How does 4wd work exactly

[SC4Runner]

I’ve made sure to do it, but it might be easier where I live, up in Montana.

Ditto. Not much of a problem for me either. I live in rural SC with lots of farmland and dirt roads on my commute.

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[Nodak]

So @Nodak , I googled our Platinum trims and it came back the Platinum has a full time four wheel drive system. So what happens differently when we use the selector knob and select the 4H position?

edit for missing info ...

platinum you have :

4HF = 40/60 normal power split

4HF = center diff is unlocked (free)
(system will dynamical vary the power ratio from front to back up to 30/70 ratio if the front wheels are slipping and turning)
(system will shift power to 53/47 if the back wheels are slipping)

(normally you cannot bind this up, but if you add speed and more than enough lock on the steering wheel, you can get it to bind up some, trust me, i know from my 2014 4R limited)

4HL = center diff is locked (50/50 split) (very easy to bind up on hard non giving surfaces and break something)

pulled data from this old press release for the split ratio's

https://pressroom.toyota.com/toyota...ic-run-with-40th-anniversary-special-edition/

 

[BadTrainDriver]

but haven't had a chance to take it in the dirt in order to turn 4H on safely.

Adding a bit of clarity here: You do not have to be on a dirt road (or similar) to exercise the front drivetrain components as directed in the owner's manual. If you speed is LESS THAN 62MPH AND YOUR'E DRIVING IN A RELATIVELY STRAIGHT LINE, you can safely engage and disengage 4H. You don't need to drive all ten miles (as suggested in the owner's manual) at one time. Split it up, it's easy and quick to do, and there is zero risk of any issues.

 

[BadTrainDriver]

So I have had my 2026 SR5 4runner for about a month now. It has snowed a bit and I've had to use my 4wd. I'm not familiar with the specifics of how 4wd hi vs 4wd lo works. Just looking to be educated on the topic so I can understand better which situation calls for what. I came from a subaru wrx that had awd so this is very new to me. Thank you.

ranran1822, I commend you for reaching out for clarification on how to properly use your four-wheel drive system. Looking back on my professional careers, one of the most fun times I had was working at a small, stand-alone Jeep dealership from 1997 to 2002. It was a great time to sell and work on Jeeps! The Rubicon came out, that no one would have ever believed Jeep would actually build, and the 5.9 Grand Cherokee was the baddest SUV on the market. Yes, Jeeps still had issues, but overall, they were fantastic vehicles. My dealership co-sponsored Jeep Jamborees in Natural Bridge KY, and we'd go off-roading at least twice a month. We installed lift kits, gears, lockers, lights, whatever. Some of the best moments I'll never forget was working on the owner's 2000 TJ, full 360 crate swap, NV4500, Atlas II transfer case, custom Dana 60's front and rear...this thing was a BEAST!

But, during the delivery process of every new or used Jeep, I always demonstrated how to properly use the four-wheel drive system...because most new owners didn't know to use it!

Forum members such as us are the exception, the minority, with knowing how things like this work. While it's easy to say read the manual (which I still think you should), we need to remember it's our responsibility to help each other and be supportive.

I hope you enjoy your new 4Runner! Please ask any questions you have!

 

[127.0.0.1]

Adding a bit of clarity here: You do not have to be on a dirt road (or similar) to exercise the front drivetrain components as directed in the owner's manual. If you speed is LESS THAN 62MPH AND YOUR'E DRIVING IN A RELATIVELY STRAIGHT LINE, you can safely engage and disengage 4H. You don't need to drive all ten miles (as suggested in the owner's manual) at one time. Split it up, it's easy and quick to do, and there is zero risk of any issues.

right. just pop it in 4wd on the street or highway a few times when you are in a straight line
and no turns coming up. and if you know all 4 tires are generally equal size and tread depth. dry pavement, ok stay straight as much as possible. rain, better, dirt, best

if you have AWD heck leave in AWD for the lifetime of driving it, won't hurt nothing except MPG... but stay on top of greasing the zerks it's important to grease them and to see grease come out of all 4 bearing cups on each yoke when you do it...for longevity.

 

[RunnerRocks]

... but stay on top of greasing the zerks it's important to grease them and to see grease come out of all 4 bearing cups on each yoke when you do it...for longevity.

lol, asked my service advisor about the maintenance schedule for grease zerks. Got the deer-in-the-headlights stare.

