2WD vs 4WD

[MidOH]

Make a mistake up here. Go ahead. It's just a simple dirt road. It's just a little packed down hunting trail. Road is only under 12" of river. Beginner overlanding.

One measly soft spot, and 2wd is useless. Two measly soft spots, and 4wd is as stuck as can be. 4wd with lockers, but oops, the front axle actually got put off the end of the road into a snow hidden ditch, and the rear tires are on packed icy snow..........yeah you ain't going nowhere.

Or just plain slide off the road into the ditch. Get the winch out, no big deal. Oops, no trees. Bury a tire as a winching point. Oops again, the earth is frozen solid, or dry and hard as concrete.

4wd, lockers f&r, MT's, and tire chains or Truck Clawz, are all I'll overland or camp with. Never again will I bother with less.

 

[UgotWheelz]

Well, a rear locker is nice, but I know an easiest an much weirder solution, that has been used for some VW Beetle based bajas and similars here in Brazil: Independent parking break. Yeah. Pull the lever and stop that wheel from spinning till it hits the ground again. Absurdly easy to adapt to most RWD vehicles and really comes in hand. Also useful for parallel parking, hahahah

The yellow knobs are for the each rear wheel, and the regular handbreak lever pulls both at the same time.
View attachment 169685

Yes all of my RWD import rally monsters have had turning brakes, a bit harder to make that work on FWD so I just use Helical LSD and lots of wheel travel on the FWD Import rally Monsters.

 

[BensonSTW]

I am generally on board with use whatever you have for your overlanding needs. But there are places when 2 wheel drive and less modified 4 wheel drives need to know the limit and say let’s turn around. I have been involved in recovering 2 wheel drive vehicles miles beyond where they should have turned around, and seen these recoveries put peoples lives on the line. I have also seen stock 4 wheel drives blocking a trail for hours when they had no business being where they were. Please get out and camp and enjoy. But know where your rig should and shouldn’t be. You could be putting a lot more than your vehicle on the line just to prove you could make it.

 

[UgotWheelz]

Well, a rear locker is nice, but I know an easiest an much weirder solution, that has been used for some VW Beetle based bajas and similars here in Brazil: Independent parking break. Yeah. Pull the lever and stop that wheel from spinning till it hits the ground again. Absurdly easy to adapt to most RWD vehicles and really comes in hand. Also useful for parallel parking, hahahah

The yellow knobs are for the each rear wheel, and the regular handbreak lever pulls both at the same time.
View attachment 169685

Yes all of my RWD import rally monsters have had turning brakes, a bit harder to make that work on FWD so I just use Helical LSD and lots of wheel travel on the FWD Import rally Monsters.

Yep we were doing the same thing I’m doing buggies here in Oregon for years

 

[Paul_79fb3b]

True, I have taken my 2wd to places where they say only 4wd should go. You just have to know the limits of your vehicle and avoid the places you would likely get stuck. That being said, I've gotten my 04 2wd tundra stuck just from slowly crossing a decent rut diagonally and it lifted one of my rear tires and boom, stuck. It could've been solved with a locker for true 2wd instead of 1wd

Dhat was the diff? Lsd?

 

[Scott_Milk]

True, I have taken my 2wd to places where they say only 4wd should go. You just have to know the limits of your vehicle and avoid the places you would likely get stuck. That being said, I've gotten my 04 2wd tundra stuck just from slowly crossing a decent rut diagonally and it lifted one of my rear tires and boom, stuck. It could've been solved with a locker for true 2wd instead of 1wd

Dhat was the diff? Lsd?

No, just a normal open diff.
I have since got myself a 4wd FJ cruiser and I'll admit it's way more capable, especially with a rear locker. But there are times where a sign is posted saying 4wd recommended where it really isn't needed. The best thing is just learning the limits of your vehicle capabilities and being able to tell beforehand if you can do it by looking at the trail/obstacle. Get a good idea of the clearance and flex you have and estimate how much the obstacle will use. Know your tire placement too, like exactly where your tires will be going.

 

[Paul_79fb3b]

True, I have taken my 2wd to places where they say only 4wd should go. You just have to know the limits of your vehicle and avoid the places you would likely get stuck. That being said, I've gotten my 04 2wd tundra stuck just from slowly crossing a decent rut diagonally and it lifted one of my rear tires and boom, stuck. It could've been solved with a locker for true 2wd instead of 1wd

Dhat was the diff? Lsd?

No, just a normal open diff.
I have since got myself a 4wd FJ cruiser and I'll admit it's way more capable, especially with a rear locker. But there are times where a sign is posted saying 4wd recommended where it really isn't needed. The best thing is just learning the limits of your vehicle capabilities and being able to tell beforehand if you can do it by looking at the trail/obstacle. Get a good idea of the clearance and flex you have and estimate how much the obstacle will use. Know your tire placement too, like exactly where your tires will be going.

Exactly lol. Only reason I asked is cause when my lsd isn't enough I can slap the parking break on and it's like a Jerry rigged locker