4runner could not make it.

[JohnSilver]

Sorry no pic because I felt bad for them. Knoxville here and we got hit with about 8in of snow today. Had to take a co worker home who was in a rwd car. They live up a steep hill into a steep drive. My BS in L gear crawled the hill and into the drive like a dream. There was a 4runner with a trd sport package behind me and it did not make it up, had to reverse back down. I felt bad for them but at the same time a small win for the little BS I felt obligatory to share with others who would appreciate it.

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[JAD67428]

Yes they are capable little buggers. I know from a 2 foot blizzard conditions I went out in the middle of, an she was a trooper, all I saw on the road that day was trucks an jeeps no cars were out in that mess.

 

[Chiefthepup]

Sorry no pic because I felt bad for them. Knoxville here and we got hit with about 8in of snow today. Had to take a co worker home who was in a rwd car. They live up a steep hill into a steep drive. My BS in L gear crawled the hill and into the drive like a dream. There was a 4runner with a trd sport package behind me and it did not make it up, had to reverse back down. I felt bad for them but at the same time a small win for the little BS I felt obligatory to share with others who would appreciate it.

I’m an extreme novice in 4wd/awd vehicles and forgive me if this is a dumb question, but how exactly do I use L gear? I understand it’s for steep inclines or snowy weather etc but what I can’t seem to find online is, is there a max mph I can drive in Low? Do I apply the gas at all or just let it cruise? Can I only go into low after coming to a complete stop?

 

[JohnSilver]

Yes they are capable little buggers. I know from a 2 foot blizzard conditions I went out in the middle of, an she was a trooper, all I saw on the road that day was trucks an jeeps no cars were out in that mess.

Yeah we headed back out and it's been non stop for 10 hours. Knox is not equipped to plow roads everywhere. Several cars stuck but by that time mostly jeeps and trucks out. Have been pleasantly surprised by the BS and K02's

 

[JohnSilver]

I’m an extreme novice in 4wd/awd vehicles and forgive me if this is a dumb question, but how exactly do I use L gear? I understand it’s for steep inclines or snowy weather etc but what I can’t seem to find online is, is there a max mph I can drive in Low? Do I apply the gas at all or just let it cruise? Can I only go into low after coming to a complete stop?

So from my experience I only kept in low if I was going to be staying under 30mph. Which in this case I was. For the 1.5L you can engage it from a drive. At least I did. Basically it's just going to throttle your rpms and keep you from engaging higher gears to prevent spinning tires. I know others on here are way more knowledgeable on the topic then I. But that is my fairly novice opinion understanding.

 

[Escape2Bronco]

These things are beasts in snow! No rocks to worry about tearing up the carpet underneath, just blasting through the snow. I could imagine the same in the sand. The optional WildPeaks seem to operate flawlessly.

 

[BravoAlpha]

That’s awesome. 4Runners are very capable.

I had a 95 LandCruiser on 33 BFG. Steel Bumpers, lift, sway bars ..on and on. Wife and I are skiing in Tamarack in Idaho. The road conditions were bad, but nothing stopped my Toyota. Then I’m on my way up to Tamarack one morning and we could not beat that hill. Many vehicles were struggling, then along comes this gal in a Subaru outback that just goes blazing up the hill with no issues.

Sometimes there’s just the right vehicle for the job at a specific time on a specific day.

 

[JohnSilver]

That’s awesome. 4Runners are very capable.

I had a 95 LandCruiser on 33 BFG. Steel Bumpers, lift, sway bars ..on and on. Wife and I are skiing in Tamarack in Idaho. The road conditions were bad, but nothing stopped my Toyota. Then I’m on my way up to Tamarack one morning and we could not beat that hill. Many vehicles were struggling, then along comes this gal in a Subaru outback that just goes blazing up the hill with no issues.

Sometimes there’s just the right vehicle for the job at a specific time on a specific day.

Yup you are so right.

 

[RSH]

Very subjective.
Either the 4 Runner was a POS, had slicks or most likely, the driver just wasn't up for the task.

 

[SnoopyBroncoSport]

Very subjective.
Either the 4 Runner was a POS, had slicks or most likely, the driver just wasn't up for the task.

Tires. In the snow, it all comes down to tires.

 

[Mark S.]

So from my experience I only kept in low if I was going to be staying under 30mph. Which in this case I was. For the 1.5L you can engage it from a drive. At least I did. Basically it's just going to throttle your rpms and keep you from engaging higher gears to prevent spinning tires. I know others on here are way more knowledgeable on the topic then I. But that is my fairly novice opinion understanding.

