I'm doing a road trip in June with my 4runner down to Oregon. I will be going on the dunes and need to know what is good to take. I have all the recovery gear for what we run into up here in Canada. I do not know if some 10"x 3' Aluminum ramps would be good if I get stuck in the sand or what not?

Also what are good things to do to the truck to prepare it for sand?

I have a 93 v6 5spd 4runner and it will be SAS by the time this trip comes around.

Thanks,

Jeremy

p.s. we will have a Unimog with us for a pull when we get really stuck.

 

you will need a flag on your truck and airing down the tires helps

 

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but I do believe that a SFA solid front axle is worse for jumping sand dunes, then IFS is.

 

x2 what stormin said.

If this is only going to see highway and sand, save your money on the SAS.
Put it towards something more useful

 

I'm not going tt be jumping the truck on the dunes. Up here where I normaly 4x4 its all rocks and the kind of wheeling that seems to beat the out of my IFS.

The truck also has a rear locker, 33" and may have a twin transfer as well as the SAS in the next month. Again not done for the dunes but for 99% of my 4x4ing up here in Canada.

I was just wondering if thet gear I bring there should be any diffrent. I have a 8' ATV flag I hope that will do?

The only road use my truck sees is driving to and from the trail. I have a car as a daily driver.

Jeremy

 

if a 25' RV can go to through the sand dunes, your 4Runner will, too. you, the driver is more important than any of your equipment. i'm a newbie in terms of driving on the sand, i can share with you what i've learned.

1.) tires tires tires. good tread, good side wall, air it down to 15psi, see what happens, 10psi is normal.
2.) easy on the gas, the harder you push, the deeper your wheels will dig in.
3.) easy on the breaks, or no breaks. when you need to stop, just back out the throttle, the drag caused by sand stop your vehicle very quickly.
4.) *** after you come to a complete stop, immediately put in reverse and back up few feet, so all of your tires have some packed sand in both directions to work with next time you start. this was the first thing i was taught, and it works.
5.) put up some kick ass lights on top so you can see far down range, sand dunes are very unpredictable, sharp drops are everywhere, i'd try to avoid driving at night, but let me tell you, it's lots of fun, totally different than day time.

i can't wait to get back to pismo.

 

Sorry for the hijack,

but are stock 265/70-R16 tires aired down to 15-18psi sufficient to run the dunes in my '97 4Runner? I am pulling my trailer (rather large trailer) down there this summer and will be switching to my stock tires to make the trip easier, but I still want to play in the Oregon dunes.

Cheers

 

you should shoot me a PM before you come down, im in Tillamook right by sandlake....smaller than florance but fun for me.....

and I take my yota out there all the time, i run 33-12.5s and 5.29s and i go anywhere my little 22r will take me, i just air down to 8-12......

When i leave for a wkend i take all the normal stuff (tools, liquids - for truck and body, shovel, STRAP not a chain)

There are some specific things you will need and are required to have to be on the dunes in Oregon .....Fire extiguisher, 9 ft flag, Oregon OHV permit
there are some others like DB level for mufflers and such but you get the most harrasment for the stickers and the flag, almost anything else and you pissed the cop or ranger off....

BTW all the uni's that i have seen in the sand had them damn tall skinnys on and they sucked, soo hopefully you dont gota pull him out



(denpacc....you shouldnt have a prob with those tires at all, i wouldnt go much lower than oh we will say 8-10 psi (higher if you wana jump it

 

Ya, stock A/T's should be fine, but I wouldn't leave them anything higher than 15. Just remember to air down both the truck and the trailer. If you are pulling a trailer in the sand, I would go lower.
However, I haven't yet towed a trailer on dunes or a beach. I've just seen and talked to people who have and do.

