2x4 vs 4x4,

[sallen]

I just got my 05 TB back in Feb, i am thinking of moving back up to Ohio and i only have the 2 weel drive version. For those of you living up north that deal with the snow how does the 2x4 fair in driving in the snow, or do you think i should go trade it up to the 4x4 before i get to many miles on this one?? I would be moving to the cincinnati area so they dont get to much snow but my job requires me to make it to work each and everyday i am the boss so i cant call out lol, thanks

Shay

[02EnvoySLE Guy]

Do you have the locking rear differential (G80) in your 4x2? If so, you might have less of a problem than if it were an open-diff. I find that on my 4x4, even when it's in auto mode it doesn't engage the front wheels that often. The rear catches slippage most of the time.

I would say unless you get REALLY unreasonable snowdrifts on the roads, you should be fine without 4WD. I'm sure that 4x2 is givving you drastically better gas mileage than the 4x4s get, too. :m2:

[Dave]

A 2WD SUV is basically the same as a 2WD car in the snow, with a couple of exceptions. One is that SUV tires are usually better for the snow, providing they are not sport street max performance tires. SUVs are easier to flip over also.

They don't sell 2WD SUVs or trucks in Utah. At least I never seen one on the lot. Your resale value might suffer in Ohio.

We use to all drive RWD cars before FWD and 4WD became so popular. Sometimes, I think people forget that and we did it without electronic assists also.

[Jman423]

Do you have the locking rear differential (G80) in your 4x2? If so, you might have less of a problem than if it were an open-diff. I find that on my 4x4, even when it's in auto mode it doesn't engage the front wheels that often. The rear catches slippage most of the time.

I would say unless you get REALLY unreasonable snowdrifts on the roads, you should be fine without 4WD. I'm sure that 4x2 is givving you drastically better gas mileage than the 4x4s get, too. :m2:

How can I find out what type of rear end is in my truck, I don't know since I bought it used...

[Envoy Fan]

How can I find out what type of rear end is in my truck, I don't know since I bought it used...

Go to the glove box. Open the glove box and there will be a label inside, with all RPO codes listed, including your paint code it you want to buy touch up paint. If it says GU6 you have a 3.42 ratio, GT4=3.73, or GT5=4.10 ratio. If it says G80, you also have the locking rear end. :)

[Jman423]

Go to the glove box. Open the glove box and there will be a label inside, with all RPO codes listed, including your paint code it you want to buy touch up paint. If it says GU6 you have a 3.42 ratio, GT4=3.73, or GT5=4.10 ratio. If it says G80, you also have the locking rear end. :)
OK, cool!! Thanks... I'll check it out in the morning. I don't do towing much, so what would be ideal for me in Florida?

[Envoy Fan]

I just got my 05 TB back in Feb, i am thinking of moving back up to Ohio and i only have the 2 weel drive version. For those of you living up north that deal with the snow how does the 2x4 fair in driving in the snow, or do you think i should go trade it up to the 4x4 before i get to many miles on this one?? I would be moving to the cincinnati area so they dont get to much snow but my job requires me to make it to work each and everyday i am the boss so i cant call out lol, thanks

Shay

Welcome to the Cincinnati area. Most TB's and Envoys in our area are 4X4's, although we may only get 4 or 5 uses a year for them. Seems like every one wants one, but again, will seldom have use. But when needed, it is sure good to have. Cincinnati has a lot of hills and the snow and ice can be a pain till the streets cleaned. :m2:

Bill

[02EnvoySLE Guy]

OK, cool!! Thanks... I'll check it out in the morning. I don't do towing much, so what would be ideal for me in Florida?

Well ideal in Florida (aka no snow) with no towing use, I'd say you would want the 3.42 (GU6) with no locking rear (no G80) in a 4x2. That I think would give you the best gas mileage. :m2:

Performance wise, I think the GT5 G80 equipped 4x2 or 4x4 are going to be best to 'get up and go' -- at least thats my opinion of my truck. I had to fight off a 5.3L V8 equipped Tahoe today who whas trying to cut me off, I was able to keep her behind me fairly well. :D

[Jman423]

Sweet, thanks guys!! :cool:

[sallen]

Welcome to the Cincinnati area. Most TB's and Envoys in our area are 4X4's, although we may only get 4 or 5 uses a year for them. Seems like every one wants one, but again, will seldom have use. But when needed, it is sure good to have. Cincinnati has a lot of hills and the snow and ice can be a pain till the streets cleaned. :m2:

Bill

Well I havnt moved yet, just thinking of it, my grandfather passed away last week and i was in ohio for the week and i realized that i should be up near my family since i dont have any family here in central florida and chilis will proabaly move me with no issues.
Well i dont have the locking rear end so i dont know how good this thing will do in the snow i drove in the snow a ton when i was growing up with no issues so i might just keep this model since it has the exact color scheme that i wanted with the options that i like so we'll see, i dont plan on moving up there until next july, thanks for all the help guys,

shay

[go3scott]

I live just accross the river on the ky side and only have the 2wd version of the ext with the v8. I was very supprised at how well it did in the snow, I just put a couple of bags of tube sand in the back and I barely slipped a wheel all winter. I do have the locking rear and this helped a bunch. This being said, I do wish I had the 4wd version. I park my popup in the back yard and I thought that I wouldn't have a problem with the locking rear end in it. Now I just get two bare patches instead of one. I did find some tracksion mats online that have sloved my problem though and will definately carry with me in the winter.

[CarbonEnvoy]

I had a 2002/2WD/G80 Locker Trailblazer when I lived in Michigan and moved to Indiana. It did fine in some pretty messy conditions the first 2 winters, but when BFG Open Trails got to around 30,000 miles, it became a pain to control when turning. I ended up having to put some sand bags in back when the weather was really bad and the tires still had plenty of tread left (and were rotated religiously)!

Picked up a 2004/2WD/G80 locker Envoy last July and the difference was night and day. Can't really say if it's a bigger improvement from the newer Michelin Cross Terrains or the added Traction Control System, but the 2WD Envoy seemed to outclass the 2WD Trailblazer in snow, even when it was new, whether straight line acceleration or turning. The BFG's at least look like a more aggressive All-Season tire than the Michelins . . . have to wait to see what happens with some tread wear.

[tb_ky]

back in december when west kentucky had its one yearly snow (a whopping 14 inches) i was able to drive my trailblazer in 2wd mode if i wanted to...now when i got to a drift that was a totally different story...