RRS TDV8 on the Beach Yes or no?

[Meccles]

What is the consensus, should I take my 100K+ TDV8 up to Fraser for 3 days, or just rent? I live on S/Coast and know what sand/salt can do. Reckon the hassle/potential damage from sand is worth it? I am split, 50% of me says go and have fun, 50% says rent and save the car. What do you all think?

[d3syd]

Go on do it. That way people can't accuse you of being a tarmac SUV poseur. The car is built for it anyway, just enjoy what it can do. And you won't do any damage to it on Fraser. Just put your car through a car wash once you get off the island - it will give the underneath of your car a spray.

[mbecker7]

For me there is no question at all, gotta take the RRS, isn't that why you purchased a real car?

[~Rich~]

Unless you are crazy and want to drive through salt water like on car ads on TV - hire a car.

But if you are responsible like the rest of us here - use your RRS!!!

I could not even imagine going to Fraser or Simpson in a rented car!

[Meccles]

Bit of history I had RRC for 11 years from 1986 to 97, went to Fraser many times with it. It turned up 400m from me a few months ago, I just brought it for $500 as restoration project. Sills/doors etc all completely gone. Didn't want same thing with my Sport! Mind it took 20+ years to destroy the Classic, which I am about to re build. I know how insidious the sand can be! But really want to use the car properly also. A dilemma.

[CSBrisie]

Ofcourse you should. Took our HSE D4 and loved every minute!

[TerryO]

I'll go against the trend for no particular reason and say don't take it.

Cheers,
Terry

[Stuart02]

Hire a car, trade the RRS on a Tarago and have $60k in your pocket!
Just being cheeky - you know you wanna!

[Graeme]

Just living on the coast exposes a vehicle to salty air which whilst is not as bad as salt water, still rusts a vehicle so your RRS is already doomed.

[d3syd]

Bit of history I had RRC for 11 years from 1986 to 97, went to Fraser many times with it. It turned up 400m from me a few months ago, I just brought it for $500 as restoration project. Sills/doors etc all completely gone. Didn't want same thing with my Sport! Mind it took 20+ years to destroy the Classic, which I am about to re build. I know how insidious the sand can be! But really want to use the car properly also. A dilemma.

But you don't know what the owner(s) have done with it between 1997 and 2012 do you? They could have been driving through salt water and not washing down the car.

As said previously, as long as you are responsible and don't drive through salt water, and wash your car down thoroughly after your trip everything will be absolutely A-OK.:)

For me the pleasure of enjoying what my own car can do is half the fun - driving a renter will detract from the experience significantly.

[discotwinturbo]

Meccles,

If you don't, I can fly over, and I can take it up for you....it's been a few years since I travelled on Fraser and would love to do it in style!

Brett.....

[Barrabouy]

Just do it

[mbecker7]

Just living on the coast exposes a vehicle to salty air which whilst is not as bad as salt water, still rusts a vehicle so your RRS is already doomed.

Makes a lot of sense!

[Meccles]

Of course the truth is I wanna. However the sheer number of people including SWMBO giving me the "you taking that there you're crazy" look and comment gives pause.
But bugger it, decision made it is going. Lucky the weather is warm enough to climb under the car later to give it really good clean out! Did it for years with old Classic and knew where the sand collected, so will have to learn on the Sport the area's to look for.

[Meccles]

Oh and it will be on 20"s. I do have maxtraks though just in case! Plus a buddy with Jeep on 33"s so all will be good!

[Stuart02]

:) woot woot - post some pics!

[Drover]

Only if you want to be recovered by a Defender......:D

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/09/1099.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/09/1100.jpg

After all they are still Land Rover's, couldn't leave him there;)

[Meccles]

I've been stuck there before with the Classic, the the 100 series cruiser, not many I know have never got caught at some stage driving stock vehicles.

[discotwinturbo]

Bogged my D4 deliberately like that sport pic in sand mode. Put it in rock crawl, low range, no dsc......and got out incredibly easy.

Brett....

