Tyre pressure & gear slection on beach...

[sidewayz]

I've been going up the beach on 4wd treks and camping expeditions since i was a young fella with the folks but now i have my own 4wd i'm gonna start doing a bit of it myself. We normally run about 20psi in the tyres (and drop it if we get into a bit of trouble), i was just wondering the sort of pressure everyone runs in their tyres and how they usually tackle the soft sand crossovers? I've also got a 4.1m tinnie and was hoping to tow it up the beach, but i've been a bit apprehensive before i get some advice?

Cheers
Sidewayz

[Leigh77]

when it comes to tyre pressures there is no such thing as a designated psi...every truck is different with the truck weights, and tyre sizes. This is all involved when deciding what psi to run...I own a HJ60 and run my tyres at around 16psi when on the beach.

Probably the best thing to do would be drop them to around 25psi...try that...drop them again if needed...only by 2-3psi at a time and stop when you think the vehicle is working at a good level. Thats what I did when I got my new tyres fitted! seemed to give me a good result.

As for the soft stuff...make sure your path is clear...pick the right gear...keep the revs up and go for it! Oh, and dont do what I see so many people do and wait till they are bogged before engaging 4wd!

[fatboy74]

I run 33s on both my trucks and i dont drop tyre pressure on the soft stuff and the hard stuff.

[sidewayz]

Yeah i have a 97 cruiser ute, i've only taken it on the beach once so far in the 4 months i've had it, but it's going to get a bit of a work out when i get a few free weekends. I don't think i'll forget to put it in 4wd Leigh ;D
I've driven a bit on the beach but was just curious to how everyoner goes about things. It's always handy to pick up a few pointers..

Cheers

[Daintreeboy]

Sounds like you have everything covered. My only advice is don't hesitate to use low range. My Patrol is quite heavy and works quite well in low range 3rd on the soft stuff, high range is fine for harder sand and at a higher speed. Your cruiser has lower gearing so you may get away with high range but it depends on the type of sand.
Cheers, Mark.

[CHRIS_aka_GWH]

sidewayz,

are you saying you run 20psi on the tar?

You've seen my beast. It is a 2litre slug & The Cooper H/Ts on it run at 36psi (240kpa) on the road & i've never had to lower pressure on the beach on tracks or accesses.

Tyres with low pressure can heat up, fatigue sidewalls, pop off rims & contribute to rollovers - use your gears & less throttle - a decent beach driver uses low tyre pressure as a last resort. It is a balance between traction, speed, power & gear ratio.

I hear of guys lowering tyre pressure to increase speed across the sand - absolute fools. A low pressured tyre should not be operated at speed. If you don't have the traction reduce the throttle & change the ratio - speed is sacrificed - safety is maintained as is the integrity of a $250 (x4) purchase.

The current thinking, I was advised by a "Stinky" man, was that H/Ts are better on the sand than A/Ts as the tread pattern floats across the top rather than grabbing & digging & the natural ballooning of the sidewall assist - his advice was spot on the money.


chris

[slugo]

go with leigh77 advise and get to know your vehicle and what it can do.i do beach driving 4x4 buses 4x4 cruises most days doing tours and every beach is different and they can change conditions each day depending on the weather.as daintreeboy said don't hesitate to use low range. go have fun and enjoy

[PG]

Chris, Am I right in thinking you don't lower your tyre pressure? only as a last resort? Where I come from it's considered damaging to the environment NOT to lowere tyre pressure and it's the lenght of th tyre in contact with the sand/ground that gives traction not the belly out.
I've seen a foolin a patrol try his hardest to make it over a dune and chopped it up so it was very dificult for the following people to get through even though their tyurte pressure was lowered
For the small inconvenience of lower speed, lowere pressure in tyres makes all the world ofsense to me.

[jethro6641]

High tyre pressures and two wheel drive on inland tracks only causes corregations and floggs suspension out. Having lived and worked on Fraser Island for two years and visted the islnd towing a boat several times a year ever since I can say that tyre pressures have everything to do with sand driving. I have always run 20 psi on both car and trailer on the sand and when the sand is very powdery I have dropped tyres down as far as 12 psi and been able to drive out of every situation without flogging the vehicle.

Just my opinion.

