The Questionable Advantages of a 4WD Truck

[HereWeGoAgain]

I haven't owned a truck without 4 wheel drive since 98.
I have never had to fix a 4 wheel drive system.... ever.
Of course I drive Toyotas so thats no surprise.
It all depends on whether you need it our not....I need it.
Even the Wife drives a 4x4 for those times she wants to meet me up at camp.
Try to drive sixty miles down Padre National Seashore without it....you wouldnt make it two miles.
Try driving the logging roads to the fish camp after the logging trucks have been through...forget it.
It's all about what your doing with your vehicle.

Oh...and ya cant forget the fun side of having a 4x4.
View attachment 333675

I just knew somebody was gonna so here we go.

View attachment 333764

That last pic got me Mr January in the All Pro Calendar in 2007.
I've always been fearless when it comes to offroading.
I gave up hard core wheeling around 2014 because I was sick of the cost.
Bought one of these because it was easy to drag home on the trailer and it was about the same price to fix.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

It just depends on the driver. My little old front wheel drive caviler station wagon used to blow away 4wd Jeep's in the snow.

I wont agree with that one.
No such thing as a two wheel drive that can beat a 4x4 unless they're running on bald tires....all four of em.

 

[Wyatt earp]

It just depends on the driver. My little old front wheel drive caviler station wagon used to blow away 4wd Jeep's in the snow.

I wont agree with that one.
No such thing as a two wheel drive that can beat a 4x4 unless they're running on bald tires....all four of em.

I still remember the Kentucky snow storm of around 92' 4wheel drives where all over the place in ditches and such.

My little car plowed right through it. That was the best car I had in the snow.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

It just depends on the driver. My little old front wheel drive caviler station wagon used to blow away 4wd Jeep's in the snow.

I wont agree with that one.
No such thing as a two wheel drive that can beat a 4x4 unless they're running on bald tires....all four of em.

I still remember the Kentucky snow storm of around 92' 4wheel drives where all over the place in ditches and such.

My little car plowed right through it. That was the best car I had in the snow.

Then they were acting stupid.
There's no such thing as a two wheel drive that can beat a 4x4 when the conditions go to shit.

 

[petro]

I still remember the Kentucky snow storm of around 92' 4wheel drives where all over the ditches

That's drivers overconfident with the traction. Starting and stopping is much better, but all vehicles are subject to physics and no vehicle can do 65 safely in snow conditions. You just described a typical rush hour in Mpls every day in winter. Idiots doing 70 plus in a damn blizzard.
My Jeep has Select Trac. Two wheel drive, AWD, 4 Hi and 4 Low. There is a complete difference in AWD vs 4Hi, as all wheel drive will actually adjust the traction of each wheel, sometimes actually appying braking to an individual wheel, while 4 Hi locks fronts together and rears together with limited slip proving more stable in deep snow.
It is an impressive system and makes me feel confident in the worst winter weather.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

I still remember the Kentucky snow storm of around 92' 4wheel drives where all over the ditches

That's drivers overconfident with the traction. Starting and stopping is much better, but all vehicles are subject to physics and no vehicle can do 65 safely in snow conditions. You just described a typical rush hour in Mpls every day in winter. Idiots doing 70 plus in a damn blizzard.
My Jeep has Select Trac. Two wheel drive, AWD, 4 Hi and 4 Low. There is a complete difference in AWD vs 4Hi, as all wheel drive will actually adjust the traction of each wheel, sometimes actually appying braking to an individual wheel, while 4 Hi locks fronts together and rears together with limited slip proving more stable in deep snow.
It is an impressive system and makes me feel confident in the worst winter weather.

The Toyota FJ was badass when it came to keeping control even on the road.
Hit a deep puddle going 70 and the truck started slipping sideways and then the ATRAC kicked in.
All I felt was the vibration in the brake pedal and I was going straight.
Without that I would have been eating concrete barrier.

 

[WinterBorn]

I've seen people talking about 4WD pickups being so bad in the snow. Having all 4 wheels working helps, but having no weight in the backend cancels that out pretty quickly.

Back in '78 a bunch of us went to a friend's cabin on Yellow Creek. There was a fairly steep hill at the last couple of hundred yards before the cabin. Paved road, just steep. Sometime while we were there it started sleeting and the road got icy. Not bad, mind you. Just slick. There were 2 4WD pickups and an old Jeep Cherokee there. I understand the Cherokee got out not long after I left. At the time I was driving a beatup old '62 VW Beetle. It never missed a lick and chugged to the top of the hill.

 

[petro]

I've seen people talking about 4WD pickups being so bad in the snow. Having all 4 wheels working helps, but having no weight in the backend cancels that out pretty quickly.

