X-Trail in sand

[freefish]

Have read the previous thread about these in sand & note that the transmission can overheat & shut down. Talked to the mechanic & he agrees & reckons that once this happens & if any troubles with the transmission Nissan will not honour the warranty. Seems they are Ok with dirt but not off-road use (whatever the difference is). Seems soft sand is the real no-no. Anyone heard anything on these lines? Bill

[ozscott]

I have generally about the soft roaders with the viscous clutch type "centre diff" type arrangement. I have towed a few CRVs and similar at Straddie. I have read a bit about them and overall I reckon that for sand work most cars will do OK until you hit that 2 foot deep patch of cut up soft soft sand that you will hit and then you would wish that you had decided on an offroader like one of the big 3 to be on the sand with.

Cheers

[gone_fishing]

most dealers will not honor warranty that is cosidered use is out of the normal range without meeting the service requrement of extreme conditions depending on your claim of course
so if you own a mid size softroader and cook a transmision doing beach work which is not that uncommen your up for the bill even towing is considered extreme have a read of a handbook on recommended service schedules

[jimbamb]

Sand driving is extremely trying on transmissions and clutches... If you dont believe me get out after a trip on the beach and feel the gear box...From what ive read few softroaders are designed to handle the extra pressure applied dy driving in sand.Auto;s get hot and manuals give the clutch a workout
There was a lot of discussion about xtrails failing on noosa north shore beaches a couple of years ago.nissan wanted nothing to do with it as they claimed they were being used in extreme conditions.