Getting stuck in sand

[deskjockey]

I recently bought a 95 exlporer, XLT
had a mechanic check it and the 4wd works

i drive onto the local beach and this year the sand is soft and deep in spots
recently in 4 auto i have been getting stuck
we drive in the the tracks left by other vehicles

the local beach patrol guys say they never use 4 lo, they drive big ford pickups,
they say to stay out of 4lo

it is a 5 speed,,,,, should i be using 4 lo? is it my driving, it's a 5speed,, what gear should i be in? what rpm?

should i have the 4wd checked?

thanks again,, i am trying to get my hands dirty and learn









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[Blee1099]

What PSI are your tires at? I would recommend dropping them down to 15 psi and keep it in 4HI and go slowly try not to spin your tires.

 

[deskjockey]

Tires

Yes, I forgot to mention,,, truck came w/recent off-road tires
that are pretty new,,,,, we keep them at psi rated on door

 

[Blee1099]

You need to air down..

 

[Maniak]

As mentioned bring an air compressor with you (little 12v thing is fine) and air down to 15psi or so.. Don't go fast, don't corner hard, don't spin your tires.. and air up before you drive on pavement.

Aired down on pavement will mean a very squily(sp?) ride and can be unsafe.. If you must drive on pavement, keep the speed down, take it easy and air up ASAP.. Don't drive on the freeway or across down to air up..

~Mark

 

[deskjockey]

thanks for all the help guys,,,,

Should I be in first, second gear?
my wife just called and she got stuck,,, she shifted into 4lo
and drove out

I think we may be driving poorly, in addition to not airing down

thx again for the help

 

[manaen]

As everyone already said air down those tire and you will be amazed at the results. The reason they don't use 4lo is because 4hi will give you a much more slow and controlled start, kinda like pulling out in 2nd gear on an automatic. Although both of those will be much harder on the drive train than using 4lo and just being careful with your right foot.

 

[deskjockey]

one more question,,,

thanks guys,,

one more question,
there is a dirt access road parallel to the beach, you access the beach via
3 crossovers,, which are small gradual uphill and downhill

we stop at the top, engage 4wd and drive onto the beach

one problem we have is shifting into 2nd gear from this stop,,
we have usuall just hit the sand and get bogged down,, your suggestions

thanks

 

[manaen]

If your using 4lo start out in 2nd, or even 3rd.

If your using 4hi, do you really need 2nd gear on the beach? just stay in 1st or if you really need 2nd, start out in 2nd.


I'm not sure that I fully understand what your trying to say. I'm guessing that your saying when you pull out into the sand from the hill, you start out in 1st and then go to shift into 2nd, however when you shift into second it bogs down and you get stuck, is that correct?

 

[deskjockey]

yes, we hit the sand just as we re shifting from 1st to 2nd and we bog down,

 

[manaen]

well driving in sand does take a lot more power, so you will need to use a ton more throttle to maintain momentum. SO keeping the RPMs higher are key to maintaining control otherwise the engine will always bog. Think of it like towing a heavy trailer, sand acts the same way due to the increase resistance/load. So you need to let the engine rev up higher than normal road driving and use a lower gear to make the torque you need to keep pulling through the sand.

So basically stay in 1st gear, in order to have enough RPM's in 2nd you will probably be going too fast

 

[Ray Lobato]

Guys, He has a 95. That's 2wd/4wd auto/4wd Lo. You are never sure when it goes into 4wd. I would use 4wd lo and leave it in normal drive. and let the tranny keep you in motion. If you start to bog down, then shift to a lower gear.
I had a 95 before I got my 97. hated that 4wd auto.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't the brown wire mod help in this too? I mean being able to keep it in 4wd hi?

 

[unclemeat]

I would never drive on the sand in 4wd-high. I have a manual and use 4wd-low, second gear for starting, third for crusing and higher gears for packed sand. I will almost never use 1st gear unless the sand is to deep for 2nd gear to pull me. You have to very careful with 1st, because it does tend to spin the tires, and dig you in. In sand spinning the tires is very bad.

Lowering tire pressure is really the most important thing. I like low range best because the beach I drive on hs 25-mph speed limit and 5th gear low range pretty much keeps me there.