Bug out Vehicle, Is 4X4 necessary or is 4X2 OK?

4wd without a doubt. God willing ill not be without one. i cant tell you the times ive had to bump it into 4wd to get out of some mud or snow. being stuck really sucks.
joshua
 
Tire chains. Buy a set. IF you have a 4x4, buy for all the wheels. Keep good tires on your vehicle.

Since I don't have infinite financial resources, I buy a vehicle that fits my life style from day to day as most do. Depends on the geography and climate. I have owned 4x4's and have used them in some very difficult situations. 4x4's really help in situations where you are driving in mud or soft soil that is a couple of inches deep to a hard bottom. Most 4x2's will get stuck after they loose momentum; just depends on how far you have to drive in this stuff. 4x4's are also good for driving in up to about 6" of snow, maybe 8". More than that, your axle will be plowing snow and you will eventually bog down. You probably should not be driving in this situation anyway. Ice will kill ya! So will over confidence!

Jeep CJ5's are one of the best off road vehicles because of the short wheel base. But I hate using one much for everyday driving. I'll just stick with a Toyota.

Farm tractor's make great bug out vehicles. Pull a trailer. Run circles around most 4x4's.
 
ERDept... I'd say go for 4x4 as well. Why not? It'd be silly to have a "bug out" vehicle that didn't have four wheel drive. It'd just be a normal car otherwise. I'm sure you already have a normal car. Whether or not you'll need it, even if you do actually have to use it, is doubtful.

Personally, I'd spend the money on preparing your home for a disaster instead. Maybe a good generator, containers of gasoline, food, medicines, a condensation based drinking water system, guns, ammo, and lots of knives.
 
Any Cal. said:
So, while 4x is a nice option, having an Expedition for a commuter does not mean you have too many more Bugout options.
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FINALY someonw with good sence! NOTHING is more lame than a big fancy "loaded" 4x4 Jeep, SUV, or one ton pickup that has never hauled a pound, and never been off pavement driving down the highway.

I have seen it more times than i can count. We get a feak snow storm off Lake Michigan thats dumping a foot of snow per hour, and when i start back home on my daily commute, with over a foot of snow on the ground. If only you could see the face of the guy who mowed down a stop sighn and went into a ditch with his 4x4 Durango. Or the guy who slid through the intersection in his Triton V-10 F-350 Super duty becuase he was going WAY to fast. If only you could see there faces as i pass them in my Ford Contour. ;)

the majority of 4x4 drivers have no idea how to use it, or what its limitations are. They can accelerate well, but they fail to realize that they cant STOP any better than anyone else. You may have 4 wheel drive, but youv still only got 4 wheel brakes; So does a Geo Metro.

i dare say my Contour has been off road more than most pickups or SUVs. Its towed more vehicles and pulled out more stuck vehicles than most as well. The important thing is not what numers are plastered on the side of your vehicle. The important thing is understanding your vehicles limitations; if you dont know that, then all the wheels in the world wont save you.
 
I find it funny that posters like trooper don't defend 4X2 but attack drivers of 4X4s as idiots. I would like the opportunity to ask him to follow me on my daily rouds on the ranch. In four wheel drive I can cross most of the pastures without leaving ruts caused by tire spin. In fact I can't even backup to the haystack without engaging the front axle. When the rains come heavy and all the roads are slipeery he won't make it up the hill. Period.

I suppose that most drunk drivers drive 2 wheel drive cars. Same with bank robbers and child molesters. You should see the look on the drunks face when I drive by in my four wheel drive pickup truck.

trooper when you start to divide people into groups or associate the behavior a few idiots with entire poulation you are on a slippery slope. Four wheel drive will take you a little further down the road. Advocating 2 wheel drive for a bug out vehicle is like saying a dull knife is safer for everyone. When I start the scouts on knife safety they begin with a table knife and a bar of soap to carve on. When they switch to real knives they are told to keep the blade sharp. A sharp blade or four wheel drive allow you more options.

Is a 4X4 vehicle is a tool. Is it needed in Los Angeles? No but the poster wants to head out of town. Why not give him a more versatile tool? Bottom line buy whatever suits you. But don't try to tell me a Ford Contour sedan is a better on/off road vehicle than a four wheel drive.
 
It would be a mistake to start a flamewar over this. The fact of the matter is, both Mr. Trooper and 2dogs are correct.

