Thread: Soft sand driving

Originally Posted by Graeme

From memory the speed has to be below 35 kph but it should be in the owners handbook.

Edit speed s/b below 40 kph.

Thanks Graeme,

Indeed that is what the manual says but in practice that does not happen. I just checked it using a tape measure. Normal off road (off road 2) selected, the distance between the top of the rim and the wheel arch was 26cm. Then driving a short distance just over 50kph and the vehicle drops to off road 1 as indicated on the "Vehicle dimensions" info screen. Got out, measured again and the distance was 24.5cm. Got in, drove at 20-23kph and pressed the off road button again. Stopped, measured again and the distance was still the same 24.5cm. Measurements taken are not 100% accurate, the surface wasn't completely level but I think sufficient to show the point that to get back to off road 2 it does not work as the manual suggests it should.

Ron

Originally Posted by trout1105

All I have to do for sand/beach work in my D2a is to lower the tyre pressures and lock the center diff and drive, Dead easy

Seems a lot of work really. Tyre pressures are no different, but even easier is just let the car figure out if the centre and rear diffs need locking and watching that it does on a screen.

Ron

Originally Posted by IndusD4

Seems a lot of work really. Tyre pressures are no different, but even easier is just let the car figure out if the centre and rear diffs need locking and watching that it does on a screen.

Ron

Regardless of what 4WD you are driving you will always have to lower the tyre pressures in soft sand or suffer the consequences of not doing it.
Letting the car decide how to drive itself is fine for some But I personally much prefer to tell the 4WD what to do myself.

Lowering tyre pressures is a must. I don't know about D5s, but in my Defender I mostly use high range because low range is too slow and the higher revs makes the engine and transmission heat up.
Lower pressures and momentum are the keys. Stay in wheel tracks and on harder sand.

Originally Posted by IndusD4

S. Tyre pressures are no different, .

Ron

Hmmm , not sure i would agree.
I assume you are running 55 series tyres? Would you go lower that 20 psi on a 55? What does the contact patch look like?
Im on the beach quite a bit but run 16 inch rims with 85 series tyres and run them at 16 psi. In the last 5 years of sand driving .... touch wood....i have not been stuck. Have driven around plenty who were though.
You need to find that balance between down enough to not get stuck too often and high enough that you dont damage side walls. I had a chat at the air pump the other day with a guy who rolled in on low profile tyres at 12 psi. They looks scary flat and he would have been risking tyre damage the way they were. This was for Hawks nest beach in NSW.

The earlier post was showing how easy it was to go off road in a D2a. Lower the tyre pressures and then something a driver of a later model Disco wouldn't need to do, ie lock the center diff.

Now I still have to lower my tyres in sand, so that's the same as with a D2a. But locking the diffs are done as and when required - no need to do that hence the tongue in cheek comment how much work it is in a D2a.

I didn't think I mentioned pressures, but yes I would go lower than 20psi. Normally 18Psi. According to the LR Experience instructors the rim design is such to avoid the tyre rolling off the rim. Not that I want to test that statement, so will have to be gentle on the steering movements.

Ron

All LR alloys (since forever) are really hard to roll tyres off,, thats the reason when installing them the first time on the rim they go BANG big time,,
as in all things, driving on sand included, Practise makes Perfect,,,

Originally Posted by IndusD4

Seems a lot of work really. Tyre pressures are no different, but even easier is just let the car figure out if the centre and rear diffs need locking and watching that it does on a screen.

Ron

The D4 is a lot more work in soft sand than the D2a was.
Tyre pressures,yes same with each vehicle.
D2a as said,just lock the centre diff,no further things to worry about,auto i presume.

The D4,make sure DSC is off,change to sand mode if you want,or rock crawl if really soft.
Then set to off road height,and hope it doesn't drop down at 50km/hr,or you will be going nowhere,just sitting on its belly.
Make sure DSC is off after a restart.

I presume the D5 would be much the same as the D4.

Even the Deefer has less( than D4) to worry about when in the soft stuff,only its a manual,but who cares,its fun to actually 'drive' a vehicle.