Here's how the fridge stacks up against a Jeep and
a set of 35-inch mud terrains.
Easier Than Ice
The fridge slid right in, making easy work of a one-handed
reach-around.
It all boils down to a bit of ancient history. And I'll
lay it out for you quite the same way it all went down, the distasteful
truth. Once upon the end of a three-day trip through the desert lived
a horrid soup of soggy sandwiches, the sour reek of rotten fruit and
worse of all, warm beer! And that's the way it was back in the Ice Age,
back before this stone-stacking Jeeper got his hands on an ARB Freezer
Fridge.
Somewhere in between my cold-beer convulsions and the
affliction in my gut, I crawled out of my cave and into the saga of
contemporary America, "Give me convenience, or give me death."
Cell phones and silicone have become standard issue for
the SUV-driving soccer moms. I simply thought, "why not one-up them
with a new trail-made mandate: cold beverages in the back of every Jeep
and an ice cream-environment at the shift of the switch?"
Whammo! An instant success! All those who have thus far
enjoyed a cold one from the back my Jeep have certainly agreed, "I need me an ARB Freezer Fridge.
"
Yea, get your own cold one, buddy. This one's mine.
The Chill On The Hill
It climbed, crawled and cruised over washboard roads, but
when the Jeep dropped from a vertical ledge, I thought the
fridge would have fried. But, the big chill of the fridge
never faltered.
It Won't Loose Your Load
What isn't standard equipment on most ice chests is on the
ARB Freezer Fridge, a latch.
The rugged 41 Quart model (MT40E-AL) retails for a
credit card-melting $750 at 4 Wheel Parts Performance Centers It is
large enough to host two cases of canned beverages, cold cuts, eggs
and condiments for an army of two to chow-down on for the duration of
a four-day trail ride through the blistering heat of the desert.
The dimensions of this unit are perfect for the back of
a CJ-7 or any of the Wranglers. I've cozied-out a spot between the rear
wheel wells for my unit. I can squeeze a six gallon water bottle on
one end and a tent and other camping equipment on the other.
I'm able to stuff more than two folding chairs up front
and a Contico lock box in the rear. I usually strap it down with the
set of seat belts left over from the rear bench seat.
As far as security is concerned, I have yet to come up
with a feasible lock to fend off them Baja bandits. I'll put this on
the list of things to do.
I've named it the Desert Paradox. You can have your cake
and eat the frosty-cold ice cream too, no matter how many day's you
are from civilization.There are five settings, five being the equivalent
of a deep arctic freeze. To put it into perspective, my first bottle
of Samuel Adams was more like a slushy than a smooth American made cerveza.On
a setting of three, the 98-degree day was no match for the glacial chill
of the ARB Fridge Freeze.
Dead batteries? I seriously doubt it. I'm running a two-year-old
battery in my CJ, and after an eight hour slumber, the straight-six
fired up with a the usual quick blip of the ignition. At peak operation,
it drains a near 3 Amps of go-go juice from Old Sparky, hardly enough
to concern this worry wart.
I'll tell'ya, the Fridge is a lazy man's dream. After
a weekend of rock 'n roll in the dez, you simply yank the 12/24 Volt
D.C. cord out of the Jeep and plug the 120 Volt A.C. cord into the garage
outlet.
Whether you're hosting a garage gathering to install the
new lift kit or chasing down the whim of a fleet-footed rock crawling
run, the ARB Freezer Fridge is ready for the road less traveled.
Unplugged! ! !
Things were going good . . . Until I heard, "She ain't got
no power captain!" The plugs loose fit in the cigarette lighter
caused the plug to arch, and that's when the fridge flew south
for the winter.
Keep'em Caged
The easy way to load and unload the weekend's contents was
simple due to the cage. Not only did it keep the contents
managable, but it made the cleanup a cinch.
And so it was on a recent ORC adventure, several days into Baja's
no-man's land, we had cold cuts and a timely Tecate all the way to Cabo
and back, 3,000 miles worth! There was no need for the frequent stops
at the ice wagon. It was a cold-cruise the whole way through. Ordinarily,
the space-wasting block of ice would have liquified into uselessness
by the time we reached Mulege, but this time, it was non-stop Tecate-time.
Just The Facts
Model
MT30E
MT40E
MT60E
Capacity (Quarts / Liters)
31 / 29
41 / 39
63 / 60
Power Source (Volts)
12/24DC 120 AC
12/24DC 120 AC
12/24DC 120 AC
Average DC Power Consumption (Amps per hour)
0.7 to 3.7
0.7 to 3.7
0.7 to 5.7
Weight (Lbs/Kg)
44 / 20
48 / 22
70 / 32
Dimensions
H 14 3/4 W 24 7/8 D 17 1/4
H 18 3/4 W 24 7/8 D 17 1/4
H 17 3/8 W 31 1/8 D 19 1/4
Editor's "Note To Self":
"When in Rome, do as the Romans. When in the back of my Jeep,
grab a couple of cold ones from the fridge."
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