D4 Beach Work

[Celtoid]

Hi,

I talked to LR about infrequent beach use in my D4 and whether it needs extra anti-corrosion treatment. He says no, as long as the vehicle is well cleaned afterwards.

Thoughts anybody?

[sniegy]

I kinda agree, I visit Robe every 2 years, & will be going this weekend also.
I also visit Warnambool often & the coast. I dont see any effect on any of my vehicles as long as you give them a good wash with fresh water there & on return.
It is not like the USA & UK where they salt there roads because of snow.
Thats a different problem altogether.

Cheers

[Celtoid]

I kinda agree, I visit Robe every 2 years, & will be going this weekend also.
I also visit Warnambool often & the coast. I dont see any effect on any of my vehicles as long as you give them a good wash with fresh water there & on return.
It is not like the USA & UK where they salt there roads because of snow.
Thats a different problem altogether.

Cheers

Thanks mate, I'm off to Frazer Island at the end of the month...should be great.

Cheers.

Celtoid. D4 SE 3.0TD

[Disomania]

In my D1, I did a couple of beach runs and found one of those auto car washes that had the full underbody wash and just used that. The high pressure was did wonders too. I had looked at the sand that was still under the car when we go home and knew it had to go and as the Karcher had gone to a mates (too lazy to drive 100km round trip to fetch) I found the car wash. Cleaned ALL the sand out, and a couple of chunks of dirt I had missed with the Karcher - they were in the middle of the car wash at the end.

[Celtoid]

When I purchased my D4 the salesman mentioned about removing the bumper covers pre-4WD trips, to expose the hitch/recovery points.

I'm off to Fraser Island on Monday and have been getting my gear ready. I've just taken the front cover off but now the bottom of the radiator appears very exposed.

Am I worrying about nothing? Am I doing the wrong thing...as in, should I just leave the cover on until it needs to be removed?

Cheers,

Kev.

[sniegy]

Kev, Take them off & leave them at home, that way you wont put them down when/if needed & leave them there.....Thats frustrating!

p.s. Robe was excellent & a LOT of fun.

Cheers & have a great trip.

[Celtoid]

Kev, Take them off & leave them at home, that way you wont put them when/if needed & leave them there.....Thats frustrating!

p.s. Robe was excellent & a LOT of fun.

Cheers & have a great trip.


Thanks mate, will do.

Great to hear.

Yeah I'm really looking forward to it.

Bought a set of Maxtrax.....couldn't bear the thought of having to be recovered by my mate in his Prado....;)

[DiscoWeb]

When I purchased my D4 the salesman mentioned about removing the bumper covers pre-4WD trips, to expose the hitch/recovery points.

I'm off to Fraser Island on Monday and have been getting my gear ready. I've just taken the front cover off but now the bottom of the radiator appears very exposed.

Am I worrying about nothing? Am I doing the wrong thing...as in, should I just leave the cover on until it needs to be removed?

Cheers,

Kev.

Kev,

The front one in particular is quite flimsy and I removed both of them for my first beach trip and have left the front one off ever since. Having done a bit of both beach/sand work and bush tracks etc I have yet to have anything pose a problem to the radiator.

The main problem with the front one off is putting the stupid thing back on, it has they little receiver clips where you seat and turn the studs, however if you push too against hard the receiver pops out of their little seats and are almost impossible to recover and reposition.

i could imagine the front one getting ripped of quite easily in sand and last thing you want to do anyway if you are stuck is have to mess around removing a cover to access the recovery point.

So that as a long answer to your question, the short anwsers are;

1. Yes - you are worrying unnecessarily;
2. Yes - you should remove the covers and leave them at home until you retunn;

Enjoy the trip,

George

[Dorko]

Personally I dont remove the bumper cover... waste of time if you have the maxtrax. If you dont have the maxtraxs worst case get snatch backwards and all you need is a 10cent coin to open the cover.

I've been bogged a few times now in the Disco from:

A) 7 boys in the car and
B) a heavy disco

= Epic Fail in soft sand.

But the maxtrax - low range, works everytime! :d

Dorko

[DiscoWeb]

Dorko,

I think the issue is the strong possibility that the cover is ripped off in soft sand, mud etc. I am thinking of driving along on soft sand, dig the front end in going up or down a dip too fast and the flimsy clips let go and you either destroy the cover or lose it completely.

