Pulling away - 2 or 4 wheel drive ?

[BedfordGeorge]

Hello,

Whilst reading the thread on Wheelspin, it occurred to me whether it is better to pull away in 2 or 4 wheel drive. Can I ask for your advice on this, as my car (Kia Sportage) has both options.

Best regards,

George

 

[Zafiral]

In my Peugeot 4007 (rebadged Mitsubishi Outlander) it has 3 modes: 2wd, 4wd & 4wd lock.

I always tow in 4wd mode as there is then no torque steer or wheelspin. If I am driving spiritedly (or if the weather is wet), i drive solo in 4wd mode too. if your 4wd mode is 4wd lock then it should not be used in general driving.

Check the vehicle handbook for restrictions on the various modes. Some cars allow switching detween modes at slow (or even high) speeds, some don't, so that could be the deciding factor.

 

[xtrailman]

Both xtrails i have, had, never came out of auto, never had wheel spin in auto, but you will in FWD, i tried it.

 

[BedfordGeorge]

Hello Guys,

Thanks for your replies, I should have mentioned the Kia is a Manual 6 Speed Gear change, this may effect the advice given.

This has raised another thought in my mind, when towing and up to speed, what gear should I use. If I went into 6th, would this affect the torque on the engine, for better or worse. I am wondering if it would be better to use a lower gear?

Best regards,

George

Best regards,

George

Best regards,

George

 

[JD6620]

George if your Sportage will tow your van in 6th gear without struggling then use it. You may find you will need to drop a gear or two for hills but on the straight and level use the highest gear you can. As for pulling away you only need 4WD if the ground is slippery and you get wheelspin. I have the Sorento and have never needed 4WD to pull away yet.

 

[otherclive]

In my Sorento auto the car is normally in rear wheel drive and with All Terrain tyres it rarely switches in 4wd. However it will do so automatically if it senses any wheel spin. The Peugot 4007 is fwd so may require to use 4wd more than the Sorento. When pitching up or leaving wet grass pitches I lock it into the low ratio locked 4wd and on tickover she will pull away with a van and will not damage the grass.

 

[Chrisbee]

I too have a 6 speed manual Sportage. I always tow in 2WD and don't suffer from wheel spin in normal conditions. If the Sportage detects wheel spin at slow speeds it will automatically switch to 4WD as required then revert to 2WD when the wheel spin stops.

 

[forestgump]

the tucson is 4wd on demand so it should take care of its self is kia the same i can get into 6 gear but need to be doing atleast 60 .

 

[Douglas_374404558]

HI! Bedford George i have a 55 plate Sportage XS you will find that with the Sportage it starts off in 4WD up to 18MPH then reverts to 2WD. after 18 MPH . then when speed brops back to under 18 MPH it reverts back to 4WD . OR you can press the 4WD switch it keeps it in 4WD. but not recommended on tarmac!. i tow a 1500kg Swift caravan with no problems whatsoever no w/spin on wet grass or on hill starts due to the 4WD starting from startoff (Kia head mechanic told me this )i can use 6th gear on most roads down to about 50/55 MPH but pulling power is very poor if you require to speed up it will do it but very slowly ,just drop a gear then when you reach 60 (on motorways ) just slip it into 6th and away you go will sit at 60 all day with no problems, get about 40/42 mpg solo and about 24/26 towing 1500kg .great towing vehicle for the price and build quality is very good ,plus 7yrs warranty .

cheers Duggie

 

[BedfordGeorge]

HI! Bedford George i have a 55 plate Sportage XS you will find that with the Sportage it starts off in 4WD up to 18MPH then reverts to 2WD. after 18 MPH . then when speed brops back to under 18 MPH it reverts back to 4WD . OR you can press the 4WD switch it keeps it in 4WD. but not recommended on tarmac!. i tow a 1500kg Swift caravan with no problems whatsoever no w/spin on wet grass or on hill starts due to the 4WD starting from startoff (Kia head mechanic told me this )i can use 6th gear on most roads down to about 50/55 MPH but pulling power is very poor if you require to speed up it will do it but very slowly ,just drop a gear then when you reach 60 (on motorways ) just slip it into 6th and away you go will sit at 60 all day with no problems, get about 40/42 mpg solo and about 24/26 towing 1500kg .great towing vehicle for the price and build quality is very good ,plus 7yrs warranty .

cheers Duggie

Hello All,

Thank you for the comprehensive answers to both of my questions, all I need now is the caravan, to put it all into action. Ordered in December, due to collect on the 11th June.

