We Drive AEV’s 20th Anniversary Ram Prospector XL
From Extreme Jeeps to Ultimate Ram Trucks, We Go Off-Road to Celebrate 20 Years With AEV
It was 1997 when Dave Harriton first started American Expedition Vehicles (AEV) with a one-bay shop in Missoula, Montana after winning a competition for the best business plan at the University of Montana. AEV’s first project was named the AEV 112 and was created by stretching the Jeep YJ platform to create a long-wheelbase Wrangler. Twenty years later, the company has built some of the most legendary Jeep-based products on the market. They’ve even established a strong partnership with folks inside the Mopar family.
CHECK OUT: Our Thoughts After First Driving the AEV Ram Prospector XL
Beginning in 2013, AEV debuted their first Dodge Ram concept. It included awesome stamped steel bumpers with modular construction. That modular design allowed the bumpers to fit everything from a Ram 1500 up to a 5500. AEV has since expanded to offer various products for the Ram family of trucks. Now they have something special in store for their 20th Anniversary.
We ventured out of Los Angeles on a cold Winter morning, off into the hills of Gorman, CA. Nestled back within the mountain pass portion of California’s 5 Freeway lies the (surprisingly expansive) Hungry Valley State Vehicular Recreation Area. With 19,000 acres of land, and more than 130 miles of scenic trails, Hungry Valley is the perfect backdrop for a duo of special off-road vehicles.
‘We drove the Prospector XL last year and found it so good, it should be a crime.’
For 2017 the company will be offering 20th Anniversary versions of both the Ram Prospector XL and Jeep Wrangler JK350. There will be 20 units in total for the 20th Anniversary Prospector XL, each built on a Ram 2500/Cummins platform. The XL seems a fitting tribute to AEV. We drove it last year and found it “so good that it should be a crime.”
AEV has always made products by and for enthusiasts. Driving the Ram instantly shows the amount of effort that goes into each product they build. “The AEV 20th Anniversary Ram Prospector XL is the culmination of design and engineering dating back to 2016,” said AEV Founder/CEO Dave Harriton. “Plus, we do an annual overlanding trip to validate all our products in real-world scenarios.”
This testing shows as the Prospector XL was able to navigate even the most extreme obstacles in Hungry Valley with very little drama. With a 3-inch DualSport suspension lift, and massive 40 x 13.5 R17 Toyo Open Country M/T tires, this Ram is ready for the challenges that most owners here at Dodge Forum require of their truck.
ALSO SEE: Watch Footage From Our 20th Anniversary Prospector XL Drive
AEV was quick to comment that, despite its prowess in our testing, the Ram isn’t designed specifically for rock crawling or extreme terrain like the Jeep JK 350. Rather, the Prospector XL is designed “to increase the vehicle’s adventure coefficient for activities such as towing or carrying a slide-in camper without affecting factory ride quality and hauling capacity.”
Therefore, the 20th Anniversary Ram Prospector XL remains usable for daily driving, but adds improvements to help you take off on an unbeaten path when necessary. Behind the wheel, the Prospector XL drives strong both on and off the road, and never gives you the impression you are driving anything modified beyond a factory-stock Ram 2500HD.
We cruised up and down the 5 Freeway along Hungry Valley in comfort, and without the road noise and numb steering you often must endure in a modified truck. This is due to some impressive engineering from the DualSport suspension system. In addition, the HighMark fenders keep the Prospector XL’s center of gravity as low as possible while still allowing for the large tire size.
WATCH: We Go Live With New Durango SRT in Chicago
The 20th Anniversary Ram will be built, like all of the Prospector XL models, by AEV’s skilled technicians in Wixom, Michigan. Each of the 20 models will be serial-numbered. The majority of AEV’s performance parts and accessories are also proudly manufactured in the USA. Pricing for the AEV 20th Anniversary Prospector XL starts at $30,957 above the out-the-door price on a 2017 Cummins Ram 2500 4×4 with the Big Horn or Laramie trim package.
Visit AEV-Conversions.com, contact the AEV Vehicle Sales team at (248) 926-0256, or walk into any AEV Certified Vehicle Dealership across the country for more information. These parts are also sold individually for Ram owners who want to upgrade select areas of their vehicles.
For more information, check out the video below to get a quick vehicle walkaround with Matt from AEV.