True 4wd? Or awd?

[mech]

AWD or 4WD is little more than marketing speak. I think each manufacturer just labels them the way they want to. Our Subarus are/were labeled as AWD, with the Forester turbo having all wheels driven equally more or less all the time, with my Legacy having all wheels driven, but with a FWD bias until power was needed to the rear. Of course that was the service manager telling me, so take it for what it is worth, lol.

Well put Vince.

Strictly speaking, there is no official keeper of drive train verbage and all stated terms have been used and abused corporately and colloquially to the point that anyone claiming to dictate the "official definition" is a fool.

Heres my foolhardy attempt.

The one certain thing is that the explorer is capable of applying torque from the engine to all four wheels of the vehicle. In this sense it can be classified as four wheel drive. The techology utilized in the current explorer is somewhat unique but largely consistant with a subset of four wheel drive consisting of a methodology which lacks a transfer case and is commonly referred to as all wheel drive. The new explorer augments the traditional awd setup with an additional element to control traction by introducing vectored braking to individual wheels.

Each manufacturer is a little bit different and i would encourange everyone to learn more about the specific system in their car rather than attempt to categorize it in marketing jargon.

 

[spitfisher]

The way I understand the explanations I've read is that AWD is what we have in the new Explorer. The vehicle is basically FWD (in our case) and power is sent to the wheels that require it when conditions change.
4WD is what I had with the Highlander where all 4 wheels are powered full time.
The badge on our Ex is misleading. I noticed on a new Acadia I saw the other day that the badge shows AWD which is the same that we have. The Fusion and Taurus, which I believe basically have the same system as the Explorer, are shown as AWD.

Peter

Correct Peter, that is my assumption too. We are FWD with sensing that allows the car to shift power to the rear wheels for better purchase and traction. We are not alone with this, a very large majority of suv and unibody constructed trucks have it too. My honda ridgeline for example. And it says 4wd on it?

4wd or Awd drive badges came out of the marketing department not the engineering IMO

 

[bobbyks69]

Ford Intelligent 4WD

Seni,


No one has ever answered clearly as to this question. I have a 2014 Explorer Sport model with Intelligent 4WD and Terrain Management System. Under normal driving conditions with the system set in Normal mode, is the vehicle in full time font wheel drive or all wheel drive?

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum bobbyks69.:wavey:
Seni hasn't been here for a few years. The Ford Service rep here is Crystal. Under normal driving with the TMS in 'Normal' mode the Explorer is 100% front wheel drive. The only time in this case when AWD kicks in is if the conditions call for it. You should be able to view the power distribution in the left hand Information Display by calling up the display.
Do you still have the 2007 Trailblazer? If not you should update your profile with "2014 Sport" so it shows in the margin. Or add it to your signature if you have both vehicle.
Happy New Year and happy motoring.

Peter

 

[tmg19103]

The Ex is AWD. Uses a computer-controlled multiplate clutch to route torque to the rear wheels if and when the front wheels slip. 4WD has a locking differential. A locking differential is designed to "lock" each axle together as if on a common shaft. This forces all wheels to turn in exact unison, regardless of the traction (or lack thereof) available to either wheel individually.

That being said, I find the Ford AWD to be just as effective on the deep, soft sand beaches of Nantucket as my previous locking differential 4WD Nissan Pathfinder and it works just fine in snow.

The major limitation the Ex has for true off road driving in rugged situations or really deep, soft stuff is the ground clearance.

The fact the the Ex is now a unibody and not the previous body on frame is no biggie. Range Rover went to unibody and they are still amazing off road (especially with air suspension to raise the chassis up), and they still have great towing capacity as a unibody design.

Range Rover's are also AWD now, however, they still have a locking differential for true 4WD. AWD to 4WD with air suspension - can't top that on a Range Rover.

 

[ObsceneJesster]

I got to take my '15 XLT out in the snow for the first time this past week. I ran it in Snow mode most of the time and I was monitoring the Power Distribution display. While in Snow mode, as soon as I tapped on the gas, it looked like power went to all 4 wheels immediately and throughout my commute, it appeared as if equal power went to each wheel. I was a little worried with the 20" OEM Hankooks but she performed flawlessly. In "Normal" mode it looks like most all of the power stays on the front wheels and every once i na while, you can see the rear wheels kick in when accelerating. I didn't feel the tires slip once during my 45 minute drive through the snow.

