Cape Lookout National Seashore

[Kdj]

Does anyone have experience taking your vanagon out there? I’m lifted 2WD with good AT tires and some off road experience in sand. I do have recovery gear also. Really looking for sand conditions, is it super soft or reasonably firm? I’ve seen a a lot of different kinds of vehicles out there in online pictures, but I don’t want to be the guy who got stuck coming off the ferry!
Any feed back accepted!

[Tobias Duncan]

Best defense against sand is the stock 14 inch rim with a large AT tire
Air down to 15 psi and you will float over most sand
I keep a compressor with me for beaches in mexico so that I can air back up once on the solid dirt roads

[nesurfer99]

I was there in a syncro last fall and did not have any issues. I personally would not attempt it in a 2wd but I travel alone mostly and don't enjoy getting stuck. FWIW I believe the park service requires you to have 4wd. There is a mandatory check in when you get off the ferry but they are obviously not crawling under your vehicle and counting differentials.

There is lots of traffic on the beach and road so if you do get stuck I'm sure someone will pull you out.

As long as you have momentum you should be able to power through the deeper sections.

Here are a couple of pics from that trip.

Good luck!

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89 Carat on the road and collecting (s)miles

[vanagonjr]

[R0Batt]

Bump.


Has anyone done it yet in a 2wd vanagon?

I think im going to try it in the next month or two.
Going out there with my buddy that has a lifted duramax on 35s

My van is lifted with some bigger tires and the General Grabber A/Ts

I plan on going out there with a shovel, max tracks, and a tow rope.
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85 Westy

Charlotte, NC

[dhaavers]

^^^ Sounds fun, good start.

If you plan to air down to 10-15 psi & pack a ~$100 12v air compressor, you probably
won’t even need the max tracks, rope <or> ever have to bother your friend.



- Dave
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86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS>

[E1]

There’s a whole lotta factors in sand driving and especially with 2WD.

We drove out Pismo Beach once on 14s with 27x8.5 tires. In my opinion, that combination was the best start in profile over and above any other factors. We were on BFG ATs (previous to KO2s) and talked to some way more-seasoned sand runners with similar tires and pressured down to 8.

Not sure I’d go that low again, and especially not on C-rateds, but at one point there was a line of trailers right above the high tide line, we had to go a few hundred yards “out back” through the deep, and did not get stuck. Total round-trip was 7 miles of sand.

We run 215/65-16 KO2s now, and the D-rating is the Bomb — on pavement but not so much on sand. The Peloquin helps a lot unless throttle input gets excessive, as does a revvier ring & pinion to bump to 2nd at slow speeds, but the sidewalls are lower and stiffer and it’s a small cut below the 14s. But still very usable.

Traction ramps have bailed us out maybe 10 or so times over 11 years. Invaluable, we have two and may buy two more. When things go really wrong, I’d say they’re far more valuable than any tires.

No matter all that, the secret if digging in is such a low rpm that the thing wants to stall — similar to driving in snow, really. Staying calm and being fully committed when it’s sketchy is a huge part of not getting stuck, hesitation is the enemy nearly every time.

The road photo above is way easier than what a 2WD can do, standard stuff really, if the above considerations are fully in play. The beach photo is a little trickier and needing momentum, but that sand looks damp and firm which is a big help. Dry is the worst.
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‘84 Westy, 2.1L with Digijet, 5.43 R+P, GT Gears
"Adding power makes you faster on the straights.
Subtracting weight makes you faster everywhere."
— Colin Chapman

[R0Batt]

Finally some optimism!!!

I will definitely air my tires down the general grabbers are load range SL so they should be pretty soft and good for the sand

Yeah ive offroaded a good bit and plan on scouting my line before driving on to the beach to make sure I dont stop in the soft stuff
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85 Westy

Charlotte, NC