T5 4motion, Just how capable are they as a 4WD

[winchmeup]

Hi
i have a dual cab which i love the shape and versatility of seating and tray length.

I want to set it up to get off road a lot more and feel confident i wont get stranded.

At the moment i have no diff lock and after a recent beach run has left me concerned.

I have a lift kit and run 225/75r16 tyres. They are heavy side wall and at 16psi hardly bulge at all.

So i would love to know what i can/should do to it and what it will cost etc. Please share you knowledge and experiences.

I'm trying to decide if i should modify mine or head down another car option and loose the shape i love.

Thanks

[Seano]

Pretty much the only place they struggle is on sand...unless you can maintain speed and revs. Since most SA and southern WA beach sand is somewhat soft to begin with...they are up against it. Anywhere else...fine, even without a diff lock. Main thing to watch is the damned fuel or oil cooler that sits exposed under the passenger side.

The only other option is to go smaller and more expensive (Landcruiser dual cab or one of the other toy dual cabs like an Amarok) or go larger and more expensive (Iveco Daily 4x4). I do not envy your choice - we face it every day with our old T4 syncro DOKA.

[Transporter]

I would also invest in a good recovery gear and the diff lock.

[T5 Double off road]

Hi winchmeup, I have an 05 model with now retro fitted rear Diff-Lock was a lot of work - will need a spline cutting machine & a C N C to machine to bore the holes in the casing to hold the fork to engage the sliding dog, also all the factory parts + a new right side short shaft from the diff. While I was doing all this I had took off the drive-shaft off from engine/gearbox & the rear wheels so I could drive it around as a 2 W D model as it is not a quick fix, as far as I know NO kit is available, I have found D/lock an advantage on steep bad track climbs & boggy rough tracks - Beach-work will be best sorted with soft tyres - big mud treads only dig you in very quick (bald tyres are real good - forgiving a little wheel spin (road tread is ok) You did not say what gear/box you had? if standard you may be better off with 235/70-16 as Trekka use,they are a little fatter with a smaller rolling dia. Your 225/75 R 16 will need the 'Auto Seikel' lowered gear set as I have - this gives you more "grunt" especially for off road - have a look on the net for demonstrations, I have air bags all round - another lot of prototype work especially for the front, for the rear the Air Bag Man does a kit for the rear - go for the 3 convolution with longer shocks - you may need some diff frame drop down spacers to save your C V's from damage at full height operation! For beach work - a snatch strap + max-tracks and a good 12v compressor will be a good investment, happy driving T5 Double off road. P S. added D L will not connect to the Computer or Haldex.

[winchmeup]

Hi winchmeup, I have an 05 model with now retro fitted rear Diff-Lock was a lot of work - will need a spline cutting machine & a C N C to machine to bore the holes in the casing to hold the fork to engage the sliding dog, also all the factory parts + a new right side short shaft from the diff. While I was doing all this I had took off the drive-shaft off from engine/gearbox & the rear wheels so I could drive it around as a 2 W D model as it is not a quick fix, as far as I know NO kit is available, I have found D/lock an advantage on steep bad track climbs & boggy rough tracks - Beach-work will be best sorted with soft tyres - big mud treads only dig you in very quick (bald tyres are real good - forgiving a little wheel spin (road tread is ok) You did not say what gear/box you had? if standard you may be better off with 235/70-16 as Trekka use,they are a little fatter with a smaller rolling dia. Your 225/75 R 16 will need the 'Auto Seikel' lowered gear set as I have - this gives you more "grunt" especially for off road - have a look on the net for demonstrations, I have air bags all round - another lot of prototype work especially for the front, for the rear the Air Bag Man does a kit for the rear - go for the 3 convolution with longer shocks - you may need some diff frame drop down spacers to save your C V's from damage at full height operation! For beach work - a snatch strap + max-tracks and a good 12v compressor will be a good investment, happy driving T5 Double off road. P S. added D L will not connect to the Computer or Haldex.

