Moab slick rock 4wd, locker, etc. advice

[beewil]

I am the original owner of a 99' TJ and made many trips to Moab Utah (early 2000's) for some mountain biking and general 4 wheeling on the "slick rock". I would get to the top of some of the hills from driving up the very sticky slick rock and then have to do a nine point turn at the top to turn around or make a turn to the right or left at the top. Of course, trying to turn around in four-wheel-drive or 4low without driving over the side of the cliff was not the best for the jeeps drivetrain. Taking it out of 4wd at the top made me a little nervous as well.

My question is now that I have a 24' JLU Rubi X, what unique techniques do you use for Moab slick rock (just like driving on sticky pavement for those who have been there) to make sure your are not causing unnecessary damage to your drivetrain components (engaging lockers or not engaging, and when? )

Specific scenarios that hopefully help clarify the advice needed. feel free to copy a link below if this has already been covered in another post.

1. getting to the top of a flat slick rock hill and having to turn around at the top. When do you engage of disengage your 4wd, 4lo, lockers or do you?(I'm assuming you have already disconnected the sway bar and aired down tires in all of these scenarios.)
2. getting to the top of a flat slick rock hill and having to make a sharp or moderate left or right turn?When do you engage of disengage your 4wd, 4lo, lockers, or do you ?
3. setting up to go through more rocky up hill section of slick rock or flatter section of rocky terrain? When do you engage of disengage your 4wd, 4lo, lockers ?

Thanks.

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[Ratbert]

As you implied, you engage and disengage them dynamically as called for by the current situation.

 

[Ole_Robby]

We have a 2024 Rubicon X. We run in 4 low all the way changing the speed with the + - shifter as we go. I try not to use the break too much on the descent as to avoid slipping and ending up in the area spotted in yellow below.

 

[azjl#3]

is the yellow dot an aimpoint, goal, challenge?

 

[Ole_Robby]

It is a bit over the top for my liking ...

 

[jadmt]

I have done many of the moab trails and just use your common sense...even obstacles like the launch pad don't require your lockers as the traction so good. i have not been on a trail where I needed both lockers that had such a sharp turn at the top that I couldn't steer. Just like for mountain bikes where you can do incredible climbs it is the same for jeeps.

 

[beewil]

We have a 2024 Rubicon X. We run in 4 low all the way changing the speed with the + - shifter as we go. I try not to use the break too much on the descent as to avoid slipping and ending up in the area spotted in yellow below.

If you have to make a "sharper" turn on the slick rock, do you remove it from 4low, or just grind the drivetrain since the slick rock won't allow your wheels to turn at the same speed in 4low? That was really the point I was trying to get at with my post. If I'm in 4lo and in dirt, I don't necessarily have to worry because the dirt/slippery surface will allow my tires/drivetrain to compensate. But to my knowledge it is not a good thing to be in 4H or 4L on pavement making sharp turns?

 

[jadmt]

to more answer your questions when we do slick rock and even non slick rock we pretty much just leave it in 4lo unless on sand road then 4h or 2w depending...if you need front lockers it is because either wet or loose and turning sharp will not be an issue..even with as much rain as we had a couple weeks ago we had no issues..wet slick rock still sticks pretty good...the sand washes on Fins and things had big puddles and Moab rim was a bit scary coming down in the rain but no slips..

 

[Ole_Robby]

If you have to make a "sharper" turn on the slick rock, do you remove it from 4low, or just grind the drivetrain since the slick rock won't allow your wheels to turn at the same speed in 4low? That was really the point I was trying to get at with my post. If I'm in 4lo and in dirt, I don't necessarily have to worry because the dirt/slippery surface will allow my tires/drivetrain to compensate. But to my knowledge it is not a good thing to be in 4H or 4L on pavement making sharp turns?

I have never had any problems with 4 low all the time. If you add lockers then things get weird. But other than that, no grinding or anything that I figured was an issue.

I found this link useful in how things work.


Jeep Wrangler Rubicon - 4X4 Rock-Trac 4WD System Explained

 

[beewil]

I have never had any problems with 4 low all the time. If you add lockers then things get weird. But other than that, no grinding or anything that I figured was an issue.

I found this link useful in how things work.


Jeep Wrangler Rubicon - 4X4 Rock-Trac 4WD System Explained

At the 1:42 mark of the video it states to not use 4h or 4L on dry pavement due to drivetrain binding issues. Most other videos state the same thing. Seems like your saying turn when you want and as sharp as you want in 4h or 4L on the sticky slick rock and no damage will be done to the drivetrain? (I'm not discussing the lockers at this point to clarify, just using 4H or 4L on dry pavement or sticky slick rock.)

 

[Ole_Robby]

I do not run in this type of environment all that often. In my experience, there is enough other things to watch out for than worrying about a little wheel hop if it happens at all. But to each to his own. We went for a few days and this type of thing did not enter into my driving decisions.

I was more concerned about ending up down here ..

Thank shifting gears going up this ....

 

[Ole_Robby]

And this..

 

[3TV]

Slickrock does not require a locker much at all. I think you can drive on slickrock in 4 Lo or 4 Hi all day long and do not need to shift back into 2-wheel drive.

The brief obstacles that earn the difficulty rating often times do need a locker or two. Disengage as soon as possible after clearing the obstacle.

A couple of examples.

No locker needed:

New seat foam needed, but no locker.

Locker needed:

 

[Apples491]

At the 1:42 mark of the video it states to not use 4h or 4L on dry pavement due to drivetrain binding issues. Most other videos state the same thing. Seems like your saying turn when you want and as sharp as you want in 4h or 4L on the sticky slick rock and no damage will be done to the drivetrain? (I'm not discussing the lockers at this point to clarify, just using 4H or 4L on dry pavement or sticky slick rock.)

If you're turning hard on slickrock in 4wd, your tires will chirp. That's the rubber giving way before the drivetrain binds. I've done this hundreds of times on Moab trails and never suffered any ill effect. However, If you're having trouble making the turn or you're just uncomfortable with the thought of straining the drivetrain, pop it into 2wd. For me that's more hassle than it's worth considering zero personal examples of it causing long term issues.

On pavement, you want to be a little more careful when in 4H, just because you're now adding speed into the mix.

 

[beewil]

Slickrock does not require a locker much at all. I think you can drive on slickrock in 4 Lo or 4 Hi all day long and do not need to shift back into 2-wheel drive.

The brief obstacles that earn the difficulty rating often times do need a locker or two. Disengage as soon as possible after clearing the obstacle.

A couple of examples.

No locker needed:

New seat foam needed, but no locker.

Locker needed:

Thanks for the info and pics. Apples491 stated he did not worry about turning the jeep sharply on top of the slick rock in 4L or 4H.(w/o lockers) Do you agree with his assessment that it doesn’t damage the drivetrain, but turning at speed on dry pavement messes up the drivetrain? I guess I have a mental block that I’m somehow screwing up the drivetrain by being in four high or four low when I make Sharp left or right turns (or a u turn) on the slick rock in Moab. But I could be converted if there’s a difference between making a sharp turn (u turn) on dry pavement in four high or four low then doing it on the slick rock. My PTSD comes back to haunt me from my experiences with my 99’ Jeep TJ and making those turns and saying “oh, that doesn’t sound good”

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