Newbie questions- Sand driving

[NJRIDE]

Hi, all! Just got my Grenadier in the US. Plan to do a lot of beach driving. I’ve read plenty and watched reviews but wanted to come directly to the source- fellow owners with experience!

What pressure do you run your tires for real soft sand? And anyone recommend a good tire inflater? Or other gear I should keep handy?

Thanks!

 

[anand]

Sand pressures will depend on what environment you're in (actual beach vs in dunes), speed you'll be traveling, and whether or not you'll be applying any side load (turning while moving) at speed.

Also the difference between 17" and 18" wheels will make a slight difference in pressure.

A couple rough guidelines: start at 17-18psi and you can try to go lower; make sure that if you air down you have a way to air up; and make sure you have basic recovery gear.

Personally, ARB air gear has always been a win in my experience. I use their tools for both inflating and deflating.

For recovery gear, make sure you have appropriate shackles and a kinetic rope/strap that is appropriately sized for the vehicle. Maxtrax (or similar generics) could definitely be helpful as well.

 

[baders]

In addition to anand's excellent reply, make sure you have Electronic Stability Control turned OFF (use Offroad Mode) when tackling dunes. You do not want it to limit traction half way up.

 

[OGrid]

For soft sand @anand has got that covered in the response above.

I’ll mention beach driving though, as you mentioned beach then asked about soft sand. Beach driving I run 22psi, as that will get the vehicle safely up to 80-90 km/h (50-56 mph) without worrying about the tyre separating from the wheel. I find this a good general purpose beach driving pressure for the Gren.

18 psi and lower one has to be aware of speed and resisting the urge to do tight turning.

Don’t forget locking the centre diff in high where appropriate. On beach I just leave it locked.

 

[OGrid]

You asked about inflation, to me deflation is more important (boring standing around awaiting for tyres to deflate).

This is my goto deflator, from TJM, I’m not aware if this is available in the USA but the price in Australia is excellent ($57 AUD). It removes the valve core and it’s quick. The similar ARB product is much more expensive and a review rated them similar in accuracy.

TJM DIGITAL TYRE DEFLATOR

Dropping tyre pressures is an easy way to gain traction off-road and make your journey simpler. The TJM Tyre Deflation kit allows you to quickly and accurately adjust your tyre pressures with a digital display read-out and multiple unit of measurement options. Protected by an easy-to-grip rubber...

www.tjm.com.au

 

[AWo]

Sand eats a lot of power, keep the engine on high revs and choose a strong gear (limit where the automatic may switch to).

AWo

 

[Andrew Kilby]

I do a lot of beach driving and 22psi is my go to but if the going is really tough 18psi but for limited times. I have gone down as low as 8psi to get out of a serious bog but immediately air up when out. ARB single compressor is all that is needed for inflation. Staun deflators to go down backed up with a pressure guage.

 

[bamanuke]

Sugar sand down here on the Florida gulf coast, On it every other weekend, never deflated. Lock the center diff and go. Soft sand here really isn't that deep though. Nothing like that stuff Down Under!

 

[bigleonski]

I’ve had a set of staun deflaters for as long as I can remember and haven’t bothered with anything else.
Local knowledge helps as well - don’t be afraid to ask guys that have been where you are going.
I’ll let them down to 18psi at Fraser Island and have no problems all week generally.
But I know the beaches on the west coast and Tassie for example get heaps of hidden weed and super soft sand as a result so they may use a different psi as their go to.
As said above, letting them down even just a few psi makes a bit difference when it gets hard going, so experimenting doesn’t hurt, and if you’re really struggling 8-10psi helps get out of most things.
And don’t forget if you let them down you need to pump them back up. The number of times some bloke has been stuck and said he didn’t want to let them down any further because he had no way of getting them back up. So get a decent compressor and don’t rely on others.
Same with recovery gear. Get your own and don’t rely on someone else having gear.
But the big thing is if you’re stopped and not going anywhere regardless of pressure, get off the loud pedal and either let your tyre pressure down or use your maxtrax etc. It doesn’t matter what tyre pressure you have, if your body is stuck firmly on the sand to the chassis rails and you’ve dug big holes under your tryes from revving thw crap out of it, you’re going nowhere fast and up for lots and lots of work.


Oh, and sorry if you know all of this, I’m writing for the benefit of a newby, you may not be.