Back in '78 a bunch of us went to a friend's cabin on Yellow Creek. There was a fairly steep hill at the last couple of hundred yards before the cabin. Paved road, just steep. Sometime while we were there it started sleeting and the road got icy. Not bad, mind you. Just slick. There were 2 4WD pickups and an old Jeep Cherokee there. I understand the Cherokee got out not long after I left. At the time I was driving a beatup old '62 VW Beetle. It never missed a lick and chugged to the top of the hill.

My buddy had a couple of dune buggies built from old VW's, and with the rear engine those things burnt through muddy trails, what a blast until we blew them up.

 

[WinterBorn]

I've seen people talking about 4WD pickups being so bad in the snow. Having all 4 wheels working helps, but having no weight in the backend cancels that out pretty quickly.

Back in '78 a bunch of us went to a friend's cabin on Yellow Creek. There was a fairly steep hill at the last couple of hundred yards before the cabin. Paved road, just steep. Sometime while we were there it started sleeting and the road got icy. Not bad, mind you. Just slick. There were 2 4WD pickups and an old Jeep Cherokee there. I understand the Cherokee got out not long after I left. At the time I was driving a beatup old '62 VW Beetle. It never missed a lick and chugged to the top of the hill.

My buddy had a couple of dune buggies built from old VW's, and with the rear engine those things burnt through muddy trails, what a blast until we blew them up.

Yeah, we built sandrails out of a few. At the time they were almost disposable.

 

[westwall]

I've seen people talking about 4WD pickups being so bad in the snow. Having all 4 wheels working helps, but having no weight in the backend cancels that out pretty quickly.

Back in '78 a bunch of us went to a friend's cabin on Yellow Creek. There was a fairly steep hill at the last couple of hundred yards before the cabin. Paved road, just steep. Sometime while we were there it started sleeting and the road got icy. Not bad, mind you. Just slick. There were 2 4WD pickups and an old Jeep Cherokee there. I understand the Cherokee got out not long after I left. At the time I was driving a beatup old '62 VW Beetle. It never missed a lick and chugged to the top of the hill.

My buddy had a couple of dune buggies built from old VW's, and with the rear engine those things burnt through muddy trails, what a blast until we blew them up.

Yeah, we built sandrails out of a few. At the time they were almost disposable.

A friend of mine used to do the Baja 1000 in a mildly updated 69 beetle. It wasn't fast, but nothing stopped it.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

I've seen people talking about 4WD pickups being so bad in the snow. Having all 4 wheels working helps, but having no weight in the backend cancels that out pretty quickly.

Back in '78 a bunch of us went to a friend's cabin on Yellow Creek. There was a fairly steep hill at the last couple of hundred yards before the cabin. Paved road, just steep. Sometime while we were there it started sleeting and the road got icy. Not bad, mind you. Just slick. There were 2 4WD pickups and an old Jeep Cherokee there. I understand the Cherokee got out not long after I left. At the time I was driving a beatup old '62 VW Beetle. It never missed a lick and chugged to the top of the hill.

My buddy had a couple of dune buggies built from old VW's, and with the rear engine those things burnt through muddy trails, what a blast until we blew them up.

Yeah, we built sandrails out of a few. At the time they were almost disposable.

A friend of mine used to do the Baja 1000 in a mildly updated 69 beetle. It wasn't fast, but nothing stopped it.

Thats not uncommon.
But they are purpose built for it.

 

[Dick Foster]

I've seen people talking about 4WD pickups being so bad in the snow. Having all 4 wheels working helps, but having no weight in the backend cancels that out pretty quickly.

Back in '78 a bunch of us went to a friend's cabin on Yellow Creek. There was a fairly steep hill at the last couple of hundred yards before the cabin. Paved road, just steep. Sometime while we were there it started sleeting and the road got icy. Not bad, mind you. Just slick. There were 2 4WD pickups and an old Jeep Cherokee there. I understand the Cherokee got out not long after I left. At the time I was driving a beatup old '62 VW Beetle. It never missed a lick and chugged to the top of the hill.

Actually most 4WD vehicles are actually 2WD with open differentials and for the same reason 2WD only have 1 t a time putting traction to the ground. With limited slip you'll have two wheels oer axle providing traction unless one gets off the ground then you're stuck with one spinning in the air and you're going nowhere. Then there are differential lockers that defeat the differential and force both wheels to provide traction. Even with one wheel in the air the other has traction so you're still moving. The only problem is with the axle locked up cornering is crap. Then you have selectable lockers that lock up on demand. With AWD you have an extra differential, one for each axle and one between axles so you have 2 wheels with traction and two free wheeling. With lockers in each axle you have 4 turnin and 4 burnin. My rock crawler has selectable lockers front and rear along with 20 forward gears to choose from and 4 reverse.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

I've seen people talking about 4WD pickups being so bad in the snow. Having all 4 wheels working helps, but having no weight in the backend cancels that out pretty quickly.

