Tips and must haves for beach driving

Never did 4 wheeling on the beach before... Gonna be doing a lot of beach driving this summer for fishing, swimming, taking the dogs out, surfing, etc.. wondering if there are any must have mods, tools or products for it, and also just general tips.. thanks !

 

Gotta Bury the axles and show off to all the beach go’ers how damn awesome crawl is

 

http://www.islandbeachnj.org/Recreation/beachdriving.html

Every state has there own set of rules and regs so you’ll have to check by state, and beach. Since you’re in Jersey i figured that’s where you’d start.

Basically...

Air your tires way down (you need a way to do this and a gauge)

A high lift jack

Platform to place your jack on

Straps and or chains

Spare tire and shovel

Obviously there’s more in some places. Trash bags, water, fishing gear (some places ONLY allow driving for the purpose of fishing).

This should get you started.

 

Find a nice quiet spot without people around and come to a complete stop. Hold the traction control button for ~8 seconds until the TRAC OFF light comes on in the dash. Turn the wheel all the way in either direction. Floor it! Wait for the view to repeat itself at least 4 full times before letting off the gas.

 

Please don’t do that... things might be a little different in Texas, but on the east coast we’re lucky to have anywhere to drive off pavement. Don’t give the tree huggers any more excuses to restrict access. I realize it’s just sand but trust me any reason they can use to take away access they will.

Obey speed limits and drive where you are supposed to responsibly and safely, be courteous and help other. Don’t be a jackass off road. On the beach or anywhere it hurts us all.

Oh and stay off he dunes! And away from nesting birds or turtles, jeez just what we need a national story about some guy in a Tacoma mowing down Plovers that were nesting. Hahahaha

 

Have good tires and air down...how far you can air down depends on your tire and wheel setup but I'd go to at least 15 psi or lower if you can. I had to go down to 8 psi once to get unstuck but aired back up a bit when I was in a better area. So make sure you have an air compressor too, and a good one (not one of those $20 Wal Mart ones that plug into your cigarette lighter, one that hooks up directly to your truck's battery or better yet...an on-board air compressor.) I have a Viar 88p that I picked up for $60 or so and it works great, albeit not super fast like on-board compressors do.

Have a recovery strap in case you need to get pulled out of a difficult spot, or find someone that does. NOT a tow strap...a recovery strap. Tow straps usually have those metal hooks on the end which can easily become lethal projectiles, and they don't have any elasticity like recovery straps do.

4lo or 4hi depends on the situation but usually you want momentum in sand. Keep in mind that it's not easy to steer in sand though the faster you go...especially if there are ruts or tire tracks from other vehicles. Sand wants to pull you in every direction.

Also, if you're stuck in 2wd make sure your tires are not slipping when you engage 4wd...engaging 4x4 with slipping tires is a great way to break something.

 

I agree! Never put down tracks where there aren't any already. Be cool and be safe. And have fun when possible.

 

I agree, however we have OHV areas here in CA that are basically sand dune parks without any specifically marked "trails", just border lines indicating how far you can go. But if you're on a designated trail, always stay on the designated trail.

 

What beach in jersey are you going to? i frequent Brigantine Beach all the time. I always air down to about 18psi, that way if i ever get stuck i can still air down a little more. Always carry a shovel, traction boards at minimum. Brigantine Beach wants you to have a fire exstinguisher, tow strap, jumper cables, 12x12 minimum 1 inch thick board if you need a jack, and some other stuff, i forget everything. Always bring a air compressor to air back up, sometimes the ones provided dont work or are not turned on.

 

Island beach

 

I air down tires to 20-15 lbs. depending on how soft the sand is in the area. In the winter when the beach is not rutted up I have driven on without airing down and in 2 wd. In Delaware there are some items you are required to have like a shovel, Jack with a board, recovery strap and must be driving on to be actively fishing. They actually offer a class about beach driving, Delawareonline.com, but I would guess most of the posts here would cover what you need to know. Also make sure to get a map of where you can and can't go for that time of year. I think 4 hi works better than 4 lo. Don't jam up the beach entrance while airing down. You can use tire deflators to speed up the airing down process. Don't get too close to the water.

 

Good advice so far but I would say a set of MaxTrax would be a solid investment as well. For the money, they're hard to beat and can really save your rear if you get stuck and there is nobody around to pull you out.

 

In Hawaii, trucks don't like sand and saltwater....with all the electronics wired under truck it will be a bitch to clean out! It's fun as hell but you gotta flush bearing boots to frame or rust will haunt you....
In the 70's we used to have races at the beach, and everybody was responsible of taking care of the beach, but now that a Billion people moved to Hawaii I don't know of a beach you can even drive on without getting cited or running over somebody, somebody would call the cops anyway......so it's mountains and mud....even there the greenies complain.
But if you can where you are, have fun, it's a blast and just feels good to drive up to the waters edge and sit on tailgate while fishing!

 

Air down, and have a way to air up, that’s really it.

If you want recovery gear, then straps (snatch if you know how to use them) or recovery tracks would be next.
Hi lift is worthless on a stock Tacoma, and will not get you out of sand on it’s own anyway, you will need way more ie something to pack under the wheel.

 

Stay out of the salt water.

 

Last two trips to Padre Island National Seashore I didn’t even bother to air down. I went out to the 25 mile mark in 4hi with no problems. Airing down will help a lot if you’re traveling in fresh untraveled sand but as long as there are previous tracks and you stay on them, you’ll probably be fine without.

But yeah, a compressor, a shovel, tow strap, a full tank of gas, and water will serve you well. Wouldn’t be a bad idea to have a sturdy piece of 2x2’ wood in case you need to jack it up and change a tire

 

Never use the brake. Let the truck “drift” to a stop (obviously, driving slowly is part of this). Getting sand in drum brakes and using them will quickly tear them up. Know EXACTLY where the “high water” line is on the beach. Best advice: go with someone who knows how to operate on the beach and learn from them first, don’t just “do it,” especially with a new truck.

 

Don’t drive into the water. Do what they said ^^. You’re good to go, have fun

 

Wow. I don’t even know how to respond to that. I do donuts at least once a week in Arizona. Rip to your freedoms fellow east coast TWMember

 

I enjoy beach driving in Carova / Corolla (NC). Besides what folks have said already, just be aware that if there are people around, don't assume they can hear you approaching. The ocean waves drown a lot of sound, so folks tend to wander through the line you are driving (especially little kids and parent's watching their kids).

Also be aware of folks who prey on beach drivers by placing traps (they then offer to tow you out for a fee). I've had no problem in 4 high so far (although I have crawl control if needed). Bring traction boards just in case (can be used as a shovel too).

Enjoy!