Thanks for the detailed answer.
I have a manual 6 speed without the seikel gears. I have been quoted over 10k to fit the seikel set, so i cant see that happening. You diff lock set up sound awsome but way out of my abilities. I have seen a post saying the fit a diff lock kit. i will try and contact them to see whats involved and costs.
I have also read that some T5 have electronic front diff lock and that the rear lock can be an option. Maybe it is worth waiting a year or so and ordering these options if a can buy a new model? I wonder if you can order the seikel kit from new?
I was thinking of going to 255/65 r16 tyres next time if they fit. They are slightly smaller diameter also.
Regards

[BertieT5]

I've got 245/70 R16s on mine but thats all. I dont think you can go any bigger rolling diameter without major mods.
I've got some cheap Achilles DESERT HAWK A/T and they seem to baloon out pretty good offroad.
Has gone ok on the sand so far but my biggest concern is the recovery points! I cant find them!

I've got my compressor and I think Maxx traxx are the next investment.
I honestly cant justify the $10K for airbags, i'd be better off buying a different car.

I dont have the diff lock either, so that aint ever going to happen. Maybe on my next T5??

Camping downsouth at christmas will be interesting, hopefully I can get into the track I want!!

[winchmeup]

I've got 245/70 R16s on mine but thats all. I dont think you can go any bigger rolling diameter without major mods.
I've got some cheap Achilles DESERT HAWK A/T and they seem to baloon out pretty good offroad.
Has gone ok on the sand so far but my biggest concern is the recovery points! I cant find them!

I've got my compressor and I think Maxx traxx are the next investment.
I honestly cant justify the $10K for airbags, i'd be better off buying a different car.

I dont have the diff lock either, so that aint ever going to happen. Maybe on my next T5??

Camping downsouth at christmas will be interesting, hopefully I can get into the track I want!!

I think the 245/70 are he same diameter as my 225/75. Glad to hear they fit. I wish i had gone that size now.

I cant see a diff lock option happening for me either. I did price up a new T5 with diff lock but they cant offer the seikel gear kit or front LSD i had heard about.
I would love to know if thier is an affordable option to retro fit a rear diff lock.

Fantic's idea has some merrit but i have not had much luck with landrovers in the past and my wife would kill me if i even suggested a project like that.

[BertieT5]

What lift kit did you get? did you just throw the King springs in??
I'm worried that If I put the longer springs in then the cars ride will get even harsher that it is currently.
However I'd love another 30mm of lift for safety when on the beach.

Also does turning traction control off in the sand help? I get the feeling it jamms on the brakes sometimes when i get some slip making the situation worse. Does turning it off also turn off the Haldex unit???

[Rebuild]

To me, traction control seems to cut engine power or drive whenever it detects slip.
In sand for the 2WD i have become almost bogged in short order with TC on.From now on i always engage the ASR switch whenever i encounter sand.Soft sand requires speed/momentum, not traction control

[T5 Double off road]

Hi again winchmeup, I made a typo It is TRAKKA - not Trekka sorry. The Electronic diff lock EDL as described by V Dub - I think you will discover will be Traction Control done through the A B S, In my opinion it should read EDL effect, may be it's all to do with the translation from German. The L S D in the front someone said they read about was probably mine it is a much modified Fantom-Grip it took 3/4s of a year to get the closest size - then with machining to it and the T5 hardened Diff-Gears a lot of proto -type work & i still don't know how long the Hemispherical Hi-tec nylon thrust will last. The only real answer to gearing IS Peter Seikel's.

[winchmeup]

What lift kit did you get? did you just throw the King springs in??
I'm worried that If I put the longer springs in then the cars ride will get even harsher that it is currently.
However I'd love another 30mm of lift for safety when on the beach.

Also does turning traction control off in the sand help? I get the feeling it jamms on the brakes sometimes when i get some slip making the situation worse. Does turning it off also turn off the Haldex unit???

