[Gibbsy15]

G'day everyone, new member here, love the forum,

Just wanted to see if anyone's taken their Nox off the beaten track and how it went,

I've got myself an AWD 2.0L Holden Equinox with 19" wheels and I'd like to do a bit of beach driving and overlanding but I want to make sure the it can handle it first,

Cheers

 

[Lee F]

Crossovers are not made for rough off road driving.
The Equinox does not have enough ground clearance.
Welcome to the site.

 

[24882]

..anyone's taken their Nox off the beaten track and how it went..

They are very capable off-road. They are limited by ground clearance, but you will be pleased by the amount of suspension travel and available traction.

One thing prior to going off the beaten path is to disable StabiliTrak and traction control completely. Press and hold the StabiliTrak button for about 5 seconds until both of these lights show up on the dash.

Have fun!

 

[adam728]

Ground clearance (6.9 inches) and sad approach/departure/breakover angles will be the limiting factors (15/23/17 degrees). A Subaru Outback beats all those numbers by a considerable margin.

But for flat ground "off roading" it should do decently. For beach driving airing down tires is the biggest thing you can do to help it out, but I'm not certain how much improvement you'll get with 19" wheels, or where the system gets angry at low tire pressure.

 

[MWK1]

I haven't done a lot of off roading with our car, but am generally of opinion this is not something I would not want to do much of. Both the front and rear overhangs appear flimsy and have a lot of easily damaged plastic. The 19 inch tires are highway tires, and the and the low profile 19 inch rims would be very subject to damage. Also, the all wheel drive system itself is not really set up for good performance in off road conditions.

 

[Kermmydog]

We have an 18 2.0 AWD LT. This summer we traveled from Elko NV to Hawthorne NV 300 miles by paved highway, we traveled it on back dirt roads and trails. Ground clearance is really the only draw back. It forces a person to know how to drive off-road. I have 55 years of driving off-road and I like our Equinox all around.

 

[c&wsinbad]

We have an 18 2.0 AWD LT. This summer we traveled from Elko NV to Hawthorne NV 300 miles by paved highway, we traveled it on back dirt roads and trails.

That's an "all day" trip, but pretty country to drive thru. It's nice to get away from pavement every now and then to see the natural beauty!

 

[Kermmydog]

Why are you disabling the traction control? In over 10,000 miles of dirt roads, & trails never had an issue or problem. Just curious.

 

[Kermmydog]

We have an 18 2.0 AWD LT. This summer we traveled from Elko NV to Hawthorne NV 300 miles by paved highway, we traveled it on back dirt roads and trails.

That's an "all day" trip, but pretty country to drive thru. It's nice to get away from pavement every now and then to see the natural beauty!

it took us about 12 hours. But we stopped a lot. Made a side trip into Round Mtn for gas and food.

 

[24882]

Why are you disabling the traction control?

If you are in deep mud or snow/slush the StabiliTrak tries to keep the vehicle straight. It really overworks the brakes and makes it difficult to navigate in those conditions. There was one stretch on a muddy two-track that when I got through it the brakes were very hot. If you are on an old service road that is dry, there really isn't a need to turn them off. But with them off it makes doing doughnuts easier.

 

[Kermmydog]

Thank you. I haven't had it in much mud or deep mud anyway. Have had it in snow. Thanks I will keep this in mine. When what I g to do some donuts. lol

 

[Gibbsy15]

Thanks everyone for the welcome and advice, I took her off the beaten track for some light off roading the other day and it she actually performed surprising well, here's a few photos from the day. I must admit the ground clearance is a bit light on but other than that she goes like a champ.

 

[c&wsinbad]

Looks like she did very well. I think they are much more versatile then we give them credit for. We just need to remember that--when off road--we can't maintain the same speeds we would on improved highways or even neighborhood streets. If we respect the vehicle and drive according to the circumstances and terrain conditions, they will take us there in style and still give us many miles of service.

 

[repairman54]

2x just respect the limit of clearance and lack of skid plates and tire capability.

 

[Gibbsy15]

Agreed, I'm having raised springs installed on it as we speak and I'm also going to put all terrain tyres on it.

 

[Gibbsy15]

Here's the before and after - raised suspension and new wheels with AT tires,
Wish me luck!

 

[c&wsinbad]

Gibbsy15--Hope all works as you want! Perth is a great city; visited there several times courtesy of the US Air Force. Loved going to Kings Park! Take care and stay healthy!

 

[rkequinox]

Here's the before and after - raised suspension and new wheels with AT tires,
Wish me luck!

Really interested to know how you raised it - did you get a kit or just diy it? what brands did you use? 2019 2.0T Equinox here and I'm looking to raise it a bit as the ground clearance is more sports-car-y and I'd like a bit more lift.

Thx.

 

[Gibbsy15]

No kit, I just had a local suspension shop replace the factory springs with slightly bigger ones on the front and rear which gave it roughly a 20mm lift,
The brand of springs I used was King Springs.

 

[rkequinox]

No kit, I just had a local suspension shop replace the factory springs with slightly bigger ones on the front and rear which gave it roughly a 20mm lift,
The brand of springs I used was King Springs.

thanks. I'll have to look into them.

edit: I would venture a guess that you have AWD on your Equinox as well ?