Should I get out and check a 4WD obstacle?
If you cannot see the whole line, get out and look. From the driver’s seat, a shallow rut can hide a drop-off, a puddle can hide a washed-out base and the far side of a crest can disappear completely.
Five minutes outside beats hours underneath
Inspect only from ground that is safe to reach. Do not enter floodwater, unstable edges or the path of a vehicle to assess an obstacle. From a safe position, check the entry, wheel placement, exit and a place to stop; turn back when those cannot be established.
Use one spotter, not a committee
Agree on simple hand signals before moving. The spotter stands where the driver can see them and away from the vehicle’s path—not directly uphill, downhill or beside a tyre that may slip. If the driver loses sight of the spotter, the vehicle stops.
Turn around without embarrassment
Walking the line is not a promise to drive it. If the exit is worse than expected, the track is damaging, the weather is changing or you cannot recover safely, turn around. The obstacle will not remember. Your insurance company might.
Never enter floodwater. Stay on formed, open tracks and follow closures and local instructions.