[ozscott]

Looks like a tame version of Main Beach Stradbroke Island. Air down and enjoy the drive.

Cheers
Andrew

[kenl]

I agree with Brett, I've not had much joy from Sand mode, I usually just turn dsc off and put it in off road hieght on the beach. If i'm a bit worried about the conditions or am pulling someone else out It's low range and rock crawl. I don't think the centre diff locks unless in low range?

I must say however much of our beach is pretty hard for a lot of the year, it's been rare for me to need to air down, but that always works if not left too late.

[slug_burner]

You have the car for it. If you don't take it why buy it in the first place?

Take it easy, don't drive at freeway speed in the night so that you drop into one of the creeks. Stay on the firm sand and use the correct pressure in your tyres for sand, use the correct mode in your electronic wizardry, give the thing a good wash to get the sand and salt out and sell the vehicle before it gets a chance to show signs of rust. Well the last bit is a bit tongue in cheek:cool:

[coolum]

Residual salt (like the cold climates and snow) is usually is often dumped in large quantities by a southeast wind with cyclone condition surf on Coastal regions.

Driving south on any of the coastal strips in SEQ during a big SE swell and wind and then when you stop, taste the salt on the windscreen.

Add a bit of rain and this is getting driven into every nook and cranny under the car, but most don't think twice about it ... really the beach is no different (apart from the sand blasting of the existing Factory rust protection).

If you live in QLD and you are near the coast your car is probably not the 'salt virgin' you think it is .. In saying that (being a humble opinion only) I have had two vehicles RRC and D1 both wither away to wrecks due to rust in sills and floors from beach use.

I am about to use Electronic (unsure if its a hoax or not - but willing to take a gamble) and underbody rust prevention on a D3 shortly for both of the reasons above (IE coastal road driving and beach driving - the main reason for purchasing the car.)

Take the car and enjoy the trip, in my opinion, You'll have a mate to help if you get into any trouble and if you keep out of the water, your no worse off than taking a drive to Noosa (when its pumping) on the David low way.

your decision of course.

[weeds]

you might be restricted how far north you can go with a hire car.......

[Meccles]

I am under no illuision as to the car being not a salt virgin. Where I live the TV's, fridge, washing machine, anything metal, all turns to rust/dissolves within 4-5 years. If there is one substance that does worry me more it is sand, getting into C/V joints/drive shafts etc. However, it didn't seem to worry the 100 Series Toyo so am expecting same result with the Sport. Anyway, the new RR is so nice, good excuse to upgrade in a few years yes? If we could afford it.....

[simoncs]

Oh and it will be on 20"s. I do have maxtraks though just in case! Plus a buddy with Jeep on 33"s so all will be good!

Please dont do it, if you are going to let a jeep pull you out. We couldn't take the shame :D

Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk 2

[HJF]

I have taken both of mine to Moreton a few times and would not give it a second thought about another trip. I took my current one to Moreton with only 6000 k's on the clock. Just do it:)

[Meccles]

:)Ok I am taking it, otherwise I will get no respect on this forum! Re the jeep, it is a left hooker CJ 7 I think, imported from States. Not much stock left on it. So no real shame if it has to be used as recovery vehicle.

[Basil135]

:)Ok I am taking it, otherwise I will get no respect on this forum! Re the jeep, it is a left hooker CJ 7 I think, imported from States. Not much stock left on it. So no real shame if it has to be used as recovery vehicle.

You are quite right. No shame at all.

Just, when you explain the pictures, YOU were pulling HIM out.... :cool:


:wasntme:

[Mike_S]

It'll be right, don't worry. Mine's had to suffer several years of salty British winter roads, other than some very light surface rust on the chassis the structure's fine. I gave it all a wire brushing when it arrived here in March, painted it and that should see it right for a few years.

