How much weight is necessary/prudent for winter traction without sacrificing too much MPG? I have a 2wd Chevrolet Colorado. In the past I would run about 400 lbs in my 2WD Ford Ranger.
How much weight for traction?
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300-400 pounds, but it varies depending on the vehicle.
Chain's are also a good idea.
Chain's are also a good idea.
If its over the rear wheels you could maybe get away with 200 or 300lbs.
The weight is offset by the torque, you want to feather the gas not spin tires (though that can be fun)
The weight is offset by the torque, you want to feather the gas not spin tires (though that can be fun)
Minimum of 200 lbs but depending how good traction you want, best thing is to make sure tires have good tread on them and then 300-400 lbs and itll be a champ.
Put new snow tires on the rear for winter traction. Firestone(?) Winterforce. Will change them out in the spring.
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I generally used 200#'s over the axle. I would buy the play sand in 50# bags @ toys R us.
Used to drive a '97 2WD F150. With good traction tires on the rear, 210 lbs was my normal load. (3 70 lb tubes) Depends on the vehicle and tire condition. Tried 4 tubes for a while, didn't think it made much difference.
Originally Posted By: OtisBlkR1
place the bags over the axle (incase you didnt already know this) try and distribute the weight equally.
Wrong. Put the sandbags as rear in the bed (near the tailgate) as you can get away with. Weight placed behind the rear axle pulls weight off the front and transfers it to the rear. Its dependent on the wheelbase and how far behind the axle the weight is but if you do it right, adding 400 lbs of weight will add more than 400 lbs to the rear axle.
place the bags over the axle (incase you didnt already know this) try and distribute the weight equally.
Wrong. Put the sandbags as rear in the bed (near the tailgate) as you can get away with. Weight placed behind the rear axle pulls weight off the front and transfers it to the rear. Its dependent on the wheelbase and how far behind the axle the weight is but if you do it right, adding 400 lbs of weight will add more than 400 lbs to the rear axle.
Originally Posted By: Duffman77
Wrong. Put the sandbags as rear in the bed (near the tailgate) as you can get away with. Weight placed behind the rear axle pulls weight off the front and transfers it to the rear. Its dependent on the wheelbase and how far behind the axle the weight is but if you do it right, adding 400 lbs of weight will add more than 400 lbs to the rear axle.
I wouldn't put any extra weight outside of the wheelbase. It's great for traction in a straight line, but will make the truck more prone to understeer with a more sudden transition to oversteer if/when the back end breaks loose.
Wrong. Put the sandbags as rear in the bed (near the tailgate) as you can get away with. Weight placed behind the rear axle pulls weight off the front and transfers it to the rear. Its dependent on the wheelbase and how far behind the axle the weight is but if you do it right, adding 400 lbs of weight will add more than 400 lbs to the rear axle.
I wouldn't put any extra weight outside of the wheelbase. It's great for traction in a straight line, but will make the truck more prone to understeer with a more sudden transition to oversteer if/when the back end breaks loose.
Originally Posted By: Duffman77
Originally Posted By: OtisBlkR1
place the bags over the axle (incase you didnt already know this) try and distribute the weight equally.
Wrong. Put the sandbags as rear in the bed (near the tailgate) as you can get away with. Weight placed behind the rear axle pulls weight off the front and transfers it to the rear. Its dependent on the wheelbase and how far behind the axle the weight is but if you do it right, adding 400 lbs of weight will add more than 400 lbs to the rear axle.
Wrong. Put it right over the tires so it doesn't adversely affect handling. I agree the further back you put it will magnify the weight put in and would be great if only driving straight however once you decide to turn it will affect the handling characteristics of the truck(or rwd car). Putting the weight right over the wheels will make the truck handle basically the same
Originally Posted By: OtisBlkR1
place the bags over the axle (incase you didnt already know this) try and distribute the weight equally.
Wrong. Put the sandbags as rear in the bed (near the tailgate) as you can get away with. Weight placed behind the rear axle pulls weight off the front and transfers it to the rear. Its dependent on the wheelbase and how far behind the axle the weight is but if you do it right, adding 400 lbs of weight will add more than 400 lbs to the rear axle.
