Can I add 4x4 auto to my Ram?

[merl]

Get limited slip works good dont need 4x4 as much

 

[BellevilleRam]

Trade it in !

Not an option. I’ve put too much money in upgrades to trade it and get nothing for it.

 

[jws123]

Mine has 4x4 auto option i never use it because it kind of sucks mine has a vibration/feels funny when its on and when your really stuck doesn't help much always wind up in 4x4 low/high. Also i never really even need 4x4 unless i have 1ft of snow or extreme mud sounds like you need better tires?

 

[BellevilleRam]

Mine has 4x4 auto option i never use it because it kind of sucks mine has a vibration/feels funny when its on and when your really stuck doesn't help much always wind up in 4x4 low/high. Also i never really even need 4x4 unless i have 1ft of snow or extreme mud sounds like you need better tires?

It could be the way I drive and having the Pedal Commander still set in the Sport mode that doesn’t help. My tires are awesome! It’s mostly when the roads are wet that I’m getting the wheel spin when aggressively taking off to merge into traffic. I am running 17x12.5x35” Falken Wildpeak tires with the pressure lowered when not towing.

 

[kurek]

Lot of opinions.. well I have the 3 position transfer case and this is far from being my first 4wd OR AWD vehicle.. I get the plus and minus of each.

My last 4wd had it all -RWD, true 4low, true 4H lock, viscous + full engagement center diff AWD (no clutches, no bias, no hesitation) , and a selectable rear locker. I would love to get a transfer case like that in my Ram.

It seems like the two easiest routes are either swap the transfer case + switch panel + AlphaOBD it like some have suggested, or look at getting the helical LSD that's now apparently available for 1500's. Or both if you can budget for it!

 

[jws123]

It could be the way I drive and having the Pedal Commander still set in the Sport mode that doesn’t help. My tires are awesome! It’s mostly when the roads are wet that I’m getting the wheel spin when aggressively taking off to merge into traffic. I am running 17x12.5x35” Falken Wildpeak tires with the pressure lowered when not towing.

I have a heavy foot aswell I use to have the same issue until i got new tires I Fking love the a/t tires I just got best tires i ever owned. I will check the brand tomorrow they cost me $950 but well worth i can take turns/take off 10x better now minimal to no slippage when roads are wet. Before this i had stock tires and would slide all over lol.

 

[Quyonmob]

I’d rather not have all that extra weight in my truck for the few times I need the front wheel traction to help me pull into traffic my friend. I guess coming from the AWD car I drove before getting the Ram, I miss not needing to deal with wheel spin. As I mentioned, when there’s snow, I’ll put the truck into 4 wheel lock and keep it there. It’s for the few times I go to turn left from my building into the busy main road that I can’t afford to have unexpected rear wheel spin. I’m afraid of getting t boned. But I also can’t keep the truck in 4 wheel drive for fear of burning up clutches when turning on dry roads. Traffic is too busy for me to be looking down at my switches to go from 4 wheel back to 2 wheel drive hence my desire for that to be an automatic process. Only 4 wheel drive when needed without me having to touch anything.

But you don’t have clutches to burn up.

 

[BellevilleRam]

But you don’t have clutches to burn up.

I am the first to admit that I have little knowledge when it comes to vehicles and their workings. I suppose if I DID use 4 wheel auto there would be the possibility of drivetrain binding/ grinding if the roads suddenly went from slippery to dry again quickly?

 

[Tim Garceau]

I am the first to admit that I have little knowledge when it comes to vehicles and their workings. I suppose if I DID use 4 wheel auto there would be the possibility of drivetrain binding/ grinding if the roads suddenly went from slippery to dry again quickly?

Tires and axles are cheaper to fix usually. NV246 transfer case $350-600+labor swap.

 

[Quyonmob]

I am the first to admit that I have little knowledge when it comes to vehicles and their workings. I suppose if I DID use 4 wheel auto there would be the possibility of drivetrain binding/ grinding if the roads suddenly went from slippery to dry again quickly?

You are correct. I wouldn’t use 4hi on dry pavement. I was mostly being a smart ass (it’s my special skill).

I used to bang my manual shift transfer case in and out of 4wd at speed, so pushing the button is no big deal for me.

 

[tron67j]

First little fwd thing i bought was a little Mazda back in the early 90's,that thing was fun in the winter,e-brake slides and full throttle,made every corner an adventure in the winter,lol

Haha, I so remember that! Good times

 

[kurek]

I am the first to admit that I have little knowledge when it comes to vehicles and their workings. I suppose if I DID use 4 wheel auto there would be the possibility of drivetrain binding/ grinding if the roads suddenly went from slippery to dry again quickly?

No man the auto 4wd case is not any kind of magical unicorn or fragile gilded egg.. it's just Borg-Warner's TOD that's been proven in tons of applications for decades and some of those applications don't have a 2wd mode at all. You don't have to worry about anything in 4auto (aside from the normal "don't drive like a jackwagon" that is true in any car).

The complaint some people have about the BW44-44 case is that it doesn't have a true mechanical interference engagement in 4 low, so especially if you have larger than stock tires and you're working the truck hard you can encounter the limits of the clutches. And in all (or nearly all) TOD applications that I'm aware of they use steering angle sensor data to pulse the clutches when you steer to prevent binding around corners so if you're trying to saw your way out of some muddy ruts in 4low you might find yourself wondering why the front isn't pulling as hard as the back is pushing. My little Jeep Patriot has essentially the same kind of system except the clutches are located inside the rear differential housing.

