Happy New Year! Yesterday, I slowly went up a fairly steep snow covered (6-10 in.) dirt driveway in the mountains. Had it in 4x4 and tires started slipping and "shuddering" or "jumping" as the tires slipped then grabbed (I assume that's what was happening). Due to slipping I almost stopped all forward motion, but finally made it up to the top. Other than 4x4, didn't have the transfer case in "low" nor did I have it locked in 1st gear. My Q is - is there something else that I should have done that would preclude the jumping? Does that hurt the drive train at all? Would like to hear from those of you with lots of 4x4 experience. Tx.

 

Turn the traction control all the way off next time. Press and hold the button in for 7 seconds when in 4wd.

 

Wouldn't worry about the drivetrain at all. Not sure I'd turn the TC off though, that is exactly the type of situation it was designed for. Without TC you would have generated wheel-spin, which isn't great for slippery surfaces on a mountain.

 

it was probably the traction control stepping in and doing its thing. as jball said next time try turning it off.....

 

By the way, this is very narrow driveway up to a cabin and I can't get any momentum up to help make it up the hill. I have to go slow and rely on traction and not momentum.

 

Shuddering could be the traction control as others have said. My 2500 has no traction or stability control though, so I don't know what that feels like in the Ram.

Another possibility is driveline binding. You might get that when in 4X4 high or low...as tires gain traction, there can sometimes be a bump or a bit of a shudder in the driveline. But that's mostly noticeable when doing tight turns on surfaces with reasonably good traction while in 4WD. Doesn't sound like you had good traction at all!

Just a thought...if you're in the snow a lot, you might want to consider either a dedicated winter tire or a tire branded with the mountain & snowflake on the sidewall. The stock tires on the Ram 2500 4X4 (BFGoodrich RuggedTrail) don't do well in snow and ice. I put on a set of Goodyear Wrangler DuraTracs specifically because of their good snow & ice ratings on tirerack and the mountain & snowflake rating, and I'm happy with them. I now live on the side of a mountain in Colorado, and have had to drive up and down an icy & snowy road every day. The DuraTracs work great in snow & ice! They're definitely not for everyone, but after seeing how well they perform in snow & ice, I'm a big believer in that mountain & snowflake rating.