How fast on bumpy roads TRD OR

This is a newby question.

We drove from Mesquite, NV to Little Finland in Gold Butte National Monument. This is a round trip distance of about 120 miles. About 70 of this was on either badly paved, potholed roads or gravel roads with large gravel; very bumpy. About 20 was in moderate sand and single track on mostly unimproved roads. On the bad pavement and gravel I was going 15-20 MPH. A few other trucks passed me (including a 3rd generation TACO). My question is, if I drove faster in those conditions would I hurt the taco?

FWIW, I searched for fast and bumpy in the same thread and didn't find an answer.

 

100 mph.

 

There's usually a sweet spot for speed on things like washboard roads. A lot will depend on your particular truck's suspension, tires and what you may be hauling. The #1 thing that I'll do at the start of a long stretch of rough road is to air down by 10 to 15psi depending on the conditions. Before you do that, make sure that you've got a functioning air compressor with you to fill the tires back up.

 

Also note, the longer you go, the faster you go.... shock fade will happen and then eventual failure from overheating.
Be sure to stop about every 20 to 30 minutes to let them cool off a bit.

 

It'll let you know when you go too fast. You'll bottom out or flip it.

 

Push it hard, find the speed where shit gets rough, fine tune from there. That's my formula for all my life lessons

 

Maybe

 

Thanks for the great answers. To help further answer the question, I'm driving a stock 2018 TRD OR DCLB. Today we weren't carrying any additional weight.

 

Drive within your comfort zone! Let no one tell you otherwise. I love my motorcycles ...there are better drivers than me and there are worse. The same applies to your truck. Always drive YOUR game.
Just a suggestion.
Jeff

 

Those trucks passing you might know the trail really well. Like where they can gas it and where they need to slow down. Think about how you know your local roads and where the potholes are.

 

I've got a lot of dirt miles over the years. Generally try to keep it below 60. All just depends on the particular situation and how familiar you are with the road/area/traffic/hazards. My biggest question around speed on dirt is do I have enough time/space to come to a stop if need be and adjust accordingly.

I also tend to push it for a bit then back of to let the stock shocks cool down. You'd be surprised at what these trucks can do stock with nothing but aired down good tires. Just a couple weeks ago I was bombing a pretty smooth desert wash with a 2nd gen lt rig and 3rd gen on king's and keeping up with them all

 

Depends on the suspension. Stock, drive under the “thunk” noise speed, probably 25-30 mph.

Digressive shocks on properly tuned suspension, those conditions sound like 50-75 mph ok. If you know there are no whoops, push it up.

If there might be whoops, then maybe a progressive shock and 40s.

Stock shocks will heat up so you can push them at first but not very long. Reserve reservoirs get you much much more beat on them time.

 

“Drive no faster than you can afford” is a pretty good mantra.

 

It really depends on condition of the dirt. Some of the dirt roads in my area are smoother than some of the paved roads. Driving 60 mph on a well maintained dirt road isn't much of a problem. But that's my max and it goes down from there. I think I would have driven the same speeds as you on potholed dirt roads. Not many vehicles will survive without damage if you push them hard. Look at the threads on here about people with cracks appearing in the sheet metal around body mounts, radiator supports and the like. Yeah, those don't happen from just driving along at 20 mph on rough roads. That's what happens when you push it.

 

I’ll let the go-fast guys talk about shock fade and body/frame cracks. But, in my experience, three factors come into play.
One, comfort. If it’s uncomfortable, adjust your speed. Sometimes faster is better.
Two, general stability. I always use 4wd on faster dirt or gravel roads even if I don’t “need” it. it really helps straight-line tracking.
Three, please consider other traffic and how quickly you can stop and/or avoid hitting other vehicles, cattle, mountain bikers etc. You’re not a “professional driver on a closed course”.

 

I generally try and avoid high speeds on rough dirt roads, especially with the stock shocks, which are known to overheat and blow the seals.

If you absolutely must drive on these roads, I'd go slow... 25 mph or so. Stop after the first 15 minutes and inspect the shocks to see how they are holding up... feel them, see if they are smoking, etc. If they seem fine, then you are probably OK.

 

Don't go so fast that you spill your beer , that wound be alcohol abuse and unacceptable .

 

Can't get much better answer than this: https://www.edmunds.com/car-buying/...yota-tacoma-trd-off-road-comparison-test.html

 

Never drive faster than your guardian angel can fly! But seriously, it’s really down to road conditions and driver skill. Can you go too fast and blow your shocks? Yup, but the forest roads I run here in Oregon have too many blind curves to go fast. You don’t want to meet a log truck head on without time to react.