So in all fairness I love my new powerboost truck. This thing has been meant or exceeded all my expectation accept one. The braking system on slick roads. I had a 2018 2.7l before this truck and never had these issues with it on slick roads. A few weeks ago we had a couple of small snow events and there were a couple of small icy spots on the roads. If I had my foot on the brake and the back tires hit the icy spot they would lock up and when they hit dry pavement it felt like it would tear the back end off the truck. I was only going about 20 mph when this happened. Fast forward till last night. We had a good snow storm hit and the roads were just solid sheets of ice. If the truck even thought I was going to touch the brake the back end would lock up and start sliding out from behind me. I never had this issue on my 2018. Made for a crazy drive home last night. Now I was in normal driving mode and did not have the 4wd locked in. This morning I was driving down my road (in slippery mode and 4wd locked in) and it felt better. My road had not had any salt placed down yet. Once I got to the main road I took the truck out of 4wd because they had already salted the road. Has anyone else had this kind of issue? If so do you have any suggestions? I have the stock hankook tires on my truck and really don't want to go out right now and spend the extra money on a new set of tires.

 

The stock Hankooks I had on my 2019 were awful in winter. By "awful" I mean I had to be in 4x4 in any type of snow not to slip all over the place. Once in 4x4 they were fine, almost good. I personally bought a second set of rims and some Duratracs to swap out for winter. On my 2021, I have the Goodyear wranglers which so far seem okay. Just had some real snow this morning and I did not experience the slip like I did with Hankooks. I also have not experienced the lock up you are talking about. My commute is 10 miles of country road and divided boulevard at 55mph with several stop lights and all of my braking was nice and smooth. This is unlikely, but not impossible, did you by chance accidentally hit the E locker button? Thats my only gripe on the 21's so far. I would rather pull out than push in (in this case only, if you catch my drift) anywho, maybe that has something to do with it.

 

I run a dedicated winter setup on all my vehicles and it makes a world of a difference. That said, I wonder if the regenerative braking process is at play here at all.

 

Sounds like a truck with no ABS. Your situation is the very thing ABS is meant to deal with. Try going to an icy area or parking lot (away from traffic please) and attempt to lock up the brakes...do the brakes modulate or lock up?

 

I find it hard to justify a winter setup on my truck. My 2018 with the goodyears on it drove really well in the snow and ice. Hardly ever put it in 4wd. I was wondering if the regenerative braking was causing the issue.

 

I didn't feel the pedal modulate but I also wonder if the ABS does that anymore. If I let off the gas the back end would just start to fish tale a little. It was hard to tell because I was trying to steer the truck to the side of the road into the gravel to get some grip. The couple of areas were the back tires seemed to lock up were very small ice spots. Maybe a couple of feet long at most but the back of the truck hopped a little when I hit the dry pavement. I don't know if this is just something I need to get use to or if there is actually a potential issue with the truck. The brakes on this powerboost are very different then the brakes on my 2018.

 

Understood. I am in MN (I see you are in MI) and look at it this way - it is added cheap insurance for my family and my vehicles. We are always on the road to school, sports, cabin, etc. and I would rather have snow tires and not need them vs. need them and not have them. They really shine in two areas; 1. The bitter cold stretches we get in Jan/ Feb. The all-seasons (no seasons) or winter rated AT tires I have run in the past end up having as much grip as a hockey puck when it get near or below 0F since the rubber compound just is not designed for those temps, and 2. In snow and ice. The added sipes in snow tires make a world of a difference for traction.

An added benefit (or justification) is I get 2x the mileage out of both sets of tires since they are on duty about 6 months each.

 

Valid points. I might just have to bite the bullet and get a set.

 

I've had great experiences with TireRack buying snow wheel/tire combos - good prices and they show up ready to bolt on.

 

The Powerboost regenerative braking (rear only when in 2wd) is definitely a factor here. Switching to slippery mode you will notice that the trucks ability to regeneratively brake is dramatically reduced. You can tell that by looking at the at the EV Coach in the instrument cluster. From owners manual page 154:

A green rectangular box could also display that shows the amount of power that can be recaptured by the regenerative braking system and returned to the high voltage battery.

When the power level displays in the rectangular box, it is green which indicates that the regenerative braking system is being used to slow down your vehicle and return the maximum amount of energy to the high voltage battery.

When the power level displays outside of the rectangular box, it is white which indicates both regenerative and conventional braking systems are in use.

When you lef off the gas some regen occurs. When you apply "Normal" brakes the regen system gets first shot. Pressing harder the line eventually moves left of the box (white) and you are now scrubbing off speed with friction/heat. In normal mode the box is much bigger than in slippery and other modes with 4WD. Switching to slippery tells the truck to back off on regenerative braking. Staying in "Normal" tells the truck to regen the max possible... streets and traction are good.

I think the behavior changes somewhat in Normal with 4 Auto or 4WD.. but I have not had an opportunity to test those configurations in a low traction environment. But I am sure our northern friends have.... What did you guys discover?.