[suman]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

4H will help if your tires are loosing traction. If the incline is such that you are unable to generate enough torque to climb without slipping clutch its better to use 4L
On 4L you can climb the steepest inclines at idle speed on first gear

Well, depends, there's this steep climb from the Kasauli market upwards, I remember switching to 4H on the fly & going up - to facilitate the climb more than anything else. Wasn't steep enough for 4L & it was tarmac.....short stretch

[sumannandy]

Originally Posted by suman

Well, depends, there's this steep climb from the Kasauli market upwards, I remember switching to 4H on the fly & going up - to facilitate the climb more than anything else. Wasn't steep enough for 4L & it was tarmac.....short stretch

Originally Posted by tsk1979

4H will help if your tires are loosing traction. If the incline is such that you are unable to generate enough torque to climb without slipping clutch its better to use 4L
On 4L you can climb the steepest inclines at idle speed on first gear

Thank you. Lot of times I just had to half clutch while climbing steep inclines on tarmac. I guess I will just use 4H or 4L to climb the steepest inclines.

[tsk1979]

Do not use 4WD on hard tarmac, esp if its a hairpin bend. Its better to slip clutch and get initial speed than run 4 Low on hard tarmac!

[suman]

OK for short stretches - & I'm talking 4H, not 4L

[LongDrive lover]

I am wondering why this thread has yet not been rated to maximum rating? It may be a short weekend trip, but the location, timing and those wall paper worthy pics are enough for a 5 star rating. Anyway, here it goes from me, F5,F5,F5.

Tanveer ji, just like adc's forest and remote trips, your passion for Himalayan/snow trips is amazing! And as they say, 'when there is a will there is a way'. No wonder then that you get snow in any month you drive up the Himalayas!

Truly enjoyed the whiteout.

[Abhiknov]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Do not use 4WD on hard tarmac, esp if its a hairpin bend. Its better to slip clutch and get initial speed than run 4 Low on hard tarmac!

Trust me Tanveer, i've tried really hard at times to not switch 4L or 4H, but at most of the places where the hairpin bend is too narrow and too steep, FWD is the only way the elephant climbs. This is irrespective of the tarmac quality. Infact the smoother, the difficult is the turn.
It happened at 3-4 places on the narrow hairpins on the hatu peak climb.The exact timing and position is when you are unable to take the turn because of the 747 turning radius, then u leave the brake to march it a little backwards. At that point, the steering is put on full tilt and the elephant is on a very odd and very steep sideways tilt. Slip clutch or whatever, u just cant climb. Momentum doesnt work there as there's no ground behind to build up momentum.
Enlighten me!

[tsk1979]

I used to have this same problem, but the new ECU software has solved this to a large degree. Even the steepest climbs can now be handled on high ration. However, if the incline is very very steep, momentarily using 4L is no harm

[sumannandy]

So far i did not face this problem, but may be I did not start on a steep incline. I always encountered the problem while climbing the incline. After a while, it would loose traction. And the moment the rpm falls below 1800, there is just not adequate power. the only option left to me is to half clutch to rev her higher than 1800, or, to slot it to 4H or 4L.

In my last weekend travel to Coorg, the parking lot was very very steep and the tarmac was made of large boulders(not sure if this makes sense, but it was like old tram lines in kolkata or the roads near/under level crossings), and halfway I just did not have enough traction. so i had to let the clutch slip. If i had asked the question earlier, I would have put it to 4H instead.

What is the difference between 4H and 4L, apart from more torque. Why it may be ok to use 4H but 4L should be strictly restricted as much as possible?

[tsk1979]

So you are saying that your wheels were spinning on the surface and you were not moving. Well that means loss of traction. Here 4H or 4L will do.
I am talking about hard surfaces where wheels do not spin

[sumannandy]

No, the surface was hard, and there was no wheel spin. At the same time there was not adequate traction. Sorry if I was not clear.

[gautamkhadse]

I so envy you . I have never seen snow in my life. I hope someday i really do get to see all the snow i hope for. The only time i saw snow was during my two years in Dubai . I saw snow at the mall of emirates. Thats all the luck I've had.