in easy repairs, less down-time, and nearly foolproof suspension geometry. While some may be willing to live with the costs and hassles associated with one-off or custom hardware, the average recreational user - I.E. the Explorer's target market, most often aren't.
Step three - connecting the upper and lower sections of the Explorer.
The next point to consider is the "quality" of wheel travel. All the wheel travel in the world is useless unless it's done right. "How it works" is far more important than "how it looks" Shock dampening, bump steer, and a host of other considerations come into play when considering big travel A-Arm designs and each varies from car to car. But the VW type beam suspension is a known quantity. Like the other components of a beam suspension, shock and spring rates have been developed for a wide range of conditions, terrain, and uses. There are few surprises here. We're talking about a proven technology.

Fast Facts - Chenowth Explorer

The Explorer is the basic beam car that has been stretched and widened. Because of its more traditional roots, the Explorer is priced affordably and thus available to just about everyone. Even more importantly, there are no 6 mo. - 1 yr.+ waits for "custom" chassis delivery. Because of Chenowth's extensive production facilities and skilled fabricators, customer wait has been reduced to about 2 weeks from order date to delivery date. The Explorer chassis is assembled in three steps that help to speed production while still leaving room for customization. There are plenty of options available to customize your Explorer to fit your needs. Visit Chenowth's Explorer
Problems with your neighbors?? Not after you pull into your driveway in this!
Fast Facts - Chenowth LSV 161 inches in length
83 inches in width
79 inches in height
16-inch ground clearance
Curb weight - 2110 pounds
Combat Payload - 1540 pounds Performance Max speed - 130 KPH
0-50KPH - less than 5 seconds
0-100 KPH - less than 14 seconds
Range - 500 kilometers
Max grade - 70% Transportability Helicopter - CH47, CH53
Tactical Aircraft - C-130 air-drop, air-land Faster Notes! The Chenowth LSV can be fitted with an M2.50 caliber machine gun or a MK19 Grenade launcher with 2 machine guns. Once the military got one to play with, they wanted more. Under an insane work order from Uncle Sam, Chenowth was commissioned to do an emergency build of 13 vehicles in 8 days! Mike even travelled to the sands of Saudi Arabia in order to help train the U.S. Marines on all the aspects of the LSV. Talk about customer service! It seems the LSV exceeded some of the "handling and performance" characteristics of the Hummers that the boys in brown camo were used to. No doubt the Marines enjoyed riding the Saudi dunes in the custom Chenowth buggies. Back to the future With the chassis market in a boom and a recreational public crying out for quality product, Chenowth continues its drive down the trail of success. Between their Military, prototyping, recreational and state-of-the-art race products, there's anything but inactivity behind the doors of the Southern California shop.
The Genesis - just one of the five available models to choose from.
Never resting on their laurels, Chenowth continues innovating in the off-road marketplace with cars like the "Explorer", racers such as the "Millenium", and of course their semi-secret government work. For some companies in the off-road world, it's about the money, for others it's about the fame. But for Chenowth, it's always been about the adventure - no matter what form it takes. Chenowth has big plans for 2001 and beyond - keep your eyes open for some big ideas coming soon.
Until then, click here to see some "Behind the scenes" photos.
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