brianj5600
Active Member
All right, while we are nit pickin...it is Volkswagen and Yugo. Now you know better than to use the improper spelling.
When do you NEED posi?
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ultrastang
Founding Member
zookeeper
Founding Member
I guess it depends on the depth of the snow, the road you're on and the speed you're traveling. If you're on a level, paved road with a little snow on the side of the road, there's a chance of ice on the pavement, a limited slip (there, happy now ultrastang?) could be a little hairy. But if you're doing a bit of 4-wheeling in foot-deep snow piled on loose, rocky terrain, then you won't get far at all without either a limited slip or a locking differential. BTW, did you know that there are very, very few FOUR wheel drive vehicles sold new? Locking axles add to the cost of new 4X4's so unless you order it at the dealer, most 4x4 trucks are actually two wheel drive, one front, one rear.
As far as driving in the rain. I've never had to drive my 67 in the rain but when I switch my 2000 Mustang from a 7.5" open to an 8.8" with a posi in it I could totally feel the difference in wet weather driving and let me tell you I will never do without it. I can feel those clutches working when I go around a corner and I LIKE what they do.
zookeeper
Founding Member
I can feel the difference as well. My '88GT feels twitchy and less stable in the corners in the rain. Of course, I'm sure that living in Los Angeles, you see rain a lot more than I ever do.
Here comes the nit-pickin nit-wit....
Original question: "When do you NEED posi?"
Answer: When you have a GM product.
In the same train or thought, a Mercedes, Lambo, Volks Wagon, Yogo, AMC Pacer and Mustang all perform the same basic function, but I don't call my Mustang by any of the other names listed. I call it by it's proper name.]
"LAMBO" ? That sounds like you been "hangin in the hood" with the "Hoop-dee" crowd. 
We'd better not find out you've got some 24" wheels with spinners on your car, or you'll loose all credibility here 
StangDreamin'
Founding Member
Back in the mid 80's I was up in Indian country in north Arizona, in an 85 Pete pulling a flatbed with 5,000 lbs of cargo (like nothing at all) and encountered light rain shower, that asphalt was exactly like driving on ice.
I-40 between Holbrook and Joseph City. Know it well.
IMHO; limited-slip on any surface is just like a built, torque-y engine. It can be a major help; but it can destroy your day if you dont know how to drive with it!
Perhaps a little more apt analogy would be a truck/SUV with 4-wheel-drive (limited slip or not) vice the same vehicle with only two-wheel-drive. Neophytes think four-wheel drive is God's gift to off-roaders; because with 4WD; you can never get stuck!
The fact of the matter is, when you drive with that kind of "I'm Invincible Now!!!" attitude, you will end up having to walk farther "back to civilization"; and it usually requires two to three times the effort and/or money to "un-stuck" it!
It's all a matter of attitude. If you put in a limited-slip and instantly develop a 'tude and start driving like it's going to save you from every single little mistake; it won't - and you'll get in more trouble than before you had limited-slip.
I-40 between Holbrook and Joseph City. Know it well.
IMHO; limited-slip on any surface is just like a built, torque-y engine. It can be a major help; but it can destroy your day if you dont know how to drive with it!
Perhaps a little more apt analogy would be a truck/SUV with 4-wheel-drive (limited slip or not) vice the same vehicle with only two-wheel-drive. Neophytes think four-wheel drive is God's gift to off-roaders; because with 4WD; you can never get stuck!
The fact of the matter is, when you drive with that kind of "I'm Invincible Now!!!" attitude, you will end up having to walk farther "back to civilization"; and it usually requires two to three times the effort and/or money to "un-stuck" it!
It's all a matter of attitude. If you put in a limited-slip and instantly develop a 'tude and start driving like it's going to save you from every single little mistake; it won't - and you'll get in more trouble than before you had limited-slip.
exactly
zookeeper
Founding Member
I like you're 4x4 analogy. It's like my Dad used to say, " 4 wheel drive is great, you can get stuck in places you can't even get a regular vehicle!"
