Jeep Quadra Drive II vs RAM "4wd Auto"

[Xhumeka]

I'm very close to pulling the trigger this week on a replacement truck to my 2007 Power Wagon but have a few lingering questions I'm hoping you guys might help answer.

Prior to our Power Wagon, we had a 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee. As much as I love the Power Wagon, my wife misses the Quadra-Drive II "set it and forget it" 4wd mode. As many posts in this forum have confirmed, in locations that shift back and forth from dry pavement to slippery/icy roads, having to constantly change from 4wd to 2wd for on-demand systems (like the power wagon) is a major drawback to some (ahem-my-wife-ahem). Aside from the convenience of QD2, we live in a snow belt and in all honesty the quadra-drive ii system did impress me a lot during heavy snow.

Can anyone comment on how the "4wd auto" system in the 2020 Ram 1500s compare to Jeep's QD2 system? For reference, the QD2 system "uses the New Venture Gear NV245 transfer case mated to front and rear axles containing electronic limited slip differentials or ELSDs." ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeep_four-wheel-drive_systems#Quadra-Drive_II ) and the 1500 I'm interested in uses the BorgWarner 48-11 transfer case I believe.

I'm hoping by adding the "off-road group" and air suspension I'll be happy enough with a Power Wagon replacement, and the 4wd system will keep my wife as happy as the QD2 system did. Thanks for any advice/tips!

 

[jdmartin]

I can't compare to the Jeep's system but the couple of times I've had to use 4WD auto in sketchy weather it has performed flawlessly; I didn't even know it was there other than a little humming on dry roads.

 

[Carchibald]

I can’t comment on the 2020 but I had a 2005 Grand Cherokee with the quadra drive 2 and it was amazing, best I have ever had better than my 2010 ram with the auto 4x4. The Jeep uses all 4 tires and transferred power between them as required or locked in if you wanted to true 4 wheel drive. The truck at that time would engage the front axel but truly without an axel lock you are only really powering one front and one rear wheel. Will it be a deal breaker for your wife probably not if she is happy driving your current truck in 4x4 then she should love the auto switching in the new one.

 

[renzo2213]

I’ve got a 2019 Laramie 4x4 (non off-road) and I live in Massachusetts. Under heavy snow I just set it to 4 wheel auto and forget about. Pull up to dry pavement, turn on dry pavement and don’t feel anything. It works flawlessly and you won’t even notice it kick in. There’s just grip all the time lol you don’t feel that “jerk” of it switching into 4x4 when it needs to. Feels just like my wife’s AWD Mazda CX-5. Incredible. You don’t need off-road package unless you like the looks and extra stuff it comes with. Simple 4x4 will do


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[MilehighRam]

Assuming you put decent tires (ie. not the stock crap), the 4WD auto works great!

 

[Wakesnowb]

I'm very close to pulling the trigger this week on a replacement truck to my 2007 Power Wagon but have a few lingering questions I'm hoping you guys might help answer.

Prior to our Power Wagon, we had a 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee. As much as I love the Power Wagon, my wife misses the Quadra-Drive II "set it and forget it" 4wd mode. As many posts in this forum have confirmed, in locations that shift back and forth from dry pavement to slippery/icy roads, having to constantly change from 4wd to 2wd for on-demand systems (like the power wagon) is a major drawback to some (ahem-my-wife-ahem). Aside from the convenience of QD2, we live in a snow belt and in all honesty the quadra-drive ii system did impress me a lot during heavy snow.

Can anyone comment on how the "4wd auto" system in the 2020 Ram 1500s compare to Jeep's QD2 system? For reference, the QD2 system "uses the New Venture Gear NV245 transfer case mated to front and rear axles containing electronic limited slip differentials or ELSDs." ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeep_four-wheel-drive_systems#Quadra-Drive_II ) and the 1500 I'm interested in uses the BorgWarner 48-11 transfer case I believe.

I'm hoping by adding the "off-road group" and air suspension I'll be happy enough with a Power Wagon replacement, and the 4wd system will keep my wife as happy as the QD2 system did. Thanks for any advice/tips!

