4x4 or not?

[churchmouse]

Are people on a gun forum, where there's never an excuse too good (or bad) for buying a new gun, really telling a guy he doesn't "need" 4WD??????


I don't own a 4WD for snow; I personally have found front wheel drive vehicles do better in snow than any 2WD pickup, bed ballast or not. I own a 4WD not for snow but for soft ground and mud, and I'm not talking about 44" Boggers-type offroading..I live in a subdivision

You don't need it until you need it...and the extra expense and loss of payload/fuel economy is worth it to *me* "just in case".

Hey, kinda like a firearm, right?

Yup. This is kinda like a G**** V 1911 thread after all.
Pick your poison.
Yup, we get some sissy snow fall by comparison to other areas but having owned and owning now there will always be a 4WD in my driveway. Just my personal choice. But I work mine. It does go places. It might not go with standard drive train.

 

[Woobie]

tow rating is higher on 2wd , if your driving where you think 4wd is needed , you probably shouldn't be there . I grew up in Minnesota , never had 4wd , and we had snow . not the sissy snow falls you have around here . If you don't work a farm save the cash . If the weather is so bad you can't drive the cop car ,the criminals will stay in doors too .

Tow rating is lower because of the added weight of the 4wd components. That's basically a CYA from the manufacturer in terms of stopping ability. I'm not going to make a purchase decision based on 3-400 pounds of rated towing capacity. I'm going to get the truck I need and pull what I want.

 

[Hookeye]

Shoot your deer from the road and you won't need 4 wheel drive.



Shift on the fly, auto hubs etc............sure are nice..............when they work.

Manual stuff isn't as convenient..........but never failed on me.

I would not buy a truck that wasn't 4 wheel drive. But I intend to do more than just visit Lowes.

 

[Hookeye]

Also, being kinda dark complected...........I need 4x4 (and not a Ford) so they don't think I'm a messican.

 

[bobzilla]

4wd in Indiana is definitely a "want" and not a "need". I've driven past my fair share of 4wds in the ditch because they thought they were invincible.

For ballast in winter and still keeping the bed usable, we bought one of these years ago: https://scontent-ort2-2.xx.fbcdn.ne...=e10770235733ea66747cfd3b309c586c&oe=5B3C46CF
Fill with water, adds ~200lbs of weight low to the bed floor and I run a strap to each corner to hold it in place. effective and keeps the bed empty for acutally hauling things.

 

[Mark-DuCo]

4wd in Indiana is definitely a "want" and not a "need". I've driven past my fair share of 4wds in the ditch because they thought they were invincible.

For ballast in winter and still keeping the bed usable, we bought one of these years ago: https://scontent-ort2-2.xx.fbcdn.ne...=e10770235733ea66747cfd3b309c586c&oe=5B3C46CF
Fill with water, adds ~200lbs of weight low to the bed floor and I run a strap to each corner to hold it in place. effective and keeps the bed empty for acutally hauling things.

It might be a want instead of a need if you live in a flat area and never leave pavement. In the hills of Southern Indiana where I haul firewood to heat my house and haul deer out of the muddy fields it is a need. Pretty much need it to get out of my road too which takes the county a few days to get plowed too. I guess I could just call in to work, but I prefer to use my vacations says when I want them not when I would be stuck in a 2wd.

I do think there are a lot of people that could get by with 2wd, but there are also a lot of people that only need a single shot as well.

 

[bobzilla]

It's actually worse up here in the flat lands. You don't get 8' tall drifts that run 1/4 mile of your gravel road! Drifting up here sucks. But its so bad that 4wd isn't getting you out either. You're stuck waiting for the v-plow to bust a single lane through.

 

[MarkC]

4wd in Indiana is definitely a "want" and not a "need". I've driven past my fair share of 4wds in the ditch because they thought they were invincible.

For ballast in winter and still keeping the bed usable, we bought one of these years ago: https://scontent-ort2-2.xx.fbcdn.ne...=e10770235733ea66747cfd3b309c586c&oe=5B3C46CF
Fill with water, adds ~200lbs of weight low to the bed floor and I run a strap to each corner to hold it in place. effective and keeps the bed empty for acutally hauling things.

As far as needing 4WD in Indiana, I have to respectfully disagree. Some of us do need it, usually based on the choices we make, such as where to live.

