4 wheel or 2 wheel drive?? - Page 2

btrc · 07-06-2021, 10:35 AM

I'm just impressed you can find a new 3/4 ton for sale. Around here they are very rare this year.
I would get the 4 wheel drive for resale and for the few times you may need it while towing. I use mine on the 1/4 mile of hilly gravel road between my house and black top.

SSDiv6 · 07-06-2021, 11:09 AM

I have owned both 4WD and 2WD Ram trucks.
Unless you live in a place that snows a lot, I will get a 2WD.

MikeMoller · 07-06-2021, 11:55 AM

I tow an open trailer and the bed is 'stuffed' with extra stuff. Had a 2wd and went to 4wd, never use the 4wd, but the heavier suspension etc. worth the lower gas mileage, tows / stops sooo much better.

Joe Fasano · 07-06-2021, 01:42 PM

To me it's the Front End or the Back End. Spend 4 $4000. more for the 4 wheel package and get the $4000.00 back at the back end if you sell the truck. Same goes for the 2 wheel drive , you will spend $4000.00 less for a two wheel drive and get $4000.00 less when you sell it. To me if you don't need the 4 wheel for Winter driving then stick with the two wheel package. There are still plenty of buyers out there who will buy a two wheel package. JMO.

Rich Biebel · 07-06-2021, 02:31 PM

I'd never buy a 2 wheel drive living in NJ even if I never used the truck in winter.

I bought a new GMC in '96 and got stuck in the mud at Maple Grove as soon as I puled in the grass field. A 454 4x4
I had to unload the race car just to get out and covered my new truck and trailer with mud in the process.

Replaced that truck with a Duramax and it's a 4 wheel drive and my daily driver...

One trip coming home from Cecil with the Duramax I was losing a rear U-Joint....barely made it home.....

With a 4x4 I could have pulled the rear driveshaft and made it home in 4 wheel drive.......Not likely that would ever happen but in my case it almost did.....

I was looking at trucks a few months ago....2500 HD 4x4 6.? gas ext cab long bed......$50G's and up

My good friend bought one and a co worker also bought one .....Chevy....

GTX JOHN · 07-07-2021, 01:55 AM

I vote for 4WD

I have owned them all and Mileage Difference
was noticeable.

Adger Smith · 07-07-2021, 08:48 AM

In the late 80's I took an '88 Chevy 3/4 ton suburban 4 WD and built a "pulling BBC" for it. Pulled a 24 ft enclosed. I kept it till '93 and the one & only time I used 4 WD pulling was when I had my trailer in the yard beside my driveway and my back tires were off the concrete. I did use 4wd on some camping & motorcycle trips in the Ozarks. That is the last 4 wd I've had.

6130 · 07-28-2021, 08:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeMoller

I tow an open trailer and the bed is 'stuffed' with extra stuff. Had a 2wd and went to 4wd, never use the 4wd, but the heavier suspension etc. worth the lower gas mileage, tows / stops sooo much better.

It doesn't work that way.

All things being equal, 4WD REDUCES a truck's payload capacity- 2WD and 4WD versions of the same truck will have the same GVWR, but the 4WD truck will weigh more, which means less payload capacity.

6130 · 07-28-2021, 08:50 AM

Although many people WANT 4WD, nearly everyone can get by without it.

2WD is less expensive to buy, simpler, has less to go wrong, less to maintain, less to repair, easier to work on, less depreciation, greater payload, greater fuel mileage, better acceleration, smoother ride, and in many cases less expensive to insure and register.

My wife and I recently faced this decision, and purchased a new 2WD truck with the optional electronic locking rear axle. We actually use it for off-roading, but not the kind of off-roading that would require 4WD. We installed larger BFG All-Terrain tires on a set of 17" Method Racing wheels, a "shorty" performance exhaust system, a pair of Deaver rear leaf springs, and got in line for a 10-month wait for a $3,500 set of adjustable King 2.5 rear shocks and front ride height adjustable coilovers, both with reservoirs.

A few months ago, before we bought our truck, we rode out the worst snow storm in 40 years here, which helped us with our decision after we realized that we didn't actually have to go anywhere when there is snow on the roads. And when the snow turned to ice, all the vehicles we saw stuck in the ditches, were 4WD.

07-06-2021, 10:35 AM	#11
btrc Member Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 253 Likes: 275 Liked 85 Times in 43 Posts	Re: 4 wheel or 2 wheel drive?? I'm just impressed you can find a new 3/4 ton for sale. Around here they are very rare this year. I would get the 4 wheel drive for resale and for the few times you may need it while towing. I use mine on the 1/4 mile of hilly gravel road between my house and black top. __________________ Bob Tilton 568 FS/H

07-06-2021, 11:09 AM	#12
SSDiv6 VIP Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Glendale, Arizona Posts: 2,999 Likes: 693 Liked 1,470 Times in 550 Posts	Re: 4 wheel or 2 wheel drive?? I have owned both 4WD and 2WD Ram trucks. Unless you live in a place that snows a lot, I will get a 2WD.

