Well I bit the bullet to see how she'd go.. Went up to Stockton over Easter in the company of some bigger trucks..
And she performed extremely well. Everyone was impressed.
Went as high in the dunes as they did, was almost always able to power through the soft stuff, say going over the top of a dune. No trouble getting on between Lavis Lane & the beach.
Tyres were at 16 psi. It was damp, which helped. I usually stayed in the tracks of the 33/12.50 tyres in front, which also helped. And I never stopped in the really soft stuff, which is never a good idea at the best of times.
Best technique to get over was to approach in 2nd, highish revs & light throttle, & grab 1st as she started to bog down.
The Trans sand mode was impressive. In tight turns in the soft stuff the rear would come around nicely, unlike the understeer a Defender would have. And when it was firm on one side and soft on the other, it delivered grunt to the soft side to power through.
Problems. (1) The bonnet which is say 12 sq ft becomes 12 acres going over a dune. It's impossible to see the line, any obstacles, indeed how far down until you're committed. Not a good lead vehicle, best to rely on the radio call of a colleague in front.
(2) Consumption averaged 33 litres/100 kms. Part of that was me re-learning the right throttle/gear/momentum balance, after so many years up there in the Defender. Not a big deal really, a day's fun in this case cost half a tank.
Lastly, this is an i6. It would be interesting to do a back to back with a diesel, as I never wanted more torque at low revs. Tyres are the limiting factor, not torque. I think I prefer the grunt in the top half of the rev range in these conditions.
In my FL2 (RIP) it would average no more than 13L in soft sand. I would say the diesel would be a lot better in sand than the petrol. You need torque with big dunes.. in my opinion.
My td4 has been to Stockton many times and is always excellent. The only problem I ever have is clearance. If there was a body lift available I would take it anywhere. Remember, mud and ruts if you get stuck in soft sand. Fair dinkum...33l, the td4 averages about 12-13l on the sand. I have found that manual mode when cruising on sand setting as it stays in 1 st too long in auto. For big hills just gun it in auto for me. DSC must be off or you lose power right when you need it most.
Hey Dorko, is the fl2 dead? What happened?
Mike
Yes I read the German website and it seems they have to do the work themselves from how babelfish translated it. Plus it's only 30 mm. I love the fl2 but must admit I have been eyeing of some disco's myself. Cheers
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