Jamie

[sidewayz]

Chris, No i wasn't saying i ran 20 psi on the bitumen. I drop it when i get to the beach. If the crossings aren't too bad i don't drop the pressure as much, so i can have more pressure in them when i'm on the hard sand.

Cheers

[jimbamb]

Sideways,
Everyone seems to have covered the issue,I agree,only let ya tyres down if there is a lot of soft powdery sand,start at 20 psi,Wide tyres dont need to be loweered as much as narrow ones.As jethro says LOWER the TRAILER tyres as well as your car tyres.Momentum is the most important thing,Select a gear that will get you across the soft section with as little wheel spin as possible.Low low isnt a good option as there is no momentun to get u over the sand.try lo second or third.sometimes high first or second will do the job depending on your particular vehicle.Find a bit of soft sand and experiment,without the trailer,thats the best way to learn then hook the trailer up and go back 1 gear,Thats my advise 4 wat its worth/.
Good luck

[CHRIS_aka_GWH]

also, if you don't have excellent clearance, following someone elses ruts can be counter productive particulary if towing. You are more likely to drag your diffs & hitch. Pick a trail on the high ground either side being cautious not to "fall in"

[shano]

the amount of people i see at rainbow using low to get off the beach amazes me! they gain no momentum and will 9 times out of 10 bog it!! go high range!

[brush]

Always drop the tyre pressures , To get to the hard sand there is Soft sand. I have a MU and a 80 series ,they are like "cheese and chalk"
Where I live, at Moore Park Beach there a lot of black soft sand and I need to keep the revs up on the Lcruiser in the black, the MU just turbos on. Cheers Brush

[Needmorerum]

Obviously everyone does things different. I've been driving on sand for years and the best set up depends on different vehicles. I drove a turbo petrol 80 series cruiser on Rhules beach, and never had a problem. I then drove my diseasel 80 series and sunk like a stone. Not enough get up and go to keep it moving.
Having a Cruiser Ute, I would take it that it is diseasel. My recommendations would be to see how hard the sand is. I never use high range to get going on the beach, to much riding the clutch for my liking, I always start off in low range then change into high range on the fly if I am going that fast. The bonus of constant 4WD.
I also have two sets of Staun tyre deflaters. One set at 22psi for forestry and general off road, the other set at 12psi for beach work. I always drop down to at least 15psi for the beach. This gives less stress on everything, especially the clutch.
In saying this, I was at Rainbow beach a few weeks ago and would think that you could nearly drive all over the place in high range and with 30psi in the tyres. I would then challenge anyone who does this to drive up to Rhules beach and do the run down to the mouth of Baffle Creek. For anyone that has been to Rhules beach, you'll now how soft the sand is.
Sidewayz, take each beach run by the merits of the day. Have a look and see how others are going. There is nothing to be too worried about, as soon as things start to sink, stop and let tyre pressures down. Go all the way if you need to.
Once bogged on Rhules, I screwed the valves out all the way and completely flattened all tyres, drove off the beach then put the valves back in and pumped them back up again. If you have a fair distance to travel with tyres deflated, then drive very slowly, with no hard cornering.

Corry

[bay_firey]

So Corry, what do you charge for personal tuition in sand driving ?? ;D ;D

[dn]

hey everybody

going to fraser this easter with my new hilux SR5 with the original tyres 255/70/15...should i expect any problem maybe when coming off the barge?

what about on the soft sand at noosa northshore to get into the beach?

thanks for your help

dn

[GBC]

Dn, the only probs you'll have is if you overload the thing. O.E. springs in the back will bottom out quick, and the new lux is low as a skateboard anyway. Heaps of grunt though will allways work in your favour.

[Doomy]

20PSI and Low Range through the cuttings in 2nd or 3rd works for me.

[choppa]

hi there sidewayz,,, i'm only new to this forum but couldn't help looking at the various responses to your question and yes i do agree,,,everyone does it different,,,, as a few pointers,,, underinflated tyres does riun the risk of tyres poppin of the rims,,,, insurance is out the door also as any assessor will classify the car ""unroadworthy"" if discovered a claim involves under inflation,,, this question was popular 20 yrs ago when most 4bies ran tyres the width of a smoke packet,,, but today all tyre widths are adequate to carry the vehicle across sand as long as the driver has enough common sense to deal with the situation,,, i've been running 4x4's since i was 18,,, and do a hell of a lot of beach work,,, both in personal and for my business use,,, happy to report that i've never dropped tyre pressure to get from point a to b,,,, however i have done so to get out of a sticky situation or 2,,,so it leaves the question,,, if i had of dropped psi prior to the sticky situation,,, would i have got stuck????? personally i think i still would have,, but i can honestly say the compressor on board my current set of wheels has been used a hell of a lot more on other peoples cars than mine,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,choppa