Back in '78 a bunch of us went to a friend's cabin on Yellow Creek. There was a fairly steep hill at the last couple of hundred yards before the cabin. Paved road, just steep. Sometime while we were there it started sleeting and the road got icy. Not bad, mind you. Just slick. There were 2 4WD pickups and an old Jeep Cherokee there. I understand the Cherokee got out not long after I left. At the time I was driving a beatup old '62 VW Beetle. It never missed a lick and chugged to the top of the hill.

Actually most 4WD vehicles are actually 2WD with open differentials and for the same reason 2WD only have 1 t a time putting traction to the ground. With limited slip you'll have two wheels oer axle providing traction unless one gets off the ground then you're stuck with one spinning in the air and you're going nowhere. Then there are differential lockers that defeat the differential and force both wheels to provide traction. Even with one wheel in the air the other has traction so you're still moving. The only problem is with the axle locked up cornering is crap. Then you have selectable lockers that lock up on demand. With AWD you have an extra differential, one for each axle and one between axles so you have 2 wheels with traction and two free wheeling. With lockers in each axle you have 4 turnin and 4 burnin. My rock crawler has selectable lockers front and rear along with 20 forward gears to choose from and 4 reverse.

Lockers make a world of difference.
We used to wheel at a place outside of Lufkin and there were several obstacles I just could pull off.
Put an ARB air locker in and those obstacles were no longer a problem.
Another reason to have a locker you can turn off is off camber slick trails. With a full time locker your ass end will be pointed down hill in short order.

 

[Dick Foster]

I've seen people talking about 4WD pickups being so bad in the snow. Having all 4 wheels working helps, but having no weight in the backend cancels that out pretty quickly.

Back in '78 a bunch of us went to a friend's cabin on Yellow Creek. There was a fairly steep hill at the last couple of hundred yards before the cabin. Paved road, just steep. Sometime while we were there it started sleeting and the road got icy. Not bad, mind you. Just slick. There were 2 4WD pickups and an old Jeep Cherokee there. I understand the Cherokee got out not long after I left. At the time I was driving a beatup old '62 VW Beetle. It never missed a lick and chugged to the top of the hill.

Actually most 4WD vehicles are actually 2WD with open differentials and for the same reason 2WD only have 1 t a time putting traction to the ground. With limited slip you'll have two wheels oer axle providing traction unless one gets off the ground then you're stuck with one spinning in the air and you're going nowhere. Then there are differential lockers that defeat the differential and force both wheels to provide traction. Even with one wheel in the air the other has traction so you're still moving. The only problem is with the axle locked up cornering is crap. Then you have selectable lockers that lock up on demand. With AWD you have an extra differential, one for each axle and one between axles so you have 2 wheels with traction and two free wheeling. With lockers in each axle you have 4 turnin and 4 burnin. My rock crawler has selectable lockers front and rear along with 20 forward gears to choose from and 4 reverse.

Lockers make a world of difference.
We used to wheel at a place outside of Lufkin and there were several obstacles I just could pull off.
Put an ARB air locker in and those obstacles were no longer a problem.
Another reason to have a locker you can turn off is off camber slick trails. With a full time locker your ass end will be pointed down hill in short order.

I put Ox lockers in mine. Then only problem with those is the shitty telflex cable used to lock and unlock so I modified mine with dormund actuators so now I have electric lockers that lock and unlock at the touch of a button. I had a Toyota e locker but that axle was busting side gears really regular. I finally got tired enough to throw it away and put a Currie made Dana 60 rock jock in the rear. That ain't gonna break under my little truck. Now I have high opinion axles front and rear so the drive shafts are both up outta the rocks too.

 

[Shawnee_b]

People also think you need to have all wheel drive for snowy areas. For city driving you don’t, you just need dedicated snow tires, they make all the difference in the world.

Ever live in northern Maine? (2 hrs from Quebec) No 4x4 you aren't going anywhere. Garunteed.

Another thing OP didn't cover was CLEARANCE. These little 2wd shits with "snow tires" get lifted up in 6" unplowed snow and tires don't touch. I have seen 6" plus an hour, plow trucks can't keep up.

I have driven thru 18" snow, up hill. (F350 1 ton 4x4) Try that with your city 2wd and "dedicated snows".

We aren't even talking off road, hunt, fish, camp other than a park in NJ like you slickers, forget it. Ever try to cross or run a stream in 2wd? Good luck, you're now a boat, floating.

 

[Shawnee_b]

Yea if you don’t need it, don’t bother with it.
Tires and traction control make such a huge difference, even if you are going on dirt trails you don’t need 4x4.

