Forester in Sand

[Robert Krieger]

Test drove a Forester today - very impressive! I would want to use it
occasionally for surf fishing at Cape Hatteris seashore and was wondering if
anyone has any experience using it in sand at the beach. I am concerned
about low ground clearance. Any experiences?

 

[powertrain]

Test drove a Forester today - very impressive! I would want to use it
occasionally for surf fishing at Cape Hatteris seashore and was
wondering if anyone has any experience using it in sand at the beach.
I am concerned about low ground clearance. Any experiences?

Not with a Forester but with an Impreza and my advice is: stay on the
hard stuff or you'll get beached.

 

[Tom Forsha]

Robert,
No first hand experience driving in sand, yet

Besides this news group I also monitor the following Yahoo discussion
groups.

http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/subaruforester/

http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/ausforester/

The Forester owners involved in the Yahoo groups tend to be more
"performance" or "off-road" focused in their discussions.
What I have assessed from the off road guys is, when driving in sand you
should...
.. lower your tire pressure and
.. be aware of causing damage to the sump guard/ skid plate on the bottom of
the vehicle.

FWIW
Tom

 

[wh]

Not with a Forester but with an Impreza and my advice is: stay on the
hard stuff or you'll get beached.

my 93 impreza ( with the local sticker) does great at the outer banks.
I am sure you have more clearance than I do . Besides bottoming out
(and reversing out) my trips have been uneventful.
Do make sure to wash the underside as well as the body when you leave.
I do drop the tire pressure to 10-15 psi and remember to start off
slowly in the sand. Most people try to use the snow/sand hard launch
spin start and dig a pit. Once you begin moving gas it and go. Do not
make sharp turns or you will dig in and try to follow previous tracks
and if you do back, stay in your tracks.
The weight advantage we have makes all the diff.
Wait til you pass a mega z71 and watch!
AJ

 

[Brian Wasson]

I haven't had my OBW on the beach yet, but have taken my 1991 Isuzu
Trooper many times on the sand in the Outer Banks (used to live in
Virginia Beach). I think you'll be fine, IF you stay below the high
tide line (on the packed sand). When driving on the softer sand,
you'll encounter serious ruts that can easily bottom you out if you
don't have high clearance. My Trooper has good clearance, but several
times I've been worried (although never stuck). I usually lower my
tire pressure to around 15psi or so, to get the extra "grab." It makes
a huge difference. In the summer season, I've many times seen SUV
owners go plowing into the sand at the access points, and become stuck
within 20 feet. Just because you have 4WD or AWD doesn't make you
invincible!