Tundra on Ice

[RunItHard]

Had some real bad ice on the roads yesterday, both on the way to work and going home. Some large sections with solid patches of 3/8" glare ice.

I watched others in cars and trucks fishtailing and spinning all over the road, but my Tundra did great using only stability and traction control in 2WD.

The skid control light was spending a good deal of time flashing; telling me it was engaged, and I could hear the wheels as they'd independently break then get power added to them. To say the least I was VERY impressed, and only felt the rear slip mildly from side-to-side, which sure beats spinning like a top.

[rmjdrift]

I hated driving in that whe i lived there, it suked

[wildbill23c]

Originally Posted by RunItHard

Had some real bad ice on the roads yesterday, both on the way to work and going home. Some large sections with solid patches of 3/8" glare ice.

I watched others in cars and trucks fishtailing and spinning all over the road, but my Tundra did great using only stability and traction control in 2WD.

The skid control light was spending a good deal of time flashing; telling me it was engaged, and I could hear the wheels as they'd independently break then get power added to them. To say the least I was VERY impressed, and only felt the rear slip mildly from side-to-side, which sure beats spinning like a top.

Thanks for the post RunItHard. I was hoping to here someone's experience in ice and snow and so far between your post and the one I created a few days ago I've heard nothing but good news.

I'm getting my Toyota the weekend of the 26th of January, I can't wait. The snow in the Boise Idaho area is pretty much gone, but there's still a few ice spots around on side streets. Plus I'm planning on going to the Winter Carnival in McCall Idaho in a couple weeks. So the ice and snow forums are giving me more positive confidence at how great these trucks are no matter what you throw at them.

By the way there was a video on Youtube the other day that I found showing one of the new Toyota FJ Landcruisers pulling a Dodge Ram pickup and travel trailer off of Pismo Beach. I bet that made that Dodge guy feel really bad. LOL.

[doubledup]

Hey all,
I live in Northern Ontario and the winters are long and icy.
My new tundra handles the ice great without the 4wd.
the only bad part of it, is that i cant play fishtailing anymore
oh well

[RunItHard]

Originally Posted by wildbill23c

So the ice and snow forums are giving me more positive confidence at how great these trucks are no matter what you throw at them.

Please don't anybody get me wrong... The truck handles great, but you still need to drive like you've got eggs on your accelerator and break pedals while driving in rain, icy or snowy conditions!

A lot of people make the mistake of thinking stability and traction control systems are a license to drive like normal or even speed in adverse conditions... That will get you into trouble faster than driving carefully without these systems.

Traction and stability control are only there to assist you, they're not a substitution for driving carefully!

[rockstate45]

The thing I noticed about the system is that it works well in either fast conditions or slow conditions. However, if you give it moderate gas you're screwed, pardon the French. Almost went back over front due to that. Oh well. It does work if you're barely touching it to get going or punching it from a dead stop. Anything in between, ehhh good luck!

-rockstate

[mrkent]

That's funny that you mention that you like it, because the first thing I do every time I start the truck is hold the traction control button until the traction control and VSC are disengaged. I have found that many times a bit of spinning or a bit of sliding will get you out of things that the traction aides stop. That's just my opinion though. I live in Alberta, so there's 7 months of the year that you can pretty much guarantee that there will be snow and ice everywhere. I find the Tundra's traction control too intrusive, and don't even get me started on the VSC!! However, I don't mind it for when the wife uses it...381hp and no weight over the bed is a bit much for her to handle! Glad you're driving safe!!

[Codiac]

Originally Posted by doubledup

Hey all,
I live in Northern Ontario and the winters are long and icy.
My new tundra handles the ice great without the 4wd.
the only bad part of it, is that i cant play fishtailing anymore
oh well

Oh trust me....you can fishtail the Tundra just fine if you want to. DISCLAIMER...don't try this home as you could become dead or wounded.

