First day in snow for Taco - what do you do?

A belt buckle North of Houston on the way to Dallas. I wasn't lying about the Google. I like knowing of places.

(Belt buckle being an official measurement on whatever scale I had Google maps on)

 

I don’t live there. I wasn’t going to defend it. It’s not a bad place. Cost of living is half what Houston is but you can drive there in under an hour.

 

Used to be just north of Buffalo.. Good thing about there is that most people are competent enough to drive in the snow, and the municipalities know how to remove it.. I've moved to Long Island and it's a disaster here if just an inch falls.

 

First day of snow, drove around on snowy roads in 4H. Went to buy new hunting boots and after I turned off nannies and did some 2WD powerslides in an empty lot.

If the roads are covered I'll generally have it in 4WD. Slowing down is important, but don't be that guy going 20mph in a 55mph when theres barely any snow and clear tracks.

I'll do 55-60 in 4WD, but only in certain circumstances. Completely snow covered roads, no slush, no traffic, good visibility, gentle curves.

 

Were you there in 78ish? I grew up on long point in lake Erie then. We had 25 ft drifts, and buffalo got pummeled worse.

 

Arizona?

 

Nope, that was a good 8 years before I was born lol.

 

The only possible use for 4 lo is if you are going down a very steep hill and want to be in 1st gear lo range so you don't have to use brakes. If anything it hurts traction. In fact from a stop starting in 2nd gear instead of 1st gear will prevent wheel spin. Which you want to prevent. Wheel spin heats up the tires and causes the snow/ice to melt. Then you have a thin layer of water between the tires and snow. Keep the rubber cold and it grips the snow much better.

Locking the rear diff is generally a bad idea. If you're stuck and need some extra traction to get moving maybe. But unlock the diff as soon as you start moving. A locked diff will cause the rear end to slide to one side instead of tracking straight once underway.

If it is safe to drive over 20-25 mph you don't need 4X4. If you need 4X4 it isn't safe to drive over 20-25 mph. The biggest problem is stopping. 4X4 doesn't help stop you, slow down.

Use 4X4 as needed. They have a switch on the dash and it takes 2 seconds to go between 4X2 and 4X4 or back to 4X2. Road conditions vary depending on what has been plowed, melted, frozen over, or just snow. Learn to read conditions and shift into 4X4 BEFORE you need it. Shift out when you don't.

 

Snow vagina

 

First snow run in the SR5 I bought 15 days ago. 3 inches of packed snow. Still coming down, no ice. Central Rhode Island hills. Started in 4 H
Handled phenomenally
Almost all highway. Sequenceial shift in 4. Bumped lower when needed to slow down and stop.
Couldn't be happier.
Not an overly confident driver in snow but have been doing it for 22 years. And know what to do.

 

Did you mean West Virginia? No, this was in buffalo. Lol

 

No, I mean the pic above looks like a snow vagina

 

This was our November Storm of 2014, I’m 6’2” for reference.

 

At the time of this posting, 36 members and 27 guests. Holy crap, guests. Register. It's simple to do, and helps in tracking thread viewing, if nothing else

 

I was told a long time ago by a very notable professional driver: Quote- Beginners tend to save 4 wheel drive.....for what?

I took this to heart from that moment forward....use your 4hi, that's what you bought it for. If traction improves and you no longer need it...disengage it, until then, it's not hurting a thing and only adding safety to your commute. IMO only. FWIW. YMMV. Outlaw out.

 

First thing take all the traction control stuff off, throw it in sport mode and have fun

 

What is this sport mode you speak of? Is this when you don't punch the clutch til 5500?

 

I wish the Tacoma had a sport mode.

 

I love posts from people in the US panicking about a bit of snowfall. It hit -20°C here and has been snowing for 4 days non stop. Much more to come!