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Air down: it's a good idea

13K views 69 replies 40 participants last post by  Beachrider 
#1 ·
Here's a real world example of why you should air down on the beach:

So I was in the Outer Banks last week on vacation and was up and down the beach a few times at Bodie. No problems at all: air down, drive on the beach, air up. I've been on the beach numerous times over the years and have always aired down to a least 20 psi. Well on the last day my cousin's husband wanted to go on the beach so we got in and drove down. Being lazy and the weather looking like it could rain any minute, I decided to try running it at the full 37 psi. Got on the beach without issue and drove 2 miles down and 2 miles back. not as easy as being aired down, but no concerns......until we tried to drive up the loose sandy hill to get off the beach. No dice. Stuck in the sand. tried 4 low and that just dug me in deeper. locked the axles to no avail. Now it's starting to rain.
Yup! I was "that guy" stuck on the beach in a Jeep. Oh, the embarrassment as people watched for a minute or two as I tried in vain.

Frustrated, I hopped out and deflated all 4 tires to about 18 psi hoping for the best. I got in the driver's seat, dropped it into gear, and literally just rolled right on out of there without the slightest issue or hesitation. It was as if I was never stuck. The sarcastic applause from the guys in the pick-up truck nearby will forever be ringing in my head.

So if you are ever considering not airing down, don't! Airing down just makes it so much less work for the vehicle and you will ensure you won't be "that guy" like I was.
 
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#2 ·
Lol!

My story: one late night we went out on a "recovery" mission. A guy had a flat and his vehicle was stuck on the trail (of course he had no spare). We stopped by his house and picked up the spare from his wife and set out. He said he wasn't that far in/easy trail. So we didn't stop to air down figuring we would be in and out.

OMG! First, miles of awful washboard. Then one reallllyyyyy long bummmpppyy trail. Luckily I only run 28-29 PSI anyhow, but even at that it was one bone jarring teeth chattering night for sure. The only saving grace was I have a Rubicon and was at least able to disconnect the axle to minimize some of the worst jolts.
 
#4 ·
I was in the Outer Banks last week as well, unfortunately I didn't have my jeep though. Too long of a drive from Dallas in a JKU. My teenagers would have committed mutiny by the time we hit Louisiana due to having to sit in the horrible backseat.
 
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#5 ·
Wow, I haven't driven on a beach, but here in Michigan, the ground is basically sand.

I've driven on trails, and never considered airing down. I guess next time I will consider it. Fortunately, I hadn't gotten stuck in sand (yet), but at least now I'll keep this in mind.

Thanks for sharing!
 
#12 ·
I was about 5 miles south of Lake Superior shoreline on a "seasonal raod", more like a snowmobile trail, when it just went straight sand fluff. Got stuck real quick, aired down to just 25# and walked out.

The key is realizing your stuck and not to dig in and make it worse.

Afterward when I got back on pavement I wished I had a decent air compressor. As you probably know not much around there.
 
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#9 ·
I was down there too in Avon last week. I dont air down, 35psi, no issues on the beach or sound side. at one point this year I saw a couple looking lost and in oppo directions near an access ramp with a pickup down the beach a bit, so I went up to see if they needed help. they were fine but as I pulled away I started thinking I may dig myself in the way it was crawling. those ramps are always the trickiest. and as I looked back I saw them taking a selfie. maybe I caught them making out or something
 
#11 ·
until we tried to drive up the loose sandy hill to get off the beach. No dice. Stuck in the sand.
That could've been me this weekend in Westport. I don't have OBA and couldn't remember if the gas station I passed had an air station, so I just stayed off.

I'll get my lil rig out on the sand one of these days. This was the first time I left it topless overnight. Even though the forecast was clear I still had a nightmare that the tent was filling up with water and I needed to get the top up on the Jeep but none of my flashlights were working.
 

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#13 ·
I was "that guy" once.

I was in Hawaii, in a rental 4WD trail blazer, found a beach we could drive on. I didn't air down, put it in 4WD and planned on just staying on the already beaten path forged by others before me.