 

[Sven]

In the sand , lower is the pressure better is the ride , i live in the sand in the south of France , personally when I have problems , i go to 5 psi !!!!

but to start in the sand , 14psi is good

 

[trobex]

For anyone looking for a good deflator kit- I have recently been using the RAXAR auto deflators - comes in a 4x set and seems to be within 1psi accuracy using my digital gauge to check. Brass and ally construction, seem pretty solid and for me were good value in the sub $70AUD range and 2 year warranty etc etc.

RAXAR is part of the Bapcor product group. Not that it matters much but they are well known supplier of vehicle parts and accessories in SE ASIA.

https://autobarn.com.au/ab/Autobarn-Category/Shop-our-Full-Range-by-Brand-at-Autobarn/Raxar/RAXAR-4x4-Tyre-Deflators---RX10018/p/203842

 

[TheDocAUS]

This Ronny Dahl video look at tyre pressures, including on sand and in the Grenadier.

View: https://youtu.be/_BSQe-DGnIQ

 

[Michael H.]

The Ronny Dahl video look at tyre pressures, including on sand and in the Grenadier.

View: https://youtu.be/_BSQe-DGnIQ

I thought it was interesting that he didn’t understand the 4psi “rule”.

 

[Asnes]

This is a great thread. I’ve done a bunch of off-pavement travel but have only been on sand once or twice and it was ages ago.

Now I’m in Florida and I plan to go out exploring some more, so this is helpful.

Regarding compressors …. I was going to install a single chamber ARB unit under the rear seat which will fit neat and tidy there. The dual unit installed in the spare wheel cavity is appealing but I think I’d prefer to keep trash in there.

That being said between the single and dual ARB unit, are most running a single unit for stock-size wheels? I don’t see myself moving up from stock tires on 17” wheels for some time.

@Andrew Kilby sounds like single unit works well for you. How long does it take to air from 20->35 for instance on 32’s?

Any real reason to contemplate the dual other than speed to inflation? (I assume it’s basically twice as fast). I just don’t want to drop the $$ and then kick myself because I should have spent a little more for the dual unit.

 

[trobex]

I personally have not had a tire below 14psi - although seeing others get out tricky situations at 10-12psi gives me a little confidence to try it if needed.

 

[globalgregors]

This is a great thread. I’ve done a bunch of off-pavement travel but have only been on sand once or twice and it was ages ago.

Now I’m in Florida and I plan to go out exploring some more, so this is helpful.

Regarding compressors …. I was going to install a single chamber ARB unit under the rear seat which will fit neat and tidy there. The dual unit installed in the spare wheel cavity is appealing but I think I’d prefer to keep trash in there.

That being said between the single and dual ARB unit, are most running a single unit for stock-size wheels? I don’t see myself moving up from stock tires on 17” wheels for some time.

@Andrew Kilby sounds like single unit works well for you. How long does it take to air from 20->35 for instance on 32’s?

Any real reason to contemplate the dual other than speed to inflation? (I assume it’s basically twice as fast). I just don’t want to drop the $$ and then kick myself because I should have spent a little more for the dual unit.

Other reasons for the dual are redundancy, convoy use and air tools, these are remote use benefits which I doubt would apply in Florida.
Or 35”+ tyres of course, which also is maybe not your case.
Despite now having the dual installed, used the single for years including RTW. Sticking one under the rear seat is an excellent idea.

 

[Andrew Kilby]

This is a great thread. I’ve done a bunch of off-pavement travel but have only been on sand once or twice and it was ages ago.

Now I’m in Florida and I plan to go out exploring some more, so this is helpful.

Regarding compressors …. I was going to install a single chamber ARB unit under the rear seat which will fit neat and tidy there. The dual unit installed in the spare wheel cavity is appealing but I think I’d prefer to keep trash in there.

That being said between the single and dual ARB unit, are most running a single unit for stock-size wheels? I don’t see myself moving up from stock tires on 17” wheels for some time.

@Andrew Kilby sounds like single unit works well for you. How long does it take to air from 20->35 for instance on 32’s?

Any real reason to contemplate the dual other than speed to inflation? (I assume it’s basically twice as fast). I just don’t want to drop the $$ and then kick myself because I should have spent a little more for the dual unit.

To do all 4 wheels air up from 20 to 35 I guess 15 minutes. Not long.

 

[Asnes]

To do all 4 wheels air up from 20 to 35 I guess 15 minutes. Not long.

Thanks so much.