I bought a new F250 HD Supercab 351 2 wheel drive back in 1988. I ordered it with limited slip because I had just moved and the road to my house was hilly and curvey. It was one of the worst vehicles that I had ever driven in snow. It was OK in the rain. I now have a 03 Silverado (holding my head in shame) 4x4 with a 4.8 that has limited slip (or whatever they call it) in the rear. It does fantastic in the snow (with 4x4 engaged) but when the original tires wore down (but not wore out) it would spin badly when taking off on a wet road.
Tim65GT
Active Member
I could drive my mom's peg leg Pontiac a lot better in REAL deep snow than my V8 Monza with Posi in just a couple inches of snow. The Monza was so light in the rear it would break loose up the slightest hill. It just stayed parked when it snowed.
I like the limited slip in my last two trucks, which have enough torque to break loose real easy in the rain, but they are autos, so taking off slow with traction is no problem. It's kinda fun hammering the throttle and getting the rear to slide out.
I don't plan on racing my Mustang, but when I build some horsepower, I don't want it to go to just one tire when I nail the go pedal.
End point... know your vehicle, the way it handles and it's limitations.
I like the limited slip in my last two trucks, which have enough torque to break loose real easy in the rain, but they are autos, so taking off slow with traction is no problem. It's kinda fun hammering the throttle and getting the rear to slide out.
I don't plan on racing my Mustang, but when I build some horsepower, I don't want it to go to just one tire when I nail the go pedal.
End point... know your vehicle, the way it handles and it's limitations.
heck, if you're a good enough driver you can take a 2 wheel drive version of someone else's 4x4 and go places other people get stuck with that 4x4, case in point my old 93 2wd cherokee, i've been places in it where other people with 4x4 cherokees got stuck
sounds like a line from a Clint Eastwood movie. is it? i know i've heard that before and seen that movie but i can't place it.
Tim65GT
Active Member
man, i have't seen that one in a long time. seems like i've seen all the other Dirty Harry movies 2 or 3 times at least since i've seen that one.
StangDreamin'
Founding Member
Been there! I used to take the Rice-Eating Generic Chevy Truck down some of the nastiest roads..... go slow when it was rocky and bumpy and "Gonzo!" it in the soft sand. Switched to the F150 4x4 S'Cab and now, when the road suddenly turns to Brown Sugar; I just calmly "twist the twisty knob" to 4HI and motor on without standing on the gas. If you keep your foot out of it and don't make any sudden turns, you stand a pretty good chance of continuing on to solid ground.
The guys that kill me are the ones that blast through the dirt in two-wheel-drive, hammer on it when it starts to spin and sink the rear axle. Then they grab 4-Low, really hammer on it, and sink the front wheels, too!
Then they cuss, swear, kick body panels, etc; because "This 4x4 is a piece of S***!!!" It's probably a good truck, their driving skills are the s***.
These are the same types that take an "all wheel drive" vehicle out at night in the rain; and when they hammer on it in a curve and it slides off the road because they spun all the wheels; the trouble must be with the vehicle.
The only problem I have had with the AWD on the Subaru is that there is no tire noise and no indication that you are going to lose it until it is too late it is a VERY natural handling car that keeps me on my toes. I was at the dealer picking up some parts and this guy was there raising a fuss because he had just wrecked his STI. He thought that because it was AWD that he could not wreck it ”WRONG” he was use to cars with a lot of body role and “lose of traction indicator” tire noise and just over drove it. Traction is no cure for stupidity.
Y'all ought to try off roadin' in an 18 wheeler Been places so bad, it took 2 skidders and a Cat D4 dozer to get the 100,000+ lb truck out of the woods. One big skidder in front tuggin', the other skidder and the dozer in the back pushin' on each corner, and all 4 engines screamin' for all they're worth.