All the exposed nuts & bolts might get a bit British though, your service agent will love taking the oxy burner to them in years to come :p

[mervwho]

I was over there three weeks ago, sand very dry and soft, the main tracks have been pretty chopped up by the local tourist buses. Track out of Kingfisher Bay Resort real rough and steep, watch out for sleepers that have been thrown back by previous vehicles and once you start on this section you are committed. Tracks around Lake Mckenzie/Central Station really chopped up. Best advice I can give is to take a set of MaxTrax with you. Ran in sand mode and lifted the suspension, you will find out why. I tried it (D4) with the dsc off and on and found that the vehicle handed and was more controllable with it on. Base of the car was scrapping on the sand most of the time due to the depth of the wheel ruts so it will get a clean. Give it a real good hose off later and see the amount of sand that comes out. Beach access from Eurong, Cornwells Break all pretty good, but saying that snatched out an old Pathfinder at Cornwells who was still running 38psi in his tyres and wondered why he was having a hard time..you do find them..

You will thoroughly enjoy and marvel at just how capable your vehicle is.

Cheers

Merv

[Meccles]

Well went to North Shore beach was really chopped up, fairly hard going. Impressions compared with all previous cars taken up there? All good EXCEPT for tyres and ground clearance. LLiams/rods a must. Plus, if alone, tyres you can deflate. Car struggled in soft areas unless there was plenty of speed/momentum. Also witnessed new D4 stuck in cutting from Double Island Point across to Rainbow Beach. Same issue all good with momentum, however as soon as he was slowed down, he got stuck. Whereas the 100 Series on tall deflated rubber easily walked past, then snatched him out. Also, I had issue with serious vibrations, thought tire was going, car shaking really badly. Turned out to be sand on inside of rims, unbalancing whole lot. Cleaning up afterwards I have never had so much sand dumped on my drive, must have been 100 kgs worth. So all in all not super impressed, it did the job, but not as well as my old classic on better tyres, not as well as my series 1 disco, and certainly not as well as the 100 series. The only good bit was the interior stayed pretty clean. Trying to upload some photos but haven't got to grips with Photobucket yet.

[TerryO]

Hi Meccles,

You say your not impressed with your RRS's sand ability and its not as good as a 100 Series but did you have good off road tyres on or the usual low profile H/T tyres?

If you put a set 20's with rubber band tyres fitted on a 100 Series I'd like to see how far one would go in the sand or anywhere else for that matter, if would be terribly uncomfortable on road and useless off road.

Horses for courses me thinks, put a set of 18's on it with a tyre with a decent side wall and tread pattern that can be bagged out and then see if you are still not impressed. Personally I think it is futile to measure a vehicle's ability based on what rim/tyre combination that is on it.

It's like putting a set of aggressive Mud tyres on your RRS and then saying it is not a very good road car because it's noisy, doesn't handle well and is rough and vibrates on road.

cheers,
Terry

[Meccles]

Hi Terry,
Don't misunderstand me the RRS is for the 95% of the time it spends on road etc streets ahead of the 100 Series. I am aware of what a difference tyres make, I took the sport up fitted with rubber bands precisely to see what they could, and could not do. The Sport on rubber bands does very well on dirt roads, in places like Landcruiser Mountain Park, BUT does not do so well on sand. On sand the best is light weight, big rubber, horsepower, over and above all else if possible. Which for two out of three doesn't fit the Sports description really. My point was that to make this car work in places like beach will require different rubber, which then runs into the compromise issue for the aforesaid 95% of the time. I see the new R/R runs 20's pretty much as standard, going up to 22"'s. Mind it has lost 400kgs which will help but wonder how it would go on soft sand. It just highlighted that no matter how high tech, in some situations it boils down to the black round things touching the ground. With all the issues/limitations that choosing those entails.
I met one other TDV8 Sport in beach running 19"'s with Cooper H/T's, he was very happy. With his centre console damaged from having had to manually release his EPB (another crap idea). Means for me new rims/tyres (expensive) or I will try the Cooper Zeons in 275/45 (if QLD has finally moved in line with other states). Of all cars I met that were stuck - and there was only a couple, one was a new Disco 4. With owner perplexed about why. He was in Rock Crawl, DSC off. They were trying to find out where there was a recovery point on front and about to hook up strap to suspension components. Land Rover sell these cars as the be all 4wd but don't teach the owners where the recovery points are, or what are the limitations not of car, but of the tyres. I am green oval fan but am not blind to limitations or faults with car/brand. Being honest, if one wanted a reliable, go anywhere car that was ok to drive, a Prado is hard to beat. But so boring, so ugly, I could never do it. FYI mine has just had the trans oil changed, new bushes fitted in front active damper roll bar (warranty the originals were shot). With 40K on it. So it appears that every 40K it will be up for new Active Damper bushes. I still love the car it brings a smile on your face when you drive it.