I live in the 'burbs in CA, and I'm pretty sure 90% of the 4x4s around here have never been off pavement. I'm also convinced the drivers of those vehicles have no idea how to handle snow, much less mud, with or without 4 wheel drive. (There's nothing scarier than a snowy nighttime drive to the Sierra, surrounded by Bay Area type-A aggressive drivers in their oversized 4x4s, every one of which is blasting up 80 as fast as they can go and apparently never once thinking about what they're going to do when it comes time to stop.)

On the other hand, there's a few 4x4s in the neighborhood that consistently show up on Monday morning covered top to bottom in mud. I'm fairly convinced those guys know exactly what their 4x4s can do.

Point is, the vast majority of 4 wheel drives on the road aren't needed, are never used, and the drivers have no idea what the limitations of their vehicles are. But as always there's that "educated" (for lack of a better word) minority who use their 4 wheel drives all the time and know what they can and cannot do. I think it is possible to have disdain for the 4 wheel drive that never sees more than wet pavement, while having respect for the people who use their 4 wheel drives to their fullest extent.

As comes up all the time on this board, gear is no substitute for knowledge. If the first time you use your gear is when the SHTF and you actually NEED it, you might as well not have ever had it in the first place. So if you get a 4x4 for a bug out vehicle, just make sure you take it out from time to time and practice with your vehicle's 4x4 capabilities. Good news is, this is actually quite a lot of fun to do.

Peace, out.
 
BUY A DAMN TRUCK ALREADY AND TELL US WHAT YOU GOT,,,,in another thread.:confused:
 
You see bulgron the real problem is putting people in "groups" by the vehicle they drive, or their skin color, or culture, or some other attribute. Bay Area type-A aggresive drivers are what you see these people as. Each driver is an individual, not just a member of some group. What you see doesn't do justice to the simple fact that they drive a vehicle with four wheel drive. If a particular driver does something stupid they he is to blame. Putting all drivers of a particular vehicle in the same group as this stupid driver just isn't right. Bulgron I think you know this is true.
 
I learned a lot of what I know about 4x4 driving because I drove a 4x4 daily for work and in most cases HAD to get places out in the country in all kinds of conditions (wet fields, mud, snow, ice, water, etc.). It was really a lot of fun and a learning experience daily. If I got stuck, I had someone pull me out. Often it was a bull dozer. Even got bull dozers stuck a few times. We all got stuck from time to time. If I am totally alone, I tread lightly.

Choose the vehicle that works for you. 4x4's are fun and very useful at times. Often you simply don't want to spin your wheels and tear things up, 4x4's work in that regard.
 
Here is just a thought. Each type of vehicle has its strengths. Use its strengths. I had a little front wheel drive Festiva one time. It did not look aggressive, could turn and stop on a dime, and got 43 mpg. All those are useful attributes in any situation. Obviously, it did not go offroad. However, the thing was narrow enough you could drive on a wide sidewalk. A small 2 gallon gas can took you a long way. Use the strengths of whatever you have.
 
Any Cal. said:
Here is just a thought. Each type of vehicle has its strengths. Use its strengths. I had a little front wheel drive Festiva one time. It did not look aggressive, could turn and stop on a dime, and got 43 mpg. All those are useful attributes in any situation. Obviously, it did not go offroad. However, the thing was narrow enough you could drive on a wide sidewalk. A small 2 gallon gas can took you a long way. Use the strengths of whatever you have.
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Thats the little car our niece in Houston had. When she was trapped in the awefull mess of an evacuation, some creative driving with the festiva got her out of the jam and on the way back home. She was able to take short-cuts arcoss parking areas and exit in between those concrete posts the bar vehicles from going through. Now she drives a Toyota Scion Xa.

Threres alot to be said for small and manouvrable.
 
2dogs said:
I find it funny that posters like trooper don't defend 4X2 but attack drivers of 4X4s as idiots. I would like the opportunity to ask him to follow me on my daily rouds on the ranch. In four wheel drive I can cross most of the pastures without leaving ruts caused by tire spin. In fact I can't even backup to the haystack without engaging the front axle. When the rains come heavy and all the roads are slipeery he won't make it up the hill. Period.

I suppose that most drunk drivers drive 2 wheel drive cars. Same with bank robbers and child molesters. You should see the look on the drunks face when I drive by in my four wheel drive pickup truck.

trooper when you start to divide people into groups or associate the behavior a few idiots with entire poulation you are on a slippery slope. Four wheel drive will take you a little further down the road. Advocating 2 wheel drive for a bug out vehicle is like saying a dull knife is safer for everyone. When I start the scouts on knife safety they begin with a table knife and a bar of soap to carve on. When they switch to real knives they are told to keep the blade sharp. A sharp blade or four wheel drive allow you more options.

