So you are one of THOSE guys. You know, one of the guys who don't like to read manuals or think you understand the 4WD operation because you had something similar 10 years ago or just wanted to "test" your 4WD on dry pavement or forgot to put it back into 2WD after having it off road in 4WD or something. I get it, which is why this thread exists. Read on:

Read the MANUAL. Read it, especially the section on how to operate your 4WD. If you don't have a manual then google it. There is also manuals available for free for your specific 4Runner. FREE. Google it.

OMG the NOISE! Hmmm, tires making a barking noise going around a tight corner on dry pavement? How about the grinding noise from underneath when trying to shift into 4LO while in park or drive? The "wrrrrrrr" noise that gets faster the faster I go? You have those noises? How about the "lurch" "lurch" lurch" movement your vehicle makes when going around corners? You have that too???? Really?

Relax. Take a deep breath. You didn't break anything. The above is what happens when you are unfamiliar with part time 4WD operation. If you have it in 4WD on dry pavement and make a turn it's gonna do all those things above. It's telling you that you are not supposed to make turns on dry pavement if you have a part time 4WD. You DEFINITELY don't want to switch it to 4LO with your locker engaged and make turns on dry pavement. It will make lots more noises haha. You still will have a tough time breaking it though.

The steps to proper 4WD engagement and operation:
1. READ THE MANUAL. Seriously. Every line on proper 4WD operation. How to shift. When to shift. When to use different modes. Do not skip a word. Google terms you are unfamiliar with.
2. Find a dirt road. Some wet or snow covered pavement. Wet grass. Any ground condition that will allow your wheels to slip easier. NOW go use that newfound intelligence you just got from reading the manual! Put it in 4WD and feel how it engages. Feel how it slips a tire when going around a sharp turn. Yes, you can still feel it even on snow covered roads.
3. If you must engage 4WD on dry roads, make sure you are going in a straight line. Gently curved is OK too. I exercise my 4WD every month or so during the summer just to keep the parts lubricated. I have a nice mile long straight stretch close by and at 40 mph I engage 4HI for that mile. At the end I slip it back into 2HI with no problems.

Now that you have read your MANUAL on proper operation, here's an excerpt from a great article:
"4WD mode works in the simplest terms thanks to a dedicated transfer case, which splits the power between the front and rear axles. Specifically, it locks the front driveshaft to the rear driveshaft, forcing equal amounts of torque from the engine to both axles, causing the front and rear axle of a car to rotate at the same speed. This provides greater traction to drivers, since it ensures power will continue to flow to the wheels on an axle with traction should wheels on the other axle slip. By the same token, though, switching back to 2WD on normal road conditions is critical to prevent potential damage from a condition known as “drivetrain binding” — when a vehicle’s axles cannot rotate at different speeds to accommodate the different distances wheels travel during events like turning."

This article can be found here Four-Wheel Drive vs All-Wheel-Drive: Everything You Need to Know and that link can be found here Are You a New or Prospective 5th Gen 4Runner Owner? Need Help Searching? Start Here! which is a sticky right here in our forum.

Bottom line: don't think you are too good or too smart to learn something when it comes to the 4Runner. It is one of the most reliable and durable vehicles on the planet but only if you know how to operate and take care of it.

This thread is stickied here Modifications, Write-Ups, Quick Links, and FAQ's

Link to the 4Runner Manual, click here

First thing I did with my 4Runner was spend about 2 hours on a dirt road with the manual out, shifting through all of the transfer case gears, and engaging all of the extra doo-dad's (A-TRAC, CRAWL, RR Locker, MTS, etc). Now, it's a walk in the park. Thanks for the post, Mod!

Haha. Love it. I came to the 4Runner as my first 4WD vehicle. I was literally that guy - I googled how to make it all work, recommendations, best practices, etc. Brought it to a local forest road and fooled around with it.

If you're new like I am, just read up on how to use it, what the parts and pieces are doing, take it slow, experiment, and practice. You'll get there.

I got a little excited Monday when I couldn't get it up a pretty steep loose sand hill at first, but succeeded after locking the rear differential. Learned another application. Haha

This is from when I can back out from the trail.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I was very familiar with 4x4 drivelines when I got my trail, but the crawl control scared the hell out of me. When I tried to engage it on my flat gravel driveway with the speed set to the lowest setting, it lurched forward, made a terrifying racket, lurched forward again, more noise.... I checked the manual, it addressed the noises and motion as being normal. Big relief-- This is a toyota, and I bought it because I was sick of poor reliability with my former vehicle offroad.

So when you try crawl control for the first time:

-Put the setting to the highest speed level to start; else you will get a big lurch when you take your foot off the brake pedal. The speed can be adjusted slower once you get moving (or once you're experienced enough to come off the brake pedal very slowly)
-try it offroad
-try it going up or down a steep hill (offroad)

It's a great tool, but 2 other people I've spoke to that have it BOTH tried it once, decided it was broken, and never used it again. I use it often when I head down the riverbank for fishing, and back up again. Great throttle control at exaggerated slow speeds. I've used it once for getting unstuck in mud and snow, and it was amazing.

When I first test drove a TEP the sales person put it in 4lo and enabled crawl control and drove all over the concrete parking lot. It was then that I decided that I would not be buying that particular vehicle. If I had engaged crawl control without knowing that it would sound like a wrench in a wood chipper I'd have crapped my pants. Not sure why dealerships don't follow these rules when testing out a vehicle with a potential client though. Even I knew that he should be running it in 4lo as he turned all over the parking lot cruising about.

My Scout has a single warning label that says "No engaging 4WD on concrete" and trust me you will have issues if you go against this. Good to know that current tech is a little more forgiving with this.

Apparently we are not done here...

Guilty.

HA! I just bought my 4Runner a couple weeks ago. When test driving a used Trail (not the vehicle I ended up with), I did throw it in 4low and engaged CRAWL. I picked a place in the lot where I could go perfectly straight up a flat incline. All manner of racket. The sales guy next me started getting visibly nervous, sweating, shifting in his seat.

After probably only 90 seconds, I shut it down and reassured him that everything would be okay. That it functioned properly. Never saw someone so freaked out.

@1engineer Wouldn't hurt to sticky this.

I did. Check out the bottom of the OP.

Haha. I first tested crawl in a used FJ in January before I bought my trail. Sales guy said it was normal, but it sounded pretty crazy to me as well.

Pretty interesting stuff.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

all of this makes sense......for many years I got used to vehicles with full time 4wheel drive with of course a center differential lock , I do prefer full time , I always wondered why the SR5 and trails were part time.....its not like it is going to save that much gas!

but yes reading the manuals before engaging the front axle is definitively the way to go
Erick.

How many points is this thread worth? I mean, poor @minimalist .

What!?! I just got here!! Y