One thing we can all agree on is that replacing any part on an LR seems very expensive so whilst I have no idea about the cost of these covers for the sake of 30 sec removing it before a trip then I for one think it is worthwhile.

George

[gps-au]

Dorko,

I think the issue is the strong possibility that the cover is ripped off in soft sand, mud etc.

HA ! I lost my front cover in FLOOD WATER !

Just a little to fast to keep that bow wave big enough so those "unable to rise to the occasion" vehicles behind me didn't drown
[bigwhistle]

[Bushwanderer]

Hi All,
I think that you'll find that LR, through their manual, advise removing the covers from the front and rear tow points (and the spare wheel) before venturing off road.

Best Wishes,
Peter

[jtonline]

I recommend taking them off, the covers are only for making the bumpers 'pretty' and then if you do have to get recovered and take them off, you don't have to think about where you will store them in the car? I know the back cover is only $30, I had to replace mine :( (put down and not picked up syndrome).

And any way it isn't for your recovery it is all the others over on Fraser that you feel the need to recover and put some pride in your chest (or head) cause a Land Rover had to rescue them, that is the real reason to take them off and leave them at home.

Have a great trip! Oh and post some pictures, please.

[Guss]

Does anyone remove their mud flaps for off road / sand driving?

I've had a couple torn off :(

[WhiteD3]

Not me. I wait for them to break, then fall off, and then buy a new set:D

[Guss]

Not me. I wait for them to break, then fall off, and then buy a new set:D


Yep that's what I've been doing, expensive though...

Heading to Straddie for a week for a bit of beach driving with trailer, I have to remember DSC off, DSC off, DSC off... :)

[Graeme]

(and the spare wheel) before venturing off road.
I hadn't spotted that. Where do they recommend one puts the spare wheel?

[rmp]

I hadn't spotted that. Where do they recommend one puts the spare wheel?

I saw one LR video where they removed the spare from under the vehicle and carefully placed it in the centre of the rear cargo area and tied it down. So, that's where it goes then.

The presenter went on to mention the benefits of taking a mobile phone to summon assistance.

[Celtoid]

Hi All,

Thanks for everybody's input and advice.

Returned yesterday from Fraser Island safe and sound. It's a beautiful place with lots to see and do and plenty of tracks to check out in a 4X4. Even though it rained heaps it was still a great trip with some funny moments and one low flying incident that myself and the family would rather not repeat.

I'm not certain if there is actually any sand left on the island, as I seem to have had it all in my car.

The D4 once again ate everything up with 'aplomb' as it says in the handbook....:) and the 3.0L TD was just superb......one tank of juice all week with lots of driving everyday.

Anyway, technical points:

Tyres: Had the standard tyres on the 19 inch rims. I dropped them to just below 20psi to tackle the heavy, soft stuff leading up to the barge. As I said, it had been raining so it was pretty easy...although having never driven on sand before the feeling of wandering all over the shop took a bit of getting used to.

The tyres did look pretty sick sitting on the hard deck of the barge...even the barge operator asked me if I had them too soft....the D4 was pretty heavily laden. :(

Due to the wet I never really struggled at any time, even in really deep sand but I could see the potential had it been really dry. I ended up putting up the pressure a little to 21 psi as a lot of the tracks had exposed tree roots which hit pretty hard. Even at 21, no issues ever.

Terrain Response: Turned everything off for the hard/semi-hard stuff, as it just didn't need anything. And even when I hit occasional pockets of soft stuff, it still handled it all fine. Occasionally I knocked the shift into Sport Mode, just to lift the revs.

In heavy sand, I selected Sand Mode and Low Range....absolutely fantastic....just chewed it all up and listening to the diesel growl just really appealed to me but drew comments and wierd looks from my family as I found myself unconsciously mimicking the noise.....gggrrrrrr, gggrrrr, ggrrrr.....LOL!!!! [bigwhistle]

I did find the display a bit quirky when I'd shut the engine off or changed another screen selection. Often lost the Diff Lock icons.


DSC: Always Off

Mud Flaps: Hit them plenty of times but they stayed on. :)

Spare Wheel: On

Tow Bar and Hitch: Off (as I figured I didn't need it with the big recovery point on the rear of the vehicle.

Maxrax: Unused.