This is what my driveway looks like. And yes, the hill keeps going up!

 

[bobzilla]

As far as needing 4WD in Indiana, I have to respectfully disagree. Some of us do need it, usually based on the choices we make, such as where to live.

This is what my driveway looks like. And yes, the hill keeps going up!
View attachment 65073

There are definitely cases where 4wd helps. But in the city? Nope. that's pure want.

 

[MarkC]

There are definitely cases where 4wd helps. But in the city? Nope. that's pure want.

Point well taken! If you're in the city, and the roads are impassible but for the assistance of 4WD, things are REALLY BAD and you should STAY HOME.

 

[dung]

The hill just means you need to hit it faster

 

[phylodog]

I drove a 4x4 in South Korea for a year. One important lesson I learned, which hasn't been brought up yet, is that given certain circumstances one may or may not have to become involved in a traffic jam. I locked the hubs on more than one occasion and hit the side of the highway to get around traffic jams while I was there. I have friends who spent more than 24 hours in their vehicles trying to escape an incoming hurricane in Florida. I don't have that type of patience, 35's and four wheel drive for me.

 

[yeahbaby]

Not a truck, but we are on our 3rd Jeep, a Patriot. For budgetary reasons we did not go with 4x4 this time. The Patriot is a heavy vehicle, FWD with traction control. I must say I was impressed with the way it handled in the snow this past winter. Plus if you flip down the back seats you have a crap load of space to haul stuff. I was able to get my snowblower in the back when I had to take it in for service.

 

[budm]

Personally I sway toward the 4wd camp, in the thought of being prepared.

 

[churchmouse]

There are definitely cases where 4wd helps. But in the city? Nope. that's pure want.

I can only again say that I spent more years behind the wheel of a 2WD van in all conditions than some posting in here are old. Yes I got there but it was fraught with challenges not inherent to having the front axle assisting me. I have seen a driven in it all and I would have loved to have a 4WD to get through it all in a less stressful fashion. Just rolling away from a stop light on a slight uphill sucks in 2WD.
We have a Chevy 3500 conversion van. Full custom interior and the raised top. It is very capable of tackling anything we have had in the last 2 years. But even then it does have some issues (not earth shattering) in some conditions. Ice being one of them. Unless we are doing something that requires the Cathedral like space in the van we opt for the 4WD in crappy conditions.It is just easier. Could I get there in the van...Probably. Is it easier in the truck.....you bet.
I used to love the challenges that winter brought. These days not so much. There were mornings that my service truck was not going to move unless we dug it out. The snow would drift it in. But the truck parked right next to it just plowed out, was turned around and used to get my work truck out.
Good friend lives out just west of Lizton facing a huge bean field. When it snows it drifts up on his road and the surrounding area. They used to own an all wheel drive Envoy but sold it when it got long in the tooth. He still owns the 2WD GMC he bought new in 98. He is a competent wheel man in all conditions. In this he has to wait on the county to clear him a path to leave now. I have had to roll out there and pull his tuck out of a ditch 2 times.
What ever ones personal experiences and opinions based on those same experiences is what makes this such a diverse and somewhat exciting world. Choose your poison and live with the choice. No hate on anyone that does not see it my way. I just enjoy the reduced stress of the 4WD option. JMHO.

 

[bobzilla]

so you're basically agreeing with me that you want 4wd and you could get around fine in 2wd. It's OK. wanting is fine. I'm not gonna judge. But they say that once you get a 4wd you want a G**** next.

 

[churchmouse]

so you're basically agreeing with me that you want 4wd and you could get around fine in 2wd. It's OK. wanting is fine. I'm not gonna judge. But they say that once you get a 4wd you want a G**** next.

​"BRAVO SIERRA"

 

[churchmouse]

so you're basically agreeing with me that you want 4wd and you could get around fine in 2wd. It's OK. wanting is fine. I'm not gonna judge. But they say that once you get a 4wd you want a G**** next.

Get around possibly.....getting around fine is in the 4WD.....

 

[Fordtough25]

AWD or 4WD down here, you may only need it a couple times a year but when you need it you need it. I've been in INDY several times during a snow storm and was glad I had it.

 

[Mark-DuCo]

Get around possibly.....getting around fine is in the 4WD.....

Agreed, there is a big difference between just getting around and getting around just fine.