Jeep Tire Traction Tips - Hooking Up

Air Down!Nothing improves off-road traction as much as airing down your tires. Don't get carried away, though. You'll want to go low enough for good traction, but not so low you'll be slipping tires off their beads. It takes a little trial and error, and you'll probably lose a bead or two in the process, but in the end it's worth it. We'd nearly guarantee that we could get a set of ragged passenger car tires at low air pressure to work better than the best off-road tires at full street pressure on the trail. Hmmm, sounds like a good story for our next wheel and tire issue!

Believe In Bead LocksThe easiest method of keeping a tire seated on the rim is to run a bead lock wheel. Some people simply run wheel screws, but wheel screws are really more for straight line acceleration. Initially used by drag racers to keep the tires from spinning on the rims under hard launches, a wheel screw will hold the bead to the rim, but there is the possibility that the rubber will tear away from the screw, like ripping out a drywall screw from gypsum board. A bead lock rim or the use of internal bead lock rings like those from Staun and Hutchinson are a much more foolproof method. They sandwich the tire beads to the wheel, clamping them in place for use at pressures down to 1 psi.

Dial The Anti-SquatAlthough it happens to leaf-sprung vehicles, too, if you're running a four-link suspension and the rear of the vehicle rises when you go from Park to Drive, or the rear rises when you step on the gas, you've got a lot of anti-squat. Some anti-squat is desirable since it pushes the rear tires down and into the ground, increasing bite. If the rear of the vehicle sinks, then you don't have enough anti-squat. There's a fine line to dial; too much or too little can lead to tire chatter and an inability of the rear tires to hook up. You can mess with control arm lengths to increase or decrease bite, but the biggest difference comes from the geometry of the control arm mounts. Short arm suspensions with more than 4 inches of lift usually have too much anti-squat, so a long arm system can help optimize anti-squat in a lifted Jeep.

Driver FinesseWe know sometimes it's the hardest "modification" to employ, but using your head and keeping your wits can usually help you more than most gizmos. Resist the urge to simply throttle down. Feel the Jeep and what it's doing. Simply paying attention to the feedback you're getting through the steering wheel, pedals, and tires will tell you a lot. We always get a kick out of the guys who just line up and when traction seems to fall off, just mat the throttle and fry tire hide. If you're losing traction, try steering into a different line or back up and try again. It's not a competition and there's no penalty for backing or cones to worry about.

Easy Clutching Or StallingIf you're having an automatic tranny built, resist the urge to slap in a drag race torque convertor. They stall at a higher rpm, so by the time your Jeep gets moving, it's putting more power to the ground at a higher engine rpm that will be harder to control. Likewise, if you've got a manual transmission, try to resist revving the engine and dumping the clutch. All you'll wind up doing is scoring your flywheel, burning up your clutch disc, and violently jerking the tires loose on the terrain. Steady, smooth throttle inputs are what's needed. For an auto, that means a low stall that will get the vehicle moving at lower engine rpms. Manual transmissions don't have the buffer zone afforded by the torque convertor, so the overall low range gearing should be a good match for what you're doing. Otherwise, finesse and tire control goes out the window.

Gearing For TerrainIt's more of a trail and rock crawling thing, but you've got to ensure you've got the abilty to go slow enough for the terrain. Like we mentioned when talking about clutch finesse, you've got to have low enough gearing to keep your Jeep controllable at low trail speeds. For most stock Jeeps with a manual tranny and a 30:1 crawl ratio, this just isn't gonna cut it. However, simply opening up the T-case and shooting for the moon with low range gearsets may not be the answer either because sometimes you need wheel speed. If at all possible, we much prefer additional low range gear boxes that augment the factory T-case low, giving the option of super-slow crawling for low tire speed, but also allowing some wheel speed if needed.