The lift kit was in it from new. The dealer did up a demo version. I think they are king springs. The ride is ridiculously hard. You can jump up and down on a corner of the car and the only thing that moves is the tyres. This often leaves a wheel in the air when going up an incline at an angled approach. The good thing is it doesnt have any body roll on corners so you dont get that sea sick feeling like some 4wds. I would love to get softer springs but cant afford it a the moment so will wait and may even go airbag option. I would love to know what the idea spring rate is for offroad if i go the respring route. I really want to get a wish list complete before i spend anymore so i dont waste any money.

[winchmeup]

Hi again winchmeup, I made a typo It is TRAKKA - not Trekka sorry. The Electronic diff lock EDL as described by V Dub - I think you will discover will be Traction Control done through the A B S, In my opinion it should read EDL effect, may be it's all to do with the translation from German. The L S D in the front someone said they read about was probably mine it is a much modified Fantom-Grip it took 3/4s of a year to get the closest size - then with machining to it and the T5 hardened Diff-Gears a lot of proto -type work & i still don't know how long the Hemispherical Hi-tec nylon thrust will last. The only real answer to gearing IS Peter Seikel's.

Your set up keeps impressing. Unfortunately way out of my abilities.
Do you know how or who to talk to to get to the traction control via the ABS?

[T5 Double off road]

The Traction Control System I'm sure is the EDL Factory fitted to 2wd models - the early 4wd models didn't get it but I think later it became optional extra on ordering from Factory - Retro fitting ask someone like Miro (forum member).

[BertieT5]

Right well i spent lots of time 4wdriving on the south coast of WA between christmas and new year and have made a few discoveries.

The rear wheels almost never kick in.....like even when bogged they wouldnt spin (made digging out easier!! ) I just emailed Guy the haldex man about the Mod to make it kick in sooner. It would be awesome to have an over ride option when you get your self into bother!

Dropping the tyre pressure down from 42 to 15-17 PSI made the care extremely capable even in soft sand.
Even with the 245/70 R16 tyres the loss of extra clearane you gain with the bigger tyres is offset when the tyre pressure drops but not as much as you think.

Hmm i nearly burnt my clutch out trying to get off the beach. clearance was too low. might get it checked out.
Having a low range would be nice.... maybe the seikel 1st and 2nd gear set would have helped crawl out of the trouble I was in and avoided the clutch punishement.

maxx traxx or Treds are brilliant! made recovery much easier.

Running with traction control off only helped a little. Was far more important to let the tyres right down in the soft stuff.

The stiffness of the springs of the car is not as noticeable when the tyres are let down, but sux over corrugated dirt roads at speed. So maybe the king spring and some different shocks is a feasable option, just need to regulate tyre pressure for the conditions more often.

Having a good ARB compressor was awesome. made pumpting up so damn easy!! was doing this a few times a day.

The car is clearly far more capable than anyone could believe and was getting lots of questions and a lot of looks! I thought i would get hung up a number ot times with the LWB (poor ramp over angle) but made it over heaps of stuff without hitting.

But i still wish I had the EDL!

Overall my trip highlighted a few lackings of the van but it is far closer in capability the the delica i used to have than I or my girlfriend imagined. I would however like to lift her and maybe look at a haldex mod to make her that much better off road.

Cheers

[winchmeup]

Thanks for putting such a detailed description of your trip. Certainly glad to hear that the van worked so well.
The corrugations really rattle my van also. For xmas santa bought me two sets of auto deflaters. so i have set them to 18psi for sand and 30psi for the corrugations. I found on the last trip that going from 35psi to 28psi made a massive difference on the rough stuff.
As i mentioned befor ethe raised springs i have are heaps stiffer than orriginal and make the ride worse.

I have noticed that a lot of the 4wds we have in at work use a much softer spring that mine. even the ones with raised suspension. Does anyone know what the ideal spring rate is? I think softer would be much better for comfort and also when the track is very rough. At the moment i would constntly have wheels in the air as the suspension will not allow a wheel to rise up over a bump. The only downside i could see is it may become a bit floaty.

I'm interested to see how you get on with the halidex guy.

regards Steve