I was surprised last time I was at Pismo. My buddy was running BFG A/T's and he seemed to be digging less and moving more, than my Muds. lol

On the same note as TC4RNR's #4, if you are going to stop, be careful to stop with your rig pointed down hill or on flat ground. If you stop where you'll be starting off wanting to go uphill, your going to dig in and probably not get anywhere.
TC4RNR makes an interesting point. I've just found that if you back up a meter or so before going straight ahead, you aren't pushing the same pile of sand that was in front of your tires till you have a little momentum (assuming your stopped on a flat).

And recovery is generally pretty easy. If you get stuck going up a hill, put it in reverse and back STRAIGHT back down, then try again.
I was at Pismo a few weeks ago and was amazed how much and how well I could run in 2wd w/o issue. But I had the front hubs locked and ready if I needed them (and I did).

Good Luck and Hope to hear how your trip goes : )
Grant

 

Thanks a lot for the usfull info. I have had quads out htere before but not a truck so I wanted ot make sure I was not getting into any specialy gear.

I have 33x12.5 Truxus MT's with 90% tred so those should do fine. The stopping and backing up 1 meter is the same as we do in the deep snow up here.....works good too.

bleakhorizon: We will be down there the first week in June and will be traveling hole cost of Oregon. We will be in Florence for 2-3 days. I have been though Tillamook and would love to meet up with a local for some wheeling.

Jeremy

p.s. can you still drive down the beach if you have a ORV permit?

 

Bring something to air your tires back up when you are done.
And bring a good yank strap. Even if you don't need it, you might make a friend.

 

Don't forget a shovel.

 

shocks and spring rate are your friend. SAS can do just as well, if not better, than IFS on the dunes if it's set up right. like it's already been mentioned, air down. flotation is the name of the game.

 

we used to take 5ft strips of carpet to put under the tires of my dads tundra. worked like magic, best thing to have is a buddy and a tow strap

 

yes, a good tow strap is a must!, airing down is a must! a block of wood or something to put underneath a jack!, im from coosbay so ive wheeled in the dunes alot! my v8 toyota was the funnest out there. but my 4cly yota goes just fine! the key to climbing the big hills here one such as "v8 hill" is momentem.

 

Are 9 foot flags only for cars/trucks in the dunes of Oregon? When I looked at some youtube vids, the quads and dirt bikes only had flags that were no more than 5 or 6 feet high by the looks of it.

And is it easy to get OHV permits to drive the dunes? I am assuming the campgrounds I stay at will have info. as to where to go and get stuff. I can hardly wait, should be a lot of fun, Oregon looks beautiful.

Cheers

 

no, i think there 8' flags. the reason they look short is probably do to wrecking and breaking the flag then just remounting it. im not shure of the required length. but usually if your "flagged&tagged the cops dont mess with you.

yes, its easey to get a dune tag. you can get them at atv rental's, KOA campgrounds, or you can come into town and get one from one of the honda/yamaha dealers! what part of the dunes will you be exploring??

 

We will be staying in the Honnyman (sp) camp area, I camped there as a kid and always had a blast on the dunes. Are there any good areas you sujest? I know when I was a kid trucks were aloud on the beaches on some areas, is that still leagal?

I have all the recovery gear already i.e. Shovle, 2 straps, tow points f/r, On board air, Hi-lift, spare parts & tools. I will be adding some rools of carpet (great idea). As for momentum sounds just like winter wheeling up here, you can drive on top of 4ft of snow if you keep momentum, as soon as you stop your done!

Thanks for the imput so far guys!! I will be heading down the first week of June.

Jeremy

 

i live about a hour or 2 from florence and like 10mins from newport which you gotta drive thourgh to get to florence maybe we could meet up and grab some lunch

 

We are heading to Florence area (unless someone can talk me in to going further south), then up the Oregon coast and through to Olympia, Washington and on towards Canada, then home. But we intend on staying in the Florence area for at least one week, then slowly make our way up the coast. Are there areas people from Oregon suggest checking out near or at the dunes? Any input would be appreciated. I will be doing some 4x4ing with my runner, but I think we will rent a couple of dirt bikes or quads for me and my 5 year old boy. Looking forward to it.

Cheers