[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0N2h3WWb2k[/embedyt]

If you love going 4WDing, then chances are at some stage, you’ve found yourself in a situation where you’ve needed more traction. Doesn’t matter if you love 4WDing on the beach, low-range 4WDing up hardcore hills or even 4WD touring tracks that are rocky, rutted and corrugated – traction is something that as 4WDers, we all need to pay attention to!

It doesn’t matter if you have the biggest, baddest truck with all the offroad modifications to make your 4WD better, if you have improperly adjusted tyre pressures then you are going to get stuck. And while getting stuck is sometimes half the fun of 4WDing, especially if you’re with mates and you’re aiming to find those hardcore 4WD tracks, most of the time we just want to get to where we’re going, without having to get the winch out!

The easiest and most effective way to get a more capable 4WD is to adjust your tyre pressures for the type of terrain that you’re driving. Generally speaking, the softer the terrain, the lower you’ll have to make your tyre pressures. What this does is increase your tyre ‘footprint’ – the contact patch between the tyre and the ground. The larger the footprint, the more area the weight is spread across, meaning there’s less chance of you sinking down into the mud.

Think about it like this. Imagine standing on a soft, wet patch of mud in your bare feet. You’d probably sink in up to your knees, right? Now imagine standing on that same mud, but this time you’re on top of a full-sized piece of plywood. You’d stay up on top of the mud instead of sinking down into it, right?

That’s why we adjust 4WD tyre pressures to suit the terrain you’re driving, because the tyre’s contact patch then increases and you’ve got much more of a chance to prevent getting bogged! So how do you adjust your tyre pressures for 4WDing, and more importantly, what is the right pressure to adjust your tyres to?

The answer isn’t always set in stone, and there are indeed a number of factors that come into play – like how soft the terrain is, how hot the day is, and how heavy your vehicle is. However there definitely is a good starting point you can use, which is;

• Sand – beach, deserts, etc: 16psi
• Low-range hills, rocks and muddy terrain: 22psi
• Corrugated or rocky dirt touring tracks: 28psi

Watch the video below to see a clear demonstration of the real-world differences between different tyre pressures, and just how much more capable you can make your 4WD simply by lowering the tyre pressures. It’s as easy as using your Adventure Kings Kwiky Tyre Deflator to quickly and accurately lower your tyre pressures, and remembering to monitor those tyre pressures throughout the day. Why? Because as air heats up, it expands! This means that the tyre pressures you start with at the beginning of the day can quickly increase as the day gets hotter and you do lots of 4WDing, which generates heat in your tyres as the internal steel bands move and flex around.

An important point before we go – you should never drive on the tarmac with tyres that are under-inflated. This can cause massive amounts of premature wear from the inside of your tyres, and the really scary part is that you won’t even know it is happening until it’s too late and you have a tyre blowout! That’s because the lower you drop your tyre pressures, the more the steel bands within the tyres move and flex around. Off-road it’s not such a big deal as the natural terrain never gets as hot as tarmac in the middle of summer, and you generally can’t drive as fast as you could when you are on the tarmac. The solution is easy – carry the Adventure Kings Thumper Max Air Compressor with you, and you’ll be able to inflate your tyres easily, wherever you are. No risking tyre damage!

It’s no exaggeration to say you could easily double the performance of your 4WD off-road simply by lowering your tyre pressures. Make sure to watch the video and leave a comment if you have a question!