Using Small Car For Hunting

When my friend and I go up for deer or bear we go in his Honda Fit - AKA the battle wagon :)

We pack enough gear and food for a week. We use a 55 gal food grade barrel to transport the meat. We will dress and skin the animal and put it in. Stop at a gas station and get several bags of ice to keep it cool for the trip back to the city. It's a tight squeeze once it's all loaded up in the car.
 
When I was in collage, my roomie, our buddy and myself went caribou hunting in central NFLD in a 4 dr Toyota tercel hatchback. Made it home with all our gear, body parts and a fat doe. My buddy drove the car right to the downed caribou with all our gear already loaded. Great memories.
Adam
 
Arclight said:
When my friend and I go up for deer or bear we go in his Honda Fit - AKA the battle wagon :)

We pack enough gear and food for a week. We use a 55 gal food grade barrel to transport the meat. We will dress and skin the animal and put it in. Stop at a gas station and get several bags of ice to keep it cool for the trip back to the city. It's a tight squeeze once it's all loaded up in the car.
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The dimensions that Honda publishes for the Fit are false. That car is bigger on the inside than on the outside.
 
really dumb

I have hunted for years with either a jeep cherokee or Liberty. We routinely had 2 to four of us hunting, with gear, in the vehicle. The most I stuffed in was either 2 whitetails and 2 mules. 3 whitetails, A huge 56" spread Bull moose (3 hunters with gear) or two cow moose in my Liberty ( 3 hunters and gear).

It can be done with first proper cooling of the meat before you load. Have a good size disposable tarp to cover the rugs in the back. And a split rear seat is really handy to give the third hunter a seat.

That is my experience hunting the last 42 years.

Craziest thing I ever saw was two young fellows stuffing a couple whitetails into a Subaru Justy. Yep.....that tiny AWD econo box.. A sight to behold. It had like 1.5l engine, 13 inch tires and maybe 4 inches of clearance. It was a hatchback as a saving grace.

One hunting season I owned a Eagle SX4 4X4 sports car. It is a two seater hatch back. It needed a full size spare in the hatch. The back seat could only accomodate one person sitting sideways. I shoot a very large WT doe. We had to wiggle it in around the tire, under the hatch, folded down seat and still leave a spot for one guy to ride in the back. There was not a cubic inch to spare.....in defence, That Eagle SX4 sport coupe went well in the back woods. Great tires, clearance and power of the inline 4 liter engine. I had trail capabilities comparable to a Cherokee.
 
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TheTooner said:
The dimensions that Honda publishes for the Fit are false. That car is bigger on the inside than on the outside.
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It is roomy on the inside. Still with 2 big tall guys, kit, weapons, food, and what my friend calls a "Dexter Barrel" it is a tight squeeze.
 
TheTooner said:
The dimensions that Honda publishes for the Fit are false. That car is bigger on the inside than on the outside.
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I had a Suzuki Swift like that once, went down the States and took my wife and all my mountain biking gear. Unfortunately the car got totalled in California and we had to fly home, leaving my gear there. My parents went down later with their minivan and had problems taking all my gear back :)
 
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5x5 whitetail on the top of my 92 Ford Festiva. It was a big deer. That car was tough. Handled a lot until I hit a pregnant deer with it doing 110.
 
Getting to the deer hunting woods these days (with the price of gas being so high) is cheaper in the car (had a Horizon for years) especially just for a day hunt so yes, it is easy enough to bring a deer home in a small car. I would suggest that you have a big plastic tub on hand to put it in as it will bleed quit a bit after dressing, especially if you are going directly home and don't have time to hang it in the bush to bleed out. Keep the windows down so the air will help it cool. I don't know about a moose....though! The car would probably be bogged-down...look funny with its hooves hanging out the window...Small cars are better for grouse hunting trips and waterfowl outings....winter rabbits....and scouting....
 
Arclight said:
It is roomy on the inside. Still with 2 big tall guys, kit, weapons, food, and what my friend calls a "Dexter Barrel" it is a tight squeeze.
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I had a Suzuki SC100 GX. That was in England so I never took it hunting but needs must one time I took five passengers (drunk infantry officers) in it at once.
 
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One thing I wanted to add to this discussion of “interesting” hunting vehicles:

It can and is done regularly but always pay attention to conditions and vehicle capabilities!

Trucks and SUVs have space but their capability can also handle terrain that can become unsafe/impassable in cars.

I once met a random fellow and his lady on a muddy, inclined range road while hunting. We were elated to see each other, you would have thought we were old friends. We then took turns both pushing our two cars up the muddy incline to passable road while his lady drove. Each vehicle would have been hopelessly stuck otherwise and the walk out would not have been pleasant. The weekend before the roads were dry and I cruised them for hours without issue. Lesson learned.
 
My dad and I brought 2 large white tailed deer bucks home in a 1985 Nissan Sentra sedan, both in the trunk. My dad had quartered the animals in the field. My mother was not happy about it.
 
My wife and I have agreed on getting the Subaru Crosstreck. I saw a bunch of photos of people who lifted them 1.5 - 2" higher with mud tires and thought that is the perfect compromise. Standard 6 speed transmission, off road capable, city slicker car for her. Might even be large enough for me to buck up a moose with an electric chainsaw and shove it back there or on the roof.


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I have an old beat up Tracker that we took off the road,runs fine and has 4wd but not worth much. I think I will put a set of aggressive tread on it ,maybe lift it if it’s not too complicated and use it as a hunting vehicle.I might even give it a spray can camo paint job,It would be a fraction of the cost of buying a side by side quad.You don’t have to spend a ton of money if you don’t care about looks..
 
Outside the vehicle is not the place for your game. Too much crap on the road that could end up on and in your meat. The bed of a truck is ok, but only barely. Inside a canopy or well wrapped is better. On the hood or roof, while funny to joke about, is pla N stupid. I’m not keen on eating dirt or road salt.
 
Mumbles Marble Mouth said:
My wife and I have agreed on getting the Subaru Crosstreck. I saw a bunch of photos of people who lifted them 1.5 - 2" higher with mud tires and thought that is the perfect compromise. Standard 6 speed transmission, off road capable, city slicker car for her. Might even be large enough for me to buck up a moose with an electric chainsaw and shove it back there or on the roof.


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Subaru has a history of being anti-hunting.
 
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