Greetings fellow sportsmobile nutheads!
Could someone please advise me or steer me to a link about what tire pressure I can safely drop my 80psi tires to on an E-250 EB for driving on sandy roads/beaches in Mexico. I have not made this a standard practice on past trips but probably should to reduce the possibility of getting stuck for which I have all the requisite extraction devices such as ARB tow straps and maxx tracs. Thanks.
Griz

What tire size?

How much do you weigh?

4X4? What system?

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Four time Baja 1000 winner, four time Baja 500 winner. Solo'ed the Baja 1000 to LaPaz/Cabo twice.
4-Wheeling since 1972, Desert Racing since 1989.

AgileOffRoad.com

Clearly I have not given sufficient information.
tires are 285 75/16
4x4 is Quigley
GVW? base wt, say 7200 lbs , plus top and interior. I would have no idea of the total.

I am a fan of the Baja Mil and have watched it from the roadside
in San Juanico whenever the route goes through that location

You would be safe at 25 psi front and rear.

I wouldn't run those at 80 psi, more like 60 when fully aired up.

No Scorpion Bay this year, but most likely next year for the 50th anniversary. We love going to Scorp!

__________________
Four time Baja 1000 winner, four time Baja 500 winner. Solo'ed the Baja 1000 to LaPaz/Cabo twice.
4-Wheeling since 1972, Desert Racing since 1989.

AgileOffRoad.com

Thank you for the insightful information given your extensive Baja Mil experience and incredible number of wins. I am completely impressed. So, perhaps I can glean a bit more valuable info since you have knowledge. I spend 2 months every year roving in Baja with most of the time spent between North of Santa Rosalillita and San Juanico but I admittedly have no real true off road experience. Would you have a suggestion for a preferred high quality tire, 285 /75-16's for off road travel but not technical, just rough with the usual amount of highway travel to get to the destination beginning of the rough road. I live in western CO so a lot of off road potentially muddy rocky roads to get to sweet camping/hunting/fishing. And, other than ARB tow straps, tire compressor, extensive tools, and maxx tracs, is there anything else I might be missing other than tequila which is always in stock along with ice cold beer! Maybe this is too much info for a public forum....But, how can you deny tequila in Mexico... That is a crime!
seriously though, thank you very much for the valuable info. I will follow your advice.

There's tons of tire threads here, and you may just want a response from Ramsey, but I'm really liking and am pretty impressed with my Goodyear duratracs. People also have good things to say about the new bfg a/t's, much better than the last generation, although many ran those with no problems and liked them, new ones are better in the snow. I generally ran my 285's, both bfg a/t's and toyo m/t's, down to 30-35 psi for dirt/off road use, fully aired at 55/60 front/rear, I run similar with my 315's now. Best compromise of on road comfort/wear.

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'03 Ford E350 7.3L Diesel
(de)SMB'd Custom RB-50
Quigley 4X4 w/Deavers & Agile Offroad's R.I.P. package
CCV High Profile Pop Top

No doubt that BFG is the tire best known for conquering Baja; with more Baja wins by a long shot then any other manufacturer. That said I really like the new BFG KO2 that I have put on the last several 4x4 conversions we have done. The 285/75R 16 sells for $185 to $240 depending on where you get them (best price I've found).



I also like the Toyo Open Country AT II and Open Country M/T. We just put AT II's in 315/75R16 (34.6" dia.) on a new conversion last week that will be headed to Baja often and I have some M/T 35X12.50R17 )34.8" dia.) for my Traverse.



My preference is for an All Terrain tire with less aggressive tread design for better road handling characteristics, quieter and smoother ride, and better performance in sand (I hate mud so try to stay out of it) and think the 285/75R 16 or 285/70R 17 (~33 inch tire) is perhaps the best all around size for our vans.

Today, I bought five 285/75R 16 Hercules Terra Trac AT II's, mounted and balanced for $875.00 (cash price) for another conversion finished this week. These are made by Cooper Tire I believe and have good reviews and seemed like a great value - why I bought them. They look a lot like the Toyo:


P.s. You can get BFG tires at Costco in Baja and the prices are really great because of the strength of the Dollar relative to the Peso. I bought some 31X10.50R15 BFG KO2's for our Cherokee at the Costco in Cabo on Saturday for $130.06 each after conversion a current rate - best price in USA is around $156.00. In the year we have lived in Cabo the Peso has gone from 12.50 to 17.00 making our dollars go a lot farther.

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Four time Baja 1000 winner, four time Baja 500 winner. Solo'ed the Baja 1000 to LaPaz/Cabo twice.
4-Wheeling since 1972, Desert Racing since 1989.

AgileOffRoad.com

I agree on the BFG AT KO2. Just switched to them from the KO before. Much better ride. Much quieter, and is supposed to have better traction in snow and mud. Don't forget to use E rated for our heavy vehicles.

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2008 Ford E-350 Quigley 4x4 V10 - 164,000 miles
RB50, PH Top, Dual AGM Group 27 Deka, 2000 Tripplite Inv., No Propane or Water Systems
Van Weight 8,100 pounds, added one rear leaf spring, BFG AT KO LT265/70R17 E Tire press 50psi.

Thank you guys for the valuable information. That was just what I was looking for and when it comes time to replace tires I will put on one of the types mentioned. I now have 180K on my 97 -E-250 SMB, 4x4 EB and the triton v-8 with never a hiccup.

Also switched from the Toyo MT's to the BFG AT KO2 last month.. I switched because I'm now towing a 24ft Trailer and it's much smoother for pulling.. and quieter and better fuel mileage.

The Toyo's were great, nothing against it too much.

E rated 10 ply I think. So far thumbs up.

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96 RB E-350 460v8 4x4 Custom RestoMod
Warn12kWinch,FFloater,LSlip,Pwtrx Locker 4.10 305x70x16 ToyoMTs,Eagle Alloys,Stove,4CF Ppane Fridge, Air CompTank,Supersprings, Bilstein Shocks,Deavers,CastIron Diff Case, Bullet Proof ReBuilt Transmission, Tubulator DeRale Trans Pan Cover, SSExhaust, KyoceraSolar, Tripplite UPS, 8D AGM, TivoHD, 24in HDLED
95 FJ80 ARB/Kaymar/Emu
2005 AMG CL65 691hp 875tq