Outer Limits 4x4 Board

I have always driven auto transmission for 4wds but manual for my 2wd road car. Is a 4x4 auto or manual the preferred choice for off roading? Pros and cons?

I've never bought an auto (but had auto company cars), my 3 cars are all manuals, I've never driven an auto off-road. I expect my next 4wd will be auto.

These days, off-road, I think the only place an auto loses out is descending steep hills - and there are driving techniques which help with that. Everywhere else, I think there's either nothing in it, or the auto wins.

Edit: interim results.

Manual:Auto
1:1
1:2
7:7
7:12
10:12
12:12
15:16
38:36
38:41
42:55
54:63
58:68
61:73

Auto all the way
Its lots easier on the driveline as well
Cheers Dan

same arguements will be had as last time there was a poll, which had same results as the time before that.

bogged wrote:same arguements will be had as last time there was a poll, which had same results as the time before that.

You can't call R3post without providing evidence!

Ive never had an auto for the bush.. but i would say auto is the way to go as long as u have grunt!

mmmm......this topic again.

have auto in patrol and manuel in zook , the auto is alot easier for inching up to thigs etc but the manuel allows you to dump the clutch and launch like an auto won't , and loading up the auto dosn't give the same results .

so although i can drive the patrol alot more relaxed i prefer the manuel when things get difficult .
misses loves the auto

I love my manual in sierra, mainly its less to go wrong, plus i just love the control. Big minus is i keep having farken throwout bearing issues, mainly getting jammed on nosecone, also bloody cables.

bogged wrote:same arguements will be had as last time there was a poll, which had same results as the time before that.

Probably. But fwiw, I have moved from the manual camp to the auto camp for off-road, while still preferring a manual in smaller, sportier 2WD vehicles.

joeblow wrote:mmmm......this topic again.

x eleventy.

You asked for it...

www.outerlimits4x4.com/ftopic114977.php

7 pages of whatever you can call the thread

How much lift will i need in my GQ LWB to run 35's??

coxy321 wrote:How much lift will i need in my GQ LWB to run 35's??

are you running a hiclone or a fuel catalyst?

These will both effect the lift required

fool_injected wrote:

coxy321 wrote:How much lift will i need in my GQ LWB to run 35's??

are you running a hiclone or a fuel catalyst?

These will both effect the lift required

I was running a Hyclone II, but have since upgraded to a double electronic supercharger (compound superchargers).

I never really found the fuel catalysts to be as effective as the hyclone. It can actually cancel out the extra power if you put the catalyst on backwards. Found that out the hard way.

It all depends on the vehicle and its gearing, my old 2dr 4spd rangie was great in 1st low and would idle over anything but in traffic it was average. My tdi auto disco is great offroad in 1st/2nd low and doesnt run away too badly and is brilliant onroad. Horses for courses, some prefer to constantly shift up/down.

Highway-Star wrote:You asked for it...

www.outerlimits4x4.com/ftopic114977.php

7 pages of whatever you can call the thread

Thanks for that. I tried searching for this exact topic as I thought there would be heaps discussed before but couldn't find any.

Thanks for everyone's replies.

i hated autos till i was forsed to drive them (i hate the Government)
they now have growen on me they make live easy my take off from the lights i leave me mates in the 1hdt/1hz's for dead it crawles realy well and it dosent run away from you going down steed hills as long as you lock it in first
and i wouldnt go back to manual for 4wding

after spending the last week driving my dad's GTI golf, i think i'd like an auto if i had the flappy paddle gears on the steering wheel... they make it so much nicer to drive auto... at any time you can change up or down gears in about 1/2 a second... not bad.

Automatic of course, if your a woman. For the rest of the population, its gotta be manual!

Seriously tho, changing gears is part of driving a bloody vehicle!

I put changing gears up there with steering and braking. If the 4x4's of the future had 'automatic steering' how many of you people would vote that auto steering is better than manual steering on an internet forum?

Mike

mike_nofx wrote:Automatic of course, if your a woman. For the rest of the population, its gotta be manual!

Seriously tho, changing gears is part of driving a bloody vehicle!

I put changing gears up there with steering and braking. If the 4x4's of the future had 'automatic steering' how many of you people would vote that auto steering is better than manual steering on an internet forum?

Mike

Well there half way there with the new LC 200s 'CRAWL 4wd control system' that keeps the vehicle moving at x-km/h with no input from the driver. I guess these guys probably think that's even better than an AUTO!!!

