Chuckles89
New member
saaammmmeeee!
5 speed vs auto hill descent in 4 low..
- Thread starter bling
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saaammmmeeee!
JayRolla
New member
4th gens have hill descent. Did he not know how to push the button. Lol. My brother's 4th gen does just fine in 4lo. Why was your buddy not in low?
PWD4R
New member
You shouldn't brake much off road. The only time I brake is to make a complete stop or go down something that your wheels will probably skid a little anyway like a rock. Never use it on loose gravel! If you're in low it won't be bad but honestly 4 hi shouldn't even be considered when off roading.
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Scramble
New member
LOL, He's from my NorthEast 4runner group on FB, first time I met him.
He said he never used 4lo before but I bet he uses it now!
Never thought to ask about Hill Assist since i don't have any sissy computer controls in my truck. :bounce:
Scramble
New member
Depends where you are offroading. If there's a lot of flat wooded trails between technical stuff I switch to 4/Hi.
BlackWorksInc
New member
DAC (Downhill Assist Control) is an odd bugger... you basically have to be in 4LO, 1st Gear, and have your foot off the brake the entire time. It deactivates at speeds above about 10~15mph and will shut itself off after a certain amount of time/effort so as not to overheat the ABS Solenoid Pack.
It functions by mainly manipulating the ABS Solenoid pack to "drag" the brakes in alternating pulses to keep the solenoid pack from overheating while keeping the vehicle in the lowest possible gearing. The same can be achieved by learning to modulate the brake pedal slowly, but firmly as the vehicle moves down a hill (which can become very tiring for your leg if you're doing it right on a steep hill) to apply enough braking to provide resistance, but not enough to lock up the wheels and cause a slide/sharp change in momentum.
The system sounds weird when it's working and the odd feeling of fighting yourself not to apply the brake is even weirder; but it works well. Though to be honest I use it more as a "I haven't used DAC in a while, let's do it!" thing than something I've really needed.
Manual transmission again falls into that "learning how to do it right" category as if you're too aggressive/too inexperienced you can end up stalling the engine rather than braking with it depending on the hill you're on.
You can do the same effect in an automatic, but it takes practice and understanding how the vehicle operates as the concept is similar but execution is a bit different vs. the manual.
It functions by mainly manipulating the ABS Solenoid pack to "drag" the brakes in alternating pulses to keep the solenoid pack from overheating while keeping the vehicle in the lowest possible gearing. The same can be achieved by learning to modulate the brake pedal slowly, but firmly as the vehicle moves down a hill (which can become very tiring for your leg if you're doing it right on a steep hill) to apply enough braking to provide resistance, but not enough to lock up the wheels and cause a slide/sharp change in momentum.
The system sounds weird when it's working and the odd feeling of fighting yourself not to apply the brake is even weirder; but it works well. Though to be honest I use it more as a "I haven't used DAC in a while, let's do it!" thing than something I've really needed.
Manual transmission again falls into that "learning how to do it right" category as if you're too aggressive/too inexperienced you can end up stalling the engine rather than braking with it depending on the hill you're on.
You can do the same effect in an automatic, but it takes practice and understanding how the vehicle operates as the concept is similar but execution is a bit different vs. the manual.
Would you mind sharing what you mean by this: "You can do the same effect in an automatic, but it takes practice and understanding how the vehicle operates as the concept is similar but execution is a bit different vs. the manual."
Scramble
New member
yep, after experience you dont even think about pushing the clutch to keep from stalling. It's just a natural instinct/muscle memory to get that left foot over. As long as the manual is crawlin'...it aint stallin'! :smokin:
NoVAphotog
New member
I've been wheelin a couple times now in mine so I'm still learning the ropes of climbing and not stalling. But as for downhills; I would be in 4lo, 1st gear and barely touched my brakes the whole trip(s). It was fantastic. No issues. Just old school "crawl control."
Scramble
New member
This IS odd. You would think that the whole purpose of DAC is to keep you from rolling too fast. Shutting off when you start rolling too fast seems to defeat the purpose of it. If I had an auto I would keep the DAC off & just tap the breaks as needed. I'd rather have my mind on the trail than wondering what the computer is doing.
The reason we love our manuals is that we have total control of the vehicle & can feel & hear what the trans, engine & tires are doing. Hell, I keep the stereo off in heavy rain, snow & wheelin'. I have no interest in ATRAC, DAC, XREAS or what ever. I hate when my traction control kicks in when driving my Accord in light snow. I know how to take my foot off the gas when one of my tires starts spinning. (and not hitting the brakes).
