So I went to the beach with my family for my moms bday and my dad was talking to a guy who had an 04' Wrangler with the 4.0 and automatic in it. While they were talking he said he had owned 3-4 jeep b4 like it and he could only go so far befor the trans over heats and the fluid foams leaveing him immobile for 45 mins while the trans cools. He also said he had like 60 some thousand miles on his jeep. So according to my dad because he talked with this guy and his previouse worry about my transmision my Cherokee wont be able to drive on the beach. I dont get it theres Cherokees all up and down the beach with like 32-35s mud tires on them and they dont seem to have to stop to cool there trans. Has any one had this issue with the Cherokee with the 4.0 auto trans and 231 transfer case?I dont wanna take it out the and mess it up but Iv always heard our auto trans was like the motor its a freaken tank. So what do yall think any and all input will be greatly appriciated. Thanks guys.

 

Just drive closer to the water so you're driving on packed sand. The guy you talked to sounds like someone too dumb to air down their tires. There's absolutely no reason to overheat your Jeep on the beach like that. Hell, I've driven cars out on the beach in OBX.

 

Yeah... driving on sand makes no sense as to why that would mess with a tranny... Maybe if you abuse it then yeah but dont let a wrangler guy tell you anything lol... Air down your tires and drive on good sand and you'll be fine as long as you drive it like a jeep and not a race car

 

Most people dont air down unless they are getting stuck. Hell we didnt when we drive out the in the F150 but the trans temp gauge went up almost to hot but not quite. We usually drive in loose sand since thats how the entrance is its all tore up and wen the tides in of coarse u have to drive in the loose tore up crap. Have yall had your jeeps in sand

 

The AW4 transmission is very solidly built and you just can't kill the thing if you treat it right.

Just have the right kind of tires for traction and keep a good momentum and you shouldn't have any trouble on the sand. Try and avoid sugar sand and like motorcharge said, stay where the sand is packed.

 

Another VA guy! How are the OBX beaches for driving? I'm thinking bout heading down their next week or so for fun

 

this is why these dudes you talk to are boiling out their tranny fluid

always air down. it makes it easier on your rig, and its less impact on the shore.

 

When we go to the dunes, I air down and drop it in 4 low. Never get stuck. Run all day like that with no issues.

 

like everyone else said air down, and make sure youre cooling system is in working order, by that i mean fan shrouds in place fan clutch is working electric fan is operational, constant lugging on the motor at slow speeds can make it rather warm in really soft sand. if it does start to get hot turn the heat on full blast for a couple of minutes its like adding a second radiator, however it makes it miserable in the cab

 

tranny cooler

 

I have one mine came with the towing package. Is there anything else I can do because i have the goodyear wrangler authority tire and its pretty much a mud tire. Dont wanna replace them yet since I just bought them a few months ago.

 

Really it maks that big of a differance. I run 27psi in my tires for DD so whats the lowest psi I could safely run because it is very rutted out and dont want the rim hitting the ground when I bounce.

 

What tires are you running?

 

I've run 20 psi in my AT's with no problems on rocky forrest roads (running 30-40 mph). I'll defer to people with more experience in sand for this application though. In my dirt bikes I would run about 10 psi in sand.

The thing to remember with sand is to keep from bogging the engine all the time (loading up the tranny). Putting the jeep in 4Low like previously mentioned makes a HUGE difference. I can crawl around in 4 low and never see 210* at the torque converter. As soon as I put it back in hi or 2WD even if I'm doing 30 mph the temps shoot up if I'm climbing any type of hills. Your tranny cooler will help. Airing down the tires keeps them on top of the sand and allows the Jeep to roll over it easier instead of having to claw its way through the sand (bogging the engine/trans).

 

No reason to go lower than 10, 15 would probably be fine. Especially with stock szie, mild tread tires. Stay in 4 high.