Getting used to No 4 wheel Drive Auto

The 4Auto systems in at least the Ford and GM half ton trucks are pro-active systems. Meaning they drive the front axle a good amount of the time, whether you are driving on dry pavement or in snow. Any time my F150 is accelerating it drives the front axle when in 4Auto, not just when the system sense slip. it will power the front axle around corners without binding.

It is not automatic 4x4. Here is GM's description:



MY 2014 F150 works the same way. Depending on how hard I step on the gas, it will change how much torque it sends to the front axle on the fly. Light acceleration might only send a little torque, floor it and it will split the torque 50/50.

I also noticed that it seems like the system becomes more active when the temperature drops below 32F. If its a warm day and I am steady state on the freeway the system will basically stop sending power to the front. On a cold day it seems like its always sending at least some power to the front.

I do not know how Ram's system works. I have been told it is Automatic 4x4, in which case that is dumb.

No. That is not how it works. See above.

Ford only has it in Lariat trims and up on the F150. I think GM and Ram have their respective 4Auto systems across the board now.

Which is why its so unfortunate that Toyota isn't doing this on the Tundra. Their system is so good. If Toyota offered their full-time Torsen system in the Tundra or Sequoia I would actually consider that a selling point over the competitors 4Auto systems after owning a Lexus GX and an F150 with 4Auto. I like the 4Auto system in my F150 but the Torsen system in my GX is hands down better.

i also own a 4Runner with a manual trans, manual hubs, and floor shifted transfer case so anyone who thinks I am just a sissy who doesnt know how to use 4x4 can kiss my ass.

 

The 4 auto still does not have a center differential so I don't see you could power the front wheels around a turn and it but bind.

 

It has a clutch that they can vary the clamping force to change the amount of torque transferred to the front axle and can allow slip in turns.

https://www.borgwarner.com/newsroom...-wheel-drive-transfer-case-for-the-ford-f-150

 

Absolutely. The Torsen based AWD on the Land Cruiser and Sequoia is the pinnacle of traction systems for trucks and suvs. But the GM 4Auto is a really close second in performance for winter driving mixed conditions. I need 4wd to get home every day in the winter and 4Auto is one less thing to worry about, especially when my wife is driving. These fair weather flatlanders can kiss my ass too. I’m sure they would all be fine with a 2WD truck, but I’d be stranded.

I suspect the only reason it’s not available on the Tundra is added cost and limited demand. But it makes you wonder (not me, but the fools in this thread) why Toyota & Lexus includes AWD in all their premium SUVs…

 

Because you asked. SUV’s aren’t judged on towing. A 2022 LC max towing is 3,500 KG or a little over 7,700 lbs on the same platform as the Tundra. AWD also brings the mpg down to 14/17. As a fool in this thread and all.

Also FLT doesn’t stand for Florida. That’s just FL.

 

Thank you mass-hole for getting this thread back on track, Auto 4wd is what this topic is Not all wheel drive. I know i will miss my GMC 4wd auto. Hopefully my new Tundra will make me forget all about it.
























help me forget about it

 

wasn’t about the existing Lexus awd system but when I generally asked about lack of 4auto, Mike Sweers told me they didn’t find a manufacturer/supplier that made a system/components that would live up to Toyotas standards given the the torque of the hybrid. So I guess innovation stopped there…

 

I live in the Rockies. I get snow and ice, blizzards, and all kinds of fun weather. I've had a 4Auto rig and 4x4s. Equally capable, just a little more awareness required with one than the other. If 4Auto were a thousand dollar option on my truck, I'd skip it. It's not anything that's really needed.

 

3500 kg is a towing limit in a lot of other countries. I am pretty sure that Ram 3500’s that are imported into Australia are restricted to 3500 kg too. But i would also never expect a 109” wb suv to out tow a 145+” truck either.

The 2nd gen Sequoia t-case had 2wd as well as full time 4wd so the mpg issue is not really an issue.

 

Pretty much how I feel. Lived in the northern Rockies and inland NW my whole life.


We all have our priorities. I’m trying to figure out why Chevrolet doesn’t make a pickup that won’t break every month.

 

the Lexus line in the US tops out at that same number. AWD and heavy towing doesn’t mix. The torque split brings that max towing number down. Imagine the explosion on this forum if Toyota made their 1 full size truck tow less.

Find an AWD SUV in the US with a meaningful towing number and I’d happily admit I’m wrong. I’d love to see it.

 

How much do the other trucks optioned with it tow?

 

Only truck I know of with AWD is the Ridgeline at 5,000 lbs towing. GMC tried it a while back with the Denali but they stopped cause no one wanted it and don’t know the number. AWD is for on road traction not towing or dirt. You will never see it in a truck truck.

Full-time 4 in the LC (don’t think it was ever in the sequoia) is amazing off-road and a bit better for towing but not better than part time, it’s also crazy expensive and horrible for gas. Mine was 13mpg rain or shine. But didn’t want to conflate the conversation too much for the guy claiming folks who disagree with him are fools.

