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first time on the beach

7K views 33 replies 23 participants last post by  rics1997 
#1 ·
going to the beach next weekend (jersey shore)... have an 08 Sahara; new to the jeep thing... other than taking some air outta the tires, anything else i need to know!! my 3 kids cant wait to cruise on the beach with it.
 
#2 ·
I go out on the sand all the time without lowering the pressure, but it is fairly hard packed where I go, and even the soft stuff is only 4 or 5 inches deep.. If it is soft and deep, you will need to be down to at least 15psi, 12psi would be better. I got stuck on the beach in NC trying to run 20 psi.. I had enough sense to stop before it dug in too far and let them down to 12psi.. Just a little digging to get the axles off the sand and didn't have any more trouble.

If you plan on running in 4 hi you need to hold the ESP button for 15 to 20 seconds. When you first push it the light that looks like a Jeep with squiggly lines under it comes on, this only turns off part of the braking system, after holding it there will be a beep and it will say ESP OFF in the mileage read out and the braking system will be fully off. You don't want the Jeep to automatically hitting the brakes in an attempt to "help" you while if your tires spin in the sand..

If you use 4 low, the braking goes of automatically, but if you go back to 4 hi, you have to hold it again.
 
#4 ·
Where does this info come from?

If you plan on running in 4 hi you need to hold the ESP button for 15 to 20 seconds. When you first push it the light that looks like a Jeep with squiggly lines under it comes on, this only turns off part of the braking system, after holding it there will be a beep and it will say ESP OFF in the mileage read out and the braking system will be fully off.

Would this also turn the BAC off in 4lo?

THX

-K
 
#8 ·
did it - awesome.. left tire gauge at home (rookie mistake) so didnt know how much air i had taken out. not enough! got stuck! good samaritan came by; brought pressure down to 18 and put about 70 miles on cruising the beach all weekend (great way to spend thanksgiving!) here's another rookie question - i brought it to a car wash and hosed off the underside - still sand everywhere!? anything to worry about - heard different stories from folks on cleaning all the sand off. thanks - great time. can't wait to do it again
 
#9 ·
On any vehicle, sand if your enemy. It will eat the undercarriage and make it rust :) Don't worry thought, it won't happen over night. Just hose the undercarriage off real good as soon as your done on the beach (like you did), preferably while your wife/gf still has her bikini on the help :)

If you didn't get it all, no biggy. Its kinda like mud, you think you got it all, but you never do.. Just spray the undercarriage down again next time you have a chance. Rinse and repeat until the sand is gone. I personally do the undercarriage as soon as I am done wheeling, and once a weekend until its all cleaned out. You really cant get all the mud/sand out from under it the first time you try, unless you spend all day under there with a pressure washer.

There is an old trick though. If you have one of those sprinkler systems that "Swing" back and forth for your lawn, park your jeep over it (not crushing the hose). Turn it on, and let it go for a few hours. Move the sprinkler back a little bit until you cover the undercarriage. Most people cut the Jeep into 1/2 sections, placing the sprinkler under the oil pan, than right behind the transfer case skid plate. 2 hours or so in each locations will have you looking nice and clean :)
 
#16 ·
I ride on Island Beach State Park all year long. I do a lot of fishing during sept, oct and nov. You need a permit but in the summer when the beaches are over crowded and the park closes you can still get in and drive right up. They check your equipment when you purchase the season pass. You need a jack and a jack board (peice of wood for the jack to rest on for stability), flashlight, pressure guage, shovel, tow rope, and a first aid kit. To get there, follow directions to Sea Side heights, its just to the south. Its a great place to ride because they have air compressors right on the premises.
 
#13 ·
i had read that the esp will help the open axle to perform closer like a locker. kind of like puting the parking brake on 3 clicks is a car in the sand. if one wheel starts to spin it will apply the brake to the spinning wheel making the engine produce more torque which will spin both wheels.let me know what you think. i need to find the post it was helpful.
 
#15 ·
here is the link to the article Chrysler Blog - Jeep Brake Traction Control Explained
February 11, 2008 7:00 AM

Jeep Brake Traction Control Explained

Loren Trotter Comments (13)


Loren Trotter is an engineer in Active Chassis Control Systems, as well as a die-hard Jeep® enthusiast and avid off-roader. Some of the shots below come courtesy of his trips to Moab, demonstrating the capable off-road system he's speaking about below.

Jeep® has long been the leader in four wheel drive systems and in 2005 introduced Electronic Limited Slip Differentials (ELSDs) and brake based traction control tuned specifically for off road driving on the Grand Cherokee. Since then, traction control has been added to the Commander, Liberty and Wrangler.