Recover Point Covers: Off. Now I originally asked the question about these as I was concerned that removing the front one would expose the radiators. Well, I've tested this issue to the extreme during the aforementioned inadvertant low flying incident. If flying off a two foot high creek wash-out at 60kph and ramming the front end of the car into the opposite bank at slightly less speed but hard enough to pop one of my wheel arches, affect my wheel balance and crack my rego plate cover, doesn't damage a radiator then normal driving never will unless you unluckily get a rock or stick up in there....:oops2:
How did it happen? Driving along the beach in an 80kph zone on the hard sand, manoevering around and slowing down for obstacles as normal. Was on a patch that looked completely clear and them without any warning, came over the top of what looked like a slight rise and there it was. Thank god I was sub 80 as only ten minutes earlier had had to back off due to the D4's incredible ability to creep up the speedo without being noticed (was doing 90+ without even realising it....just loving the experience and the view).

I hit the picks real hard but I knew there was no way I could stop the D4 in time, so I straightened up on the edge of the drop off to prevent a roll-over and we all braced for the ride. I don't think I assisted my children's vocabulary any and whilst I was confident in the occupants being OK was seriously concened that the D4 was going to get broken. It was a hard landing but the car just didn't flinch....remained perfectly straight, no wobbles, no threat of a roll-over....just a bug thump as we hit the other bank.

Once checking everybody was OK, I got out to inspect the damage. My family with the exception of my son (who thought it was a hoot) were a little shaken but none the worst for the incident. The truck looked fine on the first inspection apart from the broken rego plate cover. Then I noticed all the fluid pouring down the front of the radiator....sh*t, sh*t, sh*t. Stuck on Fraser, tide coming in, dubious insurance cover...sh*t, sh*t, sh*t. Jumped back in, to at least get the car out of the water.....it seemed to drive ok. Got out, took another look...by this time the shock was wearing off. "Hang on a minute"...the fluid was clear, put my finger in it tentatively....it was freezing cold...."woohoo"....it was just the fact that I'd injested half of the river on impact and it was still flooding back out! :arms:

The steering is still tight and it wasn't till I got on the sealed road on the way home and was around 100kph that I felt the slight vibration. And it was only when I got home and was washing the D4 that I realised the front arch was loose....bit of a bum-bump and it was all fixed.

This was an incident I certainly wouldn't recommend to anybody and could quite easily have been very ugly. Thank god I'd slowed down earlier and hadn't been distracted right at that moment. And funnily enough, I was really glad I don't have a Bull-Bar on as I'm certain that would have speared us in. I'm also glad I was driving the Discovery as it seemed non-plussed about the whole thing. :)

As the truck still drove fine afterwards, the trip wasn't spoiled...so that was great.

The gravity of the situation was lighted up, when shortly afterwards, whilst fishing, two Dingos made off with all the bait....:D

Anyway, I'll post some shots, once I download them from my camera and after I figure out how to actually post them...hahaha.

Regards,

Kev.

PS My mate that went to Fraser with me has a 2008 GXL Prado. I have no idea what that comes with standard option wise. It had a leather interior but appeared really basic. Only had some sort of manual diff locker too. Nice enough car but just wasn't in the same league as the D4, looks and finish wise. It drove well but once again, nowhere near as well as the LR. I don't know what he payed for it but I guess it wasn't cheap. It also looked like it had less clearance than the D4 and I noticed him 'levelling' a few tracks with the belly of his car and plowing his towbar.

It did have pretty good fuel economy and a 120L fuel tank and seemed pretty capable as it appeared to have no issues with anything we did....it just wasn't as easy or smooth.

[rmp]

Great story, thanks. That sort of thing happens to us all and I'm glad you were able to drive away.

[Celtoid]

Great story, thanks. That sort of thing happens to us all and I'm glad you were able to drive away.


Thanks Robert, so am I.

Just hope nothing starts falling off down the track...:(

[CaverD3]

I did the same thing in a hired Wrangler on Fraser. :angel:

Easy to do, you can't see the washouts sometimes until it is too late.
Unless you know where the creeks cross the beach you will not be aware. Sat nav with decentst maps would show you where they and you are?

[Celtoid]

I did the same thing in a hired Wrangler on Fraser. :angel:

Easy to do, you can't see the washouts sometimes until it is too late.
Unless you know where the creeks cross the beach you will not be aware. Sat nav with decentst maps would show you where they and you are?


Oops....LOL!!! Much damage?

Yeah it is really easy to do and the fact that they change everyday after the tide doesn't help. Creeks that we crossed one day that I didn't even bother slowing down for needed off-road selection the following day!

