Safety First! Off Roading in your Toyota Four Wheel Drive!
Safety First! Off-Roading in your Toyota Four Wheel Drive!
The Sunshine Coast is jam packed with adventure drives. It doesn’t matter if you are looking for the scenic sights of the spectacular hinterlands, cruising up one of the deserted sandy beaches on one of the islands, or just planning a road trip up and down the coast. Grand adventure awaits!
But before you set off on your Toyota 4WD holiday, there are many things you need to consider to ensure that you are putting the safety of your family first when enjoying off-road drives on the Sunshine Coast. Here are just a few.
How to be safe when off-roading these holidays
There isn’t just one thing that keeps you safe when off roading. It is a combination of factors.
- Tyre pressure – you will need to drop your tyre pressure depending on the terrain you are driving. Beach and dirt requires different psi levels to road driving. Beach driving requires a lower tyre pressure than dirt and bush driving.
- Type of tyre – depending on how and where you plan on spending your school holidays, you may be able to get away with stock standard tyres. However, if you will be hitting anything more challenging than a graded dirt road, you might want to consider upgrading your tyres to all terrain tyres. They provide good handling for street roads and the open tread of off-road tyres which ultimately provides better traction for your vehicle.
- Slow and steady – when taking your Toyota 4WD off-road, it is very important to know that you should go as slow as possible and only as fast necessary. If you are only driving on a dirt road with no major obstacles, then just drive to conditions. Beach driving is completely different to off-roading. You need to keep your speed up or you will get bogged.
- Walk it first – ideally you would avoid mud and flowing river crossings, however, sometimes it is unavoidable. If you can’t judge the speed or depth, walk it or test with a stick first.
How to avoid causing any environmental damage
While having fun is the best part in an off road Sunshine Coast trip, it is even more important that while making memories, you don’t cause any damage to the environment.
Protect your environment by being cautious. Take action to avoid causing any damage to your surroundings. This includes simple things like driving sensibly and dropping your tyre pressures when driving on the beach so you don’t chew up the sand.
How to avoid causing any damage to your own car
The last thing you want is to end up damaging your Toyota Four Wheel Drive, so use caution and drive to conditions. Avoid driving into ruts in the road.
Regardless of which Toyota 4WD models you have, you need to ensure you get a service and vehicle check before you leave for your trip to help avoid unforeseen complications.
What to pack/prepare to make sure you're safe when off-roading
When travelling off-road alone or with your family, you need to make sure you have the following things packed for your trip.
- Water / snacks
- First aid kit
- Spare tyre
- Compressor
- Recovery equipment – Treds (beach recovery equipment), tow strap, tyre gauge
Now that you know how to prepare and what to consider when going off-road these school holidays, it’s time to enjoy the fun and freedom. Just remember, safety always comes first.