 

[Oldhoosier]

Adding a bit of clarity here: You do not have to be on a dirt road (or similar) to exercise the front drivetrain components as directed in the owner's manual. If you speed is LESS THAN 62MPH AND YOUR'E DRIVING IN A RELATIVELY STRAIGHT LINE, you can safely engage and disengage 4H. You don't need to drive all ten miles (as suggested in the owner's manual) at one time. Split it up, it's easy and quick to do, and there is zero risk of any issues.

I agree completely with the above. I’ve had many jeeps, Chevy Tahoe, Chevy four-wheel-drive trucks over the years and this is exactly what I do with them. I will put it in four-wheel-drive high for a mile or two down a straight country road doing 40 or 50 miles an hour. This helps keep the front end differential oiled up.

Another reason I do it is to keep the four-wheel-drive actuator motor loosened up. If you go a long time and don’t use the four-wheel-drive, the small electric motor that engages the four-wheel-drive will often freeze up, assuming the Toyota has a similar set up and they probably do. When that happens, the four-wheel-drive will not engage and it’s usually just at the point where you really need it.

 

[sstarrx2]

All you really need to know about 4x4 is a goodly number of the folks that drive them think is makes the invincible in the snow and drive like ass hats and end up in the ditch!

 

[Nodak]

lol i drive like an ass hat during winters up there, havent been in the ditch since 94 with the mazda protege and a deep slush road

i mean i try to get on the road before the plows in the morning at 5am. new light snow and 70 mph is fun. but then again you get kinda numb to it after 30+ years of driving it 4 days a week

 

[sstarrx2]

lol i drive like an ass hat during winters up there, havent been in the ditch since 94 with the mazda protege and a deep slush road

i mean i try to get on the road before the plows in the morning at 5am. new light snow and 70 mph is fun. but then again you get kinda numb to it after 30+ years of driving it 4 days a week

Bet it helps that nobody lives there too! Little easier to navigate without 100 cars coming at you!

 

[Nodak]

Bet it helps that nobody lives there too! Little easier to navigate without 100 cars coming at you!

yeah at 5am im lucky to have a car either in front/behind me. plus its better to be on fresh snow than plowed.

you can always tell when you enter ND interstate road. the traffic just disappears. i mean during labor day trip back from GA, coming up i-29 to fargo from sious falls, once you are north of sioux falls the traffic just goes non exisitent.

we just hit 800k people in the whole state in 2025 census (just a note, 2016 the census had us at 730k)


Largest Cities in North Dakota (2025–2026 Estimates)

• Fargo: ~138,859 – 141,434
• Bismarck: ~78,779 – 79,787
• Grand Forks: ~60,019 – 60,193
• Minot: ~47,203 – 47,690

the following is from the 2024 census

5 West Fargo 40,094
6 Williston 28,056
7 Dickinson 25,357
8 Mandan 24,522
9 Jamestown 15,787
10 Wahpeton 8,010


minot is weird, during the day M-F the minot afb influx grows the base population about 10k, so the city drops in population. so technically minot afb becomes the 10th largest city in the state by numbers temporarily (if you count the families living on the base)

 

[sstarrx2]

yeah at 5am im lucky to have a car either in front/behind me. plus its better to be on fresh snow than plowed.

you can always tell when you enter ND interstate road. the traffic just disappears. i mean during labor day trip back from GA, coming up i-29 to fargo from sious falls, once you are north of sioux falls the traffic just goes non exisitent.

we just hit 800k people in the whole state in 2025 census (just a note, 2016 the census had us at 730k)


Largest Cities in North Dakota (2025–2026 Estimates)

• Fargo: ~138,859 – 141,434
• Bismarck: ~78,779 – 79,787
• Grand Forks: ~60,019 – 60,193
• Minot: ~47,203 – 47,690

Yeah...living in a Metro of 2.5 million....I cannot imagine. What is even more trippy is land mass wise it is a pretty large state...and roughly 25% of thr population live in 4 towns.

 

[Nodak]

Yeah...living in a Metro of 2.5 million....I cannot imagine. What is even more trippy is land mass wise it is a pretty large state...and roughly 41% of thr population live in 4 towns.

fixed that for you (bold)

and god forbid you drive thru the state, its flat, barely any trees and so boring you can fall asleep so easily.

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