End of a nice day, turned around and followed the same path back. A couple decided to be a-holes and planted their lawn chairs, in the middle of the path. Ask nicely, can I pass through? They looked the other way and ignored me. Messange received they obviously didn't like ORVs on the beach, although there were 8 others besides me and what they were doing sitting in the middle of the path was intentional.

So tried driving around into the soft unforged sand. Got stuck, couldn't go forward or backwards. Buried to the axles. Locals in a Tacoma come by to help. Evening tide starts rolling in, water has risen up to the bottom of the sea side door. Starting to panic. This rental is going to get washed out to sea!!!

Taco gets stuck trying to pull me out. Water still rising. Taco owner calls local friend to help, who shows up in a red Wrangler with aired down tires, bajaing and playing around in the same stuff I got stuck in, like it was nothing. Pulls me out in a nick of time just before the rental was about to start taking on water. Then pulls out the Taco.

I paid those fellas 200 bucks and a case of beer, then flew home, went to the dealer the next day and bought a brand new Wrangler and here I am today, posting in a Wrangler forum.

I finally got the last laugh, because I love my Wrangler. :D
 
#15 ·
I run 30 in my 315 duratracs on the road and am able to get safely to 12 if I have to when wheeling. I usually go at 15 depending on terrain and never spun a tire off the rim. Not on beads yet. Nice ride at 30 on the street a little squishy (if thats a word) but I have about 30K miles on them and they still have lots of meat left.
 
#21 ·
Well Gang,
We've been Jeep'in for well over 35 years and, with 9 different Jeeps. Been to Moab over 16 times, the Ouray CO area at least 5-6 times and have done all of So CAL and much of AZ during that time frame. Our Jeep(s) don't drive one inch of off roading without airing down. Even if we or I, know the road or trail is a mild one, airing down is just a standard practice.

I didn't read all the responses but, to us, there's multiple reasons for the practice. The first and primary one is, the Jeep just rides a whole lot better. You don't get the Jarring effects, especially when the road or tail is rock strewn with embedded rocks. The second, and probably equally as important is, the Jeeps capability to keep moving, from point A to point B, is VERY WELL enhanced. When a tire is at full pressure and runs over an obstacle, it's like a basket ball with a very minute part touching the surface. And with a minimum amount of surface to surface contact, there's much more chance of spinning and, loss of traction, even in the simplest conditions.

But, when a tire is deflated, especially when you go to the pressures I've been running forever which, is 10-12 psi, the tires have much more in contact with surface areas like rocks, obstacles and more. It's like a rubber glove gripping each rock, waaaaaaaaaaay better. The third reason is, it's just soooooooo much more comfortable to the occupants. I have spoken with so many new Jeepers that complain about being beat to death on even mile trails. When I ask about if they aired down, about 99.99% of the responses was, "Why would you do that, isn't that dangerous to run low tire pressure"?

Well, when folks don't know about the science of the off roading and it's general practices, many might think that lowering tire pressure might be not a smart idea. But, when Iv'e sat down and explained all that's involved and, why things are done, and the fact that general Jeeping off road is not an Indy car race, things are slow and easy for the most part, that running low(er) tire pressure is a must. As stated, we've been running 10-12 psi for over 35 years and have NEVER, EVER blown a tire off a bead, in all those trips to Moab and Ouray and any place else.

The groups we've ran with for all those years, run the exact same pressure's and, with the same results, seriously better ride, seriously better jeep performance without enhancing options, way easier on the Jeep itself and more. Nobody in any of those groups also, has never blown a tire off a bead at that low pressure. And we've ran mostly 15" rims on our earlier Jeeps but, am running 17" now.

So, to each his own. If one is worried about low pressure and possible dangers of running low pressure, then you need to be educated and shown, what works and how it's done. Your life and, your spouses in particular, will be much better off.
Scott
 
#22 ·
Sadly years ago some tourists in Australia found themselves stuck and it ended very terribly. When the authorities recovered the vehicle they aired down and had the vehicle out in practically no time. I was also told by an Australian 4x4 tour operator to always back up a few feet after stopping before proceeding in soft sand to get some momentum to overcome the wake of sand that builds in front of your tires.
 
#28 ·
Airing down when speeds are below 15 mph is a great way to increase the size of your contact patch while driving off road, which also spreads your load out over a larger surface area and helps you stay on top of the sand and not dig in as much. Think of it as wearing a flip flop vs high heels in the sand.

