Should You Tow In 2WD or 4WD?

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#toyota #tacoma #towing

[chrismanspeaker]

If you want to replace a front differential or an axle, by all means, tow in 4WD.

[ZacValentine]

That's a great question for those of us who don't tow often

[volvo]

If the road is dry, no 4wd.

Trucks have a solid connection between the front and rear axles, unlike AWD vehicles.

[Grem]

I tow in 2wd but taking off on steep grades can mean a lot wheel spin trying to get started with my 7600lbs travel trailer. I have had to put it in 4wd pulling out of a campground before.

[alcalc]

Towing or not towing has no bearing on 2wd vs 4wd. If the road is good traction then 2wd, if the raod is slicker than wet(like snow/ice) then 4wd. Now if you have AWD as an option then by all means use it when towing.

[brucetec]

I got a customer that wouldn't listen to me when I told him he should be driving in 2wd. He said his Titan was 4wd for a reason. He learned when we charged him to remove the don't diff he blew up. He didn't want to pay for the replacement.

[waltermontoya]

And furthermore with two wheel drive trucks you can have a different type of tread on your rear tires running a semi-aggressive tread Tire will help you from having Tire skip or spin-outs no matter what the incline is. All really depends on the driver him or herself

[xmo]

A few years ago on Christmas day I drove up to Idaho to haul an old Jeep FC to the SF Bay Area. From Nampa to Winnemucca it was total blizzard conditions 4 hours and 240 miles. I passed up the plow truck to make time and it was total white-out, all I could see was a depression of where the road should be. I was on hard tires made to produce MPG.
I totally drove in 4 wheel my rear duallies 😁

2004.5 Ram Cummins for the win.

[Gtbie_]

I’m a truck driver we only use the diff if stuck or in snow but on regular road you will buy a new differential

[AlainSTO]

Nice and quick. Love it. Never really thought about it. I just thought, "Weight's in the back anyway. 2wd is fine." But if it wasn't straight highway, I can see where 4wd is necessary.

[lukescott]

4wd vs 2wd is more a traction situation than a load situation. If you need the traction then use 4wd whether you have a trailer or not.

[waltermontoya]

If your truck comes built with a four-wheel-drive system in it is push-button control in the newer trucks from 2000 onward then you have it in two wheel mode then you don't have to worry about your full drive front differential oil electronic engagement solenoid wearing out. So therefore your truck while your four-wheel drive is not engaged and it's in two wheel drive mode depending on how rough you treat the truck will last you several years. I know this real well because I have a 2000 Chevrolet truck that has 295, 000 miles on it and I've pulled 16 and 20 ft trailers with it with no problem Highway and on Back Country Roads with zero problems

[mariano]

Some newer trucks have a 4wd Auto but I'd still recommend 2wd unless weather demands it. Even then i would slow down regardless because i don't want my 4wd Auto to kick in when im going over 40mph

[ShukenFlash]

In top of 4WD being a bad idea on dry pavement where you have a lot of traction when you're towing the rear wheels have much more weight on them, so you want all the power going to those wheels since they'll have much more traction than the front.

[mikeklinger]

Also makes more work strain on the transmission as it's turning more things

[RobCabreraCh]

What about 4WD Auto? Is that bad or will it just use RWD most of the time and change to 4WD when it needs extra traction?

I keep my truck in 4WD auto, because my rear tires slide a lot nowadays, and I sometimes need the extra traction to get going

[jamesflake]

Driving a heavy vehicle up onto a trailer will lift Some weight off of the rear axle. And if you're on an incline in icy conditions the towing vehicle can get away from you.
Towing, depends. But loading, locked in is easier than chocking the tires

[NotYoCheese]

Only use 4wd if you have too ( ice) and never use on dry surface especially cement surface

[Ilovebanjos]

Towing or not towing, do not drive in 4wd on dry pavement. Full time 4 wheel drive(All wheel drive) is different. But for what you call a part time 4 wheel drive, you want to drive in dry pavement on 2 wheel drive only.

[jbdragon]

If you have poor traction, like snow and ice, or your pulling on a dirt road or mud, 4WD. But you’re also normally going a lot slower. Doing 60 down the highway, no!!! 2WD for sure. Unless you like replacing a lot of expensive parts!!!