Sand driving is one of the most difficult off-road terrains to negotiate, but it is often the first terrain that many people try to tackle, and with the thousands of kilometers of beach access and coastal sand islands all around Australia it’s no wonder people choose to give it a good old crack in the family ute or wagon!

We’re going to go over our top tips for getting the most out of your vehicle no matter what mods you have, these tips will give you maximum confidence for when you take your pride and joy off-road and hit the sandy tracks for the first time!

There are many things to address before you take your vehicle off-road, the first thing is first, make sure your vehicle has enough fluids, and is fully serviced, this will make sure you are less likely to encounter any nasty surprises when you are miles from the nearest mechanic, make sure you’re oil is at the correct level and all diffs and gearboxes are topped up.

You should also read your vehicles user’s manual and familiarize yourself with how to put your vehicle in 4WD and into low range, this will come in handy later and we will discuss it in more detail. To help figure this all out we recommend finding a gravel carpark and making sure your vehicle engages 4WD easily and as the manual describes, as nothing is scarier than getting to where you are going and not having the confidence to take your 4WD off-road!

Now it is time you are about to hit the sand for the first time ever, the steps are simple enough but many people panic in the last minute and forget the correct steps, this can be seen in hundreds of videos on YouTube, simply search the term “inskip point” to see many people who use the wrong techniques off-road and get seriously stuck.

Your absolute first step to hitting the sand is to let your tyres down to the right pressure, it’s a good idea to start at around 20psi which is nearly half of what highway pressures are, but depending on the conditions could be as low as 10-12 psi in an emergency situation (this will vary depending on your vehicle) we have a few articles in the blog that cover this so check them out.

The easiest and fastest way to get your tyres down to the correct pressures isn’t to use a stick or the back of your keys, but by using a Kwiky Tyre Deflator in under 5 minutes you can drop all of your tyre pressures safely to exactly the right pressure. The device works by screwing onto your tyre valve and removing the valve core, with 2 easy steps. Once the valve core is removed, you simply open the dump valve and watch the pressures drop on the easy to read gauge, when all is completed you reverse the process making sure your valve core is fully threaded back into the valve unscrew the device fasten your dust caps and you are ready to roll!

Now you are driving on reduced pressures and in 4WD high range, you will find your vehicle will be able to drive through most situations without any problems, make sure you stick to posted speed limits and watch out for washouts, where creeks spill out into the sea, a washout can have deep embankments on either side and cause major damage to your vehicle and injure you and your passengers so drive carefully.

All seems well with your new passion of sand driving, that is until you hit the soft stuff. Soft sand can be one of the hardest surfaces to drive through and has swallowed many vehicles before, so a few precautions will save you from calling for help…. At least for now.

When your vehicle encounters soft sand it is important to keep your momentum up and keep smooth inputs to your accelerator, brakes and steering, anything to dramatic will dig your wheels in and eventually get you stuck. If you feel your vehicle slowing down or getting stuck, it is a good idea to stop accelerating (instinct tells many to do otherwise) and gently reverse out and attempt the section again with more momentum. If you find your vehicle isn’t going anywhere too easily it is time to engage low range, low range will use more torque to slowly drive your wheels out with minimal wheel spin, a little bit of left and right steering can also help your tyres bite and find you an easy way out of trouble.

When all else fails, and you are seriously bogged it’s time for a recovery, you have a handful of options here, the first being a set of MAXTRAX MKII recovery tracks. These work as a portable caterpillar track, by offering a temporary bridge to let your vehicle simply drive through the stuck bit of sand. Its good to have a pair on hand, but they don’t always work, it is also important to also not spin your tyres on recovery treads, you can damage your tyres and the MAXTRAX by doing this so take things steady and you should get out pretty easily!

If you don’t get free after 1 or 2 tries on the MAXTRAX there’s a good to fair chance your vehicle is in deep. It’s time to pull out your Hercules Offroad Jack and jack base, you can lift your vehicle up and fill in the area around where your tyres are with sand to give your vehicle more clearance and get it up off the underbody, you may be able to drive straight out in low range but if not there is only one last resort.

The Hercules snatch strap kit and a mate, or another passing vehicle to help pull you free, the snatch strap uses a stored kinetic bungee effect to easily ‘snatch’ your vehicle free from the sticky situation its always best to clear out as much sand from under your stuck vehicle to make as little work as possible for the recovering vehicle.

A snatch strap is an excellent piece of recovery gear and should be carried in all 4WD vehicles in case of emergency situations, but always use precaution.

When you’ve had a bit of fun and are ready to go home, don’t forget to air up your tyres back to highway pressures to avoid damaging them, with a reliable 12v compressor like the Thumper MKII or the Thumper Max.

Not everyone is a professional driver straight out of the bag, so take your time, and don’t be afraid to swallow your pride and ask for help, most people are happy to help out on the tracks and once you’ve gotten your 4WD free once, you’ll be eager to go back for a second round!