Don't overthink this - automotive engineers go to huge lengths to make the maximum number of features available to the maximum number of drivers, that means they deliberately want Granny McGroceries to be able to hop in, stick it in 4Auto and get to church in a foot of snow without ever having to know about or think about the 4wd system. That's why we don't have to hop out and lock hubs anymore like oldschool 4wd's.

 

[Murphy Slaw]

I am the first to admit that I have little knowledge when it comes to vehicles and their workings. I suppose if I DID use 4 wheel auto there would be the possibility of drivetrain binding/ grinding if the roads suddenly went from slippery to dry again quickly?

No.

The 44-44 was made for you.

You can leave it in Auto in that exact scenario, that's what it's made for.

 

[BellevilleRam]

No.

The 44-44 was made for you.

You can leave it in Auto in that exact scenario, that's what it's made for.

Exactly what I thought it was designed for. Extra traction only when necessary then it would disengage and revert back to 2 wheel drive right? I'm not so worried about the ability to pull myself out of a muddy field as I don't really do that kind of driving. I'm more concerned with wet roads and gravel situations where I often spin the rear tires when pulling out to merge into oncoming traffic.

 

[Quyonmob]

Exactly what I thought it was designed for. Extra traction only when necessary then it would disengage and revert back to 2 wheel drive right? I'm not so worried about the ability to pull myself out of a muddy field as I don't really do that kind of driving. I'm more concerned with wet roads and gravel situations where I often spin the rear tires when pulling out to merge into oncoming traffic.

If you need 4wd for wet or gravel, you don’t need 4wd at all. You need better tires or more skill (not sure how to say that without being insulting, sorry).

 

[392DevilDog]

This is where I wish the manual gear selector allowed you to lock the gear completely.

As is it only allows to lock out up shifts.

If you could lock it in 2nd you could pull out as fast as you wanted without the wheel spin.

I have a V10 with the NV4500 5speed. When it gets wet out I have to pull out in 3rd gear if I plan to add any loud pedal. With it 1st gear ia only for moving loads. 2nd gear is the usual gear for a pull out...but on slippy roads and a slight hill...3rd gear makes it like I am glued to the road.

That said. The 4auto transfercase has been known in both the 4th and 5th Gen 1500 to cause loss of use when used for rough terrain.
It is designed to give peace of mind and make different driving conditions more seamless.

With the standard 4x4...you have to make those decisions with either slowing down or selecting 4x4. Just like my 5spd with the V10.

There are plenty of people who find out that the 4auto when in a complete loss of traction event only sends power to one wheel.

Also. If you are in a situation where you can not slip a wheel...the 4auto case also requires wheel slip in lock and low to get all the wheels working and by then you could be stuck.

The standard transfer case can be used on wet roads. It just needs a bit of something to be sloppy.

You can use it on dry roads too...just minimize turns. Either transfer case can be shifted at speed...so just select 4wd hit the power and get in the road and select it off. Unless the turn is real sharp and lasts for a bit...that is what I would do

 

[BellevilleRam]

This is where I wish the manual gear selector allowed you to lock the gear completely.

As is it only allows to lock out up shifts.

If you could lock it in 2nd you could pull out as fast as you wanted without the wheel spin.

I have a V10 with the NV4500 5speed. When it gets wet out I have to pull out in 3rd gear if I plan to add any loud pedal. With it 1st gear ia only for moving loads. 2nd gear is the usual gear for a pull out...but on slippy roads and a slight hill...3rd gear makes it like I am glued to the road.

That said. The 4auto transfercase has been known in both the 4th and 5th Gen 1500 to cause loss of use when used for rough terrain.
It is designed to give peace of mind and make different driving conditions more seamless.

With the standard 4x4...you have to make those decisions with either slowing down or selecting 4x4. Just like my 5spd with the V10.

There are plenty of people who find out that the 4auto when in a complete loss of traction event only sends power to one wheel.

Also. If you are in a situation where you can not slip a wheel...the 4auto case also requires wheel slip in lock and low to get all the wheels working and by then you could be stuck.

The standard transfer case can be used on wet roads. It just needs a bit of something to be sloppy.

You can use it on dry roads too...just minimize turns. Either transfer case can be shifted at speed...so just select 4wd hit the power and get in the road and select it off. Unless the turn is real sharp and lasts for a bit...that is what I would do

I experienced the exact situation I am wanting to avoid a few minutes ago. It’s been raining here. I got on the gas to take off from a dead stop at a light with other traffic up my ass and spun the rear wheels and didn’t accelerate as quickly as I wanted. At the next light I put the truck into 4x4 lock and of course I took off like I needed to. I then had to fumble for the dial to put the truck into 2 wheel drive again ready for the next sharp turn. That’s what I’m wanting to avoid. I want my focus to be on the road and not on switching drivetrain modes myself. Same reason I don’t wish to drive a standard transmission. Too much to distract me from just paying attention to the traffic and signs etc. I should mention that I have ADHD and prefer to not have distractions when driving.

 

[392DevilDog]

Guess I can not help then lol. I prefer manual transmissions and manual transfer cases.

Sorry. Your best bet would be to use the amazing trade in deals right now and get the 4 auto transfercase.

 

[BellevilleRam]

If you need 4wd for wet or gravel, you don’t need 4wd at all. You need better tires or more skill (not sure how to say that without being insulting, sorry).

I think I just have a lead foot and add in the Pedal Commander in Sport mode and that = wheel spin.

 

[392DevilDog]

I think I just have a lead foot and add in the Pedal Commander in Sport mode and that = wheel spin.

I missed that. Yeah. That is your issue. 4auto may not help either.