Newbe 4 x4 question

Check your owner's manual, but I don't think that it will talk about maximum speeds. The important thing to remember is that you can do damage to the driveline if you drive around in 4hi in high traction conditions.

Yes, you can.....but I wouldn't. Unless you are going from dry to very slippery there is no need for the auto4hi feature to be engaged. It just ends up wearing parts in the t/case prematurely. Where I would use auto4hi would if I woke up in the morning, and it's snowing , or you just had a big snowfall and the streets alternate between nice and dry on the main roads, and slippery/icy on the side roads.

4hi is used when you are going thru some really nasty slippery stuff. Auto4hi basically does the same thing as 4hi, but 4hi is locked all the time. In the big city, I can't see much reason for using 4hi when you have auto4hi. 4hi is for the 4x4 experts, auto4hi is for the yuppies in the city who don't want to think about when or where to engage 4x4.

Ian

How about when it is raining? Shmuckel Putz

4 wheel drive is not for use in the rain. Only snow, loose dirt or gravel. Basically you don't use 4 wheel drive unless 2 wheel drive won't get you there.

Brian

If your worried about how fast you can drive in 4x4 you don't need 4x4.

4WD is for those times when you NEED all four wheels pulling. Snow, Loose gravel, Sand, Mud. Basically if your driving around in 4X4 your speed should be governed by the condition of the road/trail/path. If there good enough that your worried about speed then take it out of 4WD. Keep in mind as well that 4WD in the hands of someone who isn't used to it can be dangerous. Cornering is entirely different and braking response changes as well. Those two items are the real reason you see folks stuck halfway across the median or field, they think that the 4WD makes the vehicle invincible and drive faster than conditions allow. Then when they lose control they slide / roll over farther off the road. These are the same ones who decide after this that 4X4s are too unstable and deadly and should be banned. You do NOT drive a 4X4 like a car, it is a different vehicle with a different set of rules. Since your both new to them I suggest finding an area with loose gravel and driving around in it some to see what the vehicle does.

well put steve i agree 110% with you. i have been driving 4x4's for about 3 yrs now, not off road but only use it as you stated when its needed, snow and such, and i learn something new everytime i have to use it. again well put, thanks for the great post

The best thing I've found is a large snow covered parking lot... works great for finding out what your vehicle will do in slides, fishtales, spinouts, etc. though the only downside is you need to have permission and/or own the lot to keep the cops off your back.

-Bret

This is an excellent way to find parking bumpers that are buried under the snow. It's an expensive way, but it works.

Al

I would hope that one would scout the lot before it snowed.

-Bret

4wd is great for driving in hazardous conditions, but remember it does absolutely nothing for braking. As Steve posted, the idea is not to go fast, just to keep going.

I have a 99 Blazer and wouldn't go more than 40mph in 4HI on snowy roads.

I used to have a 1968 K-10 with lock out hubs. It's to bad the consumer has gotten so lazy that everything must be "push button" now. I then moved up to a 90 Blazer, at least that had a 4WD engange lever, the 99 is just push button electronic

Ex-Off Road Warrior

does absolutely nothing for braking.

that's called "traction control". It has NOTHING to do with 4 wheel drive.

Not true. This is a Bronco with "4 wheel drive". Not Traction control.

Probably the effects of "Engine Braking" with 4 wheels in traction.

4WD's with out Anti-Lock stop better in Gravel, Snow & Mud. This is because the front wheels build up a "hill" infront of them as they dig in. Where as ABS trucks tend to need longer stopping distances in said low traction surfaces. Charles

this has nothing to do with 4WDs either. ANY vehicle without ABS will build that "hill".

sorry folks, you just aren't making a very convincing argurment that

4WDs stop better due to being 4WD.

I found I actually DID slow down better going down hills in my 4WD trucks. I would leave it in 4hi and downshift the transmission to use engine braking in slippery conditions. This slowed me down but kept the wheels moving. No amount of 4WD, FWD, AWD, etc. will help on ice unless you have proper tires, but I found the above to work well for me in snow.

I practically have to learn how to drive in snow again though, going back to a car after having 4WD's for the last 7 years...