Washboard Dirt Roads = Major Problems

[jaz13]

I post this in threads every time this comes up, but the things to remember #1 your Raptor (and virtually every other vehicle out there) is it is inherently stable and #2 it is far better at driving than you are.

What I mean by this is if you feel the back end "stepping out", don't worry about it and let the truck go about its business. It will straighten itself out in no time. These "stepping out" incidents are nothing more than the backend drifting an inch or two to the left or right. If a person thinks the back end coming out a couple of inches is dangerous, they really should call Uber and let someone else do the driving. As I said, your tuck knows how to drive, so let it.

The problem comes when people panic and crank in a lot of correction and/or slam on the brakes. In almost every single loss of control accident, it isn't the initial condition that causes the loss of control, it is the overcorrection that sends the vehicle spinning into the ditch.

Someone mentioned the Explorer/Firestone debacle. I saw someone recreate these blowouts at speed (if I remember correctly, it was Ford and they used this video in the trials). But rather than try to control it, they simply used bungee cords to keep the wheel straight. Do you know what happened when the tire blew? Absolutely nothing. The car slowed to a stop and it was actually pretty boring. What this means is all those "dangerous" Explorers were flipped by the driver jerking the steering wheel after the blowout.

When the truck is floating on washboards or the back end is stepping out over a pothole, keep the steering inputs steady, let off the throttle a little, and let the truck figure it out. Do this a few times and you will learn to trust your truck.

 

[jzweedyk]

What he said. ^^^ If you have ever driven on ice, you know you do SMALL steering inputs. You can drive fast on a washboard road the same way. Do not over correct.

 

[PDT905]

What he said. ^^^ If you have ever driven on ice, you know you do SMALL steering inputs. You can drive fast on a washboard road the same way. Do not over correct.

Nobody was over correcting. County backroads shouldn’t be like driving on ice IMO.

Like I said in my OP, cars and motorcycles of all makes and models were having no issue and my 2008 4Runner would have handled the road with ease.

 

[PDT905]

I wrote this guide that should answer 2 and 5. I find myself holding the traction button down in Baja mode nowadays, but most people will be happy with (and should stick to) just the button press. In short, switch to an offroad mode, and if you get interference, reduce TC/RSC as necessary. It will never fully disable, and you can expect the truck to kill power if you power slide around a sharp turn.

This is great. Thanks for the link.

 

[PDT905]

Hey OP, I had the same experience when I first bought my 2019 a few months ago. First dirt road almost crash off side embankment on a turn because of wheel hop I rear. I too live in CO. I drive dirt roads all the time. I near air my tires down. Keep at 38. The fix I found was to turn off traction control (just quick press, not long hold). Fixed everything for me. Truck is amazing and I blast down washboard roads at excessive speeds all the time now. Sometimes I’ll put in slippery mode if conditions require but typically I’ll leave in 2wd.

Just press the traction control button and problem solved. Issue is traction control intervening too much

Thank you sir! I’ll give it a try

 

[PDT905]

This. OP - you were going too slow. Seriously. Try it again at a much higher speed and you'll be golden.

I can see how this would help. In my particular situation, dialing it way up wasn’t an option. Lots of other vehicles on the road and a 4 year old strapped into a car seat in the back. But I will he letting it loose and testing all of the good tips in this thread this weekend.

 

[PDT905]

Did you go to the free Raptor Assault class? You'd learn a lot about what your Raptor can do and airing down is definitely one of them. Driving on gravel and jamming on the breaks is one of the first exercises. I'd highly recommend this as it allowed me to be more aggressive with the truck than I normally would be. I got confidence and felt safe. By the way, you use their Raptor and not yours!

This youtube describes your experience. I watched this just before I went to school!

Now go have some SAFE FUN!

Thanks! I’m registered for an early November Raptor Assault class. Looking forward to it. Appreciate the link to the video.

 

[zombiekiller]

I post this in threads every time this comes up, but the things to remember #1 your Raptor (and virtually every other vehicle out there) is it is inherently stable and #2 it is far better at driving than you are.

What I mean by this is if you feel the back end "stepping out", don't worry about it and let the truck go about its business. It will straighten itself out in no time. These "stepping out" incidents are nothing more than the backend drifting an inch or two to the left or right. If a person thinks the back end coming out a couple of inches is dangerous, they really should call Uber and let someone else do the driving. As I said, your tuck knows how to drive, so let it.

The problem comes when people panic and crank in a lot of correction and/or slam on the brakes. In almost every single loss of control accident, it isn't the initial condition that causes the loss of control, it is the overcorrection that sends the vehicle spinning into the ditch.

Someone mentioned the Explorer/Firestone debacle. I saw someone recreate these blowouts at speed (if I remember correctly, it was Ford and they used this video in the trials). But rather than try to control it, they simply used bungee cords to keep the wheel straight. Do you know what happened when the tire blew? Absolutely nothing. The car slowed to a stop and it was actually pretty boring. What this means is all those "dangerous" Explorers were flipped by the driver jerking the steering wheel after the blowout.

When the truck is floating on washboards or the back end is stepping out over a pothole, keep the steering inputs steady, let off the throttle a little, and let the truck figure it out. Do this a few times and you will learn to trust your truck.

whats really funny is that engineers now have to program stability control to counteract driver overcorrections.

Case in point: if you roll onto the gas in soft sand while doing 25-30, with the stability control on, once you hit 40 mph the truck will still feel a little squirrely and wiggle.

BUT, if you do the same thing, except you wiggle the steering wheel back and forth quickly, the stability control will start manipulating the brake and throttle output and the truck will go straight as an arrow with no wiggle.

i thought i was crazy, but then asked a few others to try it. on a few of the sand sections, we all must have looked like we were having seizures because it works.

 

[Uncas]

Like Ramona said go to Raptor Assault, first driving course is washboards and traction control. They will also tell you about tire pressure, 38/34 for most situations. I live 4 miles back on a Colorado dirt road and drive it everyday, these trucks and every other vehicle really smooth out at 40 mph. Turn the traction control off, ease on the gas, push through and everything smooths out above 40. It feels like driving on chipseal at 60 mph.

 

[WMRaptor]

Hellwig rear sway bar and Deavers leafs made my truck feel ten times better and got rid of ass end sway almost totally I would say.