Two wheel drive or 4x4?

North Dakota and considering NOT getting four wheel drive???????

You are sadly mistaken. Now others will chime in ( waiting for Billings Montana to show up :B ) saying you do not need it even in winter, but man, North Dakota winters are a lot more brutal than Billings Montana winters.

I'm a native North Dakotan, and finally moved away from the brutal winters. You do need it there. It is not just a want in North Dakota. You need it.

Icy roads, snow drifts, and these are the good days in the winter. Blizzards move in and one can get stuck in drifts on most any main street in any sized town in North Dakota. And winter starts in October lasting until April. So that means after snow is on the ground, it does not have to snow to get a blizzard, just get another good windy day. And the wind loves North Dakota, visits quite often.

So do yourself a favor. Get four wheel drive for North Dakota. There are all pros to that move there, no real cons at all.

Mind you, one STILL must drive for road conditions, no matter how your vehicle is equipped. Four wheel drive does NOT mean driving the posted speed limit. Four wheel drive in ND means you keep moving, albeit slowly, compared to not moving at all. For in the brutal conditions North Dakota can have, those are the choices one has.

To move or not to move.

And at times, with jobs or family emergencies, one has to move, regardless of weather conditions. The weather does not care if a loved one has gotten injured or had a serious illness and you have to go. You go anyway, because you must.

Choose moving. The alternatives are worse, and can be life threatening in blizzard conditions. Of course I am NOT saying go driving around in a blizzard. But when the North Dakota road conditions website link to road conditions :Bbecomes one of your most visited sites during the winter, you'll understand what the choice of move versus stuck means.

I have 2wd and recently got stuck at the campground across from Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Also, the tow vehicle got stuck. Ended up getting towed by a couple half ton 4WD (Ford for the tow vehicle and Chevy for my truck + trailer).

Camping last weekend .And rained all weekend.Had spot to park all the trucks behind the campers.Here this ford 2wd trying to get out and couldn't.Went to help and my Chevy dually 4wd was was spinning tires a little.Hit 4wd and was out and pulled his out.
Always going to be that time that you need 4wd .Or hope someone does that's near you.

When did they start making 2x4 trucks? :)

IDman wrote:
Many folks think 4X4 is only for snow/sand. I have used ours many times on wet grass which is slick and on a slight grade that has loose gravel. You will never regret buying 4X4!

Exactly. If you ever plan on even pulling of the side of a wet road with anything behind you and you will want 4x4.

4x4 for sure. never know when youll need it.

Great for pulling your RV up on big blocks in 2 low when the site is really out of level. Also for pulling RV op on the TrailerAid Plus for changing tires/ maintenance.

Soft sand out in the boonies, towing over the Passes in snow along I-5.

All things I have used my 4X4 for.

Well worth having.

4x4 for all the reasons listed above. I will never own a 2 wheel drive truck. I have used my 4x4 many, many times in sand, snow, wet grass, gravel, mud, etc.

My $.02:

4x4 pros: traction (hello Capt Obvious), ground clearance, 2-speed transfer case (low can be handy in slow speed maneuvering, and takes burden off the transmission), better/broader resale

2wd pros: less weight, less parts to break &/or maintain, lower stance (easier to enter/exit), better handling & steering, slightly better mpg all other factors being equal

I prefer 4x4 for the "what ifs" of the world but concede that, in normal dry conditions, the 2wd has the performance advantage

IDman wrote:
Many folks think 4X4 is only for snow/sand. I have used ours many times on wet grass which is slick and on a slight grade that has loose gravel. You will never regret buying 4X4!

Same here. I have needed the four wheel drive more for sand or wet grass than snow or ice.