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Driving in sand? (I’m dumb)

broadicustomworks

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Good video of a normal day at Pismo. With it going to be 100F+ in the valley it going to be a zoo and packed with cars. All these people have no clue that Pismo Beach is the cheapest place to camp on the coast. Its more of an offroad park. I hope the OP knows what he is getting into(people and crowd).
Great (but giant cringe-fest) video.
Lots of lessons there in what NOT to do.
Kudos for the dude in the '79 for helping them out when lots of others passed them on by.

It was almost too late.
Lots of illustrations there on what not to do when recovering also.
At the time you kinda have to do what you have to do to get them out of danger, but so much fumbling around in that video.

A good illustration why you should familiarize yourself with some gear and techniques before you have to use them. And that goes far beyond just recovery. It can cover changing out the tires with the factory jack and lots of other things you don't plan on but end up having to face at the most inopportune moments.

And this is typical, sadly.

When you DO have to recover/help someone, all of a sudden all of these people who could have helped are suddenly there, critiquing, second-guessing, offering advice while you are figuring out the best way to fix a broken situation.
Sometimes the advice is good, but often times everyone who stops to "help" is a recovery expert with bad advice.

Anyhow, the video is a great example in how things can go south quickly on the beach (or in any off-pavement situation), and how scary it is one that tide starts rolling in or the sun starts getting low/temps start dropping.
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SubmarineNuke

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If you stop at Party City on the way, you can get your tires filled with Helium. It will help with floatation.
But you have to purge the nitrogen fill from the dealer first. And afterwards you’ll wanna go back to the dealer and get them to reverse it so you have nitrogen in the tires again. It’ll help with gas mileage as well as preserve the life of your tire.
 

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I was thinking the same thing about do I need to air down to hit the trails. Going off roading for the first time for real this weekend in central Texas. Seems like air down to 30psi or so and then hit the trails. Then air back up when on the road?
Assuming you’re headed over to a hidden Falls?

But yes, you’ll want to air down for rock crawling. And ideally get to about 20 psi. The biggest reason for it when rock crawling is that it will make your tire deform around the rock/obstacle and give you more contact. You’re not really making the tire wider, just giving yourself more surface area on an obstacle. I haven’t done HF yet, but I did hit up OffCamber in Llano and we rolled all weekend between 20-25, even at Offroadeo they had everyone set about 25. I ran about 18-20 when I was in Colorado in July.
 

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I live in PA, so NJ,DE,MD were my hang outs. north east sand is dense and packs easily so never had to deflate, hell at jeep rodeos in wildwood, NJ and OC,MD you did not even need to go into 4WD. then several years ago I had my first trip to outer banks and I learned why you deflate. Bottom line it all depends on the type of sand
 
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I have a chance to camp on the beach the weekend. It’s called Oceano Dunes near Pismo in California. You can drive you vehicle right into the beach.

We have a 2021 Bronco Badlands 4-door. I’ve read that you should air down your tires to drive on sand. Is it necessary if I use the Sand mode? I am NOT good with mechanical stuff and would be afraid of damaging my tires or something else airing down then trying to inflate them again. Like pop them or go too low..I can’t exaggerate how mechanically disinclined I am. It is really intimidating, and air pulps also look expensive.

can I drive without airing down, or will I get stuck or cause other problems? It is a regular beach, and I will not go i to the dunes, just the beach front. Thank you for your advice.
This is either a hilarious troll post or the most Los Angelos thing I've ever read in my entire life.
 

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Assuming you’re headed over to a hidden Falls?

But yes, you’ll want to air down for rock crawling. And ideally get to about 20 psi. The biggest reason for it when rock crawling is that it will make your tire deform around the rock/obstacle and give you more contact. You’re not really making the tire wider, just giving yourself more surface area on an obstacle. I haven’t done HF yet, but I did hit up OffCamber in Llano and we rolled all weekend between 20-25, even at Offroadeo they had everyone set about 25. I ran about 18-20 when I was in Colorado in July.
Thanks so much for the info. Yes Hidden Falls. Is there any reason I can’t just plug-in A compressor from my vehicle? There’s an outlet in the back obviously
 

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Thanks so much for the info. Yes Hidden Falls. Is there any reason I can’t just plug-in A compressor from my vehicle? There’s an outlet in the back obviously
if all you've got is a 12v cigarette lighter style compressor the answer is "better that than nothing". No reason you couldn't, just expect that it will take quite some time. Those are not very efficient, and you may shut down more than a few times filling up. I'm not sure if there's a compressor on site, or a gas station close by that will fill faster/easier.
 

