The need to 4-wheel, so beautiful. Well said.

Looks like the short cut I took from Lake Tahoe to Cedar City Utah across Nevada. Even had a river to cross with the only house in 50 miles sitting right at the crossing.

Looked like a real highway to me on the map!

We have the "sticky" (always at the top) "101" thread here, I hope you read it and that's what prompted your edit...

But to clarify, with auto hubs, nobody said to "put it in 4WH, roll forward, then take it out of 4WH, and put it in reverse", or at least I hope not. That locks the hubs, then by reversing in 2WD, unlocks them again, what would the point be?
If you want the hubs locked in 2WD so you can throw it back to 4H at higher speeds, you put it in 4H when you start moving, then shift back to 2H immediately. As long as you haven't reversed or rolled backwards, the hubs stay locked and you can shift back and forth at any speed, any time.

We weren't talking about logging roads, dipshit. I'm guessing, if you're driving on a logging road, where it's got ditches/holes large enough to get hung up on the frame, that you're not going faster than 25mph, maybe not even that fast.

Seriously, learn to drive on paved roads that happen to have some slush & snow on them, and you won't need to be in 4WD, going 55 mph. If you can go that fast on the road, safely, then you don't need 4WD. Period.

Do yourself a favor, take your hand off the crutch (4wd shift lever), and just learn to drive your X.

No need to be so condescending, buddy.

Q: What is the downside of using 4wd on a snow covered road?

Only being condescending, because that's the way I was addressed.

But besides that. There's not necessarily any disadvantages to using 4WD on a snow covered road, even if you don't need it, other than decreased gas mileage, and the overconfidence that drivers get when they shift into 4WD. That, in itself, is evidenced anytime it snows, and you see all the 4x4's stuck in ditches by the sides of roads.

Ok, so there are no disadvantages (assuming the road is slick enough, of course). Don't you think it provides at least a touch of extra security - from having the tail end kick out unexpectedly, for example?

Even if its only a tiny advantage, since you agree that there no disadvantages to using 4wd we should use 4wd, right?

Btw - I personally think using 4wd in those conditions is a big advantage - and that's based on a whole lot of miles driven on slick/snowy/nasty roads.

Yes, use 4WD when it won't bind the driveline. No reason not to...

A guy I work with, who last year in one of our snow/ice storms, was driving home, it was dark, going south on I-77 in his H2 Hummer and ended up hitting a tree. (Missed about 6 weeks of work after some serious surgeries.) He was going way to fast for the conditions. I talked to 2 different people who we worked with and they both said he flew past them probably doing 60-70 mph. There is not a doubt in my mind he didn't feel like he was "invincible" in that Hummer. Having a big 4WD can do that to us. Heck, thats why we buy them. I agree that we sometimes use the 4WD as a feelgood for our minds but if it's there you might as well use it.

All this is is a point of view thing. I for one agree with only using 4x when you REALLY need it and that if you're driving fast enough for the "added stability" of a 4x to make any difference on pavement, you don't really need to be in 4x. On pavement I use it to get going, then once i'm moving it comes right back out. it really does keep me in check about the actual capabilities of my vehicle, which is really handy with a spool.

As for the setup with driveflanges, on road it is more convenient, but offroad they are a major liability. well, the flange itself isn't, the issue is is that it's too strong and moves the liability to the CV joint. If you're not shockloading or overtorquing your axles (driving around town), there's no issue. Offroad I'd rather have a hub grenade than a half shaft.

Hubbed system save wear and tear, fuel economy, are less likely to break major components, only thing is you have to have the hubs locked to shift at speed.

Justin