driving uphill on gravel driveway

[pushme]

Soon I am going to visit my father-in-law who has a long uphill gravel drive way. Anyone have experience driving uphill on gravel? I have a 40' dutch star DP. I don't know the exact grade, I know an semi truck has made it up before.

[xctraveler]

To; get to my son's yard I drive 2 miles up a gravel/dirt mountain road then make a sharp turn onto his driveway. It rises a hundred feet or more in 1/8 mile. It is gravel and has a couple of water bars. Over a period of years I may have spun the drivers once or twice in both our former 36' gasser (WorkHorse) and our present 36' DP. The transmission is smart enough to stay in 1st as long as I keep the speed down. The secret for me is to maintain steady pressure on the throttle and thus keep the speed steady also, letting it drop as I near the top.

The turnaround at the top is the fun part. I need every inch of space available to turn the coach 90 deg and get it on the pad about 4 feet from a railroad tie wall. This can take as much as 15 minutes.

The transition is not too bad as the road is dirt, generally I have to put the driver side wheel off the road into a dropoff to execute the turn in and passenger side wheels when departing. DW is NOT in the coach when I do this, she is in the tow'd or on the ground giving guidance. Looking forward to executing this maneuver in a couple of weeks.

[Ivylog]

I guess all those dragsters should be going backwards down the strip.

The OP has a 40' Dutch star DP.

[Kayteg1]

You are not saying why did you back up your log truck?
When traction is not the issue - reverse gear is having higher ratio than 1st on most of the vehicles, so the engine can handle it better.
Law of physics say that rear axle will always have better traction going uphill

[J-Rooster]

Ivylog wrote:

J-Rooster wrote:
I would back up the driveway!

You have less traction backing up.

OP, if you do not make it up and have to back down, let air out of your four rear tires... 100 down to 60 psi. This requires that you have found the air outlet under the front cap and have a air line long enough to reach your rear tires to air them back up once you make it to the top. You need to have this capability regardless as it's the easiest way to top off your tires.

I drove log truck for 14 years and backed up steep gravel hills empty all 14 years (very rarely not able to complete the back up) and the rear of a DP has a lot more weight on the drivers than a empty log truck. I had lots of experience backing up in gravel. In fact once in a while driving up a steep gravel hill forward I would just spin the drivers due to lack of weight on the drivers! So I disagree with your less traction backing up!

[happy-2]

drop your toed and drive up and check it out.

[Kayteg1]

I don't think dry gravel will be issue, but gearing might.
I did drive low-power vehicle in my life and the engine would die even on 1st gear on certain grades, unless I speed up on 1st at the bottom and keep the engine around high torque rpm.

[ba250]

I've had dump truck and concrete drivers refuse to traverse my driveway. Yet we regularly come and go in a 42' Monaco Dynasty. Will admit we hook up the toad after we leave and before we come back. More than one person has seen the coach in the barn and asked how I got it there.

[BigRabbitMan]

A key question is what kind of coach you have. If a pusher, you have less rear overhang than if you have a front engine gasser. Gassers tend to have longer rear overhangs so with them the question of dragging with a sharp change in slope is important. The fact that it is gravel is not really an issue. I assume that you have been there a number of times and know of any sharp changes in slope. If none, you are good to go.

[Bill_Satellite]

Many driveways, gravel or otherwise, have a transition that your RV may not be able to handle. I have bottomed out only once and felt like a complete idiot when I did. I was lucky enough to be able to work my air bag suspension just enough to back out of a terrible situation but I don't recommend anyone trying to make a shot at it if avoidable.
It sounds like you don't know enough about the situation you are heading into or if you do you have yet to share it with us.

[Mr_Mark1]

Mr. Pushme,

It would be great to see a picture of this driveway so that we can see what you are dealing with.

MM.

[Ivylog]

J-Rooster wrote:
I would back up the driveway!

You have less traction backing up.

OP, if you do not make it up and have to back down, let air out of your four rear tires... 100 down to 60 psi. This requires that you have found the air outlet under the front cap and have a air line long enough to reach your rear tires to air them back up once you make it to the top. You need to have this capability regardless as it's the easiest way to top off your tires.

[J-Rooster]

I would back up the driveway!

[Pirate1]

I like what some other said. Make sure you can turn around up top. When going up, DO NOT STOP. If you hesitate and start spinning the wheels at all, STOP. Back down all the way and start over.

[Jim]

I once attempted to head up a steep paved hill trying to get to a wine tasting facility. I bottomed out, in a swale meant to channel rainfall, and then the frame rails dug into the blacktop when I tried backing up. Couldn't go forward, didn't have the engine power, couldn't back up. But then a local stopped by, assessed the situation and called his dad in his 4X4 pickup. Strapped up, his and my engine worked together, and darned if he wasn't able to give me the extra oomph needed to break free.

Learned a few things that day:

1) See suspicious scrapes in the dirt or blacktop at the bottom of a hill? Means people can't make it up and have to back up.
2) Stop, even in the middle of the roadway if you must, and inspect the steep road before attempting.
3) When approaching a steep driveway, don't attack it head on, approach at an angle.
4) If you decide it's too steep, don't back down straight. Take the road/driveway interface at an angle. This prevents overhanging frame rails at the rear of the RV from hitting the ground too soon and digging in.
5) Even a small 4X4 pickup can pull a large class A up a hill a few feet.
6) Carry a couple sticks of 2'-2X4's to put under the rear wheels to give a couple inches of clearance if needed.