pickups in the rain

peasant

Today, first rain in two weeks, roads a bit greasy.

I saw a nissan Navara take off from the traffic lights, up a bit of a hill ...the yoke was fishtailing for about 20 meters before the driver got it back under control ...wouldn't liked to have met him at a roundabout. :eek:

Cmar-Ireland

Thats the thing with pickup's. They don't handle well in the wet unless there is a load in the back. Some of the one's you see going around with 20" alloys :rolleyes: will handle a bit better.
But they can't be hurried on wet roads.............unless you like tail-out driving

maims3875

I have a new Hilux, I predominately use road tyres, and i have found that the vehicle drives reasonably well in the wet and never expeirenced fishtailing, I think that a huge amount of the handling ability for pickups depends on the tyres used, the "rougher"the profile, the less grip on wet roads.

Although Cmar is right, they all drive better with a bit of extra weight over the back wheels.

Cmar-Ireland

Tire choice is definately a major factor. If you offroad and use mud tires, you need to be very careful on the road.
Having said that, it can be fun IF your expecting it to happen

the drifter

eye my old navara was a fecker for it...manys the time she hearly had me...we had snow here one day...that was fun...

AsphaltRisin'

ye sure he wasnt doin that on purpose? i know (believe me i well know) pickups can be rather on the dodge side when it comes to wet handling... but anyone with a serious love for rear wheel drive will tell you that there comes a time with any rear wheel drive vehicle, or 4x4 with a way to switch to the back wheels that you just have to see if you can get it sideways... although in traffic is not a great place to try it.

but tis true that on a lot of pickups even if you're not tryin to do it they'll sometimes try and test you... but if you bear that in mind and know what you're drivin and where it's limitations are, and how it behaves then you should be grand

R.O.R

I had a Pajero Sport Commercial that loved doing the same thing. Rear wheel drive, no weight over the rear wheels, a sizeable dollop of Torque and you have a recipe for fun - or disaster.

I'd often spin up the rears taking off from traffic lights in the wet, but to be doing it for 20 metres he must have been trying. If you were in a straight line as soon as you lift off even slightly it brought everything back in line on mine, due to the gearing.

Roundabouts were fun in the wet - especially the Leopardstown one. Easy to control the slide up to the rev limiter in 2nd. Having seen what can happen to them (we had one company write off 2 in an icy week, and another company 1 in the same week) I always did it within reason and never when there was someone close enough to be wiped out if something did go wrong.

aravan

If that was a 2003 - > 2007 Navara D22 they had a LSD as standard and they had a reasonable 133 BHP. He was doing it on purpose. On these vehicles it is possible to engage ans disengage the 4x4 at speeds up to 80 Kph at ease so in wet conditions one should just engage it. They have a hell of a lot of advantages over any other 4x4 with the same towing capacity. They are roughly half the price of a passenger 4x4 and have and extra row of seats than a commercial one.

niceirishfella

Its not just pick ups - my kia sorento work horse flicks the rear end out too when you push her in the wet...........they all can.

bandit197

I have an 06 Navara and believe me he was doing it on purpose. I find it very easy to control in the wet but if you want to push it out theres plenty of power there to do it. I have to admit Im guilty of it myself sometimes at the odd roundabout. Only when theres nobody around tho.;)

archtech

Haven't experienced it yet in my Narava but my former Grand Vitara was always at it in the wet

S.I.R

had the pleasure of driving a vitara in the wet in the back o' beyond in wicklow..... be-jasus.... eternally sideways!!