4WD and DRY PAVEMENT!

[maj75]

I have seen warnings on other sites that you can not use the part-time 4wd on dry pavement. This is the 4wd that comes with the automatic.


If this is true, then I am pissed.

Is this the 21st Century or what? What's next, locking hubs?

There is NOTHING in the owner's manual warning about this defect. The Fleet Manager, who took me on a test drive, had me put the truck into 4H while driving on dry pavement and we drove around like that! The owner's manual says drive in 4wd for 10km every month. It does not say wait for rain or dirt!

It is inconcievable that such a system could be put onto the market with ABSOLUTELY no warnings or Notice.

Had I known this, I would not have purchased this vehicle. I would have bought the 2 wheel drive, or the 6 speed w/ full time 4 wheel drive. I should have the choice of when and where I want to use 4wd.

[OFRD_GRL]

I was told that the worst condition to use it in is dry pavement... but they didnt tell me NOT to use it there...

i personally am not rollin 4wd on dry pavement anyways... eats extra gas.. and if the pavement is dry.. any bafoon can handle a 2wd vehicle... (no offense meat towards anyone in particular witht hat statement.. just a general observation)

[maj75]

Yesterday, I was driving in pouring rain, large puddles and flooding.

I thought it would be OK to use 4wd.

I tried to turn into a parking space and my truck stopped as if I had put on the brakes. It did not want to move forward. I had to give it gas and I could feel the tires skidding over the pavement as it fought the turn.

It felt like my '92 Eclipse turbo AWD after I blew up the center differential

[NorCalTacoma]

It's ok to drive in 4WD on pavement. Just make sure to drive straight. Don't make sharp turns, which is why your FJ felt like it would not move.

Driving in 4WD on pavement is not the best thing to do. If you do, go as straight as possible.

[mdill]

It all depends on if the FJ part-time transfercase has a differental or not, most all part time 4wd systems
do not. If the front and rear drive lines are locked together (Most part time systems, while in 4wd ) even if
you drive in a strieght line on high traction surfaces, the drivetrain will bind up, because not all tires are exactly the same, roads have some arch ... therefore eventualy something has to give, if you are lucky the tires will slip, if you are unlucky a U-joint or gear will come apart.
I personaly do not know what Toyota has in their part time FJ T-case, but from the discription of trying to turn sharply while in 4wd, it sounds like there is no T-case differental.

BTW this statment :"I should have the choice of when and where I want to use 4wd."
is does not make much sence, right after stating you wanted the full time 4wd T-case.

Go drill the dealer, (Ask the mechanics, not the sales guy) find out the what exactly the deal
is with the part time case.

[Bakemono]

The automatic 4x4 only sends power to the front tires when the rear tires lose traction, so this shouldnt be an issue on dry pavement.
As was said, its really hard on the driveline to turn sharply on dry pavement because there is no slippage and it causes the driveline to bind up.
Toyota says to use 4x4 for 10 miles a month for people who use 4x4 every once in a while. All they want you to do is to splash the oil inside the diff around a little bit so that it keeps everything lubricated. If you never used 4x4 for (just using this as an example) 5 years and then one day went to use it, chances are that it might not work.
Its a good idea to use 4x4 every once in a while, just be carefull where you use it. The best bet would be to find an unpaved road to use it on, but thats not an option for everyone.

[OFRD_GRL]

ANY 4wd truck for the most part sucks at turning while in 4wd.... well tight turns anyways.
this is in part b/c the front drive axles are now engaged and your turning radius is limited due to them being "locked in" - from how i understand it.. (i may be incorrect)

is this your first 4wd vehicle?
there are some 4wd quirks to get used to, but they really arent bad

[Adventure North]

Part-time system on dry pavement = bad, bad, bad.
Full-time system on dry pavement= OK.
Read up:
http://4wheeldrive.about.com/cs/offr...a021203a_2.htm

[Bakemono]

Originally Posted by OFRD_GRL

ANY 4wd truck for the most part sucks at turning while in 4wd.... well tight turns anyways.
this is in part b/c the front drive axles are now engaged and your turning radius is limited due to them being "locked in" - from how i understand it.. (i may be incorrect)

You are partially correct, Grl. Most front diffs arent locked-in. They have either an open diff (one-wheeled wonder) or some kinda of a limited-slip.
You really cant have a fully locked diff on dry pavement because when cornering the inside tire needs to be able to turn faster than the outside tire.

[Adventure North]

Originally Posted by Octane

You really cant have a fully locked diff on dry pavement because when cornering the inside tire needs to be able to turn faster than the outside tire.

This goes for the rear as well, you can be locked but you'll eat up your tires really quick, that's why selectable lockers are great. Also the reason you shouldn't turn in 4wd with a part-time system is because the front and rear drive shafts are tied together with no center differential to account for the difference in speeds between them. When you turn the front wheels your front and rear tires also move at different speeds, if there isn't slipping at one of the tires you will create binding in the driveline, which is not good for anything. A 4wd system with center diff refered to as a full time sytem uses clutch plates that when a certain amount of torque is reached slip, allowing for different rotational speeds between the front and rear diveshafts. This is why a full time system can be used on dry pavement.

[Azn_Stock_Camry]

wow this four wheel drive stuff has changed my view about it.

[Jakaumo]

Um, why would ANYONE buy a 2WD FJ? Take your 10km on a dirt road each month, your FJ deserves it and begs for it.

[OFRD_GRL]

i personally find that it gives me an excuse to get the FJ super muddy LOL

[ShawnM]

Unless your actually going off road with it, 4 wheel drive isnt really worth it in my opinion. In fact it seems to give most people a false sense of security. They figure they can go flying around in bad weather and they wont loose control because of the 4wd. At least that seems to be the case in the chicago area. I dont think any 4wd vehicles in this are ever see off road action.

[maj75]

I had an '02 Subaru WRX, so I have had a 4wd vehicle. I also had a '69 Bronco with a 351 Cleveland and a '77 Jeep Cherokee. They had manual locking hubs, but no issues with 4wd operation on any surface.

There is no "false sense of security" with the WRX. On any wet road road, there is no feeling of the front end washing out or hydroplaning, it just sticks and goes where you point it.


My big complaint is that TOYOTA does not warn about this issue. IF DRIVING ON PAVEMENT IN 4WD WILL CAUSE THE TRANS/DIFF/DRIVETRAIN TO DAMAGE ITSELF AND POTENTIALLY "LOCK-UP", THEY NEED TO PUT BIG, BOLD WARNINGS TO THIS EFFECT ON A STICKER INSIDE THE VEHICLE VISSIBLE TO THE DRIVER AND IN THE OWNER'S MANUAL!!!!!!!


There was no way for me to learn about this problem prior to the purchase of my FJ.


If the drivetrain fails before the tires scuff off, then it would seem the drivetrain components are too weak. There are plenty of serious 4x4s running locking diffs. Sure, the tires are going to take a beating, but the drivetrain won't fail.