Driving in Sand

[nrs2001]

I have a Subaru Forester, 2005 model. I went out to the Outer Banks
this weekend and saw that they have ramps that you can take your 4X4
out in the sand to park on the beach. Can take an AWD out there. I
did find a little sand and I drive through that. Can someone tell me
if they have ever drove in the sand.

 

[johninKY]

Shouldn't have any problems driving on the beach. I won't go into the
dunes. Having driven Army trucks in the desert in "real" sand I know from
experience it can take a lot of horsepower to power through loose sand.
Twice I had to have 6X6 AWD diesel powered trucks winched out of sand.

 

[Michael Pardee]

I have a Subaru Forester, 2005 model. I went out to the Outer Banks
this weekend and saw that they have ramps that you can take your 4X4
out in the sand to park on the beach. Can take an AWD out there. I
did find a little sand and I drive through that. Can someone tell me
if they have ever drove in the sand.

Acknowledging I haven't taken an AWD vehicle into sand... beware very deep,
soft sand. Once you get more than a couple inches deep in sand it takes a
bunch of power to move forward (you are actually moving the sand behind you
as you move) and I don't know how much of that your AWD system will put up
with. At work I have to take my F350 SuperDuty 4WD all sorts of places, and
the soft sand of the Navajo rez is as challenging as several inches of
snow... just not as slippery. In any case, take a shovel with you. A few
minutes of shoveling will work wonders if you are stuck in sand.

I'd think wet beach sand would be no problem, but the dry stuff... dunno.

Mike

 

[Jay Masino]

I have a Subaru Forester, 2005 model. I went out to the Outer Banks
this weekend and saw that they have ramps that you can take your 4X4
out in the sand to park on the beach. Can take an AWD out there. I
did find a little sand and I drive through that. Can someone tell me
if they have ever drove in the sand.

I've taken my '05 OBW Limited onto the beach on Assateague Island in
Maryland twice. There's a combination of wet/hard packed sand and soft
sand. It did pretty darn well. The most difficult part was driving out
of the tracks left be larger 4x4's. When I was on soft/dry sand, I kept
the speed up. I was a little concerned that I wouldn't have the
horsepower to get through the dry sand if I let it slow down or stopped
(base 4cyl, automatic), but it actually did OK.

--- Jay

 

[QX]

I have a Subaru Forester, 2005 model. I went out to the Outer Banks
this weekend and saw that they have ramps that you can take your 4X4
out in the sand to park on the beach. Can take an AWD out there. I
did find a little sand and I drive through that. Can someone tell me
if they have ever drove in the sand.

Just remember one thing, Salt Water + Metal = RUST.

I will never forget the scene in Cocoa Beach many, many years ago,
when some guy drove his sedan out on the hard packed sand. I guess he
decided his car was dirty, and proceeded to wash it.
He was carrying buckets of the Atlantic Ocean over to use as is water
source. I wonder what his car looked like a year or so later.

 

[John O]

He was carrying buckets of the Atlantic Ocean over to use as is water

source. I wonder what his car looked like a year or so later.

It's probably not much different than what I got today driving down I-94 in
the Michigan snow belt. The road is wet with a mixture of melted snow and
road salt. My black OBW has a layer of salty dirt.

But that guy was an idiot anyway...imagine the spots!

-John O

 

[Jim Stewart]

I have a Subaru Forester, 2005 model. I went out to the Outer Banks
this weekend and saw that they have ramps that you can take your 4X4
out in the sand to park on the beach. Can take an AWD out there. I
did find a little sand and I drive through that. Can someone tell me
if they have ever drove in the sand.

Damp, packed beach sand is no problem. Just for
fun, I took my Outback into it and tried to spin
all 4 tires. Couldn't do it, just got good
traction....

As others have said, stay away from dry dunes
unless you don't need to get home any time soon

 

[Guest]

I have a Subaru Forester, 2005 model. I went out to the Outer Banks
this weekend and saw that they have ramps that you can take your 4X4
out in the sand to park on the beach. Can take an AWD out there. I
did find a little sand and I drive through that. Can someone tell me
if they have ever drove in the sand.

So did you actually check the laws or regulations regarding that strip of
property to determine if you are actually allowed to drive there? Just
because you might have a monster truck capable of handling sand doesn't mean
it is legal to drive there. I'm sure the other beachgoers don't appreciate
some a-hole digging up trenches in their beach.

 

[Tcassette]

Many folks that drive 4WD trucks on the beach at the Outer Banks deflate
their tires a few pounds before going on the sand to improve traction.
Obviously, they carry air pumps or tanks to inflate back to normal pressures
before highway use.

 

[nrs2001]

Yeah, if you go to the nps.gov and look up Cape Hatteras National
Seashore it says that you can drive on the beach. So I am assuming
that you don't know anything about the Subaru AWD. Thanks

 

[BrianW]

I've taken both my '03 OBW and my '91 Isuzu Trooper on the sand in the
Outer Banks (usually at the northern end, above Corolla). As others
have said, driving at low tide on the packed sand isn't a problem. The
Subaru should handle the dry sand OK, too. The biggest problem is
dealing with the many ruts in the sand from other vehicles. I got hung
up several times with the Subaru, basically bottoming out. Not a
problem with the Trooper, as it sits a lot higher. I have seen a number
of other Outbacks on the beach, and they seemed to be doing OK.

On the Trooper I reduced the tire pressure quite a bit, which helps the
tires get more bite on the sand. I didn't do this on the Outback, as
the sidewall height of the tire is pretty low compared to the Trooper.

Also, the comment about power is well taken. It does take a decent
amount of power to get out of tricky spots. Consider how difficult it
can be to walk in soft sand and you get the idea.

I did have the Trooper back in the dunes a few times, and didn't have
any problems with getting stuck. However, beware the nasty scrub oak
trees, which can do a real number on your car's paint (trust me on
this!

I once watched somebody driving a BMW SUV go driving straight onto the
beach off one of the access ramps you mentioned. He got stuck within 50
feet. Slow and steady on the gas, with deliberate steering movements,
is the way to go.

 

[S]

Hi NRS, All!

I have a Subaru Forester, 2005 model. I went out to the Outer Banks
this weekend and saw that they have ramps that you can take your 4X4
out in the sand to park on the beach. Can take an AWD out there. I
did find a little sand and I drive through that. Can someone tell me
if they have ever drove in the sand.

Sand varies widely. If it's damp, there usually isn't any problem,
BUT:

If it's very wet you may find pockets of "quicksand" (not like in the
"B" movies, but same general idea) that will stop you cold. Watch out
for it, especially in low spots.
Some dry sand will pack enuf to support a vehicle, some won't, and
it's often difficult to tell without testing it. Best to let the "big
boys" do the testing for you; if they don't appear to be having too
much trouble, your AWD Soobie probably won't either. I have seen very
fine wind-blown sand actually form an inch or so of crust firm enough
to walk on w/o leaving a mark, but below that it was bottomless,
flour-fine and slippery feeling. I can envision some hapless soul
nonchalantly driving out onto this surface for some distance before
the crust gave way. My-oh-my would that be one stuck individual.
Also note that sand is abrasive; tough on suspension pivots, brakes,
wheel bearings, etc. not to mention the corrosive effects of ocean
salt.
Your best bet is to stay away from sand, but if you do go, travel in
pairs, bring tools to extricate yourselves, and if you play by the
ocean, get thee to thy car wash, pronto, after thou'rt done

ByeBye! S.
Steve Jernigan KG0MB
Laboratory Manager
Microelectronics Research
University of Colorado
(719) 262-3101