Is a 4X4 vehicle is a tool. Is it needed in Los Angeles? No but the poster wants to head out of town. Why not give him a more versatile tool? Bottom line buy whatever suits you. But don't try to tell me a Ford Contour sedan is a better on/off road vehicle than a four wheel drive.
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I never said 4x4 drivers are stupid. What i said was that most 4x4 drivers dont know how to use it, and it makes them over confident. NOR did i say a front wheel drive sedan, like a Contour, is better for offroad use. What i said was that it can ge the job done if your carefull and know what your doing. When you start to read into other members posts, and get defencive, You are on a slippery slope.

You are the kind of person who actualy needs a 4x4 and knows the limitations of such. But then again, you have a ranch; your not the guy who drives his spotless F350 to his downtown office every day. 4x2 , be it a pickup or a car, will get you where you need to go as long as your carefull. Our friend is asking our opinions for a bug out vehicle to get him out of town should he be required to do so. I am in NO way opposed to 4x4; what im opposed to is the belief that 4 wheel drive is some kind of substitute for knowing what your doing. Everything i said was common sence; no need to get defencive about it.

I have had to drive bolth 4x4 and 4x2 pickups for work. I worked for an electrical contractor (industrial), and in doing so have hauled all maner of heavy loads in adverse conditions, on dirt and mud, and up inclines. 4x4 is a great tool to have when you need to haul a few thoulsand poiunds worth of wire and EMT from site A to site B over muddy uneven fields. While 4x4 is extreemly helpfull in those kinds of situations, 4x2 can get the job done IF YOUR CAREFULL.

My biggest gripe is that so many 4x4 owners just throw caution out the window because theya re convinced 4 wheel drive will get them through anything. Im sure you will agree that reality is not so.
 
Here's the deal. Put it in 2 wheel, go out driving off the road. When the wheels start to slip, pretend to have 4 wheel. Pull it down into low range, pretend to ease down on the gas and drive out of the problem.
 
Mine is a 1980 VW Vanagon Camper. Rear air cooled engine, gerat ground clearnace and lots of room to carry all I want. Not sexy, gut gets the job done!
 
4x4 isn`t strictly necessary but it`s one hell of a tool to have in the ol toolbox IF you know how to use it. Anyone who`s serious about survival with their 4x4 (or even their 4x2, maybe even more so for folks with a 4x2!) should get some real experience driving *off road*.
People seem fixated on driving through the woods and such. Forget that,what about driving over an 8" concrete burb/barrier to avoid a traffic snarl? Can`t do that with a Festiva (or a lil 4x4 with weak sidewall car tires on it). I`ve driven my very mildly modified Cherokee through muddy water 24"+ deep many times when wheeling. Do that with a Civic or even a 2wd Toyota. Remember a good 4x4 isn`t just 4 wheel drive, it`s air intake is raised and designed to keep water out of the engine,axle vents are located high up etc.). Trail Rated Jeeps are actually tested with their electronics, radios etc. under water! Having had them in water deep enough that it was coming in the windows I can tell you it works! Maybe you have to drive through a drainage ditch to go around a huge tree fallen across the road. Subaru Outback drops one tire in the ditch and gets high centered. Just doesn`t have the approach/departure or breakover angles of a true 4x4. Oh well,guess who`s walkin.
Tires play a big part too. A 4x4 on "all season" tires is little better than a 2wd on snow tires or with a limited slip diff.
I can think of a lot of survival scenarios where there`d be debris in the road. Think you`d fare better driving over that stuff with 2 ply "all season" car tires or 6 ply,reinforced sidewall "all terrain" or "mud terrain" tires? It`s absolutely astounding the kind of abuse a good off road tire can take with no damage at all. Locking or at least limited slip differentials also make a huge difference.
4WD isn`t an end all be all but used *prudently* by someone with actual experience so that they KNOW the capabilities of their driving and their rig it can be invaluable. A blissninny in a 4x4 is still a blissninny. ;)
If you don`t know any good places to go wheeling do a google search for offroad parks. More than likely there`s one in your area like www.paragonap.com where you can try your rig out on rated trails that`ll challenge you but keep you out of trouble. They have guidelines to determine what trails your rig is capable of. Even if you never have to do any serious off roading in a survival situation (something I`d avoid if I could) doing hard stuff now and learning how to do it right will make the things you may have to do then seem really easy and you`ll be able to do it with confidence. Marcus
 
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