Put all 4 tires to 15lbs. I drive the sand dunes all the time- this is the ticket. Dont get too close to the water- the tide will come up further than you think and rust you out.

 

ESP off is your friend. Do a search here - there's too much discussion about it.

 

No probs with the crd.
Rubber at 17psi, 2nd gear, revs up and the crd loves it.

 

in NC



make sure you have your permits for where you plan on going, state and/or local offroad beach permits.
not sure about NC, in NY beach access permit is strictly for fishing so must have full fishing gear.
as others stated, 15 psi is good,
dont forget jack and a wooden board for the jack, tow strap, and camera
i havent had to turn off my esp in the sand yet, and havent had a problem,
ruts i follow usually have my skid plates brushing against the sand,
take it slow, slower than you think and should be fine,
also pick your spots where your going to stop carefully. look for firm packed sand, look for flat to downhill slope

 

Some good info here, these guys have been doing it for 50+ years: http://www.libba.com/

 

Thanks for all the replies.

Sounds like lower tire pressure (15), 4wd lock, and ESP off - auto stick into lower gear is the move... and go slow... following sand that looks packed down.

I'll pick up the gear mentioned as well and pack wooden boards.

Any other thoughts... let me know. appreciate it!

 

Remember most NC beach sand is soft

I am on NC beaches at least once per week. Drive smoothly, turn ESP off, don't go out if noone else is out there, carry a tow strap, and have fun.

NC beaches are soft sand so pretend you are driving on ice.

 

I am on NC beaches at least once per week. Drive smoothly, turn ESP off, don't go out if noone else is out there, carry a tow strap, and have fun.

NC beaches are soft sand so pretend you are driving on ice.

Great Thanks! Are there tow services available if/when I get stuck? I'll pick up a tow strap before my trip.

Have you driven in Ocracoke? Im looking forward to it.

 

I believe that the Ocracoke Beach was listed as one of the best beaches in the world few years ago. You'll definitely enjoy your trip their just be sure to bring your recovery kit. Enjoy!

 

Finally leaving this coming Sat for vacation. Will let you know how the Pat does on the sand when I get back.

Thanks again for the responses.

 

Oh Yeah



I have 28 days yet to wait. I am interested in how you do. I did decide that we are taking the new Patriot this year instead of the Enclave. I imagine that the Patriot will even claw it's way up and over the sugar sand covered dunes on the northern 4x4 beach. Can't wait!

 

Get some photos of the Pat on the beach.

And don't forget a compressor to refill the tires.

 

Yes, definitely get a compressor as you do not want to drive on the highway on 15psi!

I find this one to be decent for the money:
BLACK & DECKER Air Station Portable Powered Inflator
I think I paid $35 for it at my local Lowes. Can run off of 120V or 12V which I find very convenient.

 

That is a great compressor, I have the same one. Works as it should.

 

Last trip to Hatteras island with the Pat. I did try many different access to the beach and never had problem even with the stock touring Affinity tires at 32 psi!
The traction was really not a issue, the biggest problem for me is the torque at low rev. With my manual transmission, I have to run at 3000 rpm min in first gear to be sure that the engine is not stopping in the deep soft sand. I drive in deep snow during winter but the sand is much harder for the engine.
I think the most important thing is the place where you stop, you have to choose the right spot.
I you don`t have the lift, be careful of the deep tracks in the sand left by the monster pickup of the locals.

 

Oh yeah can it go on the beach:smiley_thumbs_up:
I had the FD II (I have since upgraded to a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited), so I would set it to "offroad/low", switch the ESP to off and have at it. It does an excellent job and even garnered a few stares from the bigger 4x4's and trucks. Have fun!

 

I am thinking about buying a 2014 jeep patriot but am worried about getting stuck on the beach at the north ext Carolina beach nc. I have driven other 4x4 there but not anything this small. Has anyone ever been there? It has very soft sand. Also how about the 6 speed automatic vs the cvt transmission? I test drove one to day and am in love but I want to be able to take my dogs on the beach...

Thanks
Rere

I am not sure what a FDII is.

 

Damn, I miss Hatteras. Such a nice beach.

i hope there isn't any oil floating up there.

 

NC beaches are not seeing any oil

Come visit us. NC beaches are looking good and we have lots of tourist accomodation. Plus you can drive on some of the beaches!

 

Thanks for the other replies... Looking forward to getting the Pat out on the beach.

I picked up an air compressor a while back so I'm all set there. I've got a tow rope, some pieces of ply wood cut up, shovel, etc...

Good advice about the deeper tracks of the monster pickups... I dont have a lift so I'll be sure and keep out of those. Any particular details on where not to stop and park? I figure that I'll stay above the tide line but haven't given it much thought other than that.

Great pictures as well! Good to see the Pat. handles the NC beaches nicely!

 

Vacation was a blast. I would recommend Ocracoke to anyone planning an Outer Banks vacation.

