Sand Bog “Crawl Control”

[HarryO]

Hi All

Has anyone tried the to drive themselves out of a beach sand bog by using the “Crawl Control” method?

Basically when you’re bellied out just put it in low range and keep the revs real low - the car starts moving slowly, chewing it’s way along but slowly builds speed / traction until it drives out in about 5 minutes.

First saw video of this with Arabs using it with a Landcruiser in the desert and now seeing more videos showing the Toyota crawl control mode.. looks really simple and a bunch less sweat that spade & maxtrax..

I never get bogged you see 🧐 so just wondering it it works on a D3/4 with our traction control smarts..
.

[ATH]

Well done on never getting bogged...... I can and do get bogged in all sorts of places. I found rock crawl was excellent once when I came to a grinding halt in shale at Carawine Gorge last year with our small van on the back.
Not nice with a bunch of grinning ape Tojo owners all watching eagerly. So raise her up and into rock crawl and gently on the throttle and out she came slowly but surely.
The only other Landie owner there was delighted if the big grin and thumbs up he gave were anything to go by.
Certainly showed the comic reading clowns how to do it.
AlanH.

[HarryO]

Thanks Alan

[INter674]

I remember at Tough Truck in the mud pit watching and listening to a big block chevvy on full noise slowly chewing its way through the metre deep mud as the 44" tyres slowly but surely flung tons of mud high into the air.

It seemed to go on forever...and I can still hear it now😃

That's the proper way to do it!!

[scarry]

Rock crawl is generally good with very light throttle.
Get the vehicle into extended off road height,so its off its belly, and lower tyres a bit more.
Reverse may get you moving as well.

i would also dig around the wheels before trying again once momentum has stopped.

And No,D4 doesn't actually have a crawl control mode,same as LC.

[101RRS]

See this YouTube video - BT50 without any special traction means. Seems to work.

YouTube

[HarryO]

That’s one of the vids I watched - he puts the lockers on to help. Just wondering how our traction control will behave when trying to transfer drive away from the wheel with less traction.

Also I think this method relies on having sand in front of the wheels to chew on - so might not be good to shovel it all away.

Guess the best way would to just go get bogged and try - when this COVID thing has passed.

Once perfected - Inskip Point would be good proving ground - just to shut the peanut galley up!

[scarry]

That’s one of the vids I watched - he puts the lockers on to help. Just wondering how our traction control will behave when trying to transfer drive away from the wheel with less traction.

Also I think this method relies on having sand in front of the wheels to chew on - so might not be good to shovel it all away.

Guess the best way would to just go get bogged and try - when this COVID thing has passed.

Once perfected - Inskip Point would be good proving ground - just to shut the peanut galley up!

Don't worry about that at all,its the least of your worries.

It is difficult to feel what the wheels are doing in an auto though,but you will be fine,we have all got used to it,driving autos these days.

Low tyre pressures are the key.

[INter674]

Don't D4s hsve some sort of self extraction device? I recall talking to a bloke who was flown to Africa to test drive the last of them telling me they deliberately bogged them then selected something to extract themselves..said something about the TC doing something tricky?

I should have listened more carefully🙄

[geoffmc]

Guys,

my previous vehicle was a 150 Prado Kakadu, complete with CRAWL. I used it twice on the sand to extracate myself from being seriously bogged. I had a rear factory difflock and on both ocations, CRAWL advised to unlock the rear locker, as it couldnt divert drive to the wheels as-needed. CRAWL works differently to the video further up in this post, it actively proportions drive at a much slower speed to wheel as necessary, using the brakes to slow and maintain the wheel speed at an amazingly slow rate, which isnt possible manually. Thats the other bit of kit that i miss from the Prado.

cheers
Geoff