Quote:
Originally Posted by cmbdiesel
Low range in the snow is a poor selection. What you want is the tallest gear you can use without stalling. Many years of driving in the snow, and much of that on the mountain jeep trails which lead to my cabin, taught me that.
I found this to be true with AWD, 4wd, RWD and FWD. Driven them all in places most people won't go. They all have their advantages and disadvantages.
Regardless of the drivetrain, applying too much power in snow is the best way to get stuck, but good.
One of the reasons the old Mercedes diesels are half decent in the snow is that they do not apply an overabundance of power to the wheels, just watch out when the turbo kicks in...  |
There are a few very steep downhill circumstances where I found low range to be the best choice but they are kinda rare.
I've found the 300GD to be very impressive in the snow due to its mix of 4wd, low power, ground clearence and occasionally the lockers (hey, it was quite the storm the other month
)
However as Brian has mentioned, cornering with 4wd is the same as 2wd when there is no traction. BUT when the road isn't a complete sheet of ice I have found that you do have much better steering control with 4wd. Note, this is with true 4wd and not AWD which are often controlled with electronics making them reactive systems (I.e something has to slip before the system engages)