SaKaNa Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 So we all have the little Pathy wanting to swap ends issue when its really wet out, sometimes around here we'll have an inch of water on the roads, and everyone wants to keep a high speed, so you really need to floor it to get on, so I find myself using 4HI constantly on pavement. I recently read about driveline windup, and damaging transfer cases by running 4WD on pavement... except that even if I put it in 4 on dry pavement, I dont get understeer, it steers normally, and I know theres no problem with my t-case/tranny since I recently had the two rebuilt after trying to rock my pathy out of a clay pit. Is this not true 4wd? I thought that 4WD forced all the wheels to move at the same speed, whether or not the vehicle is in a turn... Perhaps I misunderstood? Or is this just my model being able to do something that my friends Jeep Cherokee cant do? (According to him). 1997 LE 4x4. If I start driving on pavement primarily in 4wd during light rain, is there going to be a problem? What about on *DRY* pavement? And lets not get on a "its a huge waste of gas you big-wastey-guy"... I'm not concerned about the gas, its that I hate doing a 180 on a busy road and needing to act like I meant to do it, and the police sure didnt like it either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 (edited) You should not use 4HI on dry pavement, since it does lock the front and rear driveshafts together. The truck will be excessively difficult to steer and you are definitely risking breaking something, or at the very least shortening the life of the driveline components. If you don't notice any handling difference at all between 2HI and 4HI, then your t-case may not be engaging even if you put it in 4HI. 4HI should only be used on low-traction surfaces. It's not an AWD system. Wet pavement is not considered a low-traction surface. Plenty of FWD and RWD vehicles accelerate just fine on wet pavement. If you're swapping ends in 2WD on wet pavement, you need better tires, your right foot needs to lose some weight, or you need to learn how to better handle oversteer conditions. Just my 2 cents. Edited June 15, 2006 by XPLORx4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4x4le Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 On pavement i only use 4wd if the roads are very flooded or if i need to take off into busiy traffic when it is raining and need the extra peace of mind that i will not spin out. Then i put it back into 2 hi. Maybe you have a lsd. Sounds like a trait of one. next time it is wet, peel out and have a buddy watch. See if both tires spin. If they do, you most likely have a lsd and you are lucky! Then learn how to drive with a lsd and consider yourself lucky! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaKaNa Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 I know my 4x4 and t-case are fine, since when I was recently in mud working on getting it out, all four wheels rotated at the same time. If I turn while in 4wd, theres no understeer at all, but if you try making an extremely tight turn, youcan feel the driveline binding up, or something like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
navygz19 Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 You have an LE? Why not use the AWD feature instead of running in 4hi and risking damaging the t-case? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zonianbrat Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 You should not use 4HI on dry pavement, since it does lock the front and rear driveshafts together. The truck will be excessively difficult to steer and you are definitely risking breaking something, or at the very least shortening the life of the driveline components. If you don't notice any handling difference at all between 2HI and 4HI, then your t-case may not be engaging even if you put it in 4HI. 4HI should only be used on low-traction surfaces. It's not an AWD system. Wet pavement is not considered a low-traction surface. Plenty of FWD and RWD vehicles accelerate just fine on wet pavement. If you're swapping ends in 2WD on wet pavement, you need better tires, your right foot needs to lose some weight, or you need to learn how to better handle oversteer conditions. Just my 2 cents. I was going to say this exact thing but XplorX beat me to it. Sounds like you need some new tires if you are spinning out of control. I drive my pathy in slushy snow in 2wd and dont swap ends??? you just got be easy with the throttle. i only put it in 4wd when i see the road is snowpacked i have never used 4wd in heavy rain not even when it flooded here a while back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 You have an LE? Why not use the AWD feature instead of running in 4hi and risking damaging the t-case? LE's didn't come with the AWD transfer case until 2001. '96-'00 have part-time transfer cases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 If I turn while in 4wd, theres no understeer at all, but if you try making an extremely tight turn, youcan feel the driveline binding up, or something like that. You may not feel understeer, but the steering should be much heavier than in 2WD. What the brand/size/condition of your tires? This has a HUGE impact on traction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaKaNa Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 Heres what my options are. How would I know if I have an LSD? