Weather Mode or 4 Auto

[AZ LucaBrasi]

Weather mode also always skips 2nd gear - goes from 1-3 which is totally weird although I understand why they did that.

my truck skips 2nd gear pretty much all the time in any driving mode...only time i see it is at times during a downshift.

 

[jabroni619]

It snowed here as well last night, I drove in with weather mode on, it was great... no noticeable drag. This thing is a blast to drive in the snow, unreal. I offered to drive everyone to work this morning.

I know this post is over a year old but if you don’t notice the reduced throttle response in weather mode you wouldn’t notice if someone swapped your Raptor for a Harley.

 

[bfr]

Earlier (maybe in some other thread) I said I was going to always use 4A and referred to the Weather Mode as Nanny Mode. After some serious storms here in the mountains at 6500 ft elev., driving mountain passes at 8500 feet, blowing snowstorms that slow most drivers to <5mph, variable roads full of sheet ice, slushy snow, melted snow, etc etc I am sold on Weather Mode. Here are my observations: Does it dull throttle response and sometimes make you wonder if the truck is ever going to move? Absolutely. Can you "out accelerate it" in 4A with your own foot? Not likely (or impossible) in bad conditions. When the roads are not so slick, or dry (when you really don't need weather mode) then 4A is great...and can make things more fun (^ no need for the WalMart parking lot). In fact, when they're dry 2 Normal works just fine. But I will guarantee you this (remember I was a total skeptic 2 months ago), in sloppy, icy, nasty, variable conditions (most of our winter here) no one will out accelerate my Raptor by driving their Raptor with their foot in 4A! The system's sensing of wheel slippage (and yaw/gyro??) makes this thing a rocket all while inspiring a pretty good amount of confidence that no matter what you do, it's not gonna get overly sideways. It is Baja Mode for ice. Almost daily I have to pull out onto a highway that can have heavy traffic, an ice filled road at the stop sign I'm starting from and usually not great conditions on the highway. I have slipped into tiny holes in traffic like I would in summer conditions (much to the surprise and probably a bit of anger) from those I'm slipping in front of...but it is so predictable and gets it done every time. We also have an Audi Q7...that AWD system makes so much noise it's not even funny...and comes no where close to kicking in like the Raptor does. I've got a set of DuraTracs I ran on my Gen1 sitting in my garage waiting for my lazy ass to bolt them on my truck...but I've put it off cause even with the stock tires I've been pretty satisfied...never thought I'd say that. If you choose the right mode for conditions you shouldn't have a problem. My only annoyance is when we are in a low pressure system for a week and you know all the roads suck...you still have to choose the Mode every time you leave the garage. Wish it held the previous choice. FORScan??

 

[dewalt]

If you run power distribution on the dash you can see what front is doing. If it's using front most of the time turn to 4 high instead of auto in weather mode. That takes pressure off the clutch. For deep snow bump to high mud mode. Transmission dials in perfect for bucking snow

 

[Big-Foot]

Earlier (maybe in some other thread) I said I was going to always use 4A and referred to the Weather Mode as Nanny Mode. After some serious storms here in the mountains at 6500 ft elev., driving mountain passes at 8500 feet, blowing snowstorms that slow most drivers to <5mph, variable roads full of sheet ice, slushy snow, melted snow, etc etc I am sold on Weather Mode. Here are my observations: Does it dull throttle response and sometimes make you wonder if the truck is ever going to move? Absolutely. Can you "out accelerate it" in 4A with your own foot? Not likely (or impossible) in bad conditions. When the roads are not so slick, or dry (when you really don't need weather mode) then 4A is great...and can make things more fun (^ no need for the WalMart parking lot). In fact, when they're dry 2 Normal works just fine. But I will guarantee you this (remember I was a total skeptic 2 months ago), in sloppy, icy, nasty, variable conditions (most of our winter here) no one will out accelerate my Raptor by driving their Raptor with their foot in 4A! The system's sensing of wheel slippage (and yaw/gyro??) makes this thing a rocket all while inspiring a pretty good amount of confidence that no matter what you do, it's not gonna get overly sideways. It is Baja Mode for ice. Almost daily I have to pull out onto a highway that can have heavy traffic, an ice filled road at the stop sign I'm starting from and usually not great conditions on the highway. I have slipped into tiny holes in traffic like I would in summer conditions (much to the surprise and probably a bit of anger) from those I'm slipping in front of...but it is so predictable and gets it done every time. We also have an Audi Q7...that AWD system makes so much noise it's not even funny...and comes no where close to kicking in like the Raptor does. I've got a set of DuraTracs I ran on my Gen1 sitting in my garage waiting for my lazy ass to bolt them on my truck...but I've put it off cause even with the stock tires I've been pretty satisfied...never thought I'd say that. If you choose the right mode for conditions you shouldn't have a problem. My only annoyance is when we are in a low pressure system for a week and you know all the roads suck...you still have to choose the Mode every time you leave the garage. Wish it held the previous choice. FORScan??

Great post and quite comforting to know that the engineers at Ford were on their A-Game when it came to programming this truck!

 

[rtmozingo]

Wow, this thread got necroed.

well, just in case it hasn't been said, 4A acts a bit different depending on which mode you are in (normal, sport, or weather). If I'm serious about going fast on road, I have to use 4A, as I can spin my tires loose even in normal mode

 

[Jtnuge]

I have played with weather mode and 4awd. I have felt the difference between the modes. I can live with both. I'm able to choose the difference modes and be 100 percent happy. This truck is well behaved, just have to understand how it behaves. I'm still learning,lol.

 

[Fender]

I took it 300 miles through the michigan snow storm this weekend. 4A and 4H for deeper snow. The truck doesnt give a shit about conditions, goes through it like butter.

 

[kandewinn]

This^^^^^Mine stays in 4a all the time here near Detroit.