From reading several articles written about these vehicles, I feel that there may be some misconceptions about Jeep brake based traction control and even some misconceptions about ELSDs.




There are several parts to traction control and they are enabled or disabled depending on the driving mode the driver has chosen. When the vehicle is in 4wd high range and the Electronic Stability Control System (ESC) is on, traction control uses the brakes and engine torque control to limit how fast the driven wheels can spin relative to the actual speed of the vehicle.

This helps provide maximum traction along with stability. In addition to controlling how fast the driven wheels are spinning, there is a feature of brake traction control that controls wheel speed side to side across a driven axle and is called BLD, or "brake lock differential."

BLD does not care how fast the wheels are turning, just that they are turning at the same speed. It provides improved traction capability similar to a locking differential.

There are times when controlling how fast the wheels spin may not be desirable for driving conditions such as mud or deep snow. In this case, pushing the ESC button once (in 4wd high range) will disable the brake and engine portions of traction control that control how fast the wheels are allowed to spin but leaves BLD on. In 4wd low range, only BLD functions so there is no need to turn off traction control.



Just to get this out of the way; from the Jeep perspective, BLD is not a substitute for locking differentials. It is a means to greatly expand the off road capability of vehicles that were not purchased with or do not offer locking differentials.

A Jeep vehicle with BLD will negotiate almost any obstacle or driving situation that a similar vehicle with locking differential will. BLD does require a change in driving style and more torque to negotiate the obstacle.

We have worked very hard to make the BLD on Jeep vehicles work well off-road and reduce, and in most cases eliminate, the complaints about brake based traction control.

This time I will write about BLD but I can write a future blog about ELSDs if there is enough interest from all of your readers out there.



To understand what BLD does, it is necessary to understand how and open differential works. Open differentials have many attributes that make them the best choice for most vehicles. They are simple, proven and reliable requiring only an occasional fluid change to last for many years.

For rear wheel drive vehicles, they also provide a stability advantage over locking differentials (such as a Detroit Locker) that are always engaged.

The main drawback to an open differential is that torque is always split 50/50. Each wheel receives 50% of the input torque (ignoring losses). This means that if one wheel is in the air and it takes almost no torque, say 10 ft-lb., to turn the wheel, the other wheel will only receive 10 ft-lb. of torque. If 10 ft-lb. is not enough to move the vehicle in the desired direction, it will not move.

Using the vehicle’s wheel speed sensors, BLD knows when one wheel on a driven axle is turning and the other is not. BLD will apply brake pressure to the wheel that is turning.

The applied brake pressure increases the torque required to turn the wheel in the air and this allows more torque to go to the wheel on the ground. The one drawback is that the input torque must be twice as much as required to negotiate the obstacle because of the brake application. The required extra torque is not usually a problem especially in 4wd low range.

In order to get the most out of BLD, the driver must adapt their driving style to characteristics of BLD. For example, when in a situation where one or more wheels loose traction and the vehicle will not continue in the desired direction, the driver should carefully and smoothly apply the throttle to allow more torque to go the wheels with traction as the brake(s) are applied.

BLD looks at individual driven axles and tries to keep the wheels turning at the same speed. BLD does not try to limit how fast the wheels turn, just that they turn at the same speed.

Some may fear that using the brakes for traction control (BLD) can cause them to overheat. The electronic brake control system uses a model to estimate the brake temperatures not only from use during traction control but also braking. If the model temperature reaches a level that could possibly affect brake performance, the brake traction control is shut off automatically.



Since BLD is only trying to keep both wheels on a driven axle turning at the same speed and not control overall wheel speed, the actual energy input to the brakes is relatively low. In all of the testing done at Moab, I have never seen brake temperatures reach a point where the thermal model turned off traction control.

In my opinion, brake based traction control has received undeserved criticism in the press and from off-road enthusiasts. Brake based traction control on Jeep (and Dodge) vehicles performs well off-road and is a useful feature for customers. Magazines should not lump all brake based traction control together.

Jeep engineers, along with partners Continental Automotive, Bosch and TRW, have worked very hard to make Jeep brake based traction control a system that performs extremely well.

Many diehard Jeep enthusiasts agree that brake traction control can work well off-road once they have seen it and tried it. Many trips to Moab and a number of other off-road areas have proven how well it works. How many other stock vehicles can do the Zuki Shuffle without locking differentials or would even try to climb where eagles dare to tread?
 
#20 ·
Not to hijack, are there places in OBX to do the same? I plan on surf fishing just about ever day, but all I've read is that other than Cordova for the wild horses, most of the areas are under protection now due to migratory birds and turtles.