[Piddler]

Hi Terry,
Don't misunderstand me the RRS is for the 95% of the time it spends on road etc streets ahead of the 100 Series. I am aware of what a difference tyres make, I took the sport up fitted with rubber bands precisely to see what they could, and could not do. The Sport on rubber bands does very well on dirt roads, in places like Landcruiser Mountain Park, BUT does not do so well on sand. On sand the best is light weight, big rubber, horsepower, over and above all else if possible. Which for two out of three doesn't fit the Sports description really. My point was that to make this car work in places like beach will require different rubber, which then runs into the compromise issue for the aforesaid 95% of the time. I see the new R/R runs 20's pretty much as standard, going up to 22"'s. Mind it has lost 400kgs which will help but wonder how it would go on soft sand. It just highlighted that no matter how high tech, in some situations it boils down to the black round things touching the ground. With all the issues/limitations that choosing those entails.
I met one other TDV8 Sport in beach running 19"'s with Cooper H/T's, he was very happy. With his centre console damaged from having had to manually release his EPB (another crap idea). Means for me new rims/tyres (expensive) or I will try the Cooper Zeons in 275/45 (if QLD has finally moved in line with other states). Of all cars I met that were stuck - and there was only a couple, one was a new Disco 4. With owner perplexed about why. He was in Rock Crawl, DSC off. They were trying to find out where there was a recovery point on front and about to hook up strap to suspension components. Land Rover sell these cars as the be all 4wd but don't teach the owners where the recovery points are, or what are the limitations not of car, but of the tyres. I am green oval fan but am not blind to limitations or faults with car/brand. Being honest, if one wanted a reliable, go anywhere car that was ok to drive, a Prado is hard to beat. But so boring, so ugly, I could never do it. FYI mine has just had the trans oil changed, new bushes fitted in front active damper roll bar (warranty the originals were shot). With 40K on it. So it appears that every 40K it will be up for new Active Damper bushes. I still love the car it brings a smile on your face when you drive it.

If you can afford a TDV8 RR sport a spare set of rims and tyres are nothing to have in the garage.

My 2 cents worth

Cheers

[101RRS]

Land Rover sell these cars as the be all 4wd but don't teach the owners where the recovery points

Hmmmm - if in doubt read the handbook - it is all in there.

The guy you described sounds as if he headed off without even really trying to understand his vehicle.

Garry

[TerryO]

Equally so why would anyone be in Rock Crawl with the DSC turned off when they are on a big sandy beach? ...:angel:

Little wonder he was stuck, chances are he had his tyres pumped up to 40 psi as well.

cheers,
Terry

[101RRS]

Equally so why would anyone be in Rock Crawl with the DSC turned off when they are on a big sandy beach? ...:angel:

Why not - is then close to your D1 on the sand - centre diff locked, drive to all wheels, engine responds to your requirements not what the computer thinks you want.

[TerryO]

Regarding my D1 it doesn't have 19" or worse still 20" rims with low profile street tyres fitted and if it did chances are it wouldn't even get 100 feet in dry soft sand without Terrain Responce to try and make up for the grossly inadequate rim, tyre combination for the driving conditions.

As I said before when Meccles said the 100 Series was better in the sand then his RRS put the 100 Series on 20's with rubber band tyres and then see how good it is off road.

