Driving techniques

[cdotson86]

Hey- I live in the country in Georgia and I was wondering the best way to drive down washed out dirt roads....you know...the kind that looks like there are a million little waves on the road.....Iv tried all kinds of ways....

"The Craw"- just let off the brake and give it just enough gas to get over the bumps- so far this seems to lead to the least amount of rattles in the truck.

"Haulin'"- straight up hauling about 50- you dont feel any of the bumps- but you know it cant be good.

"Normal"- running 20-30 and feeling like the trucks going to dissasemble itself.

Have any other ideas? Im just trying to keep my truck rattle-free for as long as possible! Thanks,
Chris

 

[RobbieD]

Depends on the road, I guess. I just try to find the speed at which the least amount of parts fall off.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Slowly, around here they keep a crown on the road and you can rattle yourself into the ditch if you are not carefull.

 

[feellnfroggy]

I just drive it. You will get used to the "irritating" rattle. And it will only affect your alignment which needs to be adjusted intermittantly anyways.

 

[Mark_88]

We call them "washboard" roads due to their similarity of the old laundry device...and there's not much you can do to avoid them in some places...so just go slow...

When I had my Tempo, which are known to have tempermental front ends, I lived on a county road that was usually rippled every spring until they graded it...and I had to replace the front end twice because I could never quite slow myself down...

But the other thing you may try is call the county roads department and complain...offer to send them your front end repair bills if they don't get their grader down there to flatten out the ripples...my b-in-law did that almost every spring...and they were pretty quick about getting it done once the complaints started...that's what taxes are supposed to be used for...not pumping up some politicians pension plan...

 

[cdotson86]

Its funny how this same washboard road can turn into a slushy when heavy rains come in.............I'v had to call in "stuck" before because it was too bad to even attempt to go to work. Haha

 

[feellnfroggy]

Its funny how this same washboard road can turn into a slushy when heavy rains come in.............I'v had to call in "stuck" before because it was too bad to even attempt to go to work. Haha

Thats awesome isnt it? We used to drift our 10k lbs. humvees in Iraq on some of these "sloshy" roads. It was a 4lane wide dirt road though. Everything over there is like gumbo with a solid surface beneath it. Unless you get off the "road" then its just one big mudhole.

 

[wahlstrom1]

For me it usually depends where your driving, and if there is other traffic or not. If there is other people, lots corners etc then I keep the speed down and deal with it. But if it's wide open road, fairly straight I usually hammer down and get up on plane like a boat, and it's smooth sailing. I find the 35" tires really cut down on the washboard as well as they're just big enough to roll across it without bouncing too much. I do not endorse this driving style however, as it can lead to disaster quickly if you don't know what your doing.

 

[dangeranger01]

The faster you go the smoother it is. If you are confident in your abilities hammer down.

 

[mn_smokeater]

my roads like that i just hammer down and hope to stay shiny side up

 

[metalmacguyver]

Faster is better. Instead of the suspension absorbing energy and transfering that to the frame of the truck and then to your kidneys, the tires absorb the energy.




Airing down would also make a world of difference as far as ride comfort.

 

[Cheaplabor]

Well if its a state road you dont have any control of the best thing is to just go slow. If its a drive way then id weld up a drag that weighed a few hundred pounds and pull it backhind the truck till it was granded down a little. We had to grade the lane monthly back home till we paved it.

 

[sbsumerix]

our roads are the worst huge holes all over in the dirt road and the only time they grade it is when it rains so you have super bad slushy mud. i usally go 55-well my speedo only goes to 85 so past that im usally pretty good at handling it if the back end goes out usally by the time it catches it gets straight again but i grew up on these roads im use to how they handle

 

[GBranger04]

if you're going to use your "haulin" method then make sure you understand that your tires only have traction when they are on the ground with weight on them, if they're bouncing like crazy then you get loose real easy. not much you can do but check your surroundings and use your best judgment.

 

[brendank]

The road out to my farm has really bad washboards. It's because the town dump is also down the same road, so it gets traveled ALOT.

I just drive in the ditch a little bit. Everyone in my family does it. It's already worn a path in the grass that grows on the side of the road.

It's actually kinda sad that the ditch is more smooth than the road.