Driving on Access Height

[DIS4]

It seems that I had to switch to access height to get in my garage with rooftop tent on it, once I didn't return to access height and damaged rooftop tent ladder, entrance. I decided to leave on access height all the time, either freeway and city. Using off-road height when needed, thanks for LLAMS to get out of trouble. Just wonder if it affect the computer systems or suspension itself, I always watch out those speed bump and slow down. It also lower gravity and head wind when I have my rooftop tent on it most of dry season. Any issues can be if driving on access height most of time?

Cheers,

[DiscoJeffster]

Aside from the reduced suspension travel before you'd bottom out the suspension, you'd need to get the car wheel aligned at access height else your tyres will wear poorly. I wouldn't do it personally.

[Tombie]

Write a sign - stick it on the wall opposite your garage entrance..

"Are you lowered to enter" [emoji41]

[cjc_td5]

My D4 has a terrible ride at access height as it bounces along on the bump stops (No LLAMS just factory settings). No way I would want to keep it there at speed? Just my opinion of course....

[Tombie]

Every hit to the bump stop raises stresses also...

[BMKal]

My D4 has a terrible ride at access height as it bounces along on the bump stops (No LLAMS just factory settings). No way I would want to keep it there at speed? Just my opinion of course....

Same here. I lower mine to access height to reverse into my shed, otherwise the phone aerial smacks into the roof. If I forget to raise the suspension when I go out, driving down the laneway soon reminds me as I can feel all the bumps and potholes. [wink11]

Anyway, unless you are using LLAMS or rods to alter your suspension settings, you can't drive the vehicle down the road in access height. The suspension will automatically raise once certain speeds are reached - pretty sure it's 10 km/hr if you have not "locked" the suspension in access height, and 30 km/hr if you had locked it in access height. There's obviously a reason for this. [wink11] There is no way that I would intentionally drive my vehicle at access height for any reason other than to "get under" a low obstacle.

[LRD414]

I'm assuming Gary means Llams Low rather than true Access height due to the speed restrictions already mentioned.
Llams Low is higher than Access and the ride is pretty good, so this would be the only practical full-time option but may still be too high for the garage.
I think it would be better to work out a system to help remember to select Access or remove rooftop tent unless going on a trip.

Scott

[BobD]

I once accidentally drove several hundred km, fully loaded, on a very rough road (Great Central Road before the upgrade a couple of years ago) at Llams low and didn't even notice that I had it wrong. I had intended to go to Llams height 1 to slightly increase the ground clearance and turned the knob the wrong way so I reduced the ground clearance instead!

That's the problem with the location of my Llams knob. I can't see the LED and I did it on the fly without looking. I was a bit horrified when I realised but there were no ill effects.

[Tombie]

Must have been a smooth track or you were taking it very easy...

Even at std height on the rail corridor I was bottoming out..

[101RRS]

You cannot drive at access height - it will automatically rise at whatever speed it is (I think 30kph) - if we are talking about LLAMS at onroad height -20mm then that is not access height (actually a bit higher) - with -20mm I can go to access height with out it rising as long as the car is level - any slope and it will not stay down but if I go to locked access height it will usually stay down. You cannot drive on it as it is just too harsh.

I drive with my LLAMS at -20mm and have done so for many years. I have never done a wheel alignment and not noticed any unusual wear on the tyres - my current General Grabber AT have 60,000km on them (98% at -20mm) and are coming the the end of their life and have worn perfectly.

Garry

[letherm]

Maybe I'm stupid - don't answer that[smilebigeye] but I thought that Llams would allow you to lower the car below access height. It's the main reason I am about to buy one.


Martin

[BobD]

Must have been a smooth track or you were taking it very easy...

Even at std height on the rail corridor I was bottoming out..

No, as I said it was anything but smooth, but it generally wasn't bottoming out at the -20 setting and rode fine. The main thing was that the mudflaps dragged on the ground in some of the woop de doo creek crossings and the loose rocks and they were destroyed on that trip, which was a 4 week trip from Perth to Cape York via GCR and Plenty HWy and back via Mt Isa and the Kimberley.

The front suspension always bottoms out on sharp cross channels from small wash outs, whether the height is high low or medium, but it was no worse on -20. I usually travel on the Llams medium (which is what I wanted to do) to try to give more travel but I didn't notice that it was any worse on the -20 setting at that time.

[Grentarc]

Maybe I'm stupid - don't answer that[smilebigeye] but I thought that Llams would allow you to lower the car below access height. It's the main reason I am about to buy one.


Martin

Llams "Low" is -20mm in standard form, can be set to -35mm during the calibration routine.
Access height is about -50mm
You can use Access Height and Llams Low (in either -20 or -35) together.
There is also Llams Extra Low which is -50mm that can be used in conjunction with Access Height on a D3 or D4 with pre-MY12 shocks - this is for all intents the bump stops. On MY12+ shocks, the bump stops are taller, which cause this combination to trigger "Extended Mode" as the vehicle thinks it has bottomed out.
There is a way around this for these vehicles, which is select Llams Low and Access Height, shut the engine and ignition off, then press the mode button. the car will then drop to the bump stops after a few seconds.

[BobD]

Maybe I'm stupid - don't answer that[smilebigeye] but I thought that Llams would allow you to lower the car below access height. It's the main reason I am about to buy one.


Martin

It does. When the car is in access height via the switch on the console Llams will lower it further when you switch to -20, in my case pretty much to the bump stops. However, it will rise to the Llams -20 height setting once you start driving. Llams will also lower it by 20 mm if not in access height and that can be maintained at any speed, which is what has been discussed above.

I lower mine to the bump stops for my 98 year old Mother in Law to be able to get into the car.

[DIS4]

Sorry that I didn't make it clear that I actually used LLAMS -20mm, but I always thought to be Access Height. Because the LLAMS, I didn't realize I was on -20mm after hundreds of kms freeway driving. The ride was pretty ordinary, then I had leave on the LLAMS green which is -20mm for sometimes now. I think it just reach 2.4m with rooftop tent on it, most of indoor car park will be out of question. I will take it down after Easter long weekend, not only for clearance but the extra 50kg on the roof.

thanks for sharing!

[Tombie]

Just FYI - I have a late MY11 and it also has the longer bump stops and will raise again if I use -35 and exit height.

[Grentarc]

Just FYI - I have a late MY11 and it also has the longer bump stops and will raise again if I use -35 and exit height.
Ahh, I thought you had MY12!