OK, today was my first real winter driving test for the new '05 KR. The weather and unpaved road wasn't too bad -- I've seen a lot worse here in Colorado. But it rained before it snowed (which it was still doing during my drive) and so there was a good layer of sludge going. I hate to put my truck in 4WD unless I absolutely have to. There were times, though, when I didn't need 4WD to climb but just couldn't steer without it. I mean there were a few times before I finally learned my lesson that I truly feared the truck was going to go right off the side of the mountain.

I'm no "techninal" 4WD guy, but I've lived in Colorado a lot of years and I've seen and driven in my share of hairy weather. I was surprised by this behavior.

Thoughts? Experiences?

 

Yeah I'm a little nervous about my first winter in MN with my new F150. I really wish they had AWD. I tried 4WD today while in the dirt and grass with some light mudd while going to an apple orchard today. I was suprised and how much difficulty it had turning while in 4WD. The ground wasn't as hard as dry pavement so I don't know, b/c it was pretty soft out.

My question is, can you use 4WD going down the road in the winter and turning with it when there is an inch or two of snow and slush on the road? If not this will be a ****ty thing to drive in the winter.

 

Oh yeah, sure you can. I just try to keep 4WD to a minimum; I don't even like to use it in mud and slush if 2WD will do the trick. Problem I had was the truck going only where the truck wanted to go without 4WD in moderately heavy slush.

 

the only way you are going to put stress on your 4x4 is if you turn it sharp on that pavement, but then again, our F150s have safty mechanisms that will unlock the outside wheel so you can turn and you dont break your axel i would say you would be fine

 

So I take it this means I'm OK to drive on the highway and do turns in 4WD during the winter when there is a layer of moderate to thick slush or snow on the pavement?

 

I'm no 4WD mechanic but I've lived and driven in snowy, muddy areas pretty much my whole life (except for those six years in the military). I say this is absolutely what it was made for. What you need is enough slip between the surface of your tires and whatever you're driving on. This relieves the pressures that can exist in your drive train when in 4WD. My wife's 4WD now has ~130k miles on it. I think she's too quick to throw it in 4WD but it's still going strong. Just had to break her of throwing it in 4WD at the first sight of snow flakes, "just in case."

 

I've had my truck thru one winter already.
The steering problem is pretty typical for a 4wd. Try driving curvy gravel roads at 50mph in 2wd and you'll have the same problem. Drop it in 4wd and it's not an issue.
The other limitation is tires. If you have the all-weather, get something more aggressive like an all-terrain or mud tire. They work better in the snow.
Never been stuck yet and I'm been in some pretty hairy situations.

 

I agree. The stock tires are almost always a compromise. I do have a set of all-terrains I plan to buy. Just wanted to get 10k or so miles out of the factory junk.

I think the issue is also weight. I'm not used to driving something that weighs over 5k lbs. Once traction is broken, you're basically surfing the mud. I expect the same would be the case in deep snow on pavement.

 

This will be my first New England Winter and you guys are starting to make me miss my Range Rover Classic....

 

Don't get me wrong -- I'm not talking this thing down. I just wanted to poll folks for their views. It seems I'm going to have to slow down a little on slippery terrain or just be willing to kick in the 4WD a little more quickly than I've gotten used to over the years. I always prided myself on an ability to drive in rough conditions in 2WD. 4WD was only for the hairiest of situations. But in order to keep my steering engaged, I'm going to have to get over that I think. Or get used to sliding towards the edge of a 10,000 ft mountain pass sideways. Hmmm. No, I don't see myself getting comfortable with that little experience.

 

I was just wondering because my last vehicle was an Infiniti QX4. (luxury SUV) It had Automatic 4WD, 2WD, and 4WD Low. So the automatic 4WD was wonderful, never felt like I was in 4WD in terms of feeling it in the steering wheel or body of the vehicle, it just never slipped or slidded. However, when I had the truck in 4WD it felt like I was pushing against something while turning slightly. Just wanted to make sure that was normal. Sounds like it is and doesn't hurt it.

 

Yeah, I can see you feeling some differences between your past SUV and the truck. Just keep in mind the surface that you're on. Just be sure there's enough slip to keep the tension out of the drive line and you'll be fine.

 

Sorry to barage you with questions. But when you mean tension out of the drive line, you mean that pushing feeling I felt the other day? It was relatively soft ground that consisted of gras and light (very light) mud. So that won't provide enough slippage?

 

My guess? You're pushing the limit and in this case didn't necessarily need 4WD, but certainly no harm done. I think (again, no real mechanic of any sorts here - just a fairly regular (non-technical) driver of rough terrain) that where you really need to be careful is hard surfaces: asphalt, concrete, etc.

My philosophy is 4WD only when 2WD is sliding me (sideways or backwards) somewhere I don't want to go. With the weight of a the big SCREWs - and probably the crap stock tires - that might be more often than I've been accustomed to.

 

the pushing sensation you are feeling when you turn the wheel a little bit is your 4x4 front axel still being engaged, its not at the point where the cone and the spring release itself yet, once it gets past that point, it becomes "easier" to steer, but once you put the wheels straight again, the cone will force the spring to compress again, locking the front wheels together. (the cone and spring are the ls upfront)

As far as your qx4, when you are in 4x4 auto, you are actually just driving in 2wheel drive for the time being, it uses what is called a viscus coupler, in the center of your tranny, when the computer senses a wheel loosing traction, it will lock the front axel together, causing you to be in 4x4 for when you need it, when the vehical regains traction, it will put itself back in 2wheel drive till it needs the extra traction again
as far as the traction in the snow, why dont you guys just put some weight in the bed, bout a 1000 lbs would make your truck have much better traction and it would be harder to spin the tires.