Cheers,
Terry

[ozscott]

It's funny I have seen plenty of 100's stuck at Indian. Low front IFS is a bit of an anchor. The 80 series was better in my view. Live axel front and rear and tall tyres like a D2. I think the small er d2 diffs help even more with clearance though. Cheers

[roamer]

Equally so why would anyone be in Rock Crawl with the DSC turned off when they are on a big sandy beach? ...:angel:


cheers,
Terry

If stuck in sand Rock Crawl and DSC off is exactly what you need to be in

[Tombie]

Nothing beats driver experience.

The D3/D4/RRS are heavy - so what, so are LC200s etc....
Most touring 4wdrives are ridiculously heavy (overloaded) and do fine.

99% of the time its the driver, not the rubber / vehicle / conditions - causing the problems...

Understanding the vehicle, Taking the time to learn about it (RTFM) and doing things 'by the numbers' will get you further in almost any vehicle.

Tyre pattern is also often spoken about...
Smooth for sand
Agressive for Mud etc..

Well smooth for sand is bollocks ;) Drive appropriately and Claws / Simex Centipedes are some of the best Sand rubber out there!

And if one person tells me a wider footprint by airing down works better- I will scream...
Its totally incorrect....

[TerryO]

Start screaming then ...:p

cheers,
Terry

[ozscott]

Nothing beats driver experience.

...

Tyre pattern is also often spoken about...
Smooth for sand
Agressive for Mud etc..

Well smooth for sand is bollocks ;) Drive appropriately and Claws / Simex Centipedes are some of the best Sand rubber out there!

And if one person tells me a wider footprint by airing down works better- I will scream...
Its totally incorrect....

Yep, couldnt agree more. Even a basic AT pattern will pull my truck out of deep wheel ruts in sand much better than HT and will give more traction up dunes etc and airing down is certainly about longitudinal length and the approach angle of the tyre being a little shallower and tending therefore to dig in less (and this is where clearance on stock vehicles can also become a problem in terms of creating a sand anchor with the front bar, diffs etc) and driver experience is a well overlooked issue when comparing what vehicles have been seen stuck etc.

Cheers
PS. The truth is that most of the market want to have more seats, carrying more inside, tow heavier, have electric heated seats etc and 102 airbags in the vehicle and then the handling and looks to make it all sweet (ie big alloy rims)...but there must be a down side and for a 4wd that down side is realised on sand. You just have to do you best to work with it and realise the limitations on sand. Worst case, you don't tow heavy in very soft sand if your vehicle struggles in the deep soft stuff WITHOUT a towed load or if you go that way, make sure you have max trax or similar or a mate who can tow you (although the later is a pain in some spots).

[TerryO]

If stuck in sand Rock Crawl and DSC off is exactly what you need to be in

It may be the way to get out when stuck but its not the best way to drive on sand before you get stuck.

cheers,
Terry

[Meccles]

My fault with explanation the guy with stuck disco had been in Sand Mode then when he got stuck went to rock crawl. Which seems the right way to go. My 100 series was earlier live axle model, no IFS. A fantastic, reliable truck, but, not much to drive on road, and ultimately, boring. I drive a Land Rover because every time it starts I think yippee it goes! They are interesting cars that have "character". Some of that character I think comes from the faults and having to know about them.

[ozscott]

I think even the later model 100 series were available in a VERY basic model with vinyl front bench seat, manual box and live axle front and rear.

Cheers

[ozscott]

So are both the RRS, RR and D3/4 all pretty much equal in deep sand when not towing - assuming all have factory or better (but same profile) rubber and in experienced hands with DSC off? Or are there advantages in one or the other?

Cheers

[gghaggis]

The RRS has the shortest wheelbase. The RR has the greatest ground clearance. And engine choices are different, thereby affecting weight.

How that translates to sand performance depends on the specific conditions.

Cheers,

Gordon

[Meccles]

Car taken away flat bed truck on Friday. Running rough with engine management warning on dash. Info from dealer today is that the actuator on left hand bank turbo has seized, new turbo required. Body off repair.
Co incidence? :(

[ozscott]

Bugger mate. Sorry to hear that.

