Oops I drove in 4H - and U-Turned!

[cbrenthus]

Yeah Sport stays in 2H for my non-advanced. The below link has proved accurate for my OBX build.

https://www.cjponyparts.com/resources/bronco-goat-modes-explained

Normal, Eco, Sport are 2H and everything else uses a form of 2H or 2L - but I don't even have the 4A button on my GOAT dial.

I hadn't looked at a chart in awhile but makes sense. I really wish they would just let me select each section to make my own goat mode. Why do they care if I want to disconnect the sway bar in ECO, as long as it reconnects at the correct MPH.

BTW I once drove my '19 JLUR a few miles in 4H while towing a uhaul 6x12, had no issues and while it wasn't quite as long of a drive, I did have several sharp turns.

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[Tippster]

Maybe take a peek at your front Diff seals (pinion and axel) to see if it impacted those and there are any leaks. I drive mine in the same manner and soon developed leaks on both seals but it’s possible it was unrelated. Just seemed to be too big a coincidence to me. All covered by warranty but still a PIA.

 

[Roofus]

What color is your Bronco?

 

[userdude]

I've driven twice, about 130 miles, on the highway and back roads, in 4H and everything seems fine. The steering didn't indicate an issue until I went to backup into my garage both times, which is when I figured it out.

 

[Brian_B]

Doesn’t the instrument cluster also change color and stuff?

You’d think you would notice it was light blue instead of the normal gray/dark blue for Normal or Green for Eco or Red/Gray for Sport

I can see overlooking the small icon in the upper left corner, but the entire color change thing is your sign - well - beyond the binding and tire chirping and hopping and stiff steering and what not

 

[boozy.btc]

Maybe take a peek at your front Diff seals (pinion and axel) to see if it impacted those and there are any leaks. I drive mine in the same manner and soon developed leaks on both seals but it’s possible it was unrelated. Just seemed to be too big a coincidence to me. All covered by warranty but still a PIA.

Thanks for this I will take a look. The more I can check into and keep an ear/eye on the better I will feel

Firstly, that darn dial. I've got three other household members driving my Bronco, and someday someone is going to accidentally spin to the wrong setting and not understand/realize. If only it defaulted to last setting, I'd leave it in Sport Mode and put tape over it, lol.

Anyway, my CJ-7 Dana 300 tcase didn't grenade from pavement use including turns, still functioned fine for decades. Unless the Bronco tcase is a weak design, it should be ok.

LOL yeah! My wife drives my Bronco and likes to use Sport mode so maybe I will cover the dial. As convenient as it is it makes it easier to accidentally break something. I'm used to basic Jeeps where you have to actually make an effort to put the vehicle in 4WD.

Doesn’t the instrument cluster also change color and stuff?

You’d think you would notice it was light blue instead of the normal gray/dark blue for Normal or Green for Eco or Red/Gray for Sport

I can see overlooking the small icon in the upper left corner, but the entire color change thing is your sign - well - beyond the binding and tire chirping and hopping and stiff steering and what not

Yeah it does and thats a good feature for sure. But I assume I just overlooked the screen. You know how there's that delay between the GOAT dial clicks and the screen updating/rotating through modes? I also know its two clicks from Normal to Sport so I assumed I was in Sport. Maybe, IDK, but definitely something I'll be paying closer attention to from now on. I already find myself peeking at the dial to be sure I'm in 2H at every stoplight.

 

[Fordified1]

I’ve went to slippery on accident a couple times thinking I was going to sport. I felt the difference pretty quick in curves and corrected it.
I had no clue the screen changes colors 🫤

Unrelated. I had the rear locker stuck engaged when I pulled out onto the road once. Shifted to neutral again going straight and coasted and it unlocked.

OP Try engaging and disengaging your rear locker a couple times on flat ground in neutral and see if that’s maybe stuck locked.

 

[AZ_Liberty]

I really wish they would just let me select each section to make my own goat mode.