Wrong. Put it right over the tires so it doesn't adversely affect handling. I agree the further back you put it will magnify the weight put in and would be great if only driving straight however once you decide to turn it will affect the handling characteristics of the truck(or rwd car). Putting the weight right over the wheels will make the truck handle basically the same
Originally Posted By: Duffman77
Originally Posted By: OtisBlkR1
place the bags over the axle (incase you didnt already know this) try and distribute the weight equally.
Wrong. Put the sandbags as rear in the bed (near the tailgate) as you can get away with. Weight placed behind the rear axle pulls weight off the front and transfers it to the rear. Its dependent on the wheelbase and how far behind the axle the weight is but if you do it right, adding 400 lbs of weight will add more than 400 lbs to the rear axle.
I dont think so..... do it how you like, Im going to put my weight over the axle.
Originally Posted By: OtisBlkR1
place the bags over the axle (incase you didnt already know this) try and distribute the weight equally.
Wrong. Put the sandbags as rear in the bed (near the tailgate) as you can get away with. Weight placed behind the rear axle pulls weight off the front and transfers it to the rear. Its dependent on the wheelbase and how far behind the axle the weight is but if you do it right, adding 400 lbs of weight will add more than 400 lbs to the rear axle.
Put it over the axle - you aren't trying to transfer any weight anywhere. Putting it behind the axle in attempt to "transfer" the weight to the back just makes the steering more prone to sliding. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt...
It seems to be lost on many here why you are even adding weight??? The whole point is to move the center of gravity rearward. By the logic mentioned here why wouldn't you put it at the front of the bed near the center of the wheelbase then so it has less effect on your handling?
Originally Posted By: Duffman77
It seems to be lost on many here why you are even adding weight??? The whole point is to move the center of gravity rearward. By the logic mentioned here why wouldn't you put it at the front of the bed near the center of the wheelbase then so it has less effect on your handling?
I agree.
Put it as far rearward as possible. Less static weight can actually be used to achieve the same goal.
It seems to be lost on many here why you are even adding weight??? The whole point is to move the center of gravity rearward. By the logic mentioned here why wouldn't you put it at the front of the bed near the center of the wheelbase then so it has less effect on your handling?
I agree.
Put it as far rearward as possible. Less static weight can actually be used to achieve the same goal.
I agree with putting the extra weight as far back as possible. That way less weight is required for the same traction benefit and it will be less total vehicle weight which is important for stopping distance. Stopping distance is more critical than getting started when it comes to accident avoidance.
Originally Posted By: hsd
I agree with putting the extra weight as far back as possible. That way less weight is required for the same traction benefit and it will be less total vehicle weight which is important for stopping distance.
How will it be less total vehicle weight when stopping?
I agree with putting the extra weight as far back as possible. That way less weight is required for the same traction benefit and it will be less total vehicle weight which is important for stopping distance.
How will it be less total vehicle weight when stopping?
The point is to add extra weight to the drive wheels in a matter that does not adversely affect the handing of the vehicle. It is not to transfer weight around and it is not to move the center of gravity of the vehicle. The one and only goal is to place the weight in a matter that adds the weight to the rear axle.
By placing the weight rearward of the axle, the possibility exists of transfering weight to the rear driveaxle by removing some of it from the front. When that occurs, you increase drive traction at the expense of steering and braking traction.
By placing it over the axle, you gain traction but not at the expense of handling.
In my '97 F150, placing 300 lbs of sand behind the axle made for a hard to steer truck in icy conditions. Over the axle, it was fine.
By placing the weight rearward of the axle, the possibility exists of transfering weight to the rear driveaxle by removing some of it from the front. When that occurs, you increase drive traction at the expense of steering and braking traction.
By placing it over the axle, you gain traction but not at the expense of handling.
In my '97 F150, placing 300 lbs of sand behind the axle made for a hard to steer truck in icy conditions. Over the axle, it was fine.
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