How many lbs do you put in your bed for winter driving?

nowadays i agree but if you ever had a mini truck in the 80's empty and in the snow, you'd see where this notion came from.

 

Needed? No, but in my experience it does help. I have four bags of tube sand back there (200 pounds or so)

We get really bad frost heaves upending roads which are already terrible. The ass end will get thrown around and bounce up and down even at moderately slow speeds which means it's always a risk to break free if that happens. The extra weight seems to help keep that in check.

I don't find that it helps much with raw traction though, I still need to put it into 4wd to get up my slightly inclined dirt driveway if it is covered in snow.

 

This is what I'm hoping for. I've always put sand bags in the bed of my trucks but the topper should take care of the problem.

 

This is an over simplification. Weight distribution between the front and rear axles, not total weight of the vehicle, is what makes the most difference in performance. This is vehicle engineering 101 stuff here. Pick-up trucks are not designed to perform as well with an empty bed.

 

So you are saying I can add more weight to an existing platform without making any modifications and still stop in the same distance?

 

Ding, ding, ding for the win!

 

Maybe I don't know what I'm saying.

I'm not a vehicle engineer or a physicist but I will suggest that where the weight is added will make a difference in the effect it has on stopping distance and overall performance. For example, if you take 200 lbs, adding it to an empty bed would yield better overall performance (including stopping distance) compared to adding it to the front end. Prove me wrong

 

Depends on the women at the bar during last call.

 

Someone should do this test with pick-up trucks with weight in the bed and without weight in the bed!

 

Easily lol. Ke=1/2mv^2. That little "m" is mass...

 

You are a funny man.

 

In my experience adding a bit of weight to the bed doesn't really affect stopping distance. That would be like worrying about your stopping distance if you have a passenger. Adding weight over the rear wheels just helps with traction when starting from a stop on slippery roads so you don't need to use 4wd

 

Good winter tires

/thread

 

No, it really does, just like adding adding the weight of a passenger does. Maybe not much, but it does. Maybe it only adds one foot to the stopping distance. Not much right? Until it takes you 78 feet to stop and that pole is 77 feet away lol.
Seriously though, most people just don't think when they do stuff, meaning, in this case, adding weight will give them better traction. I totally and wholeheartedly agree. But, they stop thinking there! They need to also know that the stopping distance will be greater and their efficiency (mpg) will be less.

 

We have snow here already and it is doing pretty great.

 

That's why I always take a dump in the morning.

I try to split the difference between the extra stopping distance and not having to wear by brown pants.

 

Love your avatar. My dog would love to play with yours I'm sure.

 

I don't think the weight of an adult in the back of the truck is going hurt my fuel economy that much, or greatly affect stopping . If that's the case, better think twice before loading the family in the vehicle on a snowy day. Also, I would say the stock weight distribution of our trucks is designed with the understanding that weight will be added to the rear for all types of applications. This explains why people on here are saying their SUV's go better in the snow than our trucks. SUV's are weighted more evenly than pickups.

For me, it's all about prevention....not correction. I find switching the 4x4 on every time the going gets tough does not help fix the problem....traction loss in the rear. There alot of pro's to adding weight to the back. More traction, less risk of the back end breaking free, softer ride, easier on the tires, less need for 4WD equals a much safer ride. The cons....fuel economy. I would think running around in 4WD would be less economical than a little weight in the ass end.

Definitely worth the trade off for me.

This is all secondary to winter tires of course.

 

He said it right at the begining. Transfer case braking. A 4x4 will lock up the same as a 4x2. With same brake set up.