Tire pressure on soft sand dunes

[Shpaz]

Hey all,

Just received my new truck (2018, SCAB, Magnetic), and I was reading the 2018 Ford Raptor supplement manual when I came upon something that I found very odd under the Sand driving paragraph:

"Avoid reducing the tire pressure but shift to a lower gear and drive steadily though the terrain."

Now, our area has deep, soft and very dry sand and going through it with fully inflated tires is just asking for trouble. Either that you will get stuck or put a lot of strain on your engine and transmisstion (the summer heat wont help either).

My question is, why is Ford recommending to keep the tire pressure high on sand?

 

[solsurfr]

I air down to around 20psi when we go on the beach. You're risking it if you keep your tires fully inflated in soft sand. No thanks.

 

[murph145]

I air down to 12-15lbs when I went to Glamis. I had no issues

 

[SZDZMTR]

The manual also says do not run it through a carwash...its like going to a doctor who says just don't do this and this just take it easy.

 

[CatchMeOffroad]

15psi is fine even without beadlocks. Any lower and you can risk rolling a bead in a sharp turn/turning bump. I usually run 17-18psi in sand and it makes a world of difference compared to ~40psi.

 

[Shpaz]

Yeah that's what I do with my other cars as well. Was supersized Ford is recommending against it.

 

[Blusmbl]

I've run 18 and 12 the two times I've been to the dunes with my Raptor. 18 was okay but still a little rough and I got stuck once. 12 seemed perfect. I used to run 8-10psi on stuff that didn't have enough traction but the stock BFG's aren't too bad so I don't have to air down as much. You definitely risk debeading the tire if you run much less than 18 though. Straight lines are fine but donuts and hard cornering are risky.

 

[Frank N]

There is an owner's manual?

j/k

I run at 18psi or so psi, 16 in back, a few times a month in the soft sand.

 

[rtmozingo]

That was the only thing in the manual that I thought off-base. I guess they figure it is better than de-beading a tire, and the tires are pretty wide so they don't sink too bad if you maintain a steady pace and use Mud/Sand mode.

 

[Shpaz]

That was the only thing in the manual that I thought off-base. I guess they figure it is better than de-beading a tire, and the tires are pretty wide so they don't sink too bad if you maintain a steady pace and use Mud/Sand mode.

Yeah to be honest I was suprized then I read that part.