Cheers

[DiscoDavey]

Car taken away flat bed truck on Friday... :(
That is very bad news. And I take it you hadn't left on your Fraser Is trip yet?

[Meccles]

Nope we hadn't left for Fraser. Confidence level in this particlular car right now not high. I had more faith in my old classic.

[Celtoid]

Car taken away flat bed truck on Friday. Running rough with engine management warning on dash. Info from dealer today is that the actuator on left hand bank turbo has seized, new turbo required. Body off repair.
Co incidence? :(

Yup, co-incidence.

My first beach trip was Fraser Is. Standard 19" OEM on a 3.0L D4...packed to the gunnels. I was pooping myself because folks had seeded my doubt farm with respect to my car and especially the tyres/wheel size.

I aired down to 18 and then back up a little due to the exposed tree roots on the track. Outcome...flawless...ate the tracks and made my mate's Prado (which did everything I might add) look clumbsy.

On that trip my words of warning would have been to not get lulled into a false state of security.....my D4 (as I'm sure D3 and RRS) handled most stuff easily....it's also easy to get unhealthy speed up without noticing....and I mean highway speed on sand.

I've changed rubber since then but not size and have been back to Fraser and Bribie (similar high-silica sand). No issue at all.

The car is heavy, you need to appreciate that and work with it. It also has a very good TC and shed loads of power...if you can work that mix, it'll be fine. In the end carry Maxtrax, etc...as has been stated. In the end....does it hurt to get out and use a shovel and Maxtrax....I'd say it would be penance for not stopping and backing up sooner....LOL...:wasntme:

As was previously stated, the recovery points are very, very strong and their location is in the handbook. I believe not many cars have such good purpose built points both front and back.

And of course the salt and sand...........just get it up and hose the crap out of it.

It's easy when you get a new expensive bit of kit to get scared and some threads/rumours don't help but just be logical.

I got three punctures in one weekend, thanks to the freakin standard Wranglers being at about 50%. I was paranoid about the car ....but in reality it's the tyres. Scorpion ATRs......no issues since then.

Cheers,

Kev.

[Meccles]

When it is going yes it is awesome. Unfortunately it has spent almost a month in the dealers in last year. Not good enough! And how long now as I am sure parts will not be available. If SWMBO cannot trust it to start, run reliably day in day out, then it will not last.

[Celtoid]

When it is going yes it is awesome. Unfortunately it has spent almost a month in the dealers in last year. Not good enough! And how long now as I am sure parts will not be available. If SWMBO cannot trust it to start, run reliably day in day out, then it will not last.

I can't comment on that 'month'.....:(

But....

The parts will be available....I have one of the first D4s in AUS and was concerned by that issue....and it probably was valid at the time. I've heard the same concerns about many brands.....even Toyo.

But I have not been delayed on a single part for this car for more than a couple of days.

Will the car not start, will it not run?

Recently I smashed mine into a few sand humps in a sun-very-low-in-the-sky situation. Knocked the throttle body off the engine....but it still kept going. Had the big Red Triangle and the Yellow ECU light on. Still kept humping. Ugly loss of power but kept going. Nothing else damaged. They may be shiny but they are tough.

I haven't read the complete thread, but get it completely checked....unfortunately it may be due to previous abuse but they are tough trucks. And I know saying getting it checked is an easy comment, as there are so many crap mechanics/dealers etc. I haven't read of anybody on this site that hasn't been able to start a recent D/RRS other than battery problems. My belief is that they may have issues but they will still go and in most cases, to the full or close to full ability.

Or you could sell it....how much do you want?....:D

[Fausto79]

I'll go against the trend for no particular reason and say don't take it.

