Is there a true AWD version in these trucks?
Or are you talking auto 4wd?
Auto 4wd is not AWD.
I would not run auto 4wd unless the roads were somewhat questionable.
Also 2wd will reduce wear on parts and give better gas mileage.

 

Yes, this is what we are discussing here... My 2012 Harley-Davidson and I believe the Limited have the same system... Full time AWD just like cars... etc...

 

It's really not a full time AWD like Subaru or Porsche have in their vehicle. What it is, as stated above, is electronically controlled, automatic 4wd. Big difference.

I personally wouldn't run in it here in Texas. There's really no need. If you're driving so hard you keep breaking loose the tires, you just needed to ease off the gas pedal a little. It's not a race to get where your going. In my experience, the traction control works extremely well. Those tires won't spin very long anyway, before it gets everything worked out. Spinning your tires going around a corner with the auto 4wd on is going to break something sooner then later. That system is designed to help keep you on the road in adverse conditions, not providing extra traction as you race from stop light to stop light.

Save it for those rare days it rains here and the streets become slippery with the oil coating them.

 

If you have the option of 4a you can run that setting 24/7 365 days a year or until the Chicago Cubs win the World Series. Now having said that it is like any other mechanical component, if it is abused it could have problems.

I have used mine on a dirt road to test it out. It works just the way it should. Gives the front end power when the rear starts to slip. Yes 4h will do that also but in 4a you can turn as sharp as you want on pavement and not get the 4 wheel drive front end hop.

I have to say I really like the 4a option. I love having it on when it is raining and not worrying about it when I hit the dry roads.

 

That is why I asked "Is there a true AWD version in these trucks?
Or are you talking auto 4wd?"

AWD is completely different than an automatic 4wd. Even a 4wd with a center diff is NOT AWD.

Either way, I would run most of the time in 2wd until there was questionable conditions.

 

I understand where you're coming from and agree with you for the most part. I also realize that most truck owners actual use their trucks and consider them a truck for hauling and pulling but there's a few of us that focus more on the performance. This is why you have Supercharged Harley's, Lightnings and now the new Tremor. I've created a standard for auto's and that's Ford so unless Ford makes it, I don't consider it and that's help me slow down on purchases for the last few years. I didn't want an off-road truck so I didn't look at the Raptor but it has the biggest performance after market and from what I understand, the motors are the same (Raptor/Harley 6.2L).

Where I'm going with this... I can smoke just about anything from Red light to Red light in the rain... the 4A is more then just 4WD (I've had a few Jeeps as well) and I feel like I can compare the differences here. I'm able to launch WOT and never touch the traction control. It's a blast if you haven't tried it, no way can a Shelby or Vette touch that kind of take off on a wet road. I can see on the display how it's applying the power and you can see and feel it pull harder from the front tires and then move slowly towards the back... it's a amazing how fast and smooth it works without even a wheel spin!

Now on dry roads, it's still a lot better then with it in 2WD but I can't tell if I'm losing HP by pointing power to all four? Common sense tells me I would be?

Who cares right? Well, if I pull up next to a Dodge or Chevy, I don't want to worry about if I should had put it in 4A or not, once that light turns green?

I really did look for a 2WD only version of my truck for the very same reason... they only made 500 in 2012... Kind of wish I didn't have the the 4A or 4X4 options!

Problems to have, I know!

Thank you for taking the time to reply!

 

BTW... Sorry my reply was condescending! I realize now what you where trying to say.

 

I know I post the link earlier but please read this and let me know your thoughts:

Last year, Ford made manufacturing the F-150 simpler by reducing the number of transfer cases available to just two units--one that offers an "all-wheel-drive" setting (for Lariat and higher packages) and one that does not (for XLT and lower packages, and Raptor). The new transfer case has a setting called "4A," which stands for automatic all-wheel drive. This setting allows the vehicle to effectively have a full-time all-wheel-drive mode--you can just set it and forget it. However, it should be noted that Ford’s all-wheel -drive mode is different from GM’s 4WD transfer cases for full-size pickups and SUVs. The Ford system does not send power to all four wheels until it actually detects some amount of slip. The "Auto" setting on GM trucks sends power to all four wheels all the time, but can vary the proportion instantaneously based on multiple sensor input.

One of the advantages of Ford’s new, smarter, transfer case is that the 4A setting effectively runs like a normal rear-drive vehicle, running more efficiently, in typical high-traction situations. But as soon as any wheel slip is detected, front or rear, the front drive axle engages like a light switch until the sensors determine that front drive is no longer needed. Then the system goes back to a conventional rear drive feel.

This is in contrast to the 4-High or 4-Low settings, which basically lock the center differential and split 50/50 the available engine torque between the front and rear drive shafts. The front axle is open, while the Harley package includes the rear-locking differential that can be engaged only in low range, which makes sense for a rock crawler but not really for a sportier performance truck (especially with 22-inch rims and low-profile tires).

 

I agree, 4A pulls like a freight train.

 

Is it different?? Looks like my system is the same as what would come in the SHO? I need to learn more about AWD and what Subaru and others use and how it all works, as this is my first AWD anything but I have to say... even without snow, mud or sand... I'm hooked!

Using a combination of software and sensors, the new system gathers data from 25 external signals, including wheel speed, accelerator pedal position and steering-wheel angle.

“We’re using AWD for more than just traction, we’re using it to improve handling for a competitive advantage over those who aren’t using AWD that way,” says Joe Torres, senior AWD engineer.

The new system is the result of the One Ford strategy focused on leveraging the auto maker’s global resources, he says, which was implemented by CEO Alan Mulally shortly after his arrival in 2006.

Early Ford AWD systems were sourced from Swedish-based supplier Haldex, which at the time also supplied systems to Volvo, owned by Ford until 2010.

“We had different AWD systems for specific markets,” Torres says. “Now we have one-size-fits-all common hardware on small and large vehicles, and we’re getting economies of scale and synergies from a resource perspective.”

The main components of the new AWD system, developed in conjunction with supplier partner JTEKT, are located in the rear axle that is produced at Ford’s Sterling Axle Plant in Sterling Heights, MI.

http://wardsauto.com/vehicles-amp-te...l-drive-system