This might be the wrong community to ask this but I’ll give it my shot. I already own a very good Trek bike but it’s an urban commuter. I want something that handle dirt and country roads just as good as a Jeep or Land Cruiser. I know mountain bikes are best suited for off-road scenarios but I’ve only ever used urban bikes and BMXs. Is there a brand that is revered by mountain bike enthusiasts in the same way that Jeep is to car guys? Thanks in advance.
No, get a mountain bike that you’re comfortable on, there’s a whole bunch of brands and types depending on what your want to do exactly. If it’s just dirt and country roads get a gravel bike or a cross country bike with just a front suspension.
Unlike the automotive industry where only 2-3 manufacturers make any kind of decent terrain capable vehicle, in MTB world there are a lot of brands. But also unlike automotive brands very few have global distribution.
Check what is available locally, and if possible try one. For mountain bikes getting the correct frame size is way more important than for city bikes. If it’s your first MTB don’t obsess too much about getting the perfect one right away - in a year you will get the upgrade itch anyway.
If you can summarize what you’re trying to do with a bike, it’d be a lot easier to recommend the right tool for the job. For most people, a front suspension mountain bike (hard tail) with 100-120mm of travel would do most things they want to do well. I highly suggest looking at the secondary market like pink bike, Facebook marketplace, and Craigslist.
There are bikes out there with driven front wheels. Jeep and Hummer have even released bikes under their brands with this design. It has a shaft that travels through the downtube to the front wheel.
This is not a design that is taken seriously in performance biking, at least as far as I know. Maybe there’s a low speed rock crawling group that I’m unfamiliar with. But if you’re looking for something unique that can crawl up tough terrain, you might enjoy it.
I’ll leave the serious mountain bike recommendations to everyone else. There are plenty of good ones here already.
And Yamaha is coming out with a two wheel drive e-bike…
https://electrek.co/2023/10/20/why-yamahas-wild-new-electric-bike-has-two-wheel-drive/
If you’re tall, Specialized Rockhopper was my best piece. Got one at a good price off Craigslist. 29" wheels.
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My son turned old enough to still get taller but was already taller than me so I gave that rockhopper to him. I miss that bike but it went a good direction.
This guy rides across countries and continents, including dirt roads and tracks https://youtube.com/@Cyclingabout?si=XhHHY_59oiIZoGCh
This is his touring bike guide link https://www.cyclingabout.com/touring-bicycle-buyers-guide/
This is his bike packing guide book link https://www.cyclingabout.com/bikepacking-bike-buyers-guide/
He charges on the order of $20 for each of these books. I think the touring one includes the style of bike you want
Thanks for all the comments guys! All of your comments have been very helpful and informative. I’ll definitely bookmark this thread for future purposes. Based on the information given, I’ll be getting a cross-country bike as my wife and I want to take a ‘cross-country’ trip on bike rather than a car. Sure, my Trek could handle such a trip and I will take it on such a trip. Hell, I think my old, crappy Mongoose could handle such a trip if I fixed it up. But for those scenic/nature routes I’ll consider a cross-country bike. I see a lot more bikes in my future! I once again want to thank all of you for your comments. I’m trying to go car-free and I’ll definitely be posting in this community more often. For the third time, thank you and peace out!
