going to the mountains this week might me light snow and some icy conditions on road ...do i need tire chains? or can i just used my four wheel drive and if sohow do i shift from all wheel drive to four wheel drive up lock

 

It depends on the snow, here in jersey right before christmas we had a hardcore snow storm. That day, I went out when there was a decent dusting on the ground in the morning to bring my sister to work. It was a fine powder when I was driving home I went to make a left at a intersection at about 15-20 mph and my wheels turned but I just kept going forward it was like I was riding in a heated sled. When I finally got home I looked at tires and saw all the tread was filled in with packed snow my tires were basically slicks. If your gonna be dealing with powdery snow your gonna need chains in my opinion if its heavy thick snow you should be good with locking it in high if things get a bit rough I never had to use low lock in the snow yet. Its funny I was able to drive better with 6+ inches on the ground then with a inch or so.

 

Thanks for the response..another question what is the procedure.. step by. step to change from all wheel drive to four wheel drive up lock...how fast can I drive in four wheel drive lock.. how do I disengage it and can I drive the four wheel lock up in a lower gear like 3

 

First I would like to suggest that you read the owners manual if you have it as it will explain alot.

Next coming from someone who has been driving in the snow for about 30 years with all kinds of vehicals 2wd rear only 2wd front only and about 6 different 4wd's. The first thing to realize is that your traction is alot less than pavement so you really need to plan ahead more in everything you do even with 4wd.

Cold snow will always fill the small voids in your tread, this is a good thing, because snow grips snow better than rubber does, that is why all good snow tires have alot of tight siping (small cuts in the tread), thereby improving the traction.

You really shouldn't need chains for what your probably going to encounter, I have them and use them but I can't think of a time in my driving career that I felt they were necessary on a paved road with a 4wheel drive, in fact I rarely have felt they were really necessary with front wheel drives in those conditions. With rear wheel drives they can be really nice to have on ice or when the snow is deep. Remember with chains if the vehical weight is not enough to push the chain down into the surface that you're driving on it won't help very much (ie pavement with 1/4"of ice on it) they would probably help in that situation but not much, and on the pavement you would actually have less traction with no snow. If there is 2" of packed snow then chains would help alot because they can get a grip in the snow that is packed/frozen to the pavement. I generally only use chains off the maintained roads when the snow is deep or the terrain is steep enough to cause me to have to spin to make foreward progress.

On your dash above the stereo there is a row of buttons, the first one has a 4 with an arrow pointing up, this is normal drive mode (all wheel drive), next to it is a button with a 4,an arrow pointing up, and a paddlelock symbol, this is 4hi lock, next to that is a button with a 4, an arrow pointing down, and a paddlelock symbol. That is 4low lock and is not usually very usefull in the snow. Switching between 4high and 4high lock is as simple as pushing the 4high lock button, this can be done while you're driving without harming anything as long as your not spinning, if you are spinning you will need to back off the throttle enough to stop the wheel spin before you hit the lock switch to prevent damage to the transfer case (sometimes backing off the throttle will help it to switch even when not spinning). Switching back into 4hi is just as easy, just push the 4hi button. Switching to 4low can be done from either of the other modes but needs to be done with the vehical stopped or moving very slowly, same with switching out of 4low. Also the button for the drive mode you are in should have an orange light lit up in it when it's in that mode.

4hi lock can be used in my opinion, and I have done it with alot of 4wd's, at highway cruising speed, although it is not usually helping much at that speed.

For more info on the whole fwd system check this thread.https://www.hummerforums.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=17920

Check out my album for a pic where I had chains on the H3

 

Very helpful 4digr ..I will try the 4 wheel hi lock...going to tahoe..they are recommending chains but not if u have 4 wheel drive..thanks again...

 

4digr thanks again for the tip...I went on my trip but there is a problem I used the 4 wheel lock up on my way to tahoe but i was driving on pavement all three days on 4 wheel lock up...now my car has a gear oil smell or like power steering fluid...and now when I turn left or right the car wobbles, I dont know if it is still in lock mode or if I ruin the powertrain due to driving on the pavement....any suggestions on what it may be....i tried reversing back and turning but its making that funky smell in the car and my steering is not the same anymore

 

ya the problem is you don't use any thing other than 4hi on pavement. The owners manual is your friend!!!
2006 owners manual http://www.gm.ca/media/owners/manual...nual_en_CA.pdf

2007 http://www.gm.ca/media/owners/manual...nual_en_CA.pdf

2008 http://www.gm.ca/media/owners/manual...nual_en_CA.pdf

2009 http://www.gm.ca/media/owners/manual...nual_en_CA.pdf

 

Not good to leave the rig in 4lock on the pavement. If you have unlocked and it is indicating such by the orange light being lit on the 4h button, then you probably have a broken shift fork in the t-case. This is a common problem with the 06 and early 07's and is not through any fault of yours. It will cause the wobble that you are talking about when you turn, that is the drivetrain wanting to bind because the t-case is still in lock. If you still have warranty they should cover it. If not find a repair shop that has knowledge of the issue, probably not the dealer just for the reason that it will cost alot more there. Not sure on what might be causing the gear oil smell but it could be related.