Tire pressure and snow??

Hey guys
New to the offroad scene, reading up and learning as I go. As far as trails with snow and tire pressure, is it still reccomended to air down for better traction, or keep aired up to try and cutt through the snow to a firm surface underneath the snow? I seem to find conflicting ideas on this. I am planning on looking for some trails tomorrow and wonder if I should air down just a few lbs? I run wildpeaks, did the chalk test and run 32 front and 30 rear. Should I keep It there, or maybe drop 2-3 psi.
Thanks

 

Keep it like you have it. You air down in deep snow. You air down in loose sand. You air down in deep mud.
You also air down when you forgot to air down and are stuck.
Air down when rock crawling.

All other times? Leave it. You will be fine.

 

Deep as in 6+inches standing snow?

 

All I know know
is things read smaller in snow
So there you go

I didn’t mean to rhyme

 

Teehee

 

Six inches is nothing, your truck will roll right through that with no problems at 20psi or 40psi.

 

Just be sure to change the air in tires from summer air to winter air before driving in snow

 

No. You’re fine.

Air down if you are going through stuff that you would sink in up to the frame and become stuck.

Airing down helps you to float on top (like snowshoes help in deep snow)

If there’s solid ground within reach that will give you traction, a smaller footprint works best. That’s why people who know what they’re doing run skinny tires.

If you’re in deep mud/snow/sand you want to air down for a longer and wider contact patch.

 

That seemed to be the general consensus of what i was finding

 

Foot of powder.

 

If you get stuck, air down.

Keep it simple.

 

I drive through fields of a foot of snow at OEM pressure.

 

I air up to 45lb. in deep snow and mud to test the flaps.

 

One word - chains

Air down if it makes you feel better, but I don't think it makes that much difference. Now chains, they make a difference.

 

The only time I got my FJ (the one in my avatar) stuck was driving in snow on a frozen lake. It was fine in 18" of powder on the lake but when I tried to power through a 4' drift I got high centered and all 4 wheels were spinning. 15 minutes with a shovel and we were fine. My at the time girlfriend (now wife) likes to give me shit about it to this day. Bottom line, these things are pretty damned capable in the snow. Air down if you get stuck but honestly if you're stuck in snow it is probably because the belly of the truck is resting on a drift or something like that.

That said, I plan to take our children out on the same lake and get stuck in the same spot in my new AG Tacoma, just so I can tell them the story.

 

Yup, the only time my old Jeep Liberty KK with Duratracs got stuck in snow was driving up over a plowed built-up roadside embankment. I got it up there and parked it the night before. Girlfriend (now wife) asked if she could take the Jeep to college that next morning despite not getting any additional snow overnight. She feathered the throttle onto the embankment and got high centered instead of building up enough momentum to push through/ over it. Obnoxiously, we pulled it the rest of the way over the snow mound with her goddamn civic.

 

The funny thing is, my wife forgets the time she woke up at 4AM to take her sister to the airport in the snow, got her Camry stuck and woke me up to take them with the FJ and then pull her Camry out of the ditch with it when I got back. That story never comes up, but the time my FJ got stuck (basically because I was *trying* to see what it could do, on a sheet of ice covered with snow) comes up every winter.

She drives an XC90 now so we pretty much have winter covered at this point. That gen 4 Haldex system isn't full time 4wd, but it is damned nice for an AWD.

 

LoL mines in an XC60.

 

Measure the lowest point of your truck.
Measure the height of the snow.

If snow is greater; then

Factor in if there are hills, or any ice has set in...

Then keep these in the bed if you’re going alone.



3 psi drop is not going to help in snow. 17-20 psi all day on decent trails. Chains when things are going bad.

 

I really like those. But for rear facing car seats we'd have a 60 rather than 90. Kids take up lots of space!