Elkmont mpg

No expert on any of this, but here goes.

All Wheel Drive and Full Time 4 Wheel Drive are pretty much the same. If the car feels slippage between the front and back wheels, then the 2nd axle kicks in for traction. That is what the Subarus have, as well as a number of minivans and some other cars.

The kind of 2 wheel drive found in trucks and off-road type SUVs is called Part Time 4 Wheel Drive. You have to physcally shift a lever to go to 4 wheel high or low. 4 wheel high can be driven at highway speeds, and even shifted on the move.......which I don't like to do unless I am going slow. A Part Time 4 Wheel Drive system should not be driven on dry roads.......it needs some slippage between the axles to relief stress on the system. Most of the part time systems also have a low range for rock crawling in the moutains, or if you need extra low speed power, as in beach driving. You can not shift into low range unless you are completely stopped, and in neutral in most of these systems.

You should be able to tell which is in a vehicle by looking inside. A Part Time System will have an extra floor shifter, or buttons or a knob on the dash for the 4 wheel drive.

I have a friend with a 2006 Taco 4x4. I thought he said he had a 6500 lb. tow rating.

Originally Posted by mtnguy

The kind of 2 wheel drive found in trucks and off-road type SUVs is called Part Time 4 Wheel Drive. You have to physcally shift a lever to go to 4 wheel high or low. 4 wheel high can be driven at highway speeds, and even shifted on the move.......which I don't like to do unless I am going slow. A Part Time 4 Wheel Drive system should not be driven on dry roads.......it needs some slippage between the axles to relief stress on the system. Most of the part time systems also have a low range for rock crawling in the moutains, or if you need extra low speed power, as in beach driving. You can not shift into low range unless you are completely stopped, and in neutral in most of these systems.

You should be able to tell which is in a vehicle by looking inside. A Part Time System will have an extra floor shifter, or buttons or a knob on the dash for the 4 wheel drive.

Thanks, that's a great description, and I think this is what we are looking at. I also remember the constant problems we had with transfer case in trucks at work that that were driven in 4 wheel (high) on mostly dry pavement.

And thanks for the Toyota towing guide, MudDog. But it seems that Toyota Canada has a different set of and fewer options available than Toyota USA. I just rechecked their 2010 Canadian Towing guide, and there is no Pre-Runner option anywhere. The only way I can even get a V6 engine is in the 4x4 model. I'll give them a call to be sure, but it's not uncommon for us to have fewer choices with the smaller market up here in Canada. Irritating, to be sure.

But we may go to 4x4 anyway. When we drove up from Florida last week (no trailer) we ran into snow north of Charleston W.V. There was a lot of slush where 4-wheel (high range) would have been useful. The traction control on the Passat got quite a work-out, and my wife remembers the experience.

But, whew, this thing is getting expensive ...