Beach driving is one of the most enjoyable things you can do with your 4WD or SUV. There’s something so relaxing about cruising down an empty beach, the sea spray in the air and hardly anyone else around. You can keep your crowded city beaches, we love our empty 4WD beaches! However, getting stuck on the beach isn’t fun, but it happens time and time again because people aren’t aware of what to do. We’ve put together a quick glovebox guide to how to 4WD on the beach that’ll help make your next beach adventure so much fun.

1. FIRST THINGS FIRST – ADJUST YOUR TYRE PRESSURES FOR BEACH DRIVING

If you try and drive your 4WD or suv on the beach without adjusting your tyre pressures, you’re guaranteed to get stuck. Letting your tyres down to beach driving tyre pressures with a Kwiky tyre deflator allows your tyres to sit up on top of the sand instead of sink down into it. The simple rule of thumb is tyre pressures for beach driving should be 16psi as a good starting point. Don’t try doing it with a stick! Use a Kwiky tyre deflator or the cracking Adventure Kings 3 in 1 Tyre Deflator, and make sure to check your tyre pressures with the Adventure Kings Kwiky Tyre Gauge.

2. KNOW YOUR TIDES AND YOUR VEHICLE

Make sure your hubs are locked in if you have manual hubs, and that you’re in high-range 4WD where equipped. This means you’re equipped for beach 4WDing. Always aim to get onto the beach a couple of hours before low tide. Low tide’s is when you make beach 4WDing easy on your car, so you’ll have a good four hours of easy going driving ahead of you.

3. KEEP AN EYE ON YOUR ENGINE

We can’t stress this one enough – you need to keep an eye on your temperature! The problem here is all vehicles have a ‘dead spot’ in their factory temperature gauge. Your 4WD may well be running extremely hot but you won’t know about it – unless you have a way to digitally read the coolant temperature, like an Engine Data Scan. Every modern 4WD with an OBDII port should have an EDS, because it lets you read vital engine data in real-time. You’ll be able to see when your 4×4 gets warm, and be able to back off and let it cool down before it’s too late.

4. ALWAYS CARRY RECOVERY GEAR

Before you even think about beach driving, you should have as a minimum get yourself a Hercules Snatch Strap Kit. If you do get bogged, it’s common courtesy if someone comes by to tow you out, that you use your own snatch strap to save theirs getting dirty or worn. The Hercules Snatch Strap Kit comes with an 8,000kg snatch strap, a pair of 4.7 rated shackles and a canvas carry bag, and it’s small enough to tuck under your drivers seat. If you do a lot of beach driving by yourself, then one of the best investments you’ll ever make is a set or two of Maxtrax. They’re perfect for beach 4WD recovery missions because they provide a nice firm, grippy surface for your vehicle to pull itself up and out of the soft sand.

5. DRIVE WITH THE RUTS, NOT AGAINST THEM

Beach driving is all about making it as easy as possible on your vehicle. You’ll no doubt see the tyre tracks from other 4x4s or SUVs on the beach. Unless they’re super deep and you’re worried you’ll get stuck, it’s often best to follow the ruts. Those previous 4WDs have actually compacted the sand, which makes it a lot easier to drive on.

6. LOWER YOUR TYRE PRESSURES FURTHER IF YOU NEED TO

On really hot days when the sand is dry and soft, you might find that even at 16psi your 4WD will struggle to maintain momentum. In this case, grab your Kwiky tyre deflator, Adventure Kings 3 in 1 tyre deflator or your Kwiky tyre gauge and drop your tyre pressures another 4psi. It doesn’t sound like much, until you consider that you’ve just dropped another quarter of their pressure again. You’ll be blown away by the difference it makes, we swear!

7. ALWAYS KEEP LEFT OF APPROACHING VEHICLES

Don’t ever forget basic road rules when you’re on the beach. Be a good, conscientious 4WDer and go slow around sunbathers or walkers, and when you approach an oncoming 4WD, always keep to the left. Sometimes it may not be obvious which side you’ll pass on, especially if the beach is narrow. Use your blinker to indicate which side you’ll pass on to the other 4WDer.

8. REMEMBER TO AIR BACK UP TO ROAD PRESSURES AS SOON AS YOU’RE OFF THE BEACH

When you’re done for the day and you’re back on the tarmac, don’t forget to air your tyres back up to road pressures to prevent tyre damage. Sure, you could wait all afternoon at the service station to use their slooooow old compressor, but you’d be heaps better off using a Thumper MkII or Thumper Max portable 12v air compressor! They’ll have your tyres back up to proper pressures in no time and you’ll be ready to drive home safely.