I have never used the goat modes. Just the 4H, 4L, or 2H buttons, and the switch for traction control.

 

[MayhemMike]

When the windshield adhesive recall came I was told I had to take it to a Ford dealer that had an on site body shop. The nearest dealer that met this requirement was 20 miles away. I picked up my Bronco and drove almost the entire distance before I realized the rear locker hero switch was illuminated and the rear engaged. Obviously the glass tech hit the switch while doing the recall. I too was concerned, however a year later I have had no issues.

 

[cbrenthus]

I have never used the goat modes. Just the 4H, 4L, or 2H buttons, and the switch for traction control.

I know, but I want to be able to set my throttle response and steering stiffness. My '13 Mustang GT Premium that cost have as much let me adjust the steering stiffness along with 3 zones of interior LED light colors

 

[Oldhippie]

Slippery will not change to 4H...only 4A, if ya had it…ya need to actually push the 4H button to engage it…in any case ya probably didn’t hurt anything (we hope)…

 

[AZ_Liberty]

I know, but I want to be able to set my throttle response and steering stiffness.

I know that Sport is supposed to make the steering stiffer, but if so, I can't feel the difference.

 

[Chucky]

gm Bronco friends.

On a recent road trip I accidentally drove for about 20 miles, maybe 30 minutes of total driving, in 4H. A mix of in-town driving and highway driving (65 MPH). I think managed to turn the GOAT dial into slippery mode while meaning to go into Sport mode. Oops.

I’ve heard that it’s not so much the speed of driving in 4H that’s an issue, it’s the turning that can cause damage. And with some in-town driving and parking, I definitely did some turning. And as fate would have it I missed my turn, twice, and had to make two sharp u-turns! Yikes. It was the second u-turn when I realized something felt strange. The Bronco felt sluggish like the parking break was on. Soon after I got to my destination and noticed I was in 4H in the GOAT dial.

Everything felt fine until I got home. I drove about about 400 miles in one straight shot and when I parked in my driveway I noticed a loud whine sound. From some searching it sounds like this is the “normal” 2.7 transmission whine. And maybe it’s in my head but kind of feels like turning is a little more stiff and takes a little more effort. Again maybe in my head because I’m being paranoid but the vehicle feels a little different now that it’s at 9000 miles. I purchased it with only 3000 miles.

Driving in 4H can damage both the transfer case mechanics and the transmission, correct? Anything else?

What should I watch and listen for in terms of damage done that I should address?

Thanks in advance!

Why would it damage anything??
As far as I understand the only damage should be your mpg.

 

[kodiakisland]

Any idea how many 4wd vehicles are on the road every day? Many are driven on pavement accidently in 4H with no ill effects.

Go look on any 4wd forum for any current vehicle and this is a very common thread. Usually blamed on the wife of course, but happens every day with very few problems.

 

[Brian_B]

Why would it damage anything??
As far as I understand the only damage should be your mpg.

Same way that driving around with your locker on full time ~could~ damage something.

4H/4L locks the front and rear axle together. You do have open diffs in both (provided you don't have lockers on), but that only helps so much. It's particularly noticeable when turning, because your inner front wheel, outer front wheel, and rear wheels all spin at slightly different speeds. So even with open diffs, you still have one front and one rear tire locked together. When you get in that unequal situation it's called binding, and it can put a lot of stress on your gearing and drive train.

Most of the time you will have a tire either slip (and you'd not really notice) or hop a bit and relieve the pressure of being locked and not being able to spin at a different speed. You can feel that it's harder to turn - or takes more gas to get through a turn. It's not a huge chance, but there exists a non-zero chance that your tire doesn't slip or hop, and ... something else does - like your transfer case or front differential or an axle or something.

Will it happen instantly if you turn on 4H and hit dry pavement? No, probably not. There are plenty of people who drive around with 4H all the time. But you can definitely feel the tire hop when you do it and make a tight turn, so I'll leave it up to each driver to decide if you want to live with that or not.

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