Sand Mode Help

CarrieMystic

Bought a two hundred plus pass for a sand trail here in RI. Basically it is just a trail to get you to the beach. It is a couple miles. I had to buy a fire extinguisher, tire deflater, wood for tires if stuck, shovel etc before car was approved for the pass. That was another 200 ish dollars. I was SO excited. Got to the trail, deflated tires to 14 (as reccomended) and made it to the beach just fine. When leaving, there was a little divit and I got stuck so I parked and got out to shovel. Hours later, five men, one tow truck and 500.00 I was ToWED out. They said I was the fifth Bronco Sport that week and it was only Wednesday. Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you.

Depending on the divot, you may have gotten high centered (the middle of your vehicle is stuck on sand and wheels are getting enough traction). I’ve seen all kinds of small SUVs on the beaches of the OBX have zero issues. If it’s really loose and soft sand, you can get dug in pretty easy. If you stay in the pre-existing tracks, you should be good, unless the tracks are super deep and your hitting sand. If you have locking diff, that can be helpful to get out of stuck sand, but just know the more your tires spin, the deeper you will go. Throw the wood boards away and get a set of recovery boards. Amazon has some for under $100 that should work just fine. You need something with teeth to grip the tires. 14 psi should’ve been plenty low. I know OBX only suggests 18 psi. Also, but a tow strap so if you get stuck again, maybe someone can help pull you so you won’t have to pay. Done that for people at OBX before.

A couple tips that may or may not have helped in your particular situation:

• If you are stopping, park facing down hill so it's easier to get going again.
• If you have difficulty starting from a dead stop, turning the steering wheel back and forth may help the tires find something to grab onto.
• Once you're moving, minimize throttle changes, steering input, and transmission shifts as much as possible (the Sand GOAT is programmed to assist with this).
• Maintain momentum as you approach uneven terrain, but without over-accelerating (spinning the tires just digs you deeper).
• If you begin to loose momentum and the tires start spinning, back off the accelerator. If the tires don't regain traction with a lower throttle, back up if possible and take another run at it. If you can't get back to smoother or more level ground, you may not be able to get under way again without assistance (from a recovery strap and/or recovery boards as mentioned by @thgdfathr ).

There are probably a lot of videos on this. Include "Bronco Sport" in your search, and you might get more specific help.
You should have a jack and a sturdy plywood square, about 12x12 inches. Next time, jack up your Sport (make sure you're using the proper contact points) and then fill in the hole and/or slide in traction (or recovery) boards. These are specifically designed for your tires to gain traction up and out--much better than wood planks. Don't go too cheap. Also consider investing in a kinetic (has slight stretch) tow rope with soft shackles--if your Bronco Sport has tow points.

A lot is experience: "Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted." So don't get discouraged! Hit the Bronco Sport threads and see what other people are doing to make their car more capable in more spaces. Maybe you'll want to get some more aggressive tires? The Sport is not built for rock crawling, but you can hit state forests (e.g. Freetown State Forest in Mass) for nice, remote, and somewhat technical driving on dirt & gravel roads. Oh--Consider airing down to 9 or 10 pounds next time.

A pity there wasn't a full-size Bronco with recovery gear on the beach that day to get you out. Damsels in distress are just my thing!

wood isn't the best option for tires. like @thgdfathr said, get a set of traction boards. Also, you said you have a sport so maybe a better set of tires too.