4 Wheel Drive

txdox21 · August 4, 2011

How often should I put my truck into four wheel drive to move the gears and fluids?

old-chevy-dude · August 4, 2011

i do it to mine at every oil change if I haven't used it.. typically after I change the oil I run around the block at 25 - 30 mph to get the oil flowing, so I do it then.

crankman · August 4, 2011

I use mine frequently when on a gravel road by home i am old school like to know it works when i will really need it. I feel like it should be run in 4x4 when possible thats just because mech parts need to be used to function properly.

SouthCo · August 4, 2011

Don't know if it's needed or not but I try to get them in 4wd 3-4 times a year.

tyhuck · August 5, 2011

I was told by a service manager at a dealership that he tells people they should aim for once every month or so. He said that was mainly to keep the electric actuators on the front end from freezing up.

I usually put mine 4hi or 4-Auto every time I hit the deer lease (at least once a month), just to lube everything up. I actually had to use it the other day. I got stuck in a field, but not because it was muddy, its so dry I got stuck in the sandy soil. Sad that its that dry.

Austin83 · August 5, 2011

I haven't done it lately, it hasn't rained in a long time. Does it have to be done a wet road or dirt road to prevent damage, or can it be done at 20 mph or so on dry pavement in a straight line without damage?

Mckenzie · August 5, 2011

whenever the opportunity presents itself, usually a couple months

jnpaddison · August 5, 2011

I do mine once a month - there is a straight 2 mile road ..

kdixer · August 5, 2011

I haven't done it lately, it hasn't rained in a long time. Does it have to be done a wet road or dirt road to prevent damage, or can it be done at 20 mph or so on dry pavement in a straight line without damage?

Straight line if on dry pavement will not hurt. You do not have to travel far to get everything lubed. You can just find a parking lot or straight road and engage 4wd and go straight for a bit and disengage 4wd before initiating a turn.

I am pretty sure you can run it in 4wd auto and get everything turning and lubed in any driving scenario. Everything in the transfer case and front diff will be turning because they are fully engaged. but it will not bind and cause damage because the clutch that transfers power to the front drive shaft only engages during wheel slip in this mode.

TRCM · August 6, 2011

I haven't done it lately, it hasn't rained in a long time. Does it have to be done a wet road or dirt road to prevent damage, or can it be done at 20 mph or so on dry pavement in a straight line without damage?

Straight line if on dry pavement will not hurt. You do not have to travel far to get everything lubed. You can just find a parking lot or straight road and engage 4wd and go straight for a bit and disengage 4wd before initiating a turn.

I am pretty sure you can run it in 4wd auto and get everything turning and lubed in any driving scenario. Everything in the transfer case and front diff will be turning because they are fully engaged. but it will not bind and cause damage because the clutch that transfers power to the front drive shaft only engages during wheel slip in this mode.

Always do it on a loose surface. Even a straight line can bind gears, because the front & rear axle ratioas are not exactly the same (usually small diff, like 4.10 vs 4.11).

tyhuck · August 6, 2011

I haven't done it lately, it hasn't rained in a long time. Does it have to be done a wet road or dirt road to prevent damage, or can it be done at 20 mph or so on dry pavement in a straight line without damage?

Straight line if on dry pavement will not hurt. You do not have to travel far to get everything lubed. You can just find a parking lot or straight road and engage 4wd and go straight for a bit and disengage 4wd before initiating a turn.

I am pretty sure you can run it in 4wd auto and get everything turning and lubed in any driving scenario. Everything in the transfer case and front diff will be turning because they are fully engaged. but it will not bind and cause damage because the clutch that transfers power to the front drive shaft only engages during wheel slip in this mode.

Always do it on a loose surface. Even a straight line can bind gears, because the front & rear axle ratioas are not exactly the same (usually small diff, like 4.10 vs 4.11).

Really, the factory will do that? Never heard that before.

I actually had to use my 4wd again this week. That makes 3 times in one week. This dry sand is killer around here. Ive used my 4wd more this week than I have in the wettest winter.

cfeiring · August 6, 2011

My manual states not to use on dry pavement

My dealer suggested 1x month and they have a gravel back lot that I use to make sure its working and I usually do a few slow wide turns as well in a figure 8 I use hi and low then I turn it back to 2 hi before leaving the lot.

I have done this with all my trucks before this one and they were Fords and never had a single problem so far.

kdixer · August 7, 2011

Always do it on a loose surface. Even a straight line can bind gears, because the front & rear axle ratioas are not exactly the same (usually small diff, like 4.10 vs 4.11).

I am going to have to disagree with you here. Different ratios front and rear would initiate wheel spin. If you need proof, stabilitrak on the gmt900's is only automatically disabled in 4 low. It is still active in 4 hi unless you manually turn it off. Imagine how stabilitrak would react to the front wheels being driven at a different speed than the rear.

Straight line thru a parking lot or on the road will cause no issue whatsoever. It says 4wd on loose surface because when you start navigating turns, that is when the binding from varying wheel speeds come into play.

Again 4wd auto is a good way to "spin up" the drive train for lubrication purposes without fear of damaging it. And you can drive anywhere you want in 4wd auto without binding issues. In 4wd auto everything in the front diff and transfer case are turning. But the clutch that couples the two output shafts is not engaged until wheel spin is detected. So the front and rear output shafts are allowed to turn at different speeds without problems.

Raredirt · August 6, 2014

The reason for different ratios front and rear, ie 4.10 & 4.11 - the 4.10 will be in front, is to have the front axle always pulling a little ahead of the rear axle to help releave any binding which may accumulate. It steers better that way and and if tension does build up between the axles, it's a lot easier to slip the front wheels pulling than to have the axles pushing against each other (rear axle trying to push the front axle). On a loose surface, it's not an issue, but if you forget and run it on pavement in 4WD, it'll try to unbind itself a little.