2 wheel drive? 4 wheel drive?

[nipper]

I have a 4wd suburban and I have only had to use the 4wd once to get up an incredibly steep homemade launch ramp. Otherwise, just put it in low gear when pulling the boat out and it comes out just fine with no wheel spinning. It is nice to have the peace of mind with 4wd, but it comes at a price, both in terms of initial cost and weight (which translates to lower mpg).

[RWilson2526]

I have a 2 wheel drive Silverado.....with that tongue weight on the back never had a problem pulling the boat up a ramp....wheels never spin....It does kind of suck in the snow especially if I have nothing in the back but like you said with the handful of times we get snow its not a deal breaker.

[willy]

Would not be without 4x4, have had in the past 2 wheel drive trucks and they are fine if you are doing nothing but hauling on good roads and dry ramps, get on the Atlantic Highlands or Keyport ramp at low tide or close to it and it is like greased pig sh!t. Or if it snows or gets icy, or even in badly flooded rain roads it is a great insurance deal.
In the newer trucks it is about a 7=10 % fuel economy increase in a full size. Not worth it to me.
Now if you have a agressive limited slip in a two wheel drive you can get away with some things. But put an agressive limitied slip in a 4x4 and you have the foshizzle of the truck world and it will get you thru and out of a lot of problems
JMHO

[phatdaddy]

ctt, been pulling trailers & boats since 76 and never had 4wd until 4 years ago. now i will not go without it. 4w lo makes any ramp a lot easier. i vote chevy or gmc 5.3 not bad mileage and resale is great.

[Destroyer]

I would not have anything but 4wd. I cannot tell you how many times I've pulled other trucks up the Leonardo launch ramp because they could not get up on thier own...especially at low tide. WILLY was right on the money about highlands and those area ramps. Right now I have a Jeep Cherokee with the 4.0 engine. I get an honest 20 mpg. Not great, but better than a lot of 2wd trucks. And you simply cannot beat 4WD in rain and snow... nuff said....

[Genie Aye]

4x4 all the way--our ramps out are real greasy on anything around sea level tides--plus the resale is higher. Both my tow rigs are 4x4 and the motorhome--I do not worry about--16,500 lbs with a posi trac.

[Road King Cole]

Ever drive a 2WD truck in the snow? My first truck 25 years ago was 2WD. I had a choice on my second truck of either a nice 2WD with all nice and comfy options, or a bare bones 4WD. I went with the 4WD and never looked back.