As mentioned in another post, my wife and I are going to buy a loaded 5.4Lariat Screw this fall.

Wife thinks we might need 4WD to take to the beach when we take our little granddaughter to look for shells. We pull a small 4K lb. camper also. At this late stage in life, fuel milage costs are not important to us.

Have there been any mechanical problems with the new model Screw's 4WD systems?

I test drove both a 2WD Lariat and a 4WD Lariat. Seemed like the 4WD had a heavier feel. Any difference in turning radius compared to a 2WD Screw? Looked for turning radius statistics but could not find them.

Thanks for the input and fine comments from everyone!

 

Hello Mike. I have had both an '04 lariat 2wd and now an '05 4x4 and I love the 4wd. You are correct they do feel heavier because they are (approx 300lbs). It is a pretty good system and we havent really heard of any repeated problems with them at my store anyways. The initial price is a little higher but you will always get it back at re-sale time. Go for the 4x4 and enjoy! p.s. the turning circle's are virtually identical.

 

I agree with SAJEFFC, especially if you are not too worried about money because the 4wd will always be there when you need. Although I am kinda bias about 4wd and that all truck should be a 4wd. Thats just my 2 cents. Good luck on what you decide.

 

I sure appreciate your insightful and helplful information.
Please excuse my ignorance, but when 4WD is engaged, do both front wheels engage and pull? Or does only one wheel turn and if it slips, the other front wheel turn? Thanks again!

Mike

 

When you put it into 4wd, it supplies power to all of the tires, at least thats what the Owner's Guide reads on my '05. I could be wrong, but I think it supplies equal amount of power to each tire while in 4wd. Hope it helps.

 

Its far better to have 4 wheel drive and not need it, than to need it and not have it. And it certainly does increase resale value, possibly even more than the initial cost.

 

Well.... You would have only one drive wheel on the front and one on the rear unless you have limited slip which will give you the rear tires and 1 front driving.

 

So If I understand correctly, with a LS rear axle and 4WD, there are only three tires pulling, rather than all four, in mud, snow, ect...

 

The more I am investigating this topic, I find, after google search, that 4wd applies power to all 4 tires, although the torgue to each tire changes between 2wd and 4wd.

I have heard what canyonslicker is talking about, I would just hope someone could tell me how exactly that works? What I mean is how does only 1 front tire spin and not the other, when there are drive shafts going to both front tires?

It may be a stupid question, but I have gained interest in this topic, just as MikeTEC has done.

 

I will try to explain this.....

Have you ever gotten stuck and only one tire spins or do a burnout and only one tire spins?

Most vehicles are setup this way.

Limited slip is when one tire starts to spin it engages a clutch pack to apply some power to the other wheel. It is not a locking differential so it has only a certain amount of bias to the traction side which will allow the slipping side still spin somewhat faster.

A true locking rearend will actually lock the axles under slipping conditions. So both tires will spin at the same rate. It can be bothersome when turning corners because both wheels want to turn at the same rate.

There are some vehicles setup with limited slip front axles. Some even have lockers. Limited slip on the front isn't too bad but with lockers it darn near impossible to turn and should be used only under extreme conditions to get unstuck while traveling in a straight line.

I hope this helps.

 

Thank you all so very much for the information and I hope I have not appeared too ignorant.

But this may be the last truck we buy, so we are naturally interested in not making a costly mistake. We keep vehicles 10-12 years, maintain them extremely well and wear them out with high milage.

Both our 2WD Eddie Bauer and Limited V-8 Ford Explorers have 3.73 limted slip axles. To my surprise, they work very well in the snow and ice.

Beach sand can be tricky, so therein lies the interest for four wheel drive, which is really a quest for safety for our family. Thanks again!

Mike

 

I ordered a front limited slip in a 94 f150 step side great for off road but very tricky on highway in the snow. You have to apply throttle to get them to turn in the snow it is a real adventure. I like the way my screws 4wheel drive works alot better.

 

Remember your turning radius while in 4 wheel drive will be much wider than in 2 wheel drive. I'm not sure whether it has to do with the drive gear angle on the front wheels while steering or the fact that both front wheels are being driven together.

Go for the 4X4, I love mine, although I don't use it unless we go to the mountain house during snow storms.

 

My Dad always drove a 4x2. He liked the 4.6 308 axle and 235 tires with a cap. He could realy streach a tank of gas. Us boys coaxed him to get a 4x4 for once and try it out.

It seems like every time I talk to him he has some story of a drive he took that he never cold before. He is having a blast with that thing. Get the 4x4, go the the beach, and start a new thread here to tell us how it went.

 

canyonslicker ,

Thanks for all of the info. I was just curious how it all works. Heres a beer on me for you help.