I've never owned a Quadra Drive 2 but I have done a lot of research on it. From what I think I know, the Quadra Drive 2 sounds like the superior auto 4wd/AWD mechanism. It has the ability to lock the front and rear differentials where the standard RAM auto 4WD does not lock. With the Off Road package (ORP, I have that) it add a locking rear differential which is cool but it has to be manually engaged, typically you will want to do that before you head into the crazy terrain that needs it. The advantage to the Quadra Drive 2 is that it will lock the front or back on demand, the disadvantage is that it will need a slight amount of time to sense that it needs it and then engage. Ideally it would already be engaged when you need it but then it would not be auto, it would be manual like on the RAM ORP. I have heard nothing but great things for both systems but I would say the Quadra Drive 2 is a better auto system due to both axles ability to lock and lock automatically if ever needed. Of course I probably dont want to be driving at all if I need to use the locking differential. On a side note, with the ORP you also get electronic hill decent which you would use only under 5 mph going down a super steep grade in 4wd low. Although I like the option, I highly doubt (and hope) I will never use that feature cuz that sounds like a pretty scary hill/conditions!

 

[JJRamTX]

You can leave the 4WD auto on all of the time if you want to. The only drawback is that it is spinning the front driveshaft which will reduce your fuel economy slightly.

 

[spinxt]

I'm very close to pulling the trigger this week on a replacement truck to my 2007 Power Wagon but have a few lingering questions I'm hoping you guys might help answer.

Prior to our Power Wagon, we had a 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee. As much as I love the Power Wagon, my wife misses the Quadra-Drive II "set it and forget it" 4wd mode. As many posts in this forum have confirmed, in locations that shift back and forth from dry pavement to slippery/icy roads, having to constantly change from 4wd to 2wd for on-demand systems (like the power wagon) is a major drawback to some (ahem-my-wife-ahem). Aside from the convenience of QD2, we live in a snow belt and in all honesty the quadra-drive ii system did impress me a lot during heavy snow.

Can anyone comment on how the "4wd auto" system in the 2020 Ram 1500s compare to Jeep's QD2 system? For reference, the QD2 system "uses the New Venture Gear NV245 transfer case mated to front and rear axles containing electronic limited slip differentials or ELSDs." ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeep_four-wheel-drive_systems#Quadra-Drive_II ) and the 1500 I'm interested in uses the BorgWarner 48-11 transfer case I believe.

I'm hoping by adding the "off-road group" and air suspension I'll be happy enough with a Power Wagon replacement, and the 4wd system will keep my wife as happy as the QD2 system did. Thanks for any advice/tips!

First, QD II does not have ELSDs front and rear, only in the the rear is there an ESLD. I currently have a 2014 GC with QuadraTrac II (same as Quadra Drive II without the ESLD in the rear). It’s hands down the best off- roading vehicle and deep snow vehicle I’ve ever owned. Due to the warm weather I haven’t had ample snow in PA to test the RAM out in different 4WD modes during wintry weather. I believe it will perform similar to QTII. That said, the RAMs off-road capability is not nearly as limited by its 4wd system as it is by the long wheel base and the horrible approach/departure/break over angles.

 

[Xhumeka]

First, QD II does not have ELSDs front and rear, only in the the rear is there an ESLD. I currently have a 2014 GC with QuadraTrac II (same as Quadra Drive II without the ESLD in the rear).

That's actually a "recent" (2011) change that jeep enthusiasts dislike obviously... my 2005 had front and rear ELSD:

Quadra-Drive II uses the New Venture Gear NV245 transfer case mated to front and rear axles containing electronic limited slip differentials or ELSDs. Jeep added traction control in 2005 and starting in 2011 only a rear ELSD is offered, while the front has an open differential.

Jeep four-wheel-drive systems - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[spinxt]

That's actually a "recent" (2011) change that jeep enthusiasts dislike obviously... my 2005 had front and rear ELSD:

Quadra-Drive II uses the New Venture Gear NV245 transfer case mated to front and rear axles containing electronic limited slip differentials or ELSDs. Jeep added traction control in 2005 and starting in 2011 only a rear ELSD is offered, while the front has an open differential.

Jeep four-wheel-drive systems - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I stand corrected.... wasn’t too familiar with the WK and previous platforms. That said, I owned a 2011 QDII (w ESLD) and a currently own a 2014 QTII (w/o ESLD) and I did some pretty serious off roading in both of them. Honestly I couldn’t tell the difference. They were both pretty unstoppable.
I imagine, unless you get into crazy extremes, the RAM 4wd auto won’t let you down. I will say tire selection is far more important than people think. The stock tires on non-Rebel RAMs SUCK bad. If you notice my RAM has the same tires as my Grand Cherokee (KO2s)