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Spinning wheels and skidding even in AWD...

M

MarkD

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Hi,

So here's the situation... ...a '20 1500 with the 3.92 and 4WD auto. The truck doesn't have an anti-spin. (I had to buy this during the pandemic so the pickins were slim) Besides this thing spinning the right rear on dry pavement... (32k on the original Dueler HL' tires so they aren't great) This thing isn't great on snowy roads with the AWD on either. It will spin out really easily. While the traction control takes a LOOONG time to kick in. I could be in a ditch by that time. I know that I need new tires, and I will surely install an anti-spin or a Detroit true-trac in the summer. But I am seriously wondering if the AWD just isn't working correctly. This thing handles worse than my previous 2wd with an anti-spin. ...in ALL road conditions.

So I am checking on here to see if I should be getting better traction and not sliding? I know that the previous minivan AWD's used to stick like velcro in ALL conditions. Any thoughts?

Also, any thoughts on the Tru-trac as opposed to a stock anti-spin?

Thanks,
Mark
 
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all wheel drive doesn't necessarily mean all wheels are driven under power at the same rate. same is true for 4WD. unless the axle is locked, one of the tires will slip. just the way it works. try metering your throttle control to help with that traction and drive a little slower on road with poor traction.

and yes, replace your tires.
 
I do understand that the power to each wheel isn't necessarily equal. (no sarcasm in that statement) ...and when I say AWD, I mean the 4WD Auto. (I thought that the 4WD Auto setup was an AWD) But nonetheless, I would expect the traction control to fire off alot quicker than it does. ...and this thing spins a single rear tire on dry pavement pretty often and nothing from the traction control. I think that the problem is more than just poor tire traction. ...and believe me, my wife says that I drive like an old man. So I am NOT heavy on the gas either.

This coupled with the goofy shifting characteristics of the 8speed, really make this thing quirky to drive.

I will move to the Michelin LTX's that I have always run in the past once I have gotten my money out of the originals.
 
was tracking what you meant by AWD and 4WD auto. with such a light rear end, it doesn't take much to get the tires to spin (frankly in most pickups) until you get some load over that rear axle.
 
The "auto" 4wd in the RAM 1500 is a simple computer controlled wet clutch in the transfer case.
When in 2wd high all the power is sent to the rear axle.
When you select "auto" 4wd the computer engages the front axle disconnect, and you are driving around in 2wd still
with all the power going to the rear untill the computer senses slip in the rear at which point it will start to engage the wet clutch
in the transfer case that drives the front driveshaft and result in 4wd.

The front axle actuator can be thought of as the substitute for locking hubs on the outer ends of the axle.
In the same way an older 4x4 could have the hubs locked and the transfer case in 2wd and the vehicle could be driven in 2wd
and when you desired and did not hae any wheel slippage you could bring the transfer case to 4wd and be in 4wd.

And yes an empty pickup in 2wd will spin the rear tires quite easily in good traction conditions, so when traction decreases
the ability to spin easily greatly increases also.
 
If you are spinning it's your tires or the surface you are on. M+S all season tires will do light snow. They will not do ice or deep snow and will turn into rocks below freezing. 4wd, or AWD doesn't matter, if anything it makes people overconfident and gives them a false sense of security to go faster or even drive at all when they should stay home.
 
In 2wd with lsd the right rear spins easily out of my hood even when turning left. In identical conditions in 4w auto the initial slip is even worse. The orginal eagles went less tan 21k and ranged from 2\32 to 5\32. Most were at 4\32. If I really hammer it and drive forward slightly before turning (in 4w auto) it all hooks up perfectly . For a truck I think it's great. Just mounted 305\45\22 Toyo Open country at3's c rated. Look great. Previous limited 5th gen with 3.21 got better fuel and tire mileage. 3.92 now and it's wonderful, don't care to go back to 3.21.
 
I'd guess it's the super **** tires you have.

My Bighorn came with 20's that I believe had duelers(not entirely sure bit know it was factory ht's). At 26k they were getting close to shot. I replaced them after 1-2k of driving with a set of OEM take off Wildpeak AT tires on 18's.
These things are great. Only time I have spun the tires is when I turned off the traction control and just hammered on it hard. Otherwise it just squats and Flys out of the hole hard. I have no idea if I have limited slip or anything. In the snow so far I am 50/50 on if I even bother taking out of 2wd as it's so well mannered without spin.

You have worn out highway tires.
 
I was having the same issue on my previous truck (2019 BigHorn with open diff) with the OEM tires. I put on a set of General Grabbers, problem solved.
 
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I put Firestones on mine right away. They have performed well. They have a lot of sipping and the compound seems good. They handle wet rain, slush and what snow we had last year to test them.

They are listed as all terrains but I don't think they would do well in tough off road conditions. I have just used them in dry areas off road and they do great.
 
I know this doesn't help your situation, but I got to test out my truck with the OEM Backcountry Falken Wildpeaks. Other than the tires, my truck is just like yours...I have the 4WD-Auto function and a locking rear axle. When I dont have it locked, the rear end acts just like yours. We just had a pretty good snow and ice storm here and I was very very impressed with how the truck performed in the cold, slippery weather. The BLD and stability controll was really good.

All that being said, I think your issues come from the tires. I would try something new and see what you think. You probably figured this out already, but I recommend the Wildpeaks. They are 3 peak snow rated. First time with these tires and I am sold.
 
It's the Dueler tires. They suck. I could spin them with light throttle on a slant or any wet road from a stop. Got a set of continental terrain contact h/t XL tires. Haven't ever spun them.
 
deeve said:
I know this doesn't help your situation, but I got to test out my truck with the OEM Backcountry Falken Wildpeaks. Other than the tires, my truck is just like yours...I have the 4WD-Auto function and a locking rear axle. When I dont have it locked, the rear end acts just like yours. We just had a pretty good snow and ice storm here and I was very very impressed with how the truck performed in the cold, slippery weather. The BLD and stability controll was really good.

All that being said, I think your issues come from the tires. I would try something new and see what you think. You probably figured this out already, but I recommend the Wildpeaks. They are 3 peak snow rated. First time with these tires and I am sold.
Click to expand...
Same here. I’m really impressed by the Falken’s. Roads here have been snow covered for over a week now and been in 4-Auto the entire time. Switching to 4WD after very slight rear tire slippage has been seamless and traction has been incredible compared to stock tires I had on my last few RAM’s. Tires are everything.
 
Stock Duelers with 32k..... how? Didn't think that was possible. I replaced mine at 10k, they were awful and wearing quickly.

^What they said, tires are everything, it's literally where the rubber meets the road
 
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