Cheers,
Terry


i'll take your comment and raise you 100

[Graeme]

Car taken away flat bed truck on Friday. Running rough with engine management warning on dash. Info from dealer today is that the actuator on left hand bank turbo has seized, new turbo required. Body off repair.
Co incidence? :(
My 3.0 D4 was diagnosed from fault codes as having a sticky/siezing primary turbo actuator after an extended stint (4 wks) of reduced power mode for another reason. It took a few attempts to permanently clear the fault codes (using Faultmate) with the engine running and throttle opened-up to get it to respond to the throttle and initially free the actuator. It was still a bit sticky for a day or so but using the right foot more than usual soon freed the actuator totally.

The repair was not going to require the body to be removed but was still going to be rather inconvenient to me.

[Meccles]

I work away, so I am not even there to see the how/what etc. Yes it was still running but rough, so SWMBO didn't want to drive it, which is fair. Certainly if stuck out bush you have no choice other than to keep going. Re the other faults/owner etc we brought the car with 20K on it looked like a lady had been driving it (divorce, kid seat marks, settlement trade in). Maybe not enough welly had been applied though I have tried to rectify that on regular occasions. Will see I did ask dealer (who have been pretty good) to go over it with a fine tooth comb while the body is off and check everything they can while they have the access, and given history of intermittent untraceable electrical problems.

[roamer]

looked like a lady had been driving it (divorce, kid seat marks, settlement trade in). .


UMM Maybe the car caused the divorce :o

[PerthDisco]

Regarding sand dune driving my logic has always been that the only water the dunes have seen in the last millennium is rain water so fairly salt free. That applies for the dune systems that are well back from the beach we tend to play on over here.

With regard to beach driving so long as you don't drive through the waves quite often it does not even stick to the tyres.

I'd wager you'd get more salty spray & air living in a beachside suburb than you would for an occasional sand dune adventure.

Is my logic wrong?

[discotwinturbo]

Regarding sand dune driving my logic has always been that the only water the dunes have seen in the last millennium is rain water so fairly salt free. That applies for the dune systems that are well back from the beach we tend to play on over here.

With regard to beach driving so long as you don't drive through the waves quite often it does not even stick to the tyres.

I'd wager you'd get more salty spray & air living in a beachside suburb than you would for an occasional sand dune adventure.

Is my logic wrong?

Makes perfect sense to me.

Brett....

[isuzurover]

Regarding sand dune driving my logic has always been that the only water the dunes have seen in the last millennium is rain water so fairly salt free. That applies for the dune systems that are well back from the beach we tend to play on over here.

With regard to beach driving so long as you don't drive through the waves quite often it does not even stick to the tyres.

I'd wager you'd get more salty spray & air living in a beachside suburb than you would for an occasional sand dune adventure.

Is my logic wrong?

The dunes will be covered in salt spray. so you can expect a fair bit of salt in the sand, however it is dry, so will not be so insidious.

West coast and east coast (Brisbane) aren't really comparable though. IME cars rust MUCH faster in brisbane due to the humid climate.

At the end of the day, if you flush all the sand/salt off, let the vehicle dry fully, and coat with lanoline etc to protect it, then the rust should stay away.

But, if you venture into the water... Even the most meticulously washed boat trailer gets rusty in no time flat.

[JohnF]

on my vw beetle, years ago I got my engine oil full of sand. Flushedit out andput in new oil. So why worry.

[Meccles]

I like UMM Maybe the car caused the divorce :o !
Lets hope this is not catching!

[Meccles]

Ok car has been repaired and will be returned Monday. Part #LR023088 TOPIX SSM49537 Corroded actuator arm leading to full or partial seizure of the actuator mechanism. Steel bolt through a steel rod....what to say? A Caterpillar part so am assuming that the turbos are also Cats. We have a saying in marine that Caterpillar are the drug dealers of the diesel world, sell them cheap to get you hooked, then murder you on spare part prices.

[Graeme]

Do you think that its possible to get some lubricant to a siezing bolt? I use a silicone spray to good effect in some instances.

[Meccles]

Graeme,
Most probably. However, I was not home, SWMBO had the car, and the dealer followed the TOPIX as the remedial action. Rest assured if it was out of warranty the can of Inox would be getting a real workout. The dealer did apply lubricant to both linkages so fingers crossed!