Run A Locker Or SpoolLike airing down, one of the biggest night and day differences in delivering traction comes from adding a true locking differential or a spool to your axles. Limited slips, like the Trac-Lok shown, are nice on the street, but they are a compromise on the trail. The best trail traction is going to come from a spool or a locker that links the two axleshafts together. The first time you drive a 4x4 on the trail with a locked axle, you'll be amazed at the ease with which you can traverse difficult terrain and at how little tire slippage you incur.

Pick Your LinesWe're always amazed when a mildly built rig lines up on the hardest line through the trail and then proceeds to spend 30 minutes clanging and banging its way to nowhere because the driver gets tunnel vision. These drivers only see where they are at the moment and not where they should be going next. Your eyes are one of your biggest assets on the trail. Scan the trail ahead of you. A good driver is watching the trail several yards ahead and not just where the Jeep is at the moment. Keep your eyes out in front of you and maintain a constant watch on where you're going to go. Use your memory to drive where the Jeep is at the moment.

Damping ControlBelieve it or not, your shocks play a big role in providing traction when climbing, descending, or even running off-camber. If your Jeep is bouncing or if the axle starts hopping, it's the shocks that absorb that energy and prevent it from being transferred to the tires. The goal is to keep the tires planted as smoothly and flat into the terrain as possible. A good shock absorber that does its job and prevents vehicle bouncing goes a long way to increasing the tire's ability to keep a hold on the terrain.

Consider The Contact PatchIt really depends on your terrain, but the width of your tire determines your contact patch. It's the amount of pressure per square inch your tires exert on the ground. Believe it or not, running extremely wide tires that decrease your contact patch can be disadvantageous if you're not running snow and sand. With too little contact patch, your tires may not have the bite they need to keep from spinning. For most 3,000- to 4,000-pound Jeeps, we've found that a 12.50- or 13.50-inch-wide tire on an 8- to 10-inch rim provides optimal contact patch pressures for most terrain.

Forget The All-TerrainsUnless you're looking for good ice and snow traction, leave the all-terrain tires alone and head for gnarly, aggressive mud tires with big, burly lugs. Don't let their name fool you. Especially when aired down, mud tires offer exceptional traction in just about any terrain, from sand to rocks to mud to everything in between. Even deep snow guys prefer an aggressive mud tire. The large lugs will grab and hold much better than smaller tread blocks, which may slip even at low pressures.

Resist WrappingIf you've got a leaf spring suspension-especially a spring-over-axlewrap, spring wrap, or whatever you choose to call it is a traction killer. It'll send your vehicle bouncing and will get your tires hopping right quick. Adding a traction bar is a Band-Aid repair, but it can be effective. A better alternative is to run a spring pack engineered to combat axlewrap, whether it's a spring-under, a spring-over with triple military wrap, half leaves, or any number of methods employed to minimize spring wrap. Look to custom spring manufacturers like National Spring or Deaver Spring and to reputable suspension companies like Rubicon Express, Skyjacker, Superlift, and so on for good alternatives that work.

Run Some SidewallLow-profile tires may look cool to some people, but the decreased sidewall height not only increases a rim's susceptibility to damage, but can limit traction. If you've ever seen a drag racing slick wrinkle as the vehicle launches, you'll understand how some sidewall flex can help in gaining traction. For an off-road tire, we find a sidewall height of 6 to 12 inches works well. That means running a 17-inch rim with a 40-inch tire, or it may mean running a 15-inch rim with a 33-inch tire. Leave the 20s to the guys with the big gold teeth.

Get GroovySiping or grooving a tire's treads is a good way to break up large, inflexible tread blocks and to add biting edges for slick weather traction. Siping involves cutting thin slices through a thick tread block. The tires will maintain their original look, but the tread blocks will be free to flex and spread, giving more biting edges to aid in wet or icy conditions. Siping can also improve on-road tread life and help a tire resist chunking. Grooving employs a tool that cuts away portions of the tread blocks to reshape the tread design. It's a good way to increase the flexibility of a tire carcass with large tread blocks or to add channels for evacuating water or mud.