 

Not AWD, the ones with the 4Auto option is what I meant.

 

No difference in towing for 4A option just added cost and it’s a less robust system.

 

You should look up the Raptor High-Lock Tcase, that's what I have in my Tremor too (402A). Engages in real time. Even the 4A in the Lariat/Platinum/Limited is real-time, but it uses a clutch.

 

I have spent time all over the world and some of the most terrifying places to be a passenger is Bangladesh and the Philippines. There are really no painted lines, and no signals, with people squeezing in, cutting each other off, and honking their horns like mad. I rarely saw an accident. Drivers think they are Dale Earnhardt as soon as 100 yards opens up. My theory is that they rely on experience and they actually pay attention to everything around them. Heads are on a swivel and their phones are not in their hands.

In the US? Dur, light green, me go, oops I just got tboned because some a-hole ran the red.

 

Guadalajara & Mexico City are also like that. Makes DC/Northern Va seem like a theme park.

Their unwritten, but obviously well-known rule: You are responsible for what is in front of you (and your relative periphery). It's brutally simple, and refreshingly efficient.

 

Ha, yes! El Sal and Honduras brings me back too.

 

Cairo.... 6 lanes of traffic, on a 3 or 4 lane road...horns ablazing... most cars don't have a single panel without a dent in it.

 

I saw buses in the ‘Desh that looked like they were covered in crinkled paper. Horns are just communication.

If you ever watch the Netflix movie ‘Extraction’ that takes place in Bangladesh (filmed in India though), it’s eerily accurate. Dirtier than Iraq/Afghanistan during the invasion.

 

Like I said, the 1st and 2nd gen sequoia's transfer case can be in 2wd.

You also need to consider payload. Most FS suv's don't have as high of a payload as a half ton truck since they are heavier. My parents Expedition is heavier than my supercrew long bed 4x4 Lariat F150 and my F150 is one of the heaviest out there. Their payload is 150 lbs lower than mine.

The TRD Pro Sequoia TFL is reviewing now has a 1300 lb payload which means its limited to 8-9k lb towing per J2807(1300-300 lbs of passengers-75 lbs for a WDH=925 lbs left for tongue weight). I am guessing an LX600 payload is worse and was what restricted towing on the LX570 as well.

In fact, I believe the tow rating on the LX570 was reduced when Toyota made them compliant to J2807. It was 8500 lbs in 2008 and dropped to 7000 lbs in 2011 even though the truck was unchanged.

 

Full-time 4wd had been in the Sequoia from the first model year until 2022. They added the Torsen in 2005 or something like that, prior to that it was an open center diff. It has had the capability to be 2wd, full time 4wd or 4wd locked since day one.

2023 is the first year where full-time is not a vailable on the Sequoia.

Toyota rated the 2008 Sequoia at 9600 lbs of towing, just shy of the tundra.

 

“Speaking of those all-wheel drive systems, the Land Cruiser comes with several more off-road features than the Sequoia. While the Sequoia gets part-time 4-wheel drive high and low, plus a selectable locking center differential and a limited-slip rear differential, the Land Cruiser offers a solid rear axle, full-time 4-wheel drive with selectable low-range, a locking center differential, Toyota’s A-TRAC system that can mimic the effect of locking front and rear differentials, Toyota’s clever KDSS automatic sway bar disconnect system, Crawl Control, Multi-Terrain Select and an off-road turn assist feature.”

https://www.autotrader.com/car-revi...yota-sequoia-whats-difference-281474979977452

 

Side note - the KDSS is bad ass. Our LC rips around curves compared to the Tundra even though it’s heavier. Body roll is almost nonexistent.

 

Its hilarious that you are still arguing this. It literally says its a selectable locking center differential. The best part is that the Sequoia T-case is everything the landcruiser t-case is plus the ability to go into 2wd. In other words, Toyota has the damn T-case that we could all agree would be awesome(2wd so you dont have to get bent out of shape about mpg, and Full time 4wd for me) in the Sequoia and has for 20+ years now.

Here is a picture of the dash of the 1st gen, notice the 2wd/4hi button as well as the 4lo and center diff lock button:



And the 2nd gen. 2hi, 4hi, 4lo and a center diff lock button.

 

sweet tape deck!

 

You posted a picture of a 2H option and are claiming I’m wrong somehow? If it goes into 2WD there’s no way it could be the same as the full time 4WD system in the Land Cruiser could it? You realized you just proved they’re different. I’d think that’s simple to understand.

 

the sequoia is not has not been a full time AWD system

 

I'm saying you don't need it. They're traction control aids available if you need some extra traction. If thats not enough to justify not having auto 4wd then I don't know what is. Maybe where you live and you feel comfortable and confident with auto4wd then that's great. I still don't feel it's a necessary feature on a truck in my opinion. Sorry, I wasn't trying to be a jerk just hard for me to wrap my head around this feature people get a little upset is not available. At the end of the day it's not problem. I live in a snowy state too. I still don't need it that feature