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Use of part time 4WD advice

I've always been a proponent of not using 4wd until you need it. If you get stuck with 4wd, you are STUCK. Same with driving in "need 4wd conditions". Loss of traction while driving at speed is very bad and usually that means there's another problem you need to address. Like worn tires or extreme weather. Use it to get to safety, not for convenience. 4wd might get you moving better, but it won't help you stop and won't help at all once you start sliding.
 
For anyone new to the 4wd world, do not follow the example given of driving in 4wd all the time. If you have 4auto this is fine because it is not engaged until needed.

Simple fact is that besides turns, even while driving straight the front and rear diffs are turning the wheels at slightly different rates. If you drive around on pavement in regular 4wd Hi eventually the stress will get to the transfer case. It won't work right and the mechanic will open the case and dump out the mangled parts telling you it needs to be replaced. If you are lucky, you just snap a ujoint first.
 
Aseras said:
I've always been a proponent of not using 4wd until you need it. If you get stuck with 4wd, you are STUCK. Same with driving in "need 4wd conditions". Loss of traction while driving at speed is very bad and usually that means there's another problem you need to address. Like worn tires or extreme weather. Use it to get to safety, not for convenience. 4wd might get you moving better, but it won't help you stop and won't help at all once you start sliding.
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Gotcha man, tnx for your comment. Because almost every day is snowy here during winter, when I drive in 2 wheel since there is so much power even the lightest touch of the gas causes me to ALMOST spin out and lose traction. A lot of ppl commenting here drive in SUMMER climates all year around and don't see 2-3 feet of snow CONSTANTLY on the ground. That's what we are dealing with out here in Canada. So yeah, that's my reasoning. Not saying its right, just saying......that's what I do and why.
 
2020 RAM Rebel said:
Gotcha man, tnx for your comment. Because almost every day is snowy here during winter, when I drive in 2 wheel since there is so much power even the lightest touch of the gas causes me to ALMOST spin out and lose traction. A lot of ppl commenting here drive in SUMMER climates all year around and don't see 2-3 feet of snow CONSTANTLY on the ground. That's what we are dealing with out here in Canada. So yeah, that's my reasoning. Not saying its right, just saying......that's what I do and why.
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You left the 2-3 feet of snow out of your original post. You said on all surfaces, implying dry pavement, which can and will cause binding/stress on the driveline. If there's that much snow I leave it in 4hi also, or leave it in the garage
 
2020 RAM Rebel said:
Gotcha man, tnx for your comment. Because almost every day is snowy here during winter, when I drive in 2 wheel since there is so much power even the lightest touch of the gas causes me to ALMOST spin out and lose traction. A lot of ppl commenting here drive in SUMMER climates all year around and don't see 2-3 feet of snow CONSTANTLY on the ground. That's what we are dealing with out here in Canada. So yeah, that's my reasoning. Not saying its right, just saying......that's what I do and why.
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Post a picture of your tires. Include the sidewall.
 
Scram1500 said:
You left the 2-3 feet of snow out of your original post. You said on all surfaces, implying dry pavement, which can and will cause binding/stress on the driveline. If there's that much snow I leave it in 4hi also, or leave it in the garage
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Yes, definitely agree with Scram. If you are driving on snow, 4wd is fine because it allows a little slippage. Most of the world's population is not driving like we are staring in "Ice Road Truckers". We drive on pavement that occasionally sees snow for up to a couple of days until it is plowed clear. Big clarification in that last post.
 
4wd in the snow all of the time? That's boring, some wheel slip and counter steer is way more fun. It's nice to have the 4wd when the truck can't actually move in 2wd though.

Might not get as much snow as the arctic circle but here was our first dumping last December, certainly had to use 4wd in some scenarios driving in this but also plenty of 2wd fun too.

IMG_4690.jpg
IMG_4688.jpg

I also drove our family back from Texas last February during the ice storms down there, all in 2wd except getting out of one parking lot that was a sheet of ice going uphill. Good tires and knowing how to counter steer, drove 800 miles the one day from College Station to Nashville and I'm glad I didn't have to do any of it in 4wd except for that one place. Big endorsement for falken wildpeak at3s, they barely lost traction that day in all of the pure ice and then pure ice with snow raging down, all on roads with no prep at all. On that day I had my family with me and safety was the priority so I wasn't messing around, but my years of messing around gave me the experience to keep us under control.

Our 16 year old has been driving for the last few months on her permit, but you better bet the first good snow we get we are hitting a big open parking lot and teaching her how to drive in both 2wd and 4wd, and that will include doing donuts/drifts etc to understand how the vehicle reacts when it loses traction. Then we will do the same with a fwd vehicle.
 
I mean I had that in Oregon with my 2000 Dakota. 2wd. Needed studded snows and 800lbs of sand in the bed, but I could go anywhere even up the passes over 8000ft where the snow was deeper than a semi and you had chain checks. So so many people driving around with flat summer tires trying to go over a mountain in a blizzard and blaming people when they crash. Even when the weather reports are given by altitude and there's 8 months of winter and 1 month of spring and fall and 2 months of summer where level ground is >5000ft and snow stayed in shade year round.
 
JoeCo said:
4wd in the snow all of the time? That's boring, some wheel slip and counter steer is way more fun. It's nice to have the 4wd when the truck can't actually move in 2wd though.

Might not get as much snow as the arctic circle but here was our first dumping last December, certainly had to use 4wd in some scenarios driving in this but also plenty of 2wd fun too.

View attachment 110496
View attachment 110497

I also drove our family back from Texas last February during the ice storms down there, all in 2wd except getting out of one parking lot that was a sheet of ice going uphill. Good tires and knowing how to counter steer, drove 800 miles the one day from College Station to Nashville and I'm glad I didn't have to do any of it in 4wd except for that one place. Big endorsement for falken wildpeak at3s, they barely lost traction that day in all of the pure ice and then pure ice with snow raging down, all on roads with no prep at all. On that day I had my family with me and safety was the priority so I wasn't messing around, but my years of messing around gave me the experience to keep us under control.

Our 16 year old has been driving for the last few months on her permit, but you better bet the first good snow we get we are hitting a big open parking lot and teaching her how to drive in both 2wd and 4wd, and that will include doing donuts/drifts etc to understand how the vehicle reacts when it loses traction. Then we will do the same with a fwd vehicle.
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yeah, fark Syracuse and Buffalo winters. GF is a Syracuse native and neighbors are NY snowbirds Nov-March/April. I know why.
 
NorthEastRebel said:
Can anybody fill me in on the appropriate use of 4WD HI or point me to manufacturer reference to recommendations or restrictions?
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Snow and ice are the easy ones. Off road in muddy conditions is also a good case for it. I've even used it to get going from stop lights in the rain when my tires want to slip, then I just put it back in 2WD after I'm going.

Don't worry yourself about damaging the system if things aren't just perfect. Everyone who uses 4WD will eventually leave it engaged and forget until they go to turn. When you get that halting feeling and grinding noise it'll remind you that you forgot to put it back in 2WD. I've done it once or twice with every truck I've owned and it's never caused a problem. It's not something you want to do a lot, but an occasional foul up isn't going to destroy your truck. Heck, I left the farm once, shut the gate and drove home 90 miles in 4WD on dry pavement. I realized my mistake when I went to turn into my driveway and got the grinding noise. No biggie, no damage, just put it in 2WD and went on with things.
 
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