Tire pressure in the sand: how low can you go?

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TravOC

TravOC

10 Year
Joined
Jun 7, 2015
Threads
2
Messages
9
I just put some new 285/75/R16 Nitto Terra Grapplers on my Land Cruiser and I have a trip to the sand dunes planned. I was wondering how low of air pressure I can go in the dunes without breaking a bead.

With my Jeep I usually go down to 6 PSI but that's probably too low for a Cruiser.

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I usually go down to 12-14 psi for Silver Lake Dunes in Michigan and never really got stopped yet...
 
I had the Nitto TG 295 and did not go below 18 as would get sand in bead. If you start seeing black dust along bead you might want add a few pounds to what you are running if you go lower.
With stock bumpers it makes recovery a little harder so you might want take some Maxtrax along.
 
In panic mode, trying to get out of a stuck with wheels straight, you can go waaay low.

If you want to bomb around in the sand dunes at speed with turns...you're gunna need air in the high teens to prevent the tire from peeling off the rim.
 
So your normal max pressure on that tire is either 65(D) or 80(E) and either would indicate a pretty stiff sidewall. You should be fine down to 15. Below that you might want to be less aggressive in turns and moguls. I run 20 in the Silver Lake Dunes on Lake Michigan which have some very loose, deep sand and have never even hinted at getting stuck. That's with 275/65-18 MS/2 that have a max pressure of 44(SL).
 
Seem like I read once that; propeller shafts & spider joints need lubing daily while running in deep sand. Is carrying a mini grease gun the way to go or just wait tell back home?
 
Full size grease gun. Wrapped in a big towel. Lashed with a bungee. Lube it every day if sand is getting on the parts (if you care about these sort of things).
 
I have same ones on 18 size rims and never go below 15! Normal air down is usually between 20 to 25 for me. I run 45 - 50 on the roads. They are great tires and I love them but very soft and squishy to go any lower than that!
Have almost 30k miles on the set now with plenty of life left!
 
I agree with 99toylc. I run 13psi in the NTG's on my 80 (295/75/16) at Silver Lake, MI. I'll do the same when I move them over to my new-to-me 100 series.
 
The softness of the sand and the steepness of yuor ascents will determine how low you need to go. In the very soft sands of Cape Cod, 15 would be too high. I can tell a clear difference in traction between 11 and 14. I usually bring them down to about ten or so and then see how it goes. with all the sand, the tires get pretty hot and sometimes 10 turns back into 14 just from the heat and friction and I have let more out. I have driven around on 8 or so many times with no issue and great traction. I dont take sharp fast turns though.
 
I don't want to hijack the thread, but what would you run on Rock? Lava rock in particular. I was told 20 front 15 back is acceptable, this seems too low to me.
 
Thanks everyone. Based on the discussion and my own experience, I'll try running at 10 psi in the dunes. If I blow a bead, I'll be sure to let you know :)
 
MauiCruzer said:
I don't want to hijack the thread, but what would you run on Rock? Lava rock in particular. I was told 20 front 15 back is acceptable, this seems too low to me.
Click to expand...

The risk in the rocks is punctures. Through the tread and sidewall.

Psi for sharp rocks is dependent on what tires you've got and how heavy your vehicle is.

A fully inflated tire is easily punctured by a sharp rock. But an exposed sidewall is easily torn too.

You've got to take it on some test rocks to see how your tire looks.

A big fat 33" E rated tire on a light jeep can get away with way less psi than a fully loaded cruiser on C rated 31s.
 
After four days in the sand dunes, I finally lost a bead at 10 psi due to driver error. I was going side hill at full throttle when I slid sideways into a trough.

I swapped the (undersized) spare and drove away. A blast of air from a compressor reset the bead and I was off. No big deal.

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Had a feeling this saw coming from the video if you were down at 10! :) Seems like an easy fix. Glad it was all good man!
 
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