[DALEPRICE]

so if you had two identical cars and
one was running 18psi in his\her tyres and
the other running 36 psi they would go
exactly the same..............

pretty sure if you have a look around at the local's
cars on moreton or the pro's that get around they all
have deflated tyres
pumped up tyres on the beach :-/
my 2 cents worth and i could very well be wrong.

[finding_time]

Giday Dale
can i drive the vehicle with the 18 psi ;)

Ian

Ps my vehicle runs 283/75's and these leave a very big foot print but the differance between even 22psi and 15 psi is HUGE!! :D

[PeterT]

I teach 4wd off road driving and recovery. You should never, never drive at high speed with tyres deflated, and never make sharp turns. #Most people don't understand why you lower pressure when driving on sand. It is not just a matter of making a wider track by artificially making a wider tyre.

Lowering the pressure spreads the tyre but also allows the tyre to bulge in over the face of the tread contacting the sand. (see the rude drawing attached).This means that in effect you are running on a rail of sand that can't squeeze out from under the tyre.

We do are fair bit of beach running in troopys with standard razor blade toyota tyres. Big fatties are just not economic in places where you can get 2 or 3 flats ranging from a puncture to a complete rip to shreads special in an outing. Im not talking about tourist driving but travelling remote Arnhem land week in week out including soft beach sand and hard beach driving.

My suggestion is to go and do an off road driving and recovery course. They are great fun and even the most experienced off roader learns something, if not from the teacher, then from the other off-roaders who always have a trick or two of their own.

pete

[JEWIENEWIE]

Corry, i know exactly what yu are talking about. I go to rhules beach every year for a 6wk stint and camp up at mitchels ck mouth, towing my tinny. Softest sand i have ever driven in, troopy does it no worries, tyre pressure 20psi, low high range, no worrries.
Jewienewie

[grayson]

Mmmm, lots of opinions here. I live WA and not letting your tyres down is considered akin to some sort of crime. At some places (Steep Point included) the ranger will apply extremely heavy per tyre fines for any tyre over 20psi. This is because the tracks just get chewed to buggery and very corrugated (hard sand to soft sand conditions). Whilst I agree that you could get away with not letting your tyres down, I just wouldn't do it. Also, most of my beach fishing haunts are in areas of extremely soft fine powdery sand and steep sloping beaches and I run my tyres between 12psi and 20psi depending on the area. I have stopped to assist quite a few people bogged at my beach fishing haunts and all we did most times to get them out was let their tyres down to 15psi, clear the front of the wheels and drive the car out. At Bornholm beach near Denmark, you will struggle to get out up the massive dune track in summer unless you are running 10-12psi!!! These pressures are for 265/285 x70/75x 16 size tyres on a reasonable laden to heavily laden 80 series wagon. The talk about tyres at low pressures heating up and rolling off rims etc is all true, so you obviously adjust driving accordingly. My beach work with very low pressures is generally done at speeds not exceeding 30kph. At a hard packed sand beach such as can be found at cable Beach, you could drive it in a commodore or falcon with normal tyre pressures. I guess theres just way too many different situations to agree on a common approach????

[adds31]

I have a 04 hilux t/d dual cab and have know worries in the sand, touch wood. Sydeway's, Check out the sand conditions especially if it hasn;t rained for a while and during peak holiday times, the going could get tough. I run factory skinny's on the lux and run about 15psi and use second or third gear low range through very soft sand cause of trailer axle drag in sand and is pretty effective. Every car is different but i use those low gears cause the turbo holds in very well and doesn't stall, unless you back off plus it still gives you the momentum you need for most sticky situations. Hope it helps.

Cheers Adds...

[rubba]

i drop mine down to 20psi before even getting on beach and im amazed by the number of people bogged that i pass.and they are always stopped in main track then the buddys pull up all around them drinking beers an have no condsiteration about any one else.While we try and get around them with out running them over.in real soft stuff i go down to 16psi and find the going very easy