Help - 2nd Gen 4x4 on snow - which traction control setting?

On several occasions I've gotten stuck on a mild uphill in the snow. It felt like the truck was trying to "jump" forward but go nowhere.

Truck is 2013 TRD OR with stock BFG tires, with 4HI already engaged and no traction control switch pressed. Synthetic diff and transfer case fluids have <5K, truck is well maintained.

From my understanding this truck is equipped with electronic limited slip differential, which operates as an open differential while the computer applies brakes to the spinning wheels of either axle so that torque is transferred to a gripping wheel.

Also from my understanding when no traction control button is pressed on the dashboard, the electronic limited slip diff is by default engaged.

Please chime in on this but the "jumpy" feel is because of the brakes being applied alternatively to each slipping tire by the computer, correct?

Is there a known traction control setting that works best for snow?
OffRoad model has a multitude of such switches. It thought that except for the rear locker, these switches tend to turn off traction control and should be left alone on the snow. Well either I'm wrong on this, or the ground was so frozen that there was just no way out of this.

No, I did not try the rear locker and I know I should have gone in 4LO and used the locker. But I'm curious if any other traction setting is known to work well in the snow.

 

Try atrac

 

first push turns off the first light continue to hold for approximately 10 seconds and turns off the other part. If it gets really slippery I push the button then hold and turn all of it off. Seems to work in most vehicles.

 

If you were off roading use low range diff lock

 

Which button?

 

Traction Control... on my 07 it's the one on the bottom between mirror and DAC.

 

Was it snow or packed ice?

If you are on the bfg rugged trails I feel confident they are your problem. Apologies if anyone else is in love with those but I found them to be miserable in inclement weather. There is hardly any siping which is what you need for packed snow or ice.

ATRAC will only engage in 4-low. I would certainly give that a try if this is a driveway or some place that is safe to stop but if it is a normal street on your commute I don't think I would bother. If you were in 2-hi you could press the traction control off switch which can help if you need some wheel slip but this doesn't sound like that.

If you have to get up it, I would use 4-low, rear locker, no atrac, and plan on mashing the gas all the way up with wheel spin galore. I don't like electronic traction aids in snow other than the abs on ice. I think your tires are letting you down, not the truck.

my driveway is my bona fides for commenting on snowy driving.

 

If you push the traction control button once, it gives you the limited slip option but 'shuts off' the power limiting function. In other words, it won't reduce your engine power.
I agree on the tires. I have Michelin Defenders and they are heavily siped. They are great in the snow.

 

Default mode, 2wd or 4wd hi, is engine power management. (No push of the button.) Another words, the computer cuts the engine power to prevent too much wheel spin. 1 quick push of the button in 2wd turns on auto LSD (brakes applied to spinning tire) and turns off engine power management. In 4wd hi it does the same, except the auto LSD light doesn't turn on, it turns on the trac off light.

 

More then likely its the shit tires. I run a winter set.

 

This

 

Had BFG rugged trails on an 04 Cherokee a while back. They were fine in the summer but probably the worst winter tire I've ever driven on.

That is until I got my tacoma with the stock Dunflops

 

Full Throttle.

 

This seems reasonable. OP, if you're on stock tires then they're almost 4yrs old? How many miles? Probably producing a good bit of slippage due to age/wear that the traction control is trying to compensate for.

 

I may be wrong, but i believe the engine regulation turns back on when above 35 mph if you hit the auto lsd once. Im not sure what happens when you do the "stopped and hold button for 10s" mode. Maybe this keeps the engine regulation off regardless of speed?

In my experience, 4wd hi has always been the best mode in snow. If you are still experiencing slippage to the point of you cant go anywhere, then tires should be on your to do list. my $0.02

 

It's those junk stock tires. Trust me. All the electronic gimmicks/aids in the world won't make up for inferior winter tires. (Not winter tires at all)

Get some tires at least with the winter snow flake rating or even better specific winter tires.

 

This. Deep snow is one of those terrains where A-Trac is not a good substitute for a locker.

 

I go 4H with ABS off in the snow, which also disables all the other traction control doo-dads and allows me to actually stop if needed. Cooper ST MAXX's make it like a tank.

Only once i've gotten stuck as you've described and I put on the locker and ATRAC, problem solved.

 

Deep snow is one of those places where the back wheels don't help you at all, even if you have a locker.
Tell you a funny story though, got myself stuck plowing the driveway up north a few years ago (Note: you always plow in 4L, never H except if its light snow and paved). So I hit the "yellow wire mod" switch, and it just backed right out.
Trac *does* work.

 

maybe its just me, but anytime ive tried 4wd lo in snow its just gotten me into trouble. too much torque to deal with