So I just got a 2010 FX4, which is my first 4x4 vehicle. After reading the manuals warnings about 4WD not being intended for dry pavement, I did some digging online and come to understand that while driving on pavement isn't necessarily going to damage anything if you drive in a straight line, turns can cause some serious damage. And 4WD really should only be engaged in off roading or poor road conditions. While the reasoning behind this makes sense to me, I had a couple of general questions regarding the use of my 4WD, and was hoping someone could shed some light on the subject for me.

First, if using 4WD on dry pavement can be so dangerous for the vehicle, what is the recommended use in poor driving conditions like icy roads? I worry about engaging the 4WD because some of the time I'm likely to be on a piece of pavement that doesn't have ice on it. Also, does this mean that I need to wait until I'm actually on the poor road condition before I can engage 4WD? This seems to slightly take away from the advantages of having a 4WD vehicle since I'm probably going to already be sliding before I can engage it.

Second, I'd read somewhere that it's good to engage the 4WD every so often, like once a month or so, to keep the drive train lubricated and give it some use every so often. Has anyone else heard anything to that effect? And if this is true, would I be ok engaging 4WD on a straight stretch of road for like 50 ft and then turning it back off?

 

it is ok to engage it on dry pavement for a short while but yea, stay away from sharp turns and such. icy or muddy roads are both good situations to use 4wd as well as before entering large mud holes. i wouldnt advise trying to turn on the 4x4 while mid slide on ice or snow. i would concentrate on corrective steering to try and save the front and/or rear quarter panels on my new baby its also a good ides like it said to try and use it once a month or so. i like findin a dirt road and just cruisin with the 4x4 on trying not to go too fast for it.

 

If there is snow or ice put it on if you feel you need it. Years in Alaskan winters with 4wd vehicles from clean roads onto iced over parking lots and I never heard a 4wd dying because of that, it just isn't recommended in dry pavement, which really should read sunny clear conditions. I think the lawyers got too much into that statement.

Yes you should run it every once in a while. Just down a straight 50ft clean stretch of road? Probably not good. Find some dirt but I don't think monthly is needed IMO.
I would only run in 4wd when I had too. That meant usually 6 months or more in 2wd.

 

Don't freak out too much on the whole "not intended for dry pavement" thing. No, I wouldn't go speeding around the Interstate in four wheel high, but it won't hurt a damned thing to drive it around, even on dry pavement, as long as you aren't doing a lot of full-lock (meaning extremely tight) turns. Definitely don't drive in four wheel low or with the rear end locked (if you have the electronic locking differential), of course.

I've had various 4WD or AWD vehicles for over 40 years and haven't ever damaged any one of them. You just can't be stupid about it.

 

Thanks for all the insight guys. So bottom line is, there's no reason to use it on a dry day anyway so just don't do it. As far as worrying about damaging it if I happen to be on a patch of dry road on a snowy day, I should be fine as long as I'm not taking any tight turns.

 

Yes, absolutely, yes. I've accidentally driven my 96 Explorer on 4WD High on dry pavement during the summer for quite a while and nothing happened. I thought you weren't supposed to drive on dry pavement on 4WD Low but you could on 4WD High, I'm pretty sure the manual in my Explorer says that, I'll have to check the manual in my truck now.

 

Realistically there is no such thing as dry pavement in winter anyways, so I wouldn't worry about that transition from icy to "dry". There will always be a micro thin layer of frost or ice on the road that will allow for a bit of slip and give. As a rule, in the summer unless I am in a mud hole, my 4x4 is never engaged at all. Using it once in a while is a good plan, but every month might be a bit extreme. I follow the rule of thumb to use it when I think of it, say if I happen to be on a dirt road.
Try not to worry about it too much and enjoy the 4x4 capabilities. Especially when the snow is piled up and you're cruising past all the cars that are stuck

 

Unfortunatly you are confusing 4x4 with AWD.

So long as the surface you are on has the ability to let your tires slip (dirt, grass, mud, snow, ice etc) then you are just fine and dandy. Will you hurt anything if you accidentally bump it into 4hi, no.

Here is something you can do for fun to test your truck out. Go to an empty parking lot some night and put your truck in 4hi. Drive it around a bit, then slowly make a sharp turn like you were turning right at an intersection. You'll feel your truck bind and buck as you make the turn. You're not going to hurt anything, just don't make a habit of doing this.

Any time you're in 4x4 and don't need to be...you're wasting gas. So all in all, don't worry about it, use 4x4 when you're uncomfortable and think you need it.

 

Another thing to keep in mind: Having 4x4 has been known to give people a false sense of security. Don't let it get to your head. Sometimes when you get stuck, the 4x4 will get you in deeper than if you were just 2 wheeling, assuming you don't make it out of the ditch or mudhole
Also, in winter driving, it's basically there to get you rolling along from a stoplight or whatever. At cruising speed, you're just as likely to spin out in 4 as you would in 2. I should add, 4x4 contributes pretty much zero to stopping in an emergency situation. But let your ABS do the work here like normal.
Just a little insight. Not sure if it helps. But I've seen a lot of city boys buried in the ditch during snow storms relying on false security thinking they could still go 70 on I35 since they had 4x4. Lol! Take Care, and good wheeling!

 

x2.... someone that knows how to drive a truck can go farther and safer in 2wd than the normal everyday driver in a 4wd...