JayRolla
New member
It turns off because your going over the speed the DAC can operate at. The only way this can happen is if your hitting throttle then it auto shuts off because your not using it. 15mph is not crawling. It wont shut off if you let it do its job.
My brothers traction control in his 4th gen does wonders on the road with snow and ice. But off road it doesnt do anything but get you stuck in mud or sand because it brakes so hard. It feels like the motor is dieing. Its nice to beable to disable it on the fly once you do the wire mod.
Scramble
New member
So it will keep you from rolling too fast? Blackworks said it shut's off after a certain amount of time as to not over heat the solenoid. That sucks!
Nothing works on Ice except going slow. And that's on a flat surface, forget up or downhill. Studs & chains are illegal in NY which sucks because I live in a valley between two mountains. I'm sure you know a few mountains where you live.
I dont go out in ice, call out, take a sick day...living is more important than getting to work. Snow on the other hand, I'm out there! I'm one of the few people who gets to work during a Blizzard. :whoo:
I see the idiots, sideways up on the divider with their Tahoe's, Denali's, Expedition's etc, thinking they're invincible, speeding in 4WD with Highway tires! And I just putt putt by at 40-50mph in the right lane in 4/High saying see ya!:wave:
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JayRolla
New member
So it will keep you from rolling too fast? Blackworks said it shut's off after a certain amount of time as to not over heat the solenoid. That sucks!
Nothing works on Ice except going slow. And that's on a flat surface, forget up or downhill. Studs & chains are illegal in NY which sucks because I live in a valley between two mountains. I'm sure you know a few mountains where you live.
I dont go out in ice, call out, take a sick day...living is more important than getting to work. Snow on the other hand, I'm out there! I'm one of the few people who gets to work during a Blizzard. :whoo:
I see the idiots, sideways up on the divider with their Tahoe's, Denali's, Expedition's etc, thinking they're invincible, speeding in 4WD with Highway tires! And I just putt putt by at 40-50mph in the right lane in 4/High saying see ya!:wave:
Yes if it overheats it can shut off, but from my experience it works really good and doesnt overheat that easily. If in 1st gear/4lo the truck will still have a slow crawl so its not like you will just start rolling freely when it deactivates.
Braking it dont help, but believe me traction control does work when taking off or going around a turn.
NoVAphotog
New member
Amen.
gamefreakgc
Elite Member
I love these highly subjective threads. 
opcorn:
opcorn:
BlackWorksInc
New member
It's a bit hard to explain, but you need to learn how to apply the brakes in both speed and force. If you apply them too fast and to heavily in some cases you'll cause the wheels to break loose, even for a moment, and that will cause problems. That's particularly undesirable in situations like ice and going down steep hills, you want to "Crawl" down the hill while slowing down, if one or more tires breaks loose and/or skips even for a second it can change the way the vehicle going down the hill and strip you of control.
The first time I used it I was at five fingers in Hollister and one of the off-roading guys was like, "here's a tip, everyone baby's the brakes going down from the top edge, just let it roll naturally." Not sure if Jon was ****ing with me or not, but I let the 4Runner roll off the edge. The hill was so steep I picked up to about 10~15mph too fast for DAC to react and by the time I realized that it hadn't engaged I was barreling down the hill. Applied the brakes in slow "pulses" to make sure I don't lock them up on the silt.
Everyone was like, "damn dude!" and I was like, "So... DAC kicks of above about 10~15mph apparently" and everyone thought I was just showing off. LOL
Honestly though, I don't think I've had DAC overheat on me; even when going down the steep Truck Hill at Hollister (when it was very loose and sandy) and the 4Runner is literally just sliding down the hill (it got to the point I turned off DAC and the wheels were basically locked up and the truck just slid on the sand all the way down... that wasn't a pucker moment at all! (sarcasm).
JayRolla
New member
Where you in 4wd lo and 1st gear?
BlackWorksInc
New member
Yes, I was. I let the vehicle roll forward off the edge, the video they had basically showed it like a roller coaster cresting a hill. The initial momentum was too quick for the system to "catch" it and it quickly got up to 10mph+ where it disengaged.
It was 100% operator error and not the vehicle's fault, had I not listened to Jon I would have eased her over the edge much slower and probably tried to ride the brake a bit.
JayRolla
New member
Ohh I. I could see that being a little scary lol.
BlackWorksInc
New member
It was a "when's DAC gonna kick in? NOW would be good... OH SHIT!" :laugh:
