NO, I'm not planning on going really OFF ROAD, but we do have need to drive around the in-laws farm and there may be times where we'd have to go through some deeper mud puddles or mud. I know the Highlander is NOT an FJ or even a Tundra, but what limitations does the Hybrid put on it's off pavement capabilities?
I noticed in the sales literature that it says 'Hybrid to not be driven off road' but when I asked the sales person about what constitutes ' off road' he didn't seem to think that light farm driving would be an issue.
If I need to get into deep mud or true 4x4 needs, I'll hop in my '78 F150 4x4 with the 33" mud tires, but I need to know if I need to keep the Highlander strictly on the pavement and packed gravel?
We are also planning on going camping this summer and I want to know what limitations we'll have to consider.
Some people would say to not drive it any place you can't drive a car, but I have taken my cars some pretty dirty places.
Look in to Toyota's statements about the drive system locking up on the Prius in low-traction situations. As long as you stay clear of that sort of thing, I don't know why a little grass or dust would hurt it.
I promise.. no rock crawling. I'll look at the Toyota statement about the Prius. I'm not too worried, but I just wanted to make double sure. Dust isn't as much of an issue as mud is the issue, this being Oregon and all.
I do have a history of getting stuck in the fields, like the time I burried my '78 Ford F150 4x4 up to the axles, then got the 11,000lb tractor stuck trying to get my truck out. http://www.konedata.net/Traktorit/Kuvat/84Case2094.jpg
I'll keep the Highlander on the gravel access roads and use the Ford to go pickup crates of berries from the fields.
True, they drive awesome on snow and ice covered roads. But that is different than driving through fairly deep mud. Lets assume that the Hybrid parts will be fine and not get damaged (the probably wouldn't). The rear electric motor only puts 67 hp to the rear wheels. Then take into consideration that Trac/VSC are terrible for Mud or Sand (that why the FJ can turn them off), and take it a step further than that because the Hybrid has VDIM which is all the saftey nanny's working together and on steroids. I am not dissing VDIM because it is awsome for what it is and works great on slippery roads even pretty awesome on roads with pretty deep snow on them. I am saying it will most likely get you stuck.
I asked this question at many dealers and the 1(800)# Toyota before making the choice of Hybrid or not. Not one source had THE specific answer but I pooled the feedback and this is what I understand>>>
The electric motors are sealed and water resistant. So mud etc would not be the issue.
The rear electric motor is not full time. The HiHy is not Full time 4WD. Where as the Non Hybrid H/L is Full time at 50/50 front/rear. It is an "on demand" drive mechanism. The HyHi is a front wheel drive Bias design. VDIM determins when the rear wheels get traction. And the rear wheels don't get any supplemental engine torque,it is strictly electric power driven. Only the front wheels get a combination of both engine and electric power as needed. Toyota is saying that extreme load to the rear wheels in an "Off Road" environment would exceed the limits of torque on the rear electric motor. But no one will say what "Off road" is defined as.
So my interpretation is that yu CAN go on gravel but not on extreme grading where the rear wheels would have to take over or sustain the ladened weight completely, momentarily or otherwise.
All this because the rear wheels are only Electric drivenwith a low torque rating designed only to supplement the front drive system. It cannot handle the full ladened weight of the HiHy.
Good answer! Thanks. Yes, I probably will never be taking it in a situation where I'd be putting a high strain on the rear wheels, I hope. This is good to know as this will always live in the back of my mind if we're going camping.
As sad as this is, coming from a car guy, I have yet to crawl under the Highlander so I didn't know that the rear was ONLY electric drive, but that makes sense from an enginering / ease of manufacturing standpoint.
I guess if I need to go extreme, it will be a chance to gas up the '78 F150 4x4
Because driving in mud or sand require the "Paddle Wheel" effect of pumping and spinning throught the medium instead of the binary "Tracton - No Traction" critical to snow and ice, the Highlander preforms very poorly in both sand and mud. I have experienced this several times. After 22 years living in Alaska, I have never driven a vehicle which preforms better in ice and snow, but get something else for mud or sand.
FWIW, I work for a farming company and one of our Ranch Managers has a 4x4 HiHy. I've been in it with him and have driven out to the center of a freshly disced 1/4 section of ground. The dirt was really soft and pretty deep; we had no problems whatsoever.
Off Road? Limitations concerns?
Re: Off Road? Limitations concerns?
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