You're in AZ, fuking desert, dry, flat. Try KY, Maine, Wa state and many others.

 

[Shawnee_b]

It just depends on the driver. My little old front wheel drive caviler station wagon used to blow away 4wd Jeep's in the snow.

How did that "experienced driver" do in 12-18 inches unplowed snow like Northern Maine gets frequently. Most of you never seen REAL snow. I got 13-20 feet snow a year, it didn't melt till late May June.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

I've seen people talking about 4WD pickups being so bad in the snow. Having all 4 wheels working helps, but having no weight in the backend cancels that out pretty quickly.

Back in '78 a bunch of us went to a friend's cabin on Yellow Creek. There was a fairly steep hill at the last couple of hundred yards before the cabin. Paved road, just steep. Sometime while we were there it started sleeting and the road got icy. Not bad, mind you. Just slick. There were 2 4WD pickups and an old Jeep Cherokee there. I understand the Cherokee got out not long after I left. At the time I was driving a beatup old '62 VW Beetle. It never missed a lick and chugged to the top of the hill.

Actually most 4WD vehicles are actually 2WD with open differentials and for the same reason 2WD only have 1 t a time putting traction to the ground. With limited slip you'll have two wheels oer axle providing traction unless one gets off the ground then you're stuck with one spinning in the air and you're going nowhere. Then there are differential lockers that defeat the differential and force both wheels to provide traction. Even with one wheel in the air the other has traction so you're still moving. The only problem is with the axle locked up cornering is crap. Then you have selectable lockers that lock up on demand. With AWD you have an extra differential, one for each axle and one between axles so you have 2 wheels with traction and two free wheeling. With lockers in each axle you have 4 turnin and 4 burnin. My rock crawler has selectable lockers front and rear along with 20 forward gears to choose from and 4 reverse.

Lockers make a world of difference.
We used to wheel at a place outside of Lufkin and there were several obstacles I just could pull off.
Put an ARB air locker in and those obstacles were no longer a problem.
Another reason to have a locker you can turn off is off camber slick trails. With a full time locker your ass end will be pointed down hill in short order.

I put Ox lockers in mine. Then only problem with those is the shitty telflex cable used to lock and unlock so I modified mine with diamond actuators so now I have electric lockers that lock and unlock at the touch of a button. I had a toyota e Locke but that axle was busting side gears really regular. I finally got tired enough to throw it away and put a Currie made Dana 60 rock jock in the rear. That aint gonna break under my little truck. Now I have high opinion axles front and rear so the drive shafts are both up outta the rocks too.

Yeah..
I miss my old 98 Tacoma. Had the factory blower and a shit load of mods.
Was just to the point of doing the solid axle swap when we bought our first weekend place so I put it on the back burner and then ended up selling it.
The dude at the dealership asked if the previous owner was handicapped.
I looked at him kinda funny and realized he was referring to the hand throttle on the shifter.
Had to explain to him that on steep hills and questionable positions you wanted to be able to keep one foot on the brake and the other on the clutch.

 

[Shawnee_b]

I put Ox lockers in mine. Then only problem with those is the shitty telflex cable used to lock and unlock so I modified mine with diamond actuators so now I have electric lockers that lock and unlock at the touch of a button. I had a toyota e Locke but that axle was busting side gears really regular. I finally got tired enough to throw it away and put a Currie made Dana 60 rock jock in the rear. That aint gonna break under my little truck. Now I have high opinion axles front and rear so the drive shafts are both up outta the rocks too.

My 2003 1 ton F350 Ford still has hubs you gotta get out an lock. Lock them, you're in 4x4 immediately. Not this vaccumn shit, cables, back up to get out, drive 200 feet to get in 4x4. If you think you need 4x4 it's usually too late, unless you ran it fulltime like I had to for 6 months.

 

[Shawnee_b]

I haven't owned a truck without 4 wheel drive since 98.
I have never had to fix a 4 wheel drive system.... ever.
Of course I drive Toyotas so thats no surprise.
It all depends on whether you need it our not....I need it.
Even the Wife drives a 4x4 for those times she wants to meet me up at camp.
Try to drive sixty miles down Padre National Seashore without it....you wouldnt make it two miles.
Try driving the logging roads to the fish camp after the logging trucks have been through...forget it.
It's all about what your doing with your vehicle.

Oh...and ya cant forget the fun side of having a 4x4.
View attachment 333675

I just knew somebody was gonna so here we go.

View attachment 333764

That last pic got me Mr January in the All Pro Calendar in 2007.
I've always been fearless when it comes to offroading.
I gave up hard core wheeling around 2014 because I was sick of the cost.
Bought one of these because it was easy to drag home on the trailer and it was about the same price to fix.
View attachment 333769

That's cool. Love the orange.