Hi Everyone,

After getting stuck in mud two week ago on the stock tires (Pirelli Scorpion Zero), I ordered and had installed BF Goodrich All-Terrain T/A. I also purchased a set of MaxTrax Extremes. This afternoon I pulled over to the side of the road to clean my boots as there was a stench of poop (thank you horse stables!) in a muddy area. Anyway, I cleaned the boots and when I got back into my Discovery, within a few feet I was stuck. I went into mud/ruts mode, no luck...low speed launch....no luck. tires just spun. I pulled out the MaxTrak Extremes and the tires just spun on those too. I tried to get them wedged under the tires but had little success. In fact, the MaxTrak Extremes seemed to get caked in mud at the front which made grip nearly impossible. Tire pressure was around 33 psi for front and 36 psi for rear (light load). I didn't air down.

Thankfully another driver in a Toyota Tacoma was driving past and was able to pull me out using the tow hitch. BTW where is the front tow anchor point?

Now I am not one to blame the LR, tires, and MaxTrak Extremes since frankly they can only do their job based on the input/placement from me. So honestly I am trying to figure out what went wrong. I know the BF Goodrich All Terrain T/A are NOT mud tires, but I figured between those AT tires and the MaxTrax Extremes, I would be able to get myself out. It's not like I was driving through a swamp.

Any advice/tutorials/etc would be appreciated. Thanks. Matt

 

My absolute law is, If yo don't have a winch, wheel with someone who does.

Based own the terrain you think you'll encounter, sometimes its safe to wheel alone.

Sounds like you may have been high centered. No tire will go anywhere.

Remember "Slow as possible, Fast as needed"

Alot of wheel spin will dig you deeper.

good luck!

 

thanks for the advice!! next purchase is a winch and auxiliary lights, especially for the very dark roads at night and deer. Would like to get them both installed at the same time but need to find a reputable place near me. thanks again.

 

Here’s a couple old but good videos with some fundamentals and some insights on the predecessor of current LR terrain response systems. I am curious, did you engage Lo range when this happened?

Some fundamentals and differences between technologies (old very old by now, but the basics of current LR technology and the LR3 are not that different, current tech just leverages electronics to make it much more precise:

 

thanks for the links...will check them out!! I have the 4 cylinder P300, and it didn't come with the lo-range option for me to select. I custom ordered the LR and I believe the option is only available on the P360 (6 cylinder).

 

The one weakness of our Yoko G015s is they don't unload gooey mud well but I have had ZERO problems getting stuck. I leave it in high range and floor it to get centrifugal force up on those babies and they start unloading.

Factory tires won't do squat offroad. I took our Disco from the dealer to the tire shop the minute we got it.

Reminds me, I've got a brand new set of Pirelli Verde Plus if anyone needs them? Great tires on the road.

 

thanks when I floored it the tires just threw mud all over the fender and seemed to dig themselves deeper into the mud.

 

On the 2017 the front tow location is centered under the grill behind the plastic panel.
The panel is suppose to remove easily but I couldn't remove mine without fear of breaking it so I cut an access opening in it while it was still installed.
If I were stuck in mud or snow or offroad I can't imagine trying to remove that panel in that situation.
Elsewhere on this forum are pictures of that tow location and the cutout I made and how I did it.
Your newew Discovery may be different.

In my LR3 I was stuck in some snow that was on top of ice. I tried the various modes to get out without success.
Then, I realized I had a DSC button, Dynamic Stability Control , I think it was called. DSC was normally ON.
I turned that OFF and hit the gas and shot out of the snow like a rocket.
Stability/Traction control can sometimes not help.

 

thanks for the suggestion. i need to make a checklist of things to try in these situations. it's like your mind races when you realize the LR is just stock and 'now what?!?!?'

Another LR user also suggested airing the tires down to 25psi (from 33-36) may have helped.

 

Like @ponderosajack said the traction control off helps in this type of situations. Otherwise if the four wheels are spinning it will just cut power and sometimes what you need is enough spin until it picks some traction (also play with the steering to look for traction). As for the front recovery point it is indeed under the plastic cover. The cover is easy to remove before you get stuck, by the time you get stuck you are probably in deep stuff so it will be a pain to remove. Even the JLR dealers on their owner days driving experiences will have a service team onsite removing them ahead of getting on the course.