My satnav had me in the sea, as the hightide mark must be the official 'land' point. Not sure that it would help anyway as there were quite a few creeks that kept changing direction.

Anyway, we can laugh about it now and it makes for a good story. :)

[CaverD3]

No damage. :)

braked just as I saw it dropped off, released the brakes just before went off the edge. Washout was nice and wide so I didn't hit the other bank.
Just got covered with wet sand and aquired some brown underwear.
I washed the sand off in the creek and they were non the wiser.:D

[sniegy]

Good Story Kev,

Looking forward to the photo's...

Wonder if there will be a brown pants photo...:p:wasntme:

[Celtoid]

Good Story Kev,

Looking forward to the photo's...

Wonder if there will be a brown pants photo...:p:wasntme:

LOL......

Unfortunately I didn't get any shots of the actual event and was a bit too shook up and concerned after the fact to take a photo of the offending creek. I'd have loved to have seen a video though.....:o (that was my face BTW)

Just waiting for my mate to send me the photos he took during the trip as my camera seems to be full of bl**dy Prado shots....hahaha.

OK just tried to attach a couple of good LR PR shots...is there a thread or can somebody talk me through it please....?

[Celtoid]

Oh forgot to mention.....

Whilst on Fraser Island.

After a couple of hours of 'Sand' selected and Low Range on rough tracks, my D4 developed a surge at about 2500rpm. I don't know much about diesels but know that being wet isn't usually an issue for them...and I'd done limited creek crossings but yes it had been raining.....LOL!

I figured gearbox trying to 'adapt'. I pushed the selector over to 'Sport' which obviously changed the rev range. No issue at all then. Back on the hard stuff with everything turned off and it was fine as it has been since.

Anybody else experienced this?

Cheers Kev.

[Disco4SE]

Oh forgot to mention.....

Whilst on Fraser Island.

After a couple of hours of 'Sand' selected and Low Range on rough tracks, my D4 developed a surge at about 2500rpm. I don't know much about diesels but know that being wet isn't usually an issue for them...and I'd done limited creek crossings but yes it had been raining.....LOL!

I figured gearbox trying to 'adapt'. I pushed the selector over to 'Sport' which obviously changed the rev range. No issue at all then. Back on the hard stuff with everything turned off and it was fine as it has been since.

Anybody else experienced this?

Cheers Kev.
Hi Kev, 2500rpm is about when the second turbo kicks in. This may be it.
Cheers, Craig

[Graeme]

Yes the 2nd turbo does kick in somewhat but maybe the surge is caused by the sticky solenoid valve that's being replaced during the update.

[Celtoid]

Yes the 2nd turbo does kick in somewhat but maybe the surge is caused by the sticky solenoid valve that's being replaced during the update.

Thanks Graeme & Craig,

Yeah I guess it could have been just on the verge of the No2 spooling up but felt more like, if it had been a petrol engine, electrical break-down or bad fuel. Since it's a diesel and the rev change fixed it, it couldn't be either.

"sticky solenoid valve that's being replaced during the update". I understand the concept of a sticky solenoid Graeme but aren't sure what you mean by the "replaced during update" part.

Can you give me more info please?

Thanks,

Kev.

[sniegy]

Graeme is referring to the Q093 Assurance Program.
Depending on VIN your vehicle gets the turbo solenoid replaced.
This has had a few issues previously, but not all. So a newer one was developed & installed from a particular VIN onwards, therefore not all vehicles require the replacement to be done.
If you have not had the Q093 carried out, I recommend doing it sooner rather than later. It does fix a few quirks that makes ownership a lot more pleasurable (not that its that hard).

[Celtoid]

Graeme is referring to the Q093 Assurance Program.
Depending on VIN your vehicle gets the turbo solenoid replaced.
This has had a few issues previously, but not all. So a newer one was developed & installed from a particular VIN onwards, therefore not all vehicles require the replacement to be done.
If you have not had the Q093 carried out, I recommend doing it sooner rather than later. It does fix a few quirks that makes ownership a lot more pleasurable (not that its that hard).


Thanks Pete, mine is an early build (Aug 2009) and had the Q093 done at it's health check with no noticable difference in anything. I have no idea what they actually did to the car. However, I wasn't overly familiar with the car at that time.

I guess I'll just have to wait and see if it's a one off.

Regards,

Kev.