Someone please correct me if I am wrong here, but I think i read somewhere 42 degrees. Its steep enough that the pucker factor would turn coal into a flawless diamond if inserted up your a$$.:lol:

 

Its steep enough that the pucker factor would turn coal into a flawless diamond if inserted up your a$$.:lol:

You wanna ride shotgun to test your theory out?

 

When using a tractor, if the uphill wheel starts to spin (open diff) there is so little weight on that wheel that you're very close to getting daylight under the wheel. When there's daylight, it's not going to take much to make something happen rapidly.

On a FJ, you would need to have your diff unlocked and a spotter watching. I've seen pictures of vehicles in crazier situations that this, but I prefer to avoid crazy.

 

I have an idea, how bout you test it out for us and then let us know? :king:

 

Best. Post. Ever.

 

like 40* ish

 

Different angles depending on CG and loads. An FJ with a rooftop tent for example could reach its angle limit and roll over before and FJ with no roof load.

 

This^^^^

It depends on a lot of factors. Trying to figure out an exact number is pointless.

Have a good spotter, avoid excessive use of the skinny pedal, don't wheel drunk, don't be stupid. If you do these 4 things, you will probably never roll your rig on the trails. :cheers:

 

crappy pic, but it gives u an idea. 43-45 degrees. same occurance as avatar <-

 

Check out the "pucker" pics thread. Few tippy rigs there. They are lifted but you'll get the idea.

http://www.fjcruiserforums.com/forums/picture-media-post/134738-post-up-those-pucker-pics.html

 

Exhibit A

 

Incredible video! Wish I could do that. Then again, glad I can't.

What was really interesting was that by turning into the direction of the tilt the angle could be increased way beyond the limit if the vehicle were still. It looks like if you feel yourself losing it and you have forward momentum, turn in the direction you're falling. Totally counter intuitive.

 

It depends.

 

The official answer for a stock FJC is 41 degrees side hill (L. Edsall's book on the FJ Cruiser). But, I prefer Todd's (air2air) answer. :rofl:

 

41?! :shock:
I don't think I could dare try that even under perfect conditions.
Good responses in that thread too btw. :rofl:

 

Above 20 is when the puckering starts, as in real life you rarely have a smooth surface to drive on. So, as your lower wheel dips, and/or your upper wheel bumps, you get fairly sudden and potentially precipitous changes in roll angle, especially as there is momentum that goes with those dips and bumps...

 

If the angle is steep enough that you would be worried about it you really shouldn't be looking at the gauge but at the road. I find them to be just a gadget taking up space on the dash.

 

I rolled a 7,000 lb tractor over myself a few years ago and escaped with only a crushed vertebra, so I tend to pucker a little earlier than most. Don't worry, it has healed up well. I pulled my stunt at about 1 mile per hour so slow is no guarantee of anything. I was working on a soft road shoulder so my bit of wisdom to add would be watch out for what you're depending on to support the downhill side wheels of your vehicle. When support drops out from under you even a tractor moves really quickly. Not a problem in rock crawling I suppose, but maybe in other situations like proceeding down a badly canted road and hitting a soft spot on the downhill side.

Thanks for the help.

 

I -almost- rolled an FJ40 LC. Uphill (drivers side) wheels came off the ground about a foot but I was very fast with the steering wheel and throttle turning the vehicle downhill. It could have been bad. I was alone in the middle of nowhere at night. One of many times in my life I survived unscathed when I should have been in serious trouble.

I have found opening the downhill door is a "bad thing" and opening the uphill door will help. Unless you've upgraded the door and hinges, in which case the downhill door could act as a brace.

 

Wheeling this weekend we saw the side to side roll on the clinometer push a little past 30 degrees and we still felt solid and the uphill tires still had traction. Now fore to aft we pegged it beyond 40 degrees from our measurements and had the rear suspension at full droop and barely any contact in the rear. Testing this angle is a little more forgiving if you set up properly. The rear starts rising up you just let off the gas and roll out of it. Testing side to side was MUCH more intimidating even though we barely pushed past 30 degrees.

From our crude measurements this was ~40 degrees. The distance between the line and 30 degrees was a little greater than the distance between 20 and 30 degrees.

 

I am too scared to try!!!

 

That little cluster on the dash is just about worthless anyway. I've had mine on side angles enough that I couldn't even think about looking at it. There are some many variables as others have said about what is the tipping point it is actually pretty crazy to attempt and put a ° on it.

If your unsure if you can make it or not. Well just make sure your not the leader of the group and the guy in front of you has a similar setup. Chances are if they make it you can too and if they don't then you don't have to worry about it

 

^^. Haha. Sound advice on being number two.

I've yet to understand who has the wherewithal to actually look at the inclinometer when inclined. I sure don't.

Some I'd like to close my eyes completely.....

 

You -can- test it safely. Bolt a (strong) pipe under the vehicle extending about 5 to 10' out both sides. Start tipping. The vehicle will eventually go and put the pipe on the ground on the downhill side. Add weight to the uphill side pipe and drive out of the hill.

If you've ever watched certain "tests" of cornering capability, spin control, etc. you can see the bolted on pipes they use. They put casters on the ends, but they're on pavement.

 

There really isn't a certain degree of angle that will make your FJ Cruiser flop over. It all depends on the terrain you're wheeling and what you are doing to make the roll over happen. Fortunately the FJ Cruiser sits so low to the ground that it is extremely hard to flop over and we have tried quite well to get to that point. I've had our FJ pitched sideways between two rocks with a 1/2" of gap between the body and the rock wall and was still stable. Although it's not the most ideal way of knowing how much angle until you start to roll over, is to roll over. Having done so in my FJ40, whenever I'm in the FJ Cruiser it feels like it's firmly planted on the ground at all times.

 

As others have said it all depends on your center of gravity, terrain, speed, driving ability (throttle control), etc.

I'm a little different than most in that I have a BajaRack, RTT, and awning always on the roof. At times add 2 jerry cans and firewood or other gear. Loaded with the rack, awning and RTT I can definitely tell a difference where 'we're getting tippy!' kicks in. With the weight up top I can start to feel the top bob sideways a bit more than it would without that weight when I get a good bit past 30 degrees. I feel solid at 20, I know I'm solid at 30, but when I get past about 35 I start to worry with all that weight. As a little 'oops' can pitch you over quickly.

What new drivers need to realize is you might be stable and feel good at 30, but if you drop a downhill tire in a hole you can easily flop from the increased lean from the hole. Slow, steady, and under control is the name of the game to help you not flop. Bouncing over a rock on either side can initiate a flop. If you are worried you can always have someone put a strap to your uphill slider or bumper, or better yet a winch line extension to a tree with a tree strap and then wrap around a slider or bumper to set the drag.