Newbie with a beach driving question

[jespey]

We’ve driven on Crescent beach many times with street tires, A/T and M/T tires, everything stock. JKs, JL, JLUs, JLUR. Never aired down. No problems. Pretty sure that they would close the beach to driving if the sand was too soft. I drove down to the Matanzas area and was very nervous once, but I made it back. I’ve seen many vehicles stuck, mostly AWD suvs, 4WD trucks, and only one Wrangler. It was a young man right at one of the beach entrances, and the sand was fIrm enough around him that I’m pretty sure it was driver error.

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[Jeep4Win]

Hi everyone. First time Jeep owner (2020 Wrangler Unlimited) since last Friday. So far I've done nothing to the Jeep so everything is stock. I have two very newbie questions:

I live in Gainesville, Florida, and love heading over to Crescent Beach. Does anyone have any experience driving on the sand out there? The sand up where you drive tends to be looser and less packed. I'd appreciate any thoughts on taking it out onto the sand with just the stock tires. Am I just asking for trouble? Another thread from a couple of years ago recommended reducing the pressure to about 12 psi and keeping it in 4L and said that this was all that was needed. Is that still good advice?

Second, I really don't want to lift the Jeep. I was told that I could go up to 33 inches on the tires. Is there anything I need to worry about if I do that?

I'd appreciate any insight. Thanks for your help.

Alex

I have a JK no lift with 33 inch tires. You may need a pro cal tool to adjust the speedometer and shift points if automatic.

 

[Joe98]

Also look at the manual. In 4W Lo the speed limit is 40 kph. If you exceed the speed limit you could damage the 4WD components.
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[dwine7274]

Air down and you’ll be fine. I drive on the beaches of the outer banks, NC. Really deep and soft sand. I air down to 18 PSI and 4h and have never been stuck in 25 years. Driven many vehicles and tire types. It’s better to air down and not need it then to get stuck.

 

[Blades]

For loose sand just air down to 12-15. You can run in 4h or 4l. I run the dunes at silver lake here in west Michigan in 4h. Have to be driving slow in 4l though. If someone gets stuck in sand it's generally because they haven't aired down far enough.

 

[Swagger]

Went to silver lake when they still had the entry hill. Taught you how much you had to air down to get up it. Most 4wd could make it but you had to air down far enough. I'm sure works on any sand. If digging in just air down further. Need that extra width to float.

 

[Moreace]

Anyone do anything to protect the undercarriage like fluid film or simply rinse with a garden hose after? Can you shoot high pressure water straight up into the engine bay?

 

[Torero]

All good advise. I just want to add that in loose dry sand avoid spinning the tires as much as possible. There is no bottom, so you don’t want to dig in. Easy on the gas to stay on top of the sand. Have fun.

 

[AlexOGnv]

I just want to say thank you to everyone who took the time to answer my questions, offer their insight, and share their experiences. As someone who is new to the community, I certainly appreciate it.

 

[AlexOGnv]

Also, is it legal to drive in every public beach in Florida (unless there are signs restricting it) like it is in Texas?

It's not legal to drive on every public beach. In fact, I'd say that most beaches do not allow it. But St Johns County allows some access. You can find the info: http://www.co.st-johns.fl.us/HCP/Cars.aspx

 

[OversandJL]

As you can see by my username I hit the sand a ton. Good advice above, air down to 15psi and have the appropriate recovery gear. I use 4 low going through the deep sand in the dunes and when on the flats that are hard packed 4 High works just fine.

 

[roaniecowpony]

If you have smaller tires, airing down is much more critical. You can go down to about 12 psi pretty safely, just don't be a going nuts and turning hard while going fast, etc., or you could roll the bead off or trap sand in the bead.

Auto trans is an advantage for most people in the sand, as it has a softer take off, and less likely to start to dig in. Diesels with a manual trans have a higher propensity to spin on take off and dig in, due to their high torque power pulses at near idle (watched my friend with a new manual trans diesel truck and huge tires have a real problem in a dry sand wash, where a stock small tire Suburban was just on a Sunday drive and could pull up stop and start next to the stuck diesel) .

4H vs 4L ... in my pickup, 4H works better for me in the sand, because it has a softer start. In the JLUR, I get the additional choice of locking the axles if I go to 4L, but frankly, soft sand in 4H hasn't been a problem, even if not aired down.