The Pat. handled fairly well in the sand. I took it out on the beach each day. Actually got stuck once though... I bottomed out while driving in previous tracks made by a bigger vehicle and needed a quick tow, but after I figured out why, I was able to avoid any other issues.

Everything you read says you to drive in the tracks of other cars... But as one poster pointed out, this really isn't the case for us in the Patriot without a lift kit. Actually avoiding other tracks was the ticket... Once I figured that out, all was good.

Tires at 15 PSI

Thanks again to everyone for all the replies.

 

Great pic, all it's missing is a couple of bikini clad girls :banana:

 

Super Kool!!! I just bought a 2011 Patriot Lattitude X 4x4, and am probably taking it to Corolla in August to the 4x4 beach north of Corolla... great that it handles well in that nice sand down there.

I have the stock Afinity's on mine too.

I took my Buick Enclave AWD down there last year and did well on the beach at normal tire pressure, but was never even considering climbing up over the dunes... not sure I will with the Patriot either, but I do want to go north to the VA line this year and get some great pictures of the wild horses - never took the Enclave up farther than 2-3 miles. It does well, just does not have the 4x4 lock option Originally we rented a CJ for 2.5 hours and did the 4x4 trip.. family loved it so much we came back and bought a 2010 AWD Enclave - now we have both the Enclave AWD and a Patriot 4x4. I am thinking only a helicopter would be better

 

airing down is important. If it feels like the jeep is having trouble pushing through the sand that's because it is. You want to air down to the point that the jeep "floats" on top of the sand rather than ploughs through it. Traction is not really what you're after. You're trying to keep from digging in. Running on fully inflated tires can be ok on some sand but it's hard on the engine/tranny. Also if you start to spin, stop immediately and back up. it's much easier than having to dig the thing out.

 

Corolla N.C. 4x4 Beach & Patriot

Took the Patriot to Corolla N. C. a few weeks back. Comfortable trip down with the wife, kids and supplies. Got really good gas mileage even with the 30 mile long traffic backup to get to Corolla.

Headed out on the 4x4 beach Sunday after arriving. The first 2 miles or so of beach was really rough. It threw the Patriot around a bit, but it held it's own and got us up to where we decided to park.

When leaving we ran into trouble though, had a little bit of a rough time getting turned south again and ended up in someone else's rut which dropped the Patriot down to where the frame was on the sand. No way was it pulling itself out. I tried airing down, but it was too late. The entire way up was on the stock affinity's at 32 psi. No real trouble until hitting that deep rut.

Young guy came up in a big 4x4 pickup and snatched us out - made out fine all the way back. He moved me about 1 foot then the Patriot took care of itself.

At first I was a bit miffed.... but then saw that there was easily 6-10 other BIG 4x4's stuck in the same area, It was really rough there, the county sheriff had been by and called a tow truck... $300.00 bucks a pull....

Second day we took a wild horse tour, went several miles further north on the sand... turned out the really bad/rough sand stopped after 2 miles and it became really smooth farther up - if only we had known.

All in all, still pleased with the Patriot in the sand - it did what it was supposed to do - several jeep owners stopped by asking how it did on the sand. I guess they were amazed to see a Patriot off the hard road????

Will take it back out on the sand next year! Alright!

 

Sand, huh? Interesting concept....

 

Arrrr Matey

I figure I earned this badge....;

 

i have driven many types of vehicles on the beach at hatteras:


1988 ford bronco 4x4
2000 hyundai santa fe 4x4
2002 xterra 4x4
2007 xterra 4x4

i have no doubts that the pat should be good on the beach. At least the ones with the higher clearance due to the bigger 17" tires. I can't see it having issues with clearance as it's sits pretty high- 9 inches.

the santa fe was actually better than everything but the 2007 xterra- seriously- even though it didn't have a lockable 4x4 and 4lo.

for my particular patriot, having a 5spd is a new experience i am sure on the sand, but i think keeping in 1st or 2nd is key. PLUS airing down is a must on any vehicle. I had the 07 xterra out at ocracoke once, and as a test, used only 2wd and 24psi. Rolled right through no issues. Now on oregon inlet access point, probably would need the 4x4 with the xterra.... one other thing with driving on sand, momentum is your friend and don't use the brakes hard and not accelerate from a stop fast.

 

Just an update on this thread and forgot to update till now. Went out to fort fisher earlier this year. I kept it in 1st gear for a while then decided to use 2nd. Ran quite well and I got tons of stares! I had to turn around at one point as we were leaving and it just went across the ruts easily. I had some slight rubbing underneath but nothing that would stop me from going out again. On way out an older jeep grand c was stuck and some e was parked on his left so the trail was narrow and super soft sand on the turn. I thought for sure I had it and came to a stop. Put in first and it just went. No issues. I am sure the jgc guy was like wtf.

Air down to 17psi and used 1st 2nd in my manual with the larger 17" wheels. This is fd1.