 

[Rubberhead]

There are probably 2 dozen different applications of how to get power to wheels on more than one axels of a four wheeled vehicle. Whether any of these systems is classified as 4WD or AWD is nothing more than marketing semantics with the only caveat being that an AWD system always (or almost always) applies to a full-time system versus as system that can be manually turned on or off.

If I believe what I'm saying, all AWD systems are 4WD systems too.

 

[peterk9]

The 3 Highlanders I previously had, had a 50/50 power split on a full time system and the badge on the back said 4WD.

Peter

 

[ObsceneJesster]

The 3 Highlanders I previously had, had a 50/50 power split on a full time system and the badge on the back said 4WD.

Peter

Doesn't a 50/50 split all the time waste fuel?

I know my 2012 Subaru Legacy 3.6R gets poor gas milage. I average about 17 miles a gallon in that thing and if I had to guess, I'd say it's due to the AWD. I get the same MPG out of my Explorer.

 

[tmg19103]

Here's a pretty good explanation. Gives some good "pros" for AWD.

For those who see a 50/50 split on the left instrument cluster on the Ex, say in snow mode, that may be pretty close to true, but the fact remains the 4 wheels are not locked together equally and continuously as in in true 4WD.

However, there are advantage to not have the 4 wheels locked per the below. As I posted above, I'm impressed with the Ford AWD system - both on my Ex and Escape.

http://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/whats-the-difference-between-four-wheel-drive-and-all-wheel-drive/

 

[tmg19103]

Doesn't a 50/50 split all the time waste fuel?

I know my 2012 Subaru Legacy 3.6R gets poor gas milage. I average about 17 miles a gallon in that thing and if I had to guess, I'd say it's due to the AWD. I get the same MPG out of my Explorer.

Yes it does. You get the best gas mileage on the Ex when it is using front wheel drive primarily.

 

[peterk9]

Doesn't a 50/50 split all the time waste fuel?

I know my 2012 Subaru Legacy 3.6R gets poor gas milage. I average about 17 miles a gallon in that thing and if I had to guess, I'd say it's due to the AWD. I get the same MPG out of my Explorer.

It likely does use a little more fuel but the mileage figures given for the 2009 Highlander Ltd (my last one) are exactly the same as for the 2011 Explorer Ltd I had.

Peter

 

[TheWindyCity]

Getting Stuck in Snow

I replaced my 2003 Explorer XLT 4X4 with a 2014 Limited 4X4. This was my first winter with her and I did get it stuck in the one big snow we had. This made me question the 4X4 system, because the 2014 felt different than the 2003, which was never a problem in the deepest snow. That's why I came to the board looking for tips and advice.

As I was exiting an alley onto the street, I had no choice but to head through a heavy wet pileup of snow about 14 inches deep, 15 feet square. The truck got stuck, so I made sure the wheels were straight and put the TMS into Snow mode. I just sat there, spinning. I wasn't aware of the left display monitor, so ....next time. I got it out in five minutes just by rocking the vehicle.

So my question is....(to myself: what the heck did I buy???) should I have tried another mode to get out of the snow? I hate not being able to trust my vehicle....and I miss my '03! Anyone else have a similar situation, and any advice on how to handle deep snow with the TMS?
Thanks!

 

[182RG]

As I was exiting an alley onto the street, I had no choice but to head through a heavy wet pileup of snow about 14 inches deep, 15 feet square. The truck got stuck, so I made sure the wheels were straight and put the TMS into Snow mode. I just sat there, spinning. I wasn't aware of the left display monitor, so ....next time. I got it out in five minutes just by rocking the vehicle.

Snow mode should have yielded little to no spin. By design, it uses anti-lock braking to limit wheel spin. Sand mode is most aggressive, effectively turning off the traction control mode and driving front and rear wheels.

Rocking is pretty hard on the drivetrain, especially the PTU (power transfer unit - part of Haldex style AWD systems, used in lieu of a transfer case). They are known to overheat when stressed, and blow seals. (do a Google search)

You are driving a car based platform now. It is lower, with wider tires and probably a bit less capable than your '03. The factory 20's are more summer tire than all season, and the most likely culprit in bad performance. You are far enough north to think about a dedicated set of snow tires, narrower, and on dedicated rims.