Turn off the trac control by engaging the ALSD while holding the button so that the VSC shuts off. Stand on the gas while turning on an icy surface and it will spin in circles or fishtail as long as you want.

Now I don't condone this type of driving but I had to see how the truck would react in a skid/slide for safety purposes.

[wildbill23c]

Yes its possible to do burn outs, fishtail, 360's etc. You just have to disable the stability control and LSD features. Its not recommended but it can be done.

A note also if you go offroad at all be sure to disable the stability control or you may find that the side curtain airbags will deploy if the truck is off canter too much. I learned this from the dealership.

[doubledup]

-46 C this morning with the wind,,,,,wow, its a cold one.
can someone explain the differences to me with the vsc
ie, if i hold the button down the auto lsd comes on but i can turn the vsc off
what are the difference, and what do these do exaclty.
thanks
definitely gonna go on the lake and skid around to get used to it.
tks

[wildbill23c]

Originally Posted by doubledup

-46 C this morning with the wind,,,,,wow, its a cold one.
can someone explain the differences to me with the vsc
ie, if i hold the button down the auto lsd comes on but i can turn the vsc off
what are the difference, and what do these do exaclty.
thanks
definitely gonna go on the lake and skid around to get used to it.
tks

VSC (Vehicle Stability Control) applies proportional braking in hard cornering to keep the vehicle more stable in corners so it doesn't have as much body roll thus resulting in a roll-over.

LSD (Limited Slip Differential) allows the rear axle to act as a normal open differential in normal situations, but can progressivly lock the rear wheels together for better traction in low traction conditions such as on ice or snow.

Both can be turned off if you hold down the VSC button for I think its 5 seconds it will turn off the VSC and LSD.

[Codiac]

I can spin all day long with the Auto LSD engaged..in fact that is the only way I can do it sense there is no way to disengage the VSC and Auto LSD at the same time unless I engage 4wd.

VSC and AUTO LSD control.(right side of steering wheel)

To deactivate the Rollover Side Curtain Restraint you have to push and hold the RSCR button (left side of steering wheel) for 3 seconds. That button has nothing to do with the VSC or Auto LSD.

[Mickey]

Sorry guys,
I'm still waiting patiently for the freeze to come here to watch almost all vehicles either on the side or wrecked. Haven't got the ice storm yet in Jax, Florida. 73 today, but forecast for a low of 30 on sunday morning. I guess I'll sleep late.

[Chris'TRD]

Originally Posted by Codiac

I can spin all day long with the Auto LSD engaged..in fact that is the only way I can do it sense there is no way to disengage the VSC and Auto LSD at the same time unless I engage 4wd.

VSC and AUTO LSD control.(right side of steering wheel)

To deactivate the Rollover Side Curtain Restraint you have to push and hold the RSCR button (left side of steering wheel) for 3 seconds. That button has nothing to do with the VSC or Auto LSD.

If I am not mistaken you can turn off the VSC and AUTO LSD by holding the button down for 5 seconds or more then the VSC OFF light will illuminate on your dash.

If I am wrong...Please correct me but I know my truck will do this operation.

[Larry]

Originally Posted by wildbill23c

LSD (Limited Slip Differential) allows the rear axle to act as a normal open differential in normal situations, but can progressivly lock the rear wheels together for better traction in low traction conditions such as on ice or snow.

Don't keep repeating Toyota's lie/false advertising about their limited slip crap. There is absolutely nothing that locks the wheels together. Toyota is falsely claiming their traction assist, that uses the brakes, has something to do with the differential when it DOES NOT!

I really hate all of the electronics that second guess what I want to do. I have a large U shaped driveway. Sometimes I like to power slid around it. The truck then cuts the power, flashes the dash lights, and beeps at me. It is as annoying as having my mother ride with me!!!!

It gets very dangerous when I try to pull out of an icy intersection only to have the engine practically die! I always turn off of this crap off on ice.