Stronger 4wd

[solid snake]

Hey what's up everyone. I'm really interested in making my 4wd stronger, so I can conquer those sand dunes. My rig can handle the dunes, but when I get to a place where the sand is too loose, I get stuck I really don't want to force my pathy out of a jam, since I'm afraid of blowing the tranny or screwing something up in the engine. But I was thinking of investing in a locker, but don't know what's out there than can help me out of those jams.

[mudfinder]

a locker is one thing you can do, but i really don't think you can do much in real loose sand. maybe lower gears?? don't know if a locker would help much, but get a lock right, it's cheap, easy to install and works like a charm. oh yeah, do you air down? don't know if you do, but airing down does help alot.

 

i acutally went 4wheelin yesterday to azusa canyon iin so. cal. lots of sand and mud. i was with my buddy's samuari. (i'm 2wd) we got in to some real loose sand. he doesn't have gears, but has a lincoln locker in the rear, didn't do much good. there was this toyota that had such low gears that he coudln't exceed 40mph. locked front and rear. couldn't do much in the sand either. soo... besides a locker and gears, don't know what to tell ya, invest in a dune buggy.

Edited August 23, 2005 by mudfinder

[Filthy Luker]

Since most sand oriented vehicles are RWD, i suggest you hack off the front drivetrain and invest into a blown big block to make those tires spin like mad.

 

Or just get a sand rail. -alcohol-

[88pathoffroad]

You don't need "stronger 4WD", you just need to adjust a few things.

 

The first thing you have to do is reduce tire pressure. Make sure your tires are aired down enough to work for you. That's the main problem with driving on sand. How low do you go? The tires should sag a bit on the sidewalls in sand, but not look flat.

 

Personally, mine run great at about 9 psi or less (but they're bias-ply tires with a 30 psi max inflation pressure and 4-ply sidewalls). Stock tires should be set at about 12 or so. You can go lower if you need to. I've gone down to 6-8 psi on BFG's before and they worked great. Try different pressures and see what works best for you.

 

Different shocks also help. Stock saggy-ass shocks don't help in the sand, because the tires tend to dig, then pull up and it makes the vehicle bounce and not move forward enough. Stiffer offroad shocks help keep the tires planted and spinning when you need them to.

 

A locker would definitely help.

[Precise1]

Well, the more tires you have spinning, the better off you are so a locker is helpful... What 88 said about tire pressure. It also comes down to the weight of the vehicle and the size of the contact patch of your tires (airing down increases contact patch) so naturally, the wider the tires, the better. Then there is tread design... The bigger the knobbies, the better, side lugs help also. Ultimately you want paddle tires but they are not street legal. Some good MT or AT's should work fine. Sometimes you can just churn your way through... ie. 4x4, 2nd gear at about 2000-2500 rpm and patience...

 

B

[Guest Deathrunner]

Mud terrains tend to dig, iin my experience. I would suggest running with All terrains and for the purpose of flotation, the wider the better.

[88pathoffroad]

Yep, very true. My current tires will dig themselves in in no time if I hit the gas from a stop. A/T's work better on sand AFAIK.

[solid snake]

The first thing you have to do is reduce tire pressure. Make sure your tires are aired down enough to work for you. That's the main problem with driving on sand. How low do you go? The tires should sag a bit on the sidewalls in sand, but not look flat.

 

I'm already lowering the tire pressure on the tires, about 10 psi, I've dropped it to 8 psi once. What I think happened before, and I didn't even think about the shocks, but I did see my front end dig it's self in. My pro comp shocks were just installed in the back, but not in the front. I just want to show all these jeeps around here that a pathy can kick ass in the sand.

[solid snake]

a locker is one thing you can do, but i really don't think you can do much in real loose sand. maybe lower gears?? don't know if a locker would help much, but get a lock right

What site offers lock rights for pathy's?

[mudfinder]

here's a link. it's at ROCKY-ROAD.COM it's $235. scroll down to NISSAN DIFFS. h233b. this is where i got mine from. greatest investment i've ever done to the path.

[wheelmanLS1]

this is where i got mine from. greatest investment i've ever done to the path.

Of course, you have 2-wheel drive and go places that 4x4's go. I get stuck in places my Prelude would go through (an extreme exaggeration) because I simply don't know how to off-road. I bought my BFGoodrich A/T's when they offered the recovery program and they have had to send a truck out for me twice and I've only been off-road 5 times since I got the tires. That recovery program is really paying off... they will yank me out for free anywhere the truck can get back to. Since I usually go to new neighborhood developments to mess around, a truck can winch me out from the road.

[Animal]

I bought my BFGoodrich A/T's when they offered the recovery program and they have had to send a truck out for me twice and I've only been off-road 5 times since I got the tires.

And next time you may find your truck sitting on blocks in the morning.

They have to be loosing money on you.

[solid snake]

And next time you may find your truck sitting on blocks in the morning.

They have to be loosing money on you.

Naw, they'll just take his pathy to cover the costs!!! sly

[wheelmanLS1]

I think it's somewhere around $100 to have a truck pull you out... so $600 tires, twice I've been pulled out... only four more times before I make all my money back.