brown wire mod

[maxerious]

hello i have a 2000 ford explorer xlt and after reading several posts i have a simple question other than the fact of gaining 2wd low range is there any point to this mod when its in 4x4 high or low you still fully locked in so the only point out of this other than 2wd lowrange is just to play around in the mud with 2wd? lol

 

[dogfriend]

Some people have done the mod to theoretically improve fuel mileage in 4wd Auto by preventing the TC clutch from engaging (it does send a small amount of torque to the front driveshaft even in 4wd Auto). However, I think that most of the people were not able to determine any difference. Remember that the front axles and driveshaft still turn even when in 2wd; the only difference with the brown wire mod is that you can prevent the TC clutch from engaging.

 

[gijoecam]

Some people have two gains with it: The first, of course, is 2wd low range.

The second is, for control freaks like me, anyways, that it wrestles control of the system away from the computer and puts it back in the hands of the driver. I haven't been a fan of the Control Trac algorhythm since the first time I drove it in a snowstorm. I pulled out of my condo complex, and intentionally put it into a 4-wheel drift to get the feel of it. The timing of the C-trac cycling the front drivetrain in and out put it into a scary and almost unmanagable fishtailing, power-on situation that wagged the tail of the Explorer 6 or 7 times before it straightened back out. Lifting off the throttle at the wrong moment would have put me into a sideways skid. (Had I been locked in 4high like I should have, it would have put me into a steady 4-wheel drift which is much more controllable) Since that day, I've never liked the programming of the automatic 4wd function. I would rather be in 2wd than in 4auto, and this mod did just that for me.

For me, at least, it's more of a control issue than a performance issue. Although, I have found 2wd low to be handy a couple of times too. Just last night I used it to idle the truck up onto ramps for an oil change. Worked like a charm with no worries about driveline bind-up when I backed it down and moved it over to park it on the gravel.

-Joe