How much you air down depends on what of terrain you are driving on and how much danger you have of taking an impact to the sidewall that might dislodge the bead from the wheel. As FIRE UP said, you can probably go down to 10 - 15 psi without issues. If you have bead locks then you can go as low as you want.

The important thing is to air back up to proper pressure before you go driving on the road. It doesn't take very long to start to build heat, overwork and damage the tire. If you do not have a way to immediately air back up, you should not air down below 20 psi.

If you still have the stock size, running the recommended placard pressure is important on road. Every tire size carries the load differently, so if you have changed your tire size, your air pressures need to be adjusted to handle your vehicle load properly.

Vehicle manufacturers come up with ideal tire pressures based on factors such as how much load a vehicle puts on its left front wheel during a right turn at 60 mph, for example. There are also considerations for balancing performance, fuel efficiency, safety, and overall longevity. Dropping air pressure on road leads to an underinflated tire. When a tire is underinflated, more heat is generated inside of it and could cause structural damage. Also, it cannot absorb shock as well, so it is more vulnerable to road hazards such as potholes. The tire’s contact patch will not be its correct shape and will put more wear on the tire’s shoulders, causing them to wear out faster. The tire will also likely have less grip if underinflated, especially in hydroplaning situations.
 
#29 ·
Thanks for the good info folks! Headed to Big Bend NP soon & I know with the exception of Black Gap, most of Big Bend roads are pretty tame, so I wasn't planning on airing down (my Jeep is stock). I might reconsider after reading this. Probably won't go too far down as I don't have on board air but, maybe 10 lbs or so might make a big difference without keeping me from getting to the nearest air when finished.
 
#50 ·
I started with Viair 400P. Worked fine to air up a 35" from 10 psi to 30 psi in about 3m20s or so. Then I switched to twin ARB. Cut down the air up time in about half. Much better! And I prefer the non coiled air hose from ARB way more than the coiled Viair hose. That thing would constantly pull away and get entangled in the bag. Not having to pack a compressor and take it out of the bag and put it back in is also a plus.
 
#34 ·
air down: it's a good idea





I just picked up a viair 400p automatic after my MV1050 just crapped the bed. Have yet to use it, but you can tell the difference in build quality.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#38 ·
I have the Viair P400 for a stock JKUR and it's not enough time to walk away from a tire and take a break. So a minute or so per tire to get back to 37 from 15 psi. Getting back to 37 resets the warning indicator on the dash. Filling back to 30 doesn't clear it. I fill back to 37 then drop down to 32/34 depending on how warm the tires are.
 
#39 ·
Airing down idea seems like a really bad idea to me from a safety standpoint. It has to weaken the sidewall and make the tire more prone to blowouts when up and back up running on the street. I would think if you have dedicated trail wheels/tire it's fine, but really taking a risk if you use the tires on and off road. I don't do it, in a pinch I can see it if stuck or needing traction, but frequently and long periods of time no way. I had two blow outs in a million plus miles and both were from under-inflation "not much". Didn't take long for the tires to be weakened in both cases. Any of you guys that do it regularly have any issues?
 
#46 ·
Thanks guys makes sense now, a beefier side wall in a m/t or a/t combined with running slow shouldn't create much heat which would hasten the side wall life. My two blowouts were side walls, both on a highway, one a snow tire and one a regular m/s passenger type that was low pressure. Very quick demise to the regular passenger tire. I have two sets of wheels/tires, but depending on distance I wanted to know what's safe or not.
 
#51 ·
If I air down, I don't run "slow". I drive about the same speed as if the roads were paved. The only thing that makes me slow down are curves in the road, steep descents, and possible oncoming traffic on narrow stretches. Never had a blowout. MT tires obviously.

The few times I did not air down, because I thought I don't have to go that far, I had to slow down as it was super unsafe and unstable, jolting me around on every bump. People that don't air down are really missing out on safety, traction, and general enjoyment driving off pavement.
 
#57 ·
No offense , but this isn't real beach driving, this is packed wet sand that a car can drive on once you get past the entrance. Corolla Beach is much different than Hatteras Beach. Nice rig though.
 
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