[khai Dow]

So I’ve read all the threads here that have consigned our cars to the soccer mum/grocery run roles etc. However, for my family, this is our (my) primary vehicle. I have an M50d which has the Executive Drive Pro which means I can’t have the off-road pack, or the reinforced floor etc.

So - we are planning a trip up north in a Thailand which will include plenty driving on (poorly surfaced) roads but likely an opportunity to do some mild off-roading. These would be muddy forest roads, dirt tracks up moderate hillsides etc. Apparently access requires you to have a “4wd vehicle”. So - my hope is that it will cope just fine with this type of terrain, but would love to hear if anyone has any experience to share of their off road antics?
- Does raising the ride height actually provide additional benefit in rough bumpy terrain or is it just a gimmick?
- Would adaptive be the best driving mode to use?
- Are my 22” run flat Pzero’s going to give me any grip at all? I don’t think deflating them a little will give me any more surface contact.
- I think we have hill descent control - has anyone tried it?
- wading depth - am I right in saying this is around 500mm?

Clearly I’m a novice at this so any help would be appreciated. My only previous experience was taking a rented Q7 along some ridiculous roads on holiday in Italy. It survived albeit with lots of scratches...

[JFU]

Originally Posted by khai Dow

So I’ve read all the threads here that have consigned our cars to the soccer mum/grocery run roles etc. However, for my family, this is our (my) primary vehicle. I have an M50d which has the Executive Drive Pro which means I can’t have the off-road pack, or the reinforced floor etc.

So - we are planning a trip up north in a Thailand which will include plenty driving on (poorly surfaced) roads but likely an opportunity to do some mild off-roading. These would be muddy forest roads, dirt tracks up moderate hillsides etc. Apparently access requires you to have a “4wd vehicle”. So - my hope is that it will cope just fine with this type of terrain, but would love to hear if anyone has any experience to share of their off road antics?
- Does raising the ride height actually provide additional benefit in rough bumpy terrain or is it just a gimmick?
- Would adaptive be the best driving mode to use?
- Are my 22” run flat Pzero’s going to give me any grip at all? I don’t think deflating them a little will give me any more surface contact.
- I think we have hill descent control - has anyone tried it?
- wading depth - am I right in saying this is around 500mm?

Clearly I’m a novice at this so any help would be appreciated. My only previous experience was taking a rented Q7 along some ridiculous roads on holiday in Italy. It survived albeit with lots of scratches...

More capable than people would think:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcuGNYJpnUs

[lukehhhhh]

This is a Chinese video where they performed interesting tests and off road capabilities of the X7.

[xueju1121]

I think you will be fine.

I don't have many off-road experience but have owned both G63 and LX570. These two are definitely more hard core than X7.

However, couple weeks ago we had a flash flood warning in DE and PA and my usual back-to-home route was flooded by nearby river. The water depth was about the same high as 1/3 of driver side door. I just raised the air suspension and went through the flooding water with no trouble. Many stranded drivers were impressed by my X7

I don't recommend driving through running water since it is dangerous. But if we are only talking about rough pavements and some standing water, you should be fine.

Tires, however, I recommend you to at least keep a spare in the trunk. These low profile tires are not gonna last long when abused.

[jmciver]

Ask yourself, is it worth it to put your personal (and very expensive) luxury SUV through that type of potential abuse? The performance run flats are designed for pavement, not dirt, and are especially not designed for mud. Also, the small sidewall of the tires means that if you hit any significant potholes, the risk to damage to your wheels is significantly higher. That China video posted above are "ideal" off road conditions where just about any tire, regardless of type, could perform reasonably well (notice how mud was not shown in the video...). The other video, while it does show some wet off-road conditions, it looks like wet gravel, not the more slick mud you may encounter in a forrest as you described.

See the video below. A bit on the extreme side, but if the roads you might see are even half as bad as the ones pictured, your X7 will not survive off-road primarily due to the tires and potentially due to not enough ground clearance for some road conditions. Also, the off-road package at least provides some additional protection to the undercarriage of the SUV from being hit by something on potentially rough and/or hilly terrain.

I don't know what the specific roads look like based on where you are traveling, but if it were me, I would not take the X7. At least not without installing a better set of wheels/tires that are better designed for the off-road conditions you are describing. There is a reason why other luxury SUV manufacturers (like Land Rover for example) have wheel/tire packages that are specifically designed for off-road.

On broken pavement, you should be fine (not much worse than pothole filled roads found in several US cities). But uncertain, muddy forrest roads are not what the X7 was designed for - especially with the low profile, performance run flats installed. I don't own an X7 (yet), but I do own a full size SUV (Ford Expedition EL 4x4). It has a very modest 2" lift and I installed larger than OEM all-season tires (295/70R-18) and I would still have some concern with my setup on the muddy forest dirt roads you say you will encounter, due to the tires I have installed on my SUV.

[Frqnj]

Don’t take your 22’s with performance tires. You’re asking for trouble. You can get temporary undercarriage protection installed.

[Merlin4sc]

Originally Posted by xueju1121

I think you will be fine.

I don't have many off-road experience but have owned both G63 and LX570. These two are definitely more hard core than X7.

However, couple weeks ago we had a flash flood warning in DE and PA and my usual back-to-home route was flooded by nearby river. The water depth was about the same high as 1/3 of driver side door. I just raised the air suspension and went through the flooding water with no trouble. Many stranded drivers were impressed by my X7

I don't recommend driving through running water since it is dangerous. But if we are only talking about rough pavements and some standing water, you should be fine.

Tires, however, I recommend you to at least keep a spare in the trunk. These low profile tires are not gonna last long when abused.

My E60 waded through water only 1.5 feet deep momentarily and the turbos were spun up and it was like a vacuum cleaner on steroids, as the water went all the way through the intake and caused a steam explosion in two of the combustion chambers, cracking the pistons and throwing a rod through the case.

G07 X7M40 [std in US] is a really well thought out engine, but will cost us $21,000 if we trash it. Reason I joined today is to find out what the limit of fording depth is. Hard to believe the intake is more than a third of the way up the driver's door. I'm going to take some covers off and measure it myself at all the ride height settings.

It's amazing what dealers don't know. Even the owners manual says max depth is 19.6" and to disable Auto Start/Stop function first.

Cheers and hope to be a useful member.

[XB7]

I off roaded with my LX470 and my G63
I would not take a X7 offloading.

[ChrisM4]

I would not take it on those stock wheels/tires if you’re driving on dirt/mud or drive it on super steep terrain or deep mud given it doesn’t have 4Low.