4x4 / Off-Road TechThis section contains all discussion related to taking the FJ Cruiser in Off-Road situations, 4x4 applications and any armor modifications.
I am fairly new to off roading. I have heard allot about airing down for rock crawling. I get the idea behind it, but since this forum has been so helpful , I thought I'd throw it out for discussion and see what I get. I am thinking of a trip to High lakes ( NORCAL) and allot of the video posts out there people airing down. Thanks in advance.
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08 Sandstorm
All Terrain Package, AT, Rock Rail, OEM Skid
BajaRack
Airing down gives you better traction, buy what I like the best about it is the fact that the ride is much better. Also in sand and mud it allows you to "float" on top. You also have to weight out losing clearance when you air down. I always air down, like I said I really like the smooth ride.
Airing down gives you better traction, buy what I like the best about it is the fact that the ride is much better. Also in sand and mud it allows you to "float" on top. You also have to weight out losing clearance when you air down. I always air down, like I said I really like the smooth ride.
How much do you air down? What is the PSI that you run in sand/run if its different?
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To get the maximum tread to form around an obstacle, to get the most traction. you must air down. You're talking anywhere from 5lbs to 15lbs depending on desity of the trail.and the softness of you tire.. For instance: sand you need to air down to float on top, Rocks air down to mold your tire to the rock for traction. for mud ,water I personaly like a stiffer tire, max air.. alot of times I dont even air down just knowing the trails I am going to ride. I do carry onboard air so its up to me to decide each time I ride. I know one time, did not air down until I ran into a sand hill climb. had to then, got stuck every time I tried to climb that hill at full air. I always ask if any one knows the trail to make that call..
How much do you air down? What is the PSI that you run in sand/run if its different?
I don't change too much, normally I air down to about 16psi for everything. Some people change for different conditions (rocks,mud,sand). I plan on getting some beadlock rims, then I can go down to 5 psi if needed.
Years ago in Arizona and down in Mexico on soft sand I'd go down to 15 PSI. Never got stuck. But airing up with the whimpy 12V compressors we had took forever.
On trails in Colorado I've run them at street pressures. At last years Summit I was asked to go to 25 PSI. No problems on the trails or driving a few miles on pavement getting back to town.
Then in Moab last month I took them down to 20 PSI, again no problems to report.
I don't know what you are facing on your trails. But if you have an air compressor that works well, or access to air at a gas station near, I'd think that 20-25 PSI should get you a good starting point.
For the High Lakes you'll definitely want to air down a little. There are some fun areas around the High Lakes that have a lot of rocks and airing down will make it much easier to get through certain obstacles. The main trail into the lakes is fairly easy and you can probably do it w/o airing down. You should be fine running around 18-20psi on that trail.
TRD, RC 6 in. lift, Dick Cepek Mud Country 35x12.5x17 Cruiser Alloy rims, Spidertrax 1.25 spacer,Body mount chop,Lucrum mount,Warn m8000,
Linear Mode
