Comparison Test Request

[R Hermann]

Researching vehicle options is difficult for those of us lacking the off-road experience to know anything. Add the evolution of off-road equipment, including electronically controlled differentials, torque vectoring, sway bar disconnects, etc. and one can quickly become overwhelmed. Finally, the existing prejudices and "that's the facts" mentality can make it difficult to know what is "best".

A great contribution to this forum, and history!, would be some actual comparison tests of various vehicles on similar tires, etc. over the same course(s) by the same driver(s).

Tests I would really like to see:
1) Within a generation: low range vs. high range; low range rear diff locked vs. rear open.
2) Between generations: comparably equipped e.g.: '08 vs. '09
3) '09-'13 vs '14+ (6-speed vs. 8-speed).

Personally, I would really like to see a comparison of a ~'13 in low vs a '14+ without low range.

Now that we have some beautiful Fall weather, how about getting some friends together and providing some educational entertainment?

Cheers!

 

[TLB]

And the reason to compare a vehicle with a low range vs without a low range is ......???????? Really? What are you trying to prove or accomplish?
It is like comparing apples to oranges.

 

[Longhorn]

Go to one of the LR training sites and take a 2 hour course. Well worth it.

 

[R Hermann]

And the reason to compare a vehicle with a low range vs without a low range is ......???????? Really? What are you trying to prove or accomplish?
It is like comparing apples to oranges.

I would like to provide data rather then hearsay to help people make an informed purchase and informed route planning. Sure, lockers and 2-speed would be fantastic and provide a capability and confidence. I would like to know how close a single speed with an 8-speed transmission can come to the performance of a 2 speed case in actual use. I'd like to SEE a skilled driver find the limits of each vehicle rather than speculation.

 

[ryanjl]

It's clear that you just need to go out and drive your LR4 and discover its limitations. If you don't discover them, then great: you bought the perfect vehicle to do what you want to do.

If groomed dirt trails are what you want to do, then you are unlikely to really need low range.

Otherwise, there are many videos on youtube that demonstrate the difference in high and low range offroad. I'd recommend taking a few hours and deepdiving into those.

 

[crash1121]

Take a look at this video (skip to 04:18). It's a good representation of how LR4s (without the HD package) can perform off-road.

There's no question that an LR4 with low-range would be the ideal choice for various types of steep and technical terrain, but since they now have 8-speeds, I'll bet 1st gear is quite short so you'd be able to tackle plenty of challenging trails.

 

[R Hermann]

Excellent!!!! Thanks for sharing!
1st Gear on the 8-speed is 4.81, fyi.

Impressive that it did that on all-season rubber.

There are numerous videos out showcasing the different manufacturers approach to traction management and some seem to do better than others. This is the first I have seen in real-world use and testing different configurations. Thanks again.

As a follow-up to the question of why I care- I am in the market and there are very few, Heady Duty and Lux vehicles available. Remove the Heavy Duty requirement to increase the choices.

 

[Longhorn]

Take a look at this video (skip to 04:18). It's a good representation of how LR4s (without the HD package) can perform off-road.

There's no question that an LR4 with low-range would be the ideal choice for various types of steep and technical terrain, but since they now have 8-speeds, I'll bet 1st gear is quite short so you'd be able to tackle plenty of challenging trails.

I ALMOST felt sorry for that poor Toyota.....almost.

LR - the best 4x4xFar

 

[ryanjl]

Take a look at this video (skip to 04:18). It's a good representation of how LR4s (without the HD package) can perform off-road.

There's no question that an LR4 with low-range would be the ideal choice for various types of steep and technical terrain, but since they now have 8-speeds, I'll bet 1st gear is quite short so you'd be able to tackle plenty of challenging trails.

This video also shows what the difference would be with a rear locker in the LR4. Essentially, the rear locker would eliminate the need for wheelspin (even as little as there is in the LR4) to tell the computer to lock up the wheels; instead, the vehicle would just "go."

 

[mpinco]

Good comparison crash. Note that this is a 4 low / 2-speed xfer case comparison. HD / locking rear diff would eliminate wheel spin AND improve overall vehicle control on trails. That said many don't need HD locker. For me it was required.

Now, a single speed xfer case? Suspect it would struggle on the 2nd hill of the video as weight / incline nearly stops forward progress.

Edit add: Comments say 4hi for test. My comments on single speed and some trails still stand.