Thanks and best regards,

George.

 

[BedfordGeorge]

Hello All,

Thank you for the comprehensive answers to both of my questions, all I need now is the caravan, to put it all into action. Ordered in December, due to collect on the 11th June.

Thanks and best regards,

George.

Sorry posted on Comment by mistake.

 

[Philspadders]

i have the sportage on an 07 plate. The vehicle has 60/40 split drive front to rear and traction control ( i dont know where the 4wd up to 18mph comes from as my hand book and the Kia tech site does not agree). You dont need to lock the 4wd for setting off, the as the TC takes care of it all. ( The front tyres wear faster than the rears so at each service they should be swapped over).

As far as the TC is concerned if you need to lock the 4wd to 50/50 turn off the TC, it gets terribly confused.

I tow a swift Charisma with a 1500kg mtplw and it pulls it very nicely

(I think the 42mpg is a bit optimistic for the 2.0crdi , just check your numbers on that one.)

 

[Douglas_374404558]

i have the sportage on an 07 plate. The vehicle has 60/40 split drive front to rear and traction control ( i dont know where the 4wd up to 18mph comes from as my hand book and the Kia tech site does not agree). You dont need to lock the 4wd for setting off, the as the TC takes care of it all. ( The front tyres wear faster than the rears so at each service they should be swapped over).

As far as the TC is concerned if you need to lock the 4wd to 50/50 turn off the TC, it gets terribly confused.

I tow a swift Charisma with a 1500kg mtplw and it pulls it very nicely

(I think the 42mpg is a bit optimistic for the 2.0crdi , just check your numbers on that one.)

HI! Phill if you read my reply i have a 55 plate Sportage XS without traction control it was the head mechanic in the KIA dealers in my home town that told me about the 18mph 4WD drive if you want to dought him thats up to you ?.as for the 42 MPG if you drive the vehicle with a heavy right foot then youwill get bad fuel figures again if you dought me then thats up to you .i only put across what figures i have odtained .dont know what your figures are .if you look at the older Sorento,s the difference in some of there figures on same vehicles we unreal with some, and others got good fuel figures. every each to there own

cheers Duggie

 

[ChrisUK]

On my XTrail I can select 2 or 4wd, however I sometime wonder about the following cercumstance - steep hill start in the dry, is it better to be in 2wd and spin the wheels wearing the tyres, or, spin the clutch to get away and wear the clutch? Tyres are cheaper.

 

[xtrailman]

Chris

I have only ever used my xtrails in auto, once i selected 4 wheel locked, because i was pulling off a water covered grass field, trouble is although i thought i had reselected auto i had selected 2wd instead. I only found out when i tried a quick getaway at a junction, the front wheels started to scrabble.

If you use auto with the first xtrail, should the front wheels start to spin, then in less that one revolution four wheel drive will cut in, it is a very effective system inherited from the nissan skyline super car. It is normally running in front wheel only, when in auto. You can hear a transmission noise when the 4x4 cuts in.

The latest xtrail is even more advanced and has the benefit of ESP.

I recommend using auto at all times, otherwise get a 2 wheel variant. because you are not getting the benefit of 4x4.

Finally i have not heard of any problems with clutches or flywheels with xtrails. The turbo is the weak link on the old xtrail, not aware of any real issues with the new model.

 

[Philspadders]

HI! Phill if you read my reply i have a 55 plate Sportage XS without traction control it was the head mechanic in the KIA dealers in my home town that told me about the 18mph 4WD drive if you want to dought him thats up to you ?.as for the 42 MPG if you drive the vehicle with a heavy right foot then youwill get bad fuel figures again if you dought me then thats up to you .i only put across what figures i have odtained .dont know what your figures are .if you look at the older Sorento,s the difference in some of there figures on same vehicles we unreal with some, and others got good fuel figures. every each to there own

cheers Duggie

Kia itself disoutes what the mechanic has told you.Unless you have the 2wd vwersion only the sportage from 05 onwards is permanent intelligent 4wd with a 60/40 splt.

Kia only offer a combined mpg of 38, and most kia forums agree that the mpg quoted is nothing like the acutal.