It all depends on the situation. If you are climbing an icy incline, higher gears are actually better. You want to limit the amount of torque going to the wheels because torque is what makes the wheels spin. If you spin the wheels on ice you lose traction. All other things equal, the higher the gear you're in, the less torque will go to the wheels.

If, on the other hand, you are on snow, a bit of wheel spin could be beneficial because it helps move the snow out of the way allowing the tire tread to get down to the road surface underneath.

One of the benefits of having a smart 4WD system is you don't really need to spend much time thinking about these things, which is especially nice if you're a novice. The computer keeps track of what's happening at all four wheels and makes the appropriate adjustments on the fly. My recommendation is leave the G.O.A.T selector in NORMAL mode, select D on the transmission, and let the system do its thing. If you fail at getting up a hill or otherwise get stuck, then think about the conditions and the appropriate mode to get you out. If it's icy then select SLIPPERY mode, which reduces throttle response and the amount of torque going to the wheels to prevent wheel spin and loss of traction. If it's deep snow then select SAND mode. There's no need to select L on the transmission in SAND mode because the computer holds the transmission in the lower gears for you, allowing higher RPM for greater wheel spin.

 

[JohnSilver]

Tires. In the snow, it all comes down to tires.

100% he definitely did not have a triple peak looking AT tires on.

 

[BourbonRunner]

Very subjective.
Either the 4 Runner was a POS, had slicks or most likely, the driver just wasn't up for the task.

I've had a number of proper 4x4 (two speed transfer case, open/lockable diffs, etc) and AWD vehicles including Subarus (they are mountain goats in bad weather), Mercedes, (biased to the rear always and shifts power up front when the rear slips), BMW and more. My old 4Runner and Tacoma were beasts in the snow but they struggled on hills without enough momentum, too. Never got stuck heading from home to the plowing site though.

In moderate snow, a proper AWD system (or full time 4wd) is the best option. The intelligent system in our Bronco's is biased heavy to the front axle but is smart enough to know to shift power around as needed and can go from left to right as well. A traditional 4x4 system will handle far worse in 4x4 mode than in RWD because the front axles will turn at the same speed causing a significant drop in handling response along with unexpected wheel hop.

Low gear is not helpful in the snow UNLESS you're in deep stuff. Higher gear gets the tires moving and the friction can melt the snow underneath to cut through to get traction on pavement.

And knowing how to modulate the throttle and control your spin is key to achieve traction and keep out of the ditch. In snow you have to anticipate your moves, make them deliberately, early, carefully, and most importantly: Slowly. It is a concentration thing. Don't rely entirely on your gizmos and mechanicals to keep you wheels down and sunny side up. That's why you see so many SUV/CUV/4x4s spin out and go off the road- they expected the system to do all the hard work.

And the best tires for snow will always be tall and skinny pizza cutters. Wide A/Ts and M/Ts are awful in the white stuff. The narrower the contact patch of the tire the better to cut through the snow.

 

[NMhunter]

I was driving a Ford Ranger down a steep driveway in Flagstaff with about 6" of snow and knew I needed weight in the back. It was a Forest Service truck, and I can tell you they don't come with good tires. I filled the back of the truck with snow up to the top of the bed. I had great traction all the way back to Albuquerque.

Even my 4WD F-250 really only has two wheel drive. The fact that the Bronco Sport badlands has a locking differential and the brake contols that keep the wheel without traction from spinning, give it a huge advantage. Not having an empty bed with no weight also helps.

My friend with a Ford Ranger and highway tires goes places I'm afraid to go with my F-250 because he carries an ATV in the back. That weight makes all the difference.

 

[S Duncan]

Sorry no pic because I felt bad for them. Knoxville here and we got hit with about 8in of snow today. Had to take a co worker home who was in a rwd car. They live up a steep hill into a steep drive. My BS in L gear crawled the hill and into the drive like a dream. There was a 4runner with a trd sport package behind me and it did not make it up, had to reverse back down. I felt bad for them but at the same time a small win for the little BS I felt obligatory to share with others who would appreciate it.

Oh yeah! We went up to our cabin at 9000 elevation and snowed heavy, the F350’s 4x4 went out down the road but my little BS was excellent on slippery mode. My husband and two boys are so impressed they went to test drive the Big Bronco! Great road trip.

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