Talkin' to a guy today who was drooling over the SCrew. The only bad thing he said was it didn't have 4WD. That got me to thinkin' (a dangerous endeavour), how many times do you actually use the 4WD? I have a Toyo 4WD pickup, and about the only time I ever use the 4WD may during the occasional Virginia snowstorm. The wife's Neon does a fine job in snow woth the FWD. I learned the hard way years ago how bad sand screws up little things like universal joints and spindle bearings, and if I want to go off-road in the mud, I borrow my son's ATV.

With the glut of soccer mom cell-phone talkin' make-up doin' bottled water drinkin' SUV drivin' nuts out there, the thought of these idiots with 4WD barrelling down the highway in a blizzard (That's OK, it has 4WD!!!) is a tad scary. (Reminds me of the yuppie first time Harley owner walkin' into the dealership and plopping down 20K for a softail).

Just my opinion, and I'm stickin' to it!!

 

I'm confused

Were you trying to exsplain that you wish it had 4 wheel drive or just complaining about peole driving to fast in SUV well it's snowing? Your story kinda jumped around a bit.

 

I think what PhillyRube is saying is that people *think* they have to have 4WD, yet they rarely if ever use it. PR is asking how often we actually use 4WD if we have it. (Correct me if I'm all wet here, PR!)

My dealer told me that the HD truck isn't popular in the snowbelt because people think they need the 4WD option, btw. With the low profile tires and the 20" rims on the HD, don't think one should really be out four-wheeling with it anyhow.

I had 4WD in my Explorer and even with the horrendous snow and ice we had last winter here in NW Iowa, used it only enough times that I could count them on my fingers. Probably drove about 300 miles with the four wheel drive actually in use. In past years, used it even less than that. With the boat, we do use the 4WD Low to haul it out from its dock once a year.

The new Mercury Mountaineer that we just bought has AWD (All Wheel Drive) so it just automatically kicks into four wheels pulling when needed -- at least that's how I understand it works.

 

HarleyGuy hit it. Was curious if anyone felt the extra expense of a 4WD vehicle was worth it. Mileage, wear and tear, maintenance, etc. for the number of times you actually use the feature.
Part of the thread was aimed at people who, when it's 0/0 visibility, roads slick, and you're tryin' to get home, come blastin' past you..then you get up the road and they're stuck in a ditch.
I like my little Toyota, but rarely use the 4WD...

 

I agree with HarleyGuy. Iowa winters suck but I drove a T-bird before the HD and never had any problems. I do plan on purchasing different rims and a set of all-season tires for my truck before the snow flies. I would give a friend of mine crap about engaging the 4WD in his 00 exteneded cab last winter. Only because he lives across the street from me and travels the same road to work as I do. I guess I have gotten soft living here in the city because I grew up in the back woods of NE Iowa where 4WD was necessary (and a lot of fun) for everyday travel in the winter and even in the spring when the roads would turn into mud.

 

interesting topic since my truck sits in a snowbelt and the question of why I would buy a truck without 4wd for the same price has come up often...I ran the HD last winter on some alum F150 takeoffs with General tires and while keeping in mind taking off in ice or snow was going to be a curvy affair, used the HD as a truck for hauling I never felt unsafe or squiggly on plowed and ice roads than I would have expected. In other words--if I had of had the 4wd option I would have engaged it but since I didn't just ajdusted my driving style for winter and was able to use the truck year round.

 

If I still worked on the farm in Nebraska or if I still lived in Sault Ste. Marie, MI (over 100 inches of snow a year) I'd probably have it. Otherwise no, why pay the extra up front and for repairs on something you just don't use/need. I'll take a dirt bike or ATV if I want to play in the mud.

 

I use my 4wd at least 5 days a week, most of the time seven, but I tend to run around the mountains like crazy. Usually I don't even use it in the snow, but sometimes I have to stick it in 4hi so I don't fishtail.

 

I opted for a 4wd instead of the Harley myself. Use it occasionally...snow, what is that? Got mud? 95% of my driving is on road, but when I am hunting it is nice to have. The first time I used the truck to hunt was about 4 miles from the nearest paved road in some deep southern swamp. Rounding up dogs at about midnight(dogs not ready to stop hunting yet), I treid to squeeze around a fallen tree and ended up down in a creek I didn't see in the dark. The extra money for the 4wd paid for itself that night. Now it's just a luxury I get to use occasionally.

 

I understand know.

OKay, Ya 4 wheel drive is nice but not neccesary. I drove everything up here in Canada during winters. Mustang, Vette and my Camaro. Those are diffanetly not designed for Canadian winters. I had no problem. We have a Jeep Cherokke for when the snow really comes down, but seem to always get around in the other viehcles. I agree that it's nice to have but not needed. You adapt to the conditions and change your driving style.

 

No, I don't need 4 wheel drive. But then again I don't need and can't justify my moonroof, heated seats, 6-disc changer, fancy leather, pretty wheels, etc.

The point is a lot of us get it because we can, and it is nice to have once in a while in the snow. I also like the higher ride.

 

I really could have used 4WD today. My girlfriend and I decided to check out the Georgia Mountain Fair in Hiawassee, GA. But the real reason was we both like to spend a day crusing around the mountains and Hiawassee seemed as good a place as any. So we took off from midtown Atlanta, drove up to Buford, checked around the area to see if we could find a subdivision my friend is going to move to (we couldn't), and drove up 985, cut through Clarkesville (where I used to work) and drove past Helen. The truck chugged up the mountain pass between Helen and Hiawassee real well, and also surprised me by handling like a champ on the downslope. Anyway, as we were cruising by on 17/75 around 180, we spotted a nice log cabin house half way up a low mountain. We decided to turn in, and cruised up the winding paved, and then gravel road to the top. All the way up to the top, we kept seeing a sign for 10 acre ridgetop plot, and since we were kinda interested in a vacation property, we decided we had to go check it out. The big 5.4 chugged up with no hesitation and turned fairly sharp single lane road like a sports coupe. There were places where a foot or two either way and it would have been a long messy tumble down around 200 ft. Well, we made it to the ridgetop with no trouble. And looked around a small cleared, muddy, unpaved plot. Because of the trees, we really didn't have a view, but we thought that a bit of landscaping could fix that. We got back in the truck and tried to drive up a small incline to get back on the road. Oops... You guessed it. No traction at all! I tried all the tricks, throwing rocks under the tires, rocking back and forth, and all that got us was maybe a foot in 20 minute. I thought we were well and truly stuck. As it turned out though there was a small accessway to the rear of the property we were able to back the truck down. it was pretty steep and unpaved, but there were enough exposed tree roots and rocks to give some traction. But the slope at end of the accessway where it joined the road was very steep, and I ended up scratching the rear bumper a bit as I back on the road... Ah well, it was still fun.

The rest of the trip was fairly uneventful except for one other event. We made it to Hiawassee but too late to actually partake in the fair, but we drove around the Chatuge Lake, then drove to Young Harris, down to Bliarsville. On the way to Dahlonega there was a lightning-striken tree blocking the roadway, but police were already there and directed traffic so no big problem. From Dahlonega, we hook up to GA-400 and drove back home. A 250 miles or so journey and very very enjoyable. We would do it again, although we'll stay out of unpaved muddy roads this time!

 

Sounds like you had a good trip. It's nice going out for a drive through the mountains every once and awhile.