Thread: Sand Driving

Quote: "Are the MY14+ cars setup differently, or is there another driving technique not documented?"

Yes it called low range sand mode. When I get onto a beach Its straight into Low Range and use 3rd or 4th. With the right tyre pressures you don't need to go any faster. Enjoy the scenery! In saying that we don't have too many hard packed beaches here in WA.

I was on the beach in Coral Bay a few years back, and after recovering a Prado and Hilux, (which were not quite on the beach yet) I drove down onto the beach with TP at 15 Psi Low range 4th sand mode and crawled along no problem, very very soft sand..... Then 3 Pajeros came screaming along high up the beach at approx 80k's.
sand flying everywhere, how they didn't roll it or a tyre is beyond me! I heard one of them say something like "look at that idiot, he gonna get bogged down there" Anyway I'm rambling now.
Cheers
Scott.

Im also interested in how a D4 is on the sand with standard tyres.
I have a TD5 Defender at the moment with an Auto transmission . It is fantastic in the sand due to the 85 series tyres and light weight. We have never been stuck and often pass heavier cars that are.
We are thinking of Buying a D4.
SO the D4 has low profile tyres and is much heavier.
What id like to know is are there any of you who are experienced in the sand with a D4 and can give some pointers.
Do the tyres bag at all? Im guessing not. And what about the Compomotive rims with 18 in tyres. I imagine they bag a little more but is it enough.
Tim

Originally Posted by timax

Im also interested in how a D4 is on the sand with standard tyres.
I have a TD5 Defender at the moment with an Auto transmission . It is fantastic in the sand due to the 85 series tyres and light weight. We have never been stuck and often pass heavier cars that are.
We are thinking of Buying a D4.
SO the D4 has low profile tyres and is much heavier.
What id like to know is are there any of you who are experienced in the sand with a D4 and can give some pointers.
Do the tyres bag at all? Im guessing not. And what about the Compomotive rims with 18 in tyres. I imagine they bag a little more but is it enough.
Tim

Hi Tim,

I had 20” on my D4 but didn’t get a chance to run on the soft stuff before replacing them with Compomotive’s and 265/65R18’s.
Here a bagging pic at 15PSI at the rear.
I’m very impressed with the D4’s performance on sand.

Andrew

IMG_6452.jpg

Originally Posted by timax

Im also interested in how a D4 is on the sand with standard tyres.
I have a TD5 Defender at the moment with an Auto transmission . It is fantastic in the sand due to the 85 series tyres and light weight. We have never been stuck and often pass heavier cars that are.
We are thinking of Buying a D4.
SO the D4 has low profile tyres and is much heavier.
What id like to know is are there any of you who are experienced in the sand with a D4 and can give some pointers.
Do the tyres bag at all? Im guessing not. And what about the Compomotive rims with 18 in tyres. I imagine they bag a little more but is it enough.
Tim

I've been on plenty of beaches- Stockton, Blacksmiths and Fraser Island (for 2 weeks) on 19's no problem except for pinching one tyre on a tree root because I didn't bump the pressures up before going into the rainforest.

I have since put Compomotive 18s on for the extra sidewall and they probably are better on sand but not really necessary.

Way back I had a Hilux ute with 10R15s (IIRC) which was brilliant on sand and I feel just as comfortable if not better in the D4. It's really good on sand.

David

The last thing you want is bagging tyres..
You want ELONGATED tyres...

This bagging myth is just that and depends greatly on the Tyre itself (and renders them vulnerable in many cases)...


As for a D110 being lighter than a D4... reality isn’t the case every D110 offroad I’ve come across (or owned) has been heavier than the D4...

Originally Posted by Tombie

The last thing you want is bagging tyres..
You want ELONGATED tyres...

This bagging myth is just that and depends greatly on the Tyre itself (and renders them vulnerable in many cases)...


As for a D110 being lighter than a D4... reality isn’t the case every D110 offroad I’ve come across (or owned) has been heavier than the D4...

Bagging may be the wrong term then but im sure knowing i have a defender that you know what im saying. I air down to 16 psi on 235/85/16s.
And my 110 on the W-bridge was just under 2000kg. Isnt the LR4 more like 2600kg or have i missed something?

Here are some "scientific" observations about the size of the patch of a 19" tyre I measured a while ago: 18" v 19" v 20" tyre sticky patch size difference?
The measurements demonstrate how the contact patch of a tyre increases in size with the decrease in pressure

255/55R19" on the left & 265/60R18 on the right.
Both at 15psi, on a D4 & a D3.
Compare 19 & 18 inch.jpg

Begs the question, are 18's really worth it?