You might want to have a compressor or tank to air up. I know some of the east coast beaches have air, but I hate waiting in lines.

 

[Tellurian]

I’m planning a trip down to Cape Cod this summer for some beach driving/camping and the permit requires the following:

Vehicles will be inspected for all required accessory equipment:

• Shovel: Heavy-duty shovel equal to a military folding shovel
• Towing Device: Any of the following which are at least 14 feet long:
  Tow Strap: 1.5"; Rope: 3/4"; Chain 5/16"; Cable 1/4"
• Jack: Standard size (e.g., vehicle manufacturer's jack)
• Jack Support Board: Wood: 10" x 12" x 1.5" or Plywood: 10" x 12" x 3/4"
• Tire Pressure Gauge: Must register to 5 p.s.i. or lower
• SCV's and pick-up truck campers must also have a fire extinguisher and permanently mounted holding tanks for gray and black water.
• Spare Tire: Must meet tire standards outlined below.
• Tires: All 5 tires, including the spare tire, must meet or exceed the standards outlined below. NOTE: Many newer vehicles are being produced with temporary spare tires, which do not meet our minimum safety requirements. Be sure to carefully, physically check your spare tire size for compliance before applying for an Oversand permit. Temporary Use spare tires are prohibited.
• These are the minimum acceptable tire standards:

Rim Diameter	Width	Profile Example
19"	265	50 or >	P265 / 50 R19
18"	255	55 or >	P255 / 55 R18
17"	245	60 or >	P245 / 60 R17
16"	235	65 or >	P235 / 66 R16
15"	225	70 or >	P225 / 70 R15

Dual-Wheel Standards for R/V's and Pick-Up Campers (including spares):

Self Contained & Pick-Up Campers	Tire Section Width	Profile	Spare Tire	Example
mm	inches
2 Front Tires	245	9.5	70 or >	Matching Spare	Front: LT245/70 R16
4 Rear Tires	215	8.0	70 or >	Matching Spare	Rear: P215/70 R15

@roaniecowpony makes a good point on airing back up. If you don’t have a tank or compressor, check to see where the closest location to do so will be in that area.

 

[roaniecowpony]

I’m planning a trip down to Cape Cod this summer for some beach driving/camping and the permit requires the following:

Vehicles will be inspected for all required accessory equipment:

• Shovel: Heavy-duty shovel equal to a military folding shovel
• Towing Device: Any of the following which are at least 14 feet long:
  Tow Strap: 1.5"; Rope: 3/4"; Chain 5/16"; Cable 1/4"
• Jack: Standard size (e.g., vehicle manufacturer's jack)
• Jack Support Board: Wood: 10" x 12" x 1.5" or Plywood: 10" x 12" x 3/4"
• Tire Pressure Gauge: Must register to 5 p.s.i. or lower
• SCV's and pick-up truck campers must also have a fire extinguisher and permanently mounted holding tanks for gray and black water.
• Spare Tire: Must meet tire standards outlined below.
• Tires: All 5 tires, including the spare tire, must meet or exceed the standards outlined below. NOTE: Many newer vehicles are being produced with temporary spare tires, which do not meet our minimum safety requirements. Be sure to carefully, physically check your spare tire size for compliance before applying for an Oversand permit. Temporary Use spare tires are prohibited.
• These are the minimum acceptable tire standards:

@roaniecowpony makes a good point on airing back up. If you don’t have a tank or compressor, check to see where the closest location to do so will be in that area.

You might also consider some plastic traction boards as well as a plastic jack base made to keep the OEM jack base from slipping sideways and dropping the vehicle.

 

[Jack M]

I take mine to the Outer Banks of NC. Up in the 4X4 section just below the Virginia line. We've been going there for many years starting in about 2005 when I had the Hummer H2. Always saw a mixture of vehicles and always wondered why so many Jeeps. That is until I bought my first Wrangler! In that area it's a mixture of hard pack as well as deep soft sand. With stock tires I would recommend dropping the air down to about 20 psi. 4 low is probably over kill. With my application where we go I typically drop the 35's down to about 28 psi and run in 4 high. Hope this helps!

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