UAZ PATRIOT Operation Manual page 94

When overcoming sandy soils, drive smoothly without jerks
and stops. Turn smoothly and with a great radius. Switch on
the highest possible gear and engage the front axle, in order to
overcome the sand drifts and short sand upgrades in a rush.
Avoid the slipping of the wheels. Determine the road conditions
preliminarily and switch on a required gear which would provide
a required rim pull.
Overcome a ford with great care. The motor vehicle can
overcome a ford of a 500 mm depth with a hard bottom at low
speed. Before overcoming a ford, check its bottom. Make sure
that there are no deep pits, big stones, swampy grounds, choose
and check the ground where the motor vehicle will enter the
water and go out of the water, switch off the fog lamps.
Overcome a ford slowly, without making waves in front of
the motor vehicle, in the first or second gear of the gearbox,
engaging the front axle and the reduction gear of the transfer
case.
Avoid maneuvering and sharp turns.
After fording, as soon as possible but not later than on the
same day, check oil in all units. Change oil in units where water
is detected. There is some water in the oil if its color is changed.
Lubricate all grease fittings of the chassis until the fresh grease
appears. After every fording, partly engage the clutch and partly
apply the brakes several times in order to dry the clutch facings
and brake shoe linings.
If the engine stops when fording, try to restart the engine by
means of the starter two to three times. If the engine does not
start, the motor vehicle should be immediately removed from
the water by all means. If some water is penetrated to the units
of the vehicle after the removal, it is not recommended to drive
the motor vehicle. Tow the motor vehicle to a service station.
The motor vehicle can move along snowy surfaces of a 350
mm depth. Steer the motor vehicle in the same manner as when
moving on swampy grounds. When driving on friable snow, apply
the same rules, as when driving on sand surfaces.
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