I'll be in the Duck area of OBX, any suggestions for any beach access that's legal ? I've never had it on any sand, and it's stock, so I'm a bit worried I'll be pulled out by a Type S racing Honda CRX with spinners.
 
#24 ·
Not to hijack, are there places in OBX to do the same? I plan on surf fishing just about ever day, but all I've read is that other than Cordova for the wild horses, most of the areas are under protection now due to migratory birds and turtles.

I'll be in the Duck area of OBX, any suggestions for any beach access that's legal ? I've never had it on any sand, and it's stock, so I'm a bit worried I'll be pulled out by a Type S racing Honda CRX with spinners.

You can also head south on 12 to Hatteras Island. ( bit of a hike but well worth the day trip). There are lots of access ramps starting at Oregon Inlet (air available at the marina across the street when you come out) all the way down to the ferry. We like to take the one by the airport in Frisco. There's air across the street at the mini-mart. Sorry I can't remember the ramp number.

I'm kinda a stickler for people following the rules so that "the man" doesn't have any reason to shut us down...thus the following reminders: fireworks and metal detecting are illegal on Hatteras Island (part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore), and some beach areas are closed or narrowed due to nesting turtles or piping plovers (birds). Please respect those restricted areas as well as the dunes (both vehicular and foot traffic). There's still lots of drivable area. Nice to get to an uncrowded plot of beach and just hang out all day!

We're heading down Thursday...can't wait! Enjoy exploring!!
 
#21 ·
DonC72 said:
Not to hijack, are there places in OBX to do the same? I plan on surf fishing just about ever day, but all I've read is that other than Cordova for the wild horses, most of the areas are under protection now due to migratory birds and turtles.

I'll be in the Duck area of OBX, any suggestions for any beach access that's legal ? I've never had it on any sand, and it's stock, so I'm a bit worried I'll be pulled out by a Type S racing Honda CRX with spinners.
Just drive north about 6 miles north of duck to the end of paved Rt 12. The road will bend and beach access to the Va boarder will begin. Don't speed and enjoy the free beach access. air down to 18 lbs
 
#25 ·
Protect your belly!



Like others have said, rinse, wash, rinse, repeat! If you're going to do a lot of beach cruising, consider getting the Jeep's underbelly coated to protect it. We've driven our '96 Ram on the beach every summer since it was new, and we do have some rust/corrosion issues (then again, it's a '96 :)). We had our 2011 JKU's underbelly coated (line-x undercoating) before taking her out. She'll have her toes in the sand by Friday! :D

I've never been to the Jersey Shore (unless you count the TV show)...Post some pics when you get back! Have a great time!
 
#32 ·
I think it was around $400 (for JKU). Hubby got the info from Line-X. Jeep was in the shop for one day until about 3pm and done! He coated all the metal (not the engine....frame....:D). He didn't coat the flares or the wheel wells (plastic) but suggested that when we replace the factory flares and/or put on a lift or bigger tires, to remove the flares/plastic and come have the wells sprayed before replacing them. I feel much better about taking her out on the beach now...salt/sand is an extremely corrosive combination!

Just remembered that my son did his TJ himself with rattle cans of a 3M product made for the same purpose. I don't know how many cans he used or how much it cost, but I know it sticks to concrete garage floors really well! :rolleyes:
 
#27 ·
JCS05Rubi said:
There is an old trick though. If you have one of those sprinkler systems that "Swing" back and forth for your lawn, park your jeep over it (not crushing the hose). Turn it on, and let it go for a few hours. Move the sprinkler back a little bit until you cover the undercarriage. Most people cut the Jeep into 1/2 sections, placing the sprinkler under the oil pan, than right behind the transfer case skid plate. 2 hours or so in each locations will have you looking nice and clean :)
Awesome tip! I don't go to beaches very often but this sounds perfect for mud as well. Thanks for the advice!
 
#30 ·
Daytona was in the news today,lifeguard ran over a sunbather, right over her head. She is going to survive.(thank goodness).

But I have to tell you, I never saw so many Jeeps and other cars on the beach,among people and sunbathers.I have never been to Daytona.It looked like a "get together" from the 50 and 60's.I didn't know they allowed that.That is pretty cool,well except for the accident of course.

Wranglers on a beach,thats got to be a great time.

AJ:)
 
#33 ·
I've been thinking about the same thing. I have a new Rubicon on order and the Wisconsin road salt really does a number on things. I'm thinking of spraying it with a zinc-chromate black primer when new or going with the spray bombs of undercoating.
 
#34 ·
Going to Daytona in a month, anyone know any beaches there that allow Jeeps to ride on them?
 
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