Finally, you can stop using the term 4x4. It's not even close. It's AWD these days, unless you buy a truck.

 

[MarkM]

I replaced my 2003 Explorer XLT 4X4 with a 2014 Limited 4X4. This was my first winter with her and I did get it stuck in the one big snow we had. This made me question the 4X4 system, because the 2014 felt different than the 2003, which was never a problem in the deepest snow. That's why I came to the board looking for tips and advice.

As I was exiting an alley onto the street, I had no choice but to head through a heavy wet pileup of snow about 14 inches deep, 15 feet square. The truck got stuck, so I made sure the wheels were straight and put the TMS into Snow mode. I just sat there, spinning. I wasn't aware of the left display monitor, so ....next time. I got it out in five minutes just by rocking the vehicle.

So my question is....(to myself: what the heck did I buy???) should I have tried another mode to get out of the snow? I hate not being able to trust my vehicle....and I miss my '03! Anyone else have a similar situation, and any advice on how to handle deep snow with the TMS?
Thanks!

As 182 stated, you're no longer driving a body-on-frame vehicle. You're driving a unibody vehicle. This makes the 5th gen Ex more of a cross-over than it does a truck like vehicle in the past. This does a number of things for off-road type, or even heavy snow driving. You don't have tons of clearance that you would find in a body-on-frame vehicle. The wheels/tires are larger with a wider profile, which also doesn't give any help to limited traction. If you're running the stock tires, you're also loosing a great deal of grip as they are more of a summer/highway tire than anything else.

The different TMS modes simply change the way the engine/transmission delivers the power to the wheels. It really changes nothing in way of actual traction. The best advice anyone could give you for punching through deep heavy snow would be this: Get some winter tires, maybe even a brush/grille guard, and punch through it. Putting it in snow mode helps initial traction by limiting the initial torque and by shifting sooner to keep the RPMs down to prevent wheel slippage.

Hope This helps.

 

[TheWindyCity]

Snow mode should have yielded little to no spin. By design, it uses anti-lock braking to limit wheel spin. Sand mode is most aggressive, effectively turning off the traction control mode and driving front and rear wheels.

Rocking is pretty hard on the drivetrain, especially the PTU (power transfer unit - part of Haldex style AWD systems, used in lieu of a transfer case). They are known to overheat when stressed, and blow seals. (do a Google search)

You are driving a car based platform now. It is lower, with wider tires and probably a bit less capable than your '03. The factory 20's are more summer tire than all season, and the most likely culprit in bad performance. You are far enough north to think about a dedicated set of snow tires, narrower, and on dedicated rims.

Finally, you can stop using the term 4x4. It's not even close. It's AWD these days, unless you buy a truck.

Thanks for the reply 182. I need to disregard that rear 4X4 logo. Hopefully I did no damage with rocking. Now that I rethought that morning of stuck-ness, I may have rocked it about 6 times to get out. Next time, I'll try the Sand mode and see if it will make the difference.

 

[TheWindyCity]

Thank you Mark!

 

[MarkM]

Thanks for the reply 182. I need to disregard that rear 4X4 logo. Hopefully I did no damage with rocking. Now that I rethought that morning of stuck-ness, I may have rocked it about 6 times to get out. Next time, I'll try the Sand mode and see if it will make the difference.

Sometimes rocking a vehicle out of stuck is a necessary evil. The best, and safest, way to do so is to rock in one direction, brake, make sure your engine is back to idle, then shift the opposite direction.

When rocking, try to avoid hard shifts as these will reduce the effective longevity of your vehicle. FWIW, most "true" 4x4 systems now-a-days aren't true 4x4. Some of these trucks even use FRONT wheel drive over RWD in a 4x4 system.

 

[ObsceneJesster]

You live in Chicago. Get some dedicated Winter tires.

 

[goochman]

Are you sure the 4x4 was the problem? With 14 inches of snow to drive through did the axles just get raised off the ground? Im pretty sure the '03 had more ground clearance than the new ones?

I have an '09 jeep and I got caught in 18 inches of snow - I had to shovel under the diff's and then all was good again as the wheels got back to the pavement.