07-06-2021, 11:55 AM	#13
MikeMoller Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Raleigh NC Posts: 632 Likes: 27 Liked 247 Times in 75 Posts	Re: 4 wheel or 2 wheel drive?? I tow an open trailer and the bed is 'stuffed' with extra stuff. Had a 2wd and went to 4wd, never use the 4wd, but the heavier suspension etc. worth the lower gas mileage, tows / stops sooo much better. __________________ Mike Moller NHRA 203 Q-R-T/SA

07-06-2021, 01:42 PM	#14
Joe Fasano Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Hasbrouck Heights NJ, Naples Florida Posts: 297 Likes: 4 Liked 237 Times in 43 Posts	Re: 4 wheel or 2 wheel drive?? To me it's the Front End or the Back End. Spend 4 $4000. more for the 4 wheel package and get the $4000.00 back at the back end if you sell the truck. Same goes for the 2 wheel drive , you will spend $4000.00 less for a two wheel drive and get $4000.00 less when you sell it. To me if you don't need the 4 wheel for Winter driving then stick with the two wheel package. There are still plenty of buyers out there who will buy a two wheel package. JMO.

07-06-2021, 02:31 PM	#15
Rich Biebel VIP Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Northern New Jersey suburbs Posts: 2,307 Likes: 25 Liked 537 Times in 211 Posts	Re: 4 wheel or 2 wheel drive?? I'd never buy a 2 wheel drive living in NJ even if I never used the truck in winter. I bought a new GMC in '96 and got stuck in the mud at Maple Grove as soon as I puled in the grass field. A 454 4x4 I had to unload the race car just to get out and covered my new truck and trailer with mud in the process. Replaced that truck with a Duramax and it's a 4 wheel drive and my daily driver... One trip coming home from Cecil with the Duramax I was losing a rear U-Joint....barely made it home..... With a 4x4 I could have pulled the rear driveshaft and made it home in 4 wheel drive.......Not likely that would ever happen but in my case it almost did..... I was looking at trucks a few months ago....2500 HD 4x4 6.? gas ext cab long bed......$50G's and up My good friend bought one and a co worker also bought one .....Chevy.... __________________ Rich Biebel S/C 1479 Stock 147R Last edited by Rich Biebel; 07-06-2021 at 02:36 PM.

07-07-2021, 01:55 AM	#16
GTX JOHN VIP Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Boulder City, Nevada 89005 Posts: 2,600 Likes: 2,388 Liked 2,134 Times in 615 Posts	Re: 4 wheel or 2 wheel drive?? I vote for 4WD I have owned them all and Mileage Difference was noticeable. __________________ John Irving 741 Stock 741 Super Stock

07-07-2021, 08:48 AM	#17
Adger Smith VIP Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Texarkana Ark/TX Posts: 2,429 Likes: 532 Liked 824 Times in 301 Posts	Re: 4 wheel or 2 wheel drive?? In the late 80's I took an '88 Chevy 3/4 ton suburban 4 WD and built a "pulling BBC" for it. Pulled a 24 ft enclosed. I kept it till '93 and the one & only time I used 4 WD pulling was when I had my trailer in the yard beside my driveway and my back tires were off the concrete. I did use 4wd on some camping & motorcycle trips in the Ozarks. That is the last 4 wd I've had. __________________ Adger Smith (Former SS)

07-28-2021, 08:50 AM	#19
6130 Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Texas Posts: 409 Likes: 295 Liked 117 Times in 50 Posts	Re: 4 wheel or 2 wheel drive?? Although many people WANT 4WD, nearly everyone can get by without it. 2WD is less expensive to buy, simpler, has less to go wrong, less to maintain, less to repair, easier to work on, less depreciation, greater payload, greater fuel mileage, better acceleration, smoother ride, and in many cases less expensive to insure and register. My wife and I recently faced this decision, and purchased a new 2WD truck with the optional electronic locking rear axle. We actually use it for off-roading, but not the kind of off-roading that would require 4WD. We installed larger BFG All-Terrain tires on a set of 17" Method Racing wheels, a "shorty" performance exhaust system, a pair of Deaver rear leaf springs, and got in line for a 10-month wait for a $3,500 set of adjustable King 2.5 rear shocks and front ride height adjustable coilovers, both with reservoirs. A few months ago, before we bought our truck, we rode out the worst snow storm in 40 years here, which helped us with our decision after we realized that we didn't actually have to go anywhere when there is snow on the roads. And when the snow turned to ice, all the vehicles we saw stuck in the ditches, were 4WD. Last edited by 6130; 07-28-2021 at 10:12 AM.