Luke.

mike_nofx wrote:Automatic of course, if your a woman. For the rest of the population, its gotta be manual!

Seriously tho, changing gears is part of driving a bloody vehicle!

I put changing gears up there with steering and braking.

Mike

It might have been part of driving 30 years ago but not now.

We are in the 21st century now.

Cheers mick.

mike_nofx wrote:Automatic of course, if your a woman. For the rest of the population, its gotta be manual!

Seriously tho, changing gears is part of driving a bloody vehicle!

I put changing gears up there with steering and braking. If the 4x4's of the future had 'automatic steering' how many of you people would vote that auto steering is better than manual steering on an internet forum?

Mike

Have a read of that thread I posted the link to above. You obviously don't understand why some people prefer auto's off road (hint: it has S.F.A. to do with changing gears).

You can always buy an auto and get it manualised, if you like changing gears so much.

mike_nofx wrote:Automatic of course, if your a woman. For the rest of the population, its gotta be manual!

You don't 4WD much do you?

mike_nofx wrote:Automatic of course, if you like hardcore wheeling. For the rest of the population, who stick to chicken tracks and consider a 10' sand dune to be an "obstacle" its gotta be manual!

Seriously tho, changing gears is part of driving a bloody vehicle that never goes offroad!

I put changing gears up there with telling females how big my pee pee is. I'm going to throw out a ridiculous comparison that is neither relevant or realistic. I also think that reduction gears are for poofs, in fact anything that makes wheeling easier and less stressful on your driveline is for fairies. Of course, I have never driven an auto offroad (if I had, I'd realise how retarded I just made myself look) so I can't really compare but I stand by my uninformed opinion.
Mike

I see what you did there. I highlighted your post and found your real message. Very sneaky Mike, I'm watching you though.

No i dont 4wd as much as i'd like to, but get out every 2-3 weeks.

I own a Sierra and a 105 series. Neither had auto as an option from factory. I believe the 105 to be the most off-road oriented 100 series (with solid front axle, plastic floors, manual hubs etc) and yet no auto option?

I imagine a 1.3 sierra would be absolute rubbish in auto, correct me if im wrong. and the cruiser would probably be a bit of a slug too.

v840 - im sure a 40 with a v8 would be ok in auto, but for those of us who actually have more brain-cells than horsepower i dont think auto is always the best answer.

Also, i thought so called "hardcore" tracks also have a lot of shit-yer-pants decents... apparently decents are the auto's weakness??

Mike

mike_nofx wrote:v840 - im sure a 40 with a v8 would be ok in auto, but for those of us who actually have more brain-cells than horsepower i dont think auto is always the best answer.

As you have identified, lack of horsepower makes an auto less appealing, so an auto isn't always the best answer. But this doesn't mean it's NEVER the best answer.

mike_nofx wrote:Also, i thought so called "hardcore" tracks also have a lot of shit-yer-pants decents... apparently decents are the auto's weakness??

Weakness - not a huge one, for which there are solutions. Look into it.

In the meantime, the auto offers benefits in so many other off-road situations that anybody with an IQ greater than their shoe size would recognise that the choice has nothing to do with some mis-guided macho nonsense about the ability to change gears.

mike_nofx wrote: Also, i thought so called "hardcore" tracks also have a lot of shit-yer-pants decents... apparently decents are the auto's weakness??

Mike

DECENT: adj.

1. Characterized by conformity to recognized standards of propriety or morality.
2. Free from indelicacy; modest.
3. Meeting accepted standards; adequate: a decent salary.
4.
1. Morally upright; respectable.
2. Kind or obliging: very decent of them to lend you money.
5. Informal. Properly or modestly dressed.

yep, all these things are a weakness for an auto.


105 series cruiser, not so much the '4wd aimed' vehicle, but rather the 'pov pack'.

go drive an auto in the bush b4 u badmouth it. i used to be in your camp, but i did some research, did some driving, and i know own a 16yo diesel auto. certainly no v8, but you don't need oodles of power to notice the benefits, just an open mind and a chance to drive it. not being a total f%ckwit helps also, but not a requirement so your still in for a shot

Are 4wd's easier to drive offroad with an auto? Yes
Are 4wd's more capable offroad with an auto? Yes

I'm still not a fan of them, i enjoy manuals offroad but that's just my preference. I go out with a few mates with autos and the subjet barely get raised.

cheers