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Can I drive without airing down, or will I get stuck or cause other problems? It is a regular beach, and I will not go i to the dunes, just the beach front. Thank you for your advice.
I didn't read all of the other responses, so I might be repeating something that has been said over and over already.

I've been to Oceano Dunes in a truck that didn't have aired down tires, and we had no problem as long as we stayed near the beach. Sand mode is not likely to make a huge difference as to whether or not you get stuck. Tires at 20 psi instead of 39 will make a much bigger difference. Having 35 inch tires rather than smaller ones also makes a difference. Oh, and turning on lockers helps a bunch too.

If you'll be doing quite a bit of off road driving, you should invest in an air inflator/deflator system. I was able to put mine together for around $300 and it makes a big difference on rocky and washboard roads as well as in low traction situations. I have a SmittyBilt 2781 air pump that I connect to the battery and built the rest from parts ordered off of the internet.

I connect it to all four tires and can drop from 39psi to 20psi in three minutes. It takes ten minutes to air back up again. I keep the whole setup in a bag that I can toss in the back whenever I'll be heading off pavement.

Here are photos of the stuff and of it hooked up to my Bronco:
Ford Bronco Driving in sand? (I’m dumb) r5x6GhX

Ford Bronco Driving in sand? (I’m dumb) Qy2mYdK
 

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I have a chance to camp on the beach the weekend. It’s called Oceano Dunes near Pismo in California. You can drive you vehicle right into the beach.

We have a 2021 Bronco Badlands 4-door. I’ve read that you should air down your tires to drive on sand. Is it necessary if I use the Sand mode? I am NOT good with mechanical stuff and would be afraid of damaging my tires or something else airing down then trying to inflate them again. Like pop them or go too low..I can’t exaggerate how mechanically disinclined I am. It is really intimidating, and air pulps also look expensive.

can I drive without airing down, or will I get stuck or cause other problems? It is a regular beach, and I will not go i to the dunes, just the beach front. Thank you for your advice.
It depends on the sand. Harder or shallow sand is normally fine in Sand mode for me. I only consider airing down and 4L if it’s deep sand or traction is bad. As far as airing down, get a screw on gauge with a button to let out air. Makes it fool proof. Lastly get a pump for afterwards. I have a cheaper portable and a jump box with compressor in it.
 

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I have a chance to camp on the beach the weekend. It’s called Oceano Dunes near Pismo in California. You can drive you vehicle right into the beach.

We have a 2021 Bronco Badlands 4-door. I’ve read that you should air down your tires to drive on sand. Is it necessary if I use the Sand mode? I am NOT good with mechanical stuff and would be afraid of damaging my tires or something else airing down then trying to inflate them again. Like pop them or go too low..I can’t exaggerate how mechanically disinclined I am. It is really intimidating, and air pulps also look expensive.

can I drive without airing down, or will I get stuck or cause other problems? It is a regular beach, and I will not go i to the dunes, just the beach front. Thank you for your advice.
I drive in sand all the time. I ALWAYS airdown to AT LEAST 15 sometimes lower.
 

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Hell, they used to race motorcycles on Daytona Beach when motorcycle tires were 3” wide…

Ford Bronco Driving in sand? (I’m dumb) Qy2mYdK
Daytona has very unusual sand that packs quite solid, where OP is going is very different and stays quite loose and soft.
 

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we used to drive various cars of all types on the beach in Daytona and never aired down once. It shouldn't be a big problem to be honest, just go slow and stay on the path. If everyone else makes it, you will too. Shouldn't even really need SAND mode, just leave it in 2H if this is a normal thing that lots of others do. You'll probably see an Outback, or an old 4 door sedan doing it. /shrug
Daytona is pretty unusual in that it packs into a solid surface, just because you can drive on the beach in Daytona, doesn’t mean you can drive in sand.
 

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For anyone going to drive on the sand in the Outer Banks, it is soft and deep. You will definitely need to air down; I take the stock 20" Goodyear Wranglers on my F-150 down to 19 lbs. Be prepared. I take:
- A proper tire gauge with release valve
- Recovery strap
- Shackles
- A small shovel
- A portable pump, in case the public filling stations are out of service.
No problems yet, but it can happen to anyone.
 
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We were on the beaches in Nantucket all summer and we absolutely had to go down to 12-15 PSI. The sand was super loose and deep. The Bronco is great with having the Off Road menu which shows actual PSI. We would typically drive 2 - 4 miles to the gas station to put air in tires. Keep your speed to below 35mph. You can buy a compressor for under $100 but it will take about 5 min per tire to get it to 37 PSI (Sasquatch tires).
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