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Are you driving a Canadian Pathfinder?! US-market LE's didn't come with cloth! They were leather only! You can only tell if you have LSD if there's an orange sticker on the rear differential that says "Use LSD Oil Only" or by lifting the rear of the truck up and seeing how the tires rotate while in Park. If one tire rotates opposite of the other, the diff is open. If you cannot rotate the tire, you have an LSD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaKaNa Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 Are you driving a Canadian Pathfinder?! US-market LE's didn't come with cloth! They were leather only! You can only tell if you have LSD if there's an orange sticker on the rear differential that says "Use LSD Oil Only" or by lifting the rear of the truck up and seeing how the tires rotate while in Park. If one tire rotates opposite of the other, the diff is open. If you cannot rotate the tire, you have an LSD. Yep, use LSD oil only. And cloth in a 1997 Nissan Pathfinder LE. So what, I have a Canadian one? I found it weird that at 19 years old with 4 points on my license, I can get an SUV for only $192US/mo on insurance. So whats so special about mine anyway? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 (edited) So you're NOT in Canada, then? How do you know it's an LE? Does it have large plastic moulding on the lower part of the doors? What kind of wheels does it have? Chrome bumpers? Does it have the LE badge on the tailgate? And what kind of tires do you have? Edited June 15, 2006 by XPLORx4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaKaNa Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 (edited) So you're NOT in Canada, then? How do you know it's an LE? Does it have the LE badge on the tailgate? And what kind of tires do you have? I'm in NJ, and my Pathfinder came from Autotrader.com as an LE. My title, registration, and insurance all say its an LE / V6 / 3.3L / 4x4. Theres no badging, but I've never see the LE/XE/SE badging on the 96-98s, especially the ones with the spare tire on the back. And I JUST walked out and looked, I DEFINITELY have a little orange sticker with white text on the rear differential that says "USE LSD OIL ONLY" on it... and I also have NJ plates. Oh, and I have some Aquatread3 tires or something. Really crappy. Edited June 15, 2006 by SaKaNa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nycxice13 Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 I'm in NJ, and my Pathfinder came from Autotrader.com as an LE. My title, registration, and insurance all say its an LE / V6 / 3.3L / 4x4. Theres no badging, but I've never see the LE/XE/SE badging on the 96-98s, especially the ones with the spare tire on the back. And I JUST walked out and looked, I DEFINITELY have a little orange sticker with white text on the rear differential that says "USE LSD OIL ONLY" on it... and I also have NJ plates. Oh, and I have some Aquatread3 tires or something. Really crappy. 1998, SE badging. Uncle has a 1998 with spare tire carrier with XE badging. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaKaNa Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 Sorry these pics suck so much, I'm at work and cant really screw with my pathy right now. 1997. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vengeful Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Can we get a side or 3/4 view? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaKaNa Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 Can we get a side or 3/4 view? I dont know WTF it is, I just know that it needs LSD oil, works great in 4wd, and has a rebuilt transmissino with only like 2000 miles since the rebuild. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vengeful Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Looks like you were lied to. That is most definitely an XE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
max_stryker Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 I have a 97 XE, i replaced the tail gate (got some SE badging with it) so thats where its supposed to be at. and the ones with tire carries XE/SE definately came with badging. but not sure about LE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaKaNa Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 Then WTF do I have, and what makes it special? Maybe its a generic one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vengeful Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 It's just an XE with the sport package. XE was the base trim level, and the sport package added options like power mirrors, LSD, etc. SE is the middle of the road which has all the power options standard and a nicer stereo. LE is the top of the line one with leather, sunroof, power seats, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaKaNa Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 So XE, sport package? I have power everything in there... And of course no XE/LE/SE badge... someone probably ripped it off to sell it for more, but I only paid $6700 for it. Anyway, so now that we've decided that I have LSD, how does that affect me? I'm obviously fairly new to the terms and what they do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vengeful Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limited_slip_differential Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
max_stryker Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 We have the same truck - yours is alot nicer but youre gonna lovethe sport package lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaKaNa Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 Too complicated for someone a simple minded banker like me. So basically, can I use my 4WD on pavement when its wet? Thats basically all I've been trying to figure out here, but I've now found out that I have a different model than I was told (not that it matters), but have some special differential. What can I do different from other people? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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