4WD vs 2WD
- Thread starter 4ever
- Start date
Peteandsharon
Well-known member
Wow. How many times does this question come up? I've owned four trucks so far. All 4X2. Only once or twice in 20+ years did I say "boy, I wish I had a 4X4". Just not worth the extra cost, extra weight, poorer fuel mileage and added height. If I'm towing in snow, I've made a huge wrong turn or misread my calendar. My wife's cousin tows with a Dodge 4X4 and had to completely revamp his trailer suspension because the truck just sat too high for the trailer. I think that covers it.
dieselsweetheart
Well-known member
Buy 4wd for the low range, used it a lot of times in low 2wd and low 4wd
superduty08
Tennessee Chapter Leaders
I use my 4x4 quite a bit around our farm and have also used it to keep from tearing sod or making ruts in campgrounds. 4x may not be for all but I will never have a truck without it.
It's not the snow and ice I have pulled folks out when they are stuck it's the mud and wet grass. But I use my trucks in the ranching business and I need 4x4 very often. I think each person should buy what they want and need. So as you say this decisoin seem to go on forever I guess and I'll still help pull out the 4x2 when they need help.
jnbhobe
Well-known member
As I said before 4X4 is the only way to go. Jim (Dieselengineer) is right on the money 4X4 low range when backing into a spot gives you so much control. How many times have you watched someone parking in a tight spot that didn't know witch pedal they were pushing the hardest !! The brake or the accerator pedal
dieselengineer
Charter Member
The first thing I do when I arrive at the campground gate is put the old dodge into low range 2 wheel drive. When I am towing to the selected camp site (normally the last site in the back of the campground, up hill all the way, Cheryl!) , I can run thru the gears. Third gear in low range is a good campground gear. Then, backing into the site is easy, just idle the old dodge back into the site. Sometime I kick the dodge up to fast idle, if it is a easy to get into site. I don't need to turn the hubs in unless it is real muddy, but when it is, they save the day a number of times.
I guess ya really don't need 4x4 as long as someone near you has 4x4 to pull ya out..
Don't forget the $3-4k extra cost for the 4 WD option. That's about 10-15 tows from a tow truck. Sure if I lived where it snows in the winter I would want it to, but I don't. My truck has a LSD and traction control plus M & S tires. I don't go where it snows or is muddy with my truck. As I said if I did, I would have bought one with 4 WD.
Steve
Livermore, CA
caissiel
Senior Member
I have never had a 2WD truck so I cannot comment on the values of 2WD.
I have never got stuck or pushed on a truck yet in the last 26 years.
The 4 x 4 trucks have been great value when traded in, offset the extra cost to buy. Here a 2WD truck is rare.
I have to put my truck on 4WD everytime I use the leveling blocks if the TV is on grass.
I have seen so many campers ruin the soil at campsites with their 2WD, that for the good to owners of campground, we should all have 4 x 4.
I used 4WD many times in Florida, all the soil there is so sandy that the trailer will not move unless I have it on 4WD.
Its ok if parked on pavement or concrete, but off it, it just will not move unless the truck is 4WD.
On my land I never go on grass unless I lock the hubs so as not to ruin the sod.
I use my 4 x 4 so often that I leave the hubs locked most of the time, except on long trips.
While towing the RV, I never notice the fuel difference anyway.
Last time coming home from Florida I had the hubs locked all the way and still made more then 11 MPG towing.
I have never got stuck or pushed on a truck yet in the last 26 years.
The 4 x 4 trucks have been great value when traded in, offset the extra cost to buy. Here a 2WD truck is rare.
I have to put my truck on 4WD everytime I use the leveling blocks if the TV is on grass.
I have seen so many campers ruin the soil at campsites with their 2WD, that for the good to owners of campground, we should all have 4 x 4.
I used 4WD many times in Florida, all the soil there is so sandy that the trailer will not move unless I have it on 4WD.
Its ok if parked on pavement or concrete, but off it, it just will not move unless the truck is 4WD.
On my land I never go on grass unless I lock the hubs so as not to ruin the sod.
I use my 4 x 4 so often that I leave the hubs locked most of the time, except on long trips.
While towing the RV, I never notice the fuel difference anyway.
Last time coming home from Florida I had the hubs locked all the way and still made more then 11 MPG towing.
That is what happened to the the guy I pulled out in Nashvile. His F250 had LSD and all that but he was helpless as a baby in the mud and wet grass. I can't say on here what he called his LSD. The trade in value really takes a hit in my area if you don't have 4x4.
Dave012
Well-known member
From the posts above, it seems mainly like a function of where someone lives/travels, and the kinds of circumstances they camp in (grassy sites etc). Personally I need 4x4 as we have snow in the winter, and we sometimes camp in areas where we travel over gravel roads, or are on grass. 4x2 wouldn't work for me.
The low range is a great feature to have when parking in difficult spots. Being able to idle and move especially if you have to go up an incline is a nice benefit. We always have had 4X4 trucks and will stay with them. If you stay off the gravel and drive only in the summer you really don't need it.
