SR5 Premium 2024, RWD/4WD (dial)

Just got a 2024 SR5 Premium with 14,000 miles. It lightly snowed suddenly as I pulled out to enter a road and skidded, though I was going slowly, at the traffic light. I just got the car and had not experienced shifting to 4H, so I drove home in light snow in 2H, a little below freezing. I was bummed out to skid in my new car but it is RWD, I guess that's why. I have been reading over forums and was bummed to hear some folks say you can damage the drivetrain on a dry road. I got this car to go to the mountains and was going to use 4WD to get up there. Will I damage the drivetrain? Also, I assume it's OK to use 4WD in the rain? Any tips?

Also, are there higher quality tires, better grip and less skidding for people like me who go to the mountains often? I'm in NC.

Thanks!

 

We don’t know how you’re getting to the mountain so can’t tell you for sure. Generally if it’s uncovered pavement you shouldn’t bother with 4WD. I don’t think there’s much point to use it in rainy weather on pavement either.

4WD is best when roads are covered (snow) or the surface is loose such as dirt, gravel, sand.

 

You can shift into 4H while driving as long as you are under 50MPH

 

Welcome

 

I could be wrong but I thought with the dial you have to be 62mph or less?

50mph is for the manual lever only

 

welcome

 

Thanks for all the input. After skidding on snow, which rarely happens in Charlotte, NC, I started to think about rain and how reliable my RWD is in the rain as far as skidding goes. I literally got the 4Runner because I thought it would be suitable for these weather conditions. I guess AWD is better than RWD, but I need to deal with what I have. Can you folks with RWD/4WD weigh in regarding weather, skidding, etc. When do you all go out of RWD and into 4H besides obvious snowy conditions?

Are there better tires I can use to support heavy rain and occasional snowy conditions? I go to the NC mountains often, and a few years ago, in mid-March, I got stuck in an unexpected major snowstorm in another car. So when I drive up there, I want to be ready. I use interstate/state highways until I get up to the mountain towns, then more local roads, which do not often get treated promptly in snowy conditions.

I greatly appreciate everyone's input as a new 4Runner owner!

 

Is that a picture from yours?

I could’ve sworn that manual transfer case and the knob have 2 different speed limit going from H2 to H4.
I remember that because I have the transfer case which is 50 mph and was envious of the higher limit on the knob

 

Yes from my 2016

 

Your 4Runner is part time 4WD. Which means that when you put it in 4WD, your center differential is locked and you get 50% of the power at the front and 50% at the rear.
Only the limited (for the 5th gen at least) acts as a AWD when the center differential is not locked.

Other than when I go off-roading, I only use 4WD when there’s snow on the road. If it’s dry or rainning I just leave it in 2WD. Technically if it rains you could put it in 4WD as long as you don’t do any sharp turns on pavement otherwise you’re gonna get some binding (not good)

PS: Toyota recommends to practice at least 10 miles per months in 4WD. Some people that don’t put it in 4WD for a long time do get an issue with the truck not shifting to 4WD after a while so you want to make sure you do practice 4WD every so often

There are tires made for rain or snow. They will perform a lot better than summer or all season tires. Not just with traction when moving but also when braking.

 

I found in the manual where it shows the different types and speed limits. It’s from the 2022 owners manual, I doubt that there is a difference with 2016. Guessing Toyota was too lazy to put different instructions based on the trim inside the actual vehicle so they probably stuck with 50 mph for everyone on the sunshade

 

You’ll want to take it easier on throttle input and smooth it out a bit - especially into turns since the rear wheels can break loose.

The part-time system can handle most anything (within reason) when the pavement ends but on-pavement, an AWD crossover may offer better, or at least more user-friendly operation in wet pavement conditions.

Sadly 4WD that can be used all the time was gated behind Limited trim this generation where it was widely available before.

 

Thank you, I had no idea

 

basically manual says to use 4Hi when it's slippery and when you need additional traction. So it's OK to turn on 4hi in heavy rain, but it's not really necessary if you have good tires. Good tires btw help a lot in snow, mud and rain. The main idea is that when you lock transfer case your both front wheels locked to roll at the same speed, on dry pavement you need to put more force to steering to turn. It's not really noticeable unless you're doing really sharp turns like on the parking lot. On dry paved parking lot your truck just won't move if front wheels turned all the way. Personally I turn on 4hi when I feel that I might need additional stability, sometimes it's really heavy rain but mostly when I hit gravel/dirt road or it's snowing. Also when I see patches of snow on country roads I turn 4 hi, usually road is not completely dry and I'm going in 4hi until pavement is totally dry. I'd rather replace transfer case than hit a slippery patch on speed and total my truck. For the past 13 years of owning 4Runners it worked, I mean I didn't have any issues with drivetrain : ) If you're in 2wd and traction control kicks on - you definitely need 4hi. If you think about it all rock climbing is going in 4lo so transfer case is strong enough to deal with dry pavement but just don't use all the time on dry asphalt.

 

I have a 2016 SR5. You need to practice putting it in and out of 4WD because in some conditions like the light snow you experienced you may need to put it in and out frequently. Practice on grass or dirt if you can. Best to switch with your foot off the gas and the vehicle pointed straight to avoid chunks.

The vehicle has pretty crummy traction on snow in 2WD, especially with the lousy stock tires (and even with better tires) plus the 4Runner has a pretty good tug off idle so you need to be light on the throttle in 2WD on snow. Tires are a whole huge topic. I like my Michelin LTX Defenders a lot and the Pirelli Scorpions would also appeal to me (both are great street tires for all weather and fine for light offroading). Others want gnarlier tires that are better offroad. So on snow I want to be in 4WD at intersections but if the road is dry you should not be in 4WD and you really only need it to get the vehicle moving. You'll find that you have plenty of traction in rain and won't need 4WD and should not use it anyway. You will feel resistance in the steering when you are in 4WD when you shouldn't be. I suggest you go to a big empty parking lot, point the vehicle straight, put in 4WD and go forward and turn gently...so you feel the resistance in the steering. Then switch back to 2WD. Truck is sturdy snd a little binding won't hurt it a bit.

The 2WD/4WD isn't as tricky as it sounds. Just put it in 4WD when you need it like at a dead stop on snow, and put back in 2WD as soon as you don't need it unless the road is slick. Here in Michigan I had to play that game today coming out of an unplowed parking lot onto a dry road.

If you ever need the ground clearance of the 4Runner you will be glad you have it.

 

62+ mph in 4WD? Wow.
I think the fastest I've went in 4WD is around 40.

 

That’s just the max speed you can be to shift in 4WD.
You can technically drive as fast as you want (although road conditions might not permit it)