Awd Or 4Wd

[grahamtdi]

Hi all

can anybody explain to a newbie the difference between awd and 4wd .I have a rav4.2 vvti and have been told its not a

real 4wd.

thanks.

[Davrav]

Hi all

can anybody explain to a newbie the difference between awd and 4wd .I have a rav4.2 vvti and have been told its not a

real 4wd.

thanks.

Hi Graham and welcome to the club.

I think this explains the basics fairly well:

LINK

You need Anchorman if you want the really tekkie stuff.

Enjoy your RAV

[Big Kev]

Aye Graham....ye will talk to these Freelander / Landrover drivers. SOMEBODY better qualified than me to do so will be answering you in the not too distant future, but for now believe me you're driving a very clever 4 wheel drive motor vehicle.(Unless you've got one of these new fankled 2 wheel drive Ravs....?)

Such a pity Anchorman's age precludes his staying up beyond 9.00pm.........

Big Kev

....and also forgot that Davrav can type faster than me, regardless of HIS age....

[Davrav]

but for now believe me you're driving a very clever 4 wheel drive motor vehicle

Big Kev

....and also forgot that Davrav can type faster than me, regardless of HIS age....

Dead right Kev, does it all for you - there's some real smart Hamsters under there working out when to pedal those wheels.

[anchorman]

Welcome to the club Graham.

Take no notice of that Big Kev, he's from another country called Scotland where that nice Gordon Brown comes from.

If you look under your RAV you will see drive shafts to the front wheels and drive shafts to the rear wheels and that makes it a 4WD if ever there was one. The term AWD really means the same thing and you will find your RAV surprisingly good in the snow. Your RAV is permanent 4WD in other words the wheels are always driving and if it is one with oblong foglights rather than round it has a limited slip rear diff which will make it better still. The newer 4.3s have a computer controlled clutch on the input to the rear axle and for some of the time it reverts to 2WD to improve economy.

I guess what somebody is referring to when they say yours is not really a 4WD is that it is considered a "soft roader" and is not fully equipped to go off road like a traditional Land Rover which has a third diff and a low ratio gearbox. They are "proper" 4WD but are the most undignified and badly built vehicles on the planet - a very agricultural device.

Its "horses for courses".

Regards

[grahamtdi]

Thanks gentlemen most helpful

[Mike5100]

Welcome to the club Graham.

Take no notice of that Big Kev, he's from another country called Scotland where that nice Gordon Brown comes from.

If you look under your RAV you will see drive shafts to the front wheels and drive shafts to the rear wheels and that makes it a 4WD if ever there was one. The term AWD really means the same thing and you will find your RAV surprisingly good in the snow. Your RAV is permanent 4WD in other words the wheels are always driving and if it is one with oblong foglights rather than round it has a limited slip rear diff which will make it better still. The newer 4.3s have a computer controlled clutch on the input to the rear axle and for some of the time it reverts to 2WD to improve economy.

I guess what somebody is referring to when they say yours is not really a 4WD is that it is considered a "soft roader" and is not fully equipped to go off road like a traditional Land Rover which has a third diff and a low ratio gearbox. They are "proper" 4WD but are the most undignified and badly built vehicles on the planet - a very agricultural device.

Its "horses for courses".

Regards

Very apt Anchorman, as I 'helped' my daughter buy a 53 4.2 Rav diesel, so that she can tow her horse to some events she wants to compete in. She wanted the 3 door, but it's a good job the only one we could find locally was a 5-door, as I've subsequently worked out that she probably would not have been able to tow even a single horse box with the 3-door. However, now I'm slightly nervous about this thread which is implying that the 4wd the Rav uses may not get her in and out of the fields she might have to go to.

Mike

[bitman]

the tow capabillity is depending on the specs from the factory, in your case toyota. for a rav 4 that isn't that much hence for me the reason swapping the 5 drs rav 4 for a l200 truck. but my boat (total 2400kg) is may be more heavy then a horse box?

driving in the fields can be a challenge for everybody but the permanent 4wd as the 4.2 rav 4 has will help. the only problem with the 4.2 is that it doesn't has diff lock so when one of the wheels starts to spin your stuck but if she is with other people with 4x4 there will be always some one to give a hand.

there is a trick that if one of the rear wheels starts to spin use a bit of hand brake to stop that spinning wheel from spinning and gaining grip again ;)

[Mike5100]

yeah ... that's what I thought or hoped. 90% of the time she'll be OK - in fact much better off than the people with saloon cars, and for the 10% of the time when it's really bad, someone with a serious off-roader will be able to tow her trailer to the road. Just done a check and she will be legal to tow a pretty big caravan that I was thinking of getting, so her and a boyfriend would be able to borrow it. Your boat must be a fair size to tow Bitman.

Mike

[bitman]

yup, 26ft cruise racer with lifting keel

[anchorman]

However, now I'm slightly nervous about this thread which is implying that the 4wd the Rav uses may not get her in and out of the fields she might have to go to.

Mike

Mike

I wouldn't worry too much because you will be surprised just where that thing will go. Although there is no 3rd diff lock the front and rear axles are permanently engaged and the vehicle will only become stuck when one front and one rear wheel spin. If it has VSC the traction control will intervene at that stage and help further. The biggest downfall there is the lack of a low box so she needs to practice the skill of fully engaging the clutch and maintaining low revs to avoid making the clutch hot or she will have it smelling and trust me it will give the inside of the horse box a run for its money when we talk about smell!

[Mike5100]

However, now I'm slightly nervous about this thread which is implying that the 4wd the Rav uses may not get her in and out of the fields she might have to go to.

Mike

Mike

I wouldn't worry too much because you will be surprised just where that thing will go. Although there is no 3rd diff lock the front and rear axles are permanently engaged and the vehicle will only become stuck when one front and one rear wheel spin. If it has VSC the traction control will intervene at that stage and help further. The biggest downfall there is the lack of a low box so she needs to practice the skill of fully engaging the clutch and maintaining low revs to avoid making the clutch hot or she will have it smelling and trust me it will give the inside of the horse box a run for its money when we talk about smell!

It has got the oblong foglamps mentioned earlier, but how do we know whether it's got VSC? .... I can't even work out (from the book) whether it's got a 6 cd player or just a single (the controls seem to indicate a multi CD, but I don't think it is). It's a 53 GX by the way

Mike

[anchorman]

6 disc changer would be under the passenger seat. I would have to trawl a bit to see if the GX has VSC but I'm off to work now so maybe somebody else can check (I think it might be on the VX's).

It does have a LSD which is a good compromise.