speed question...

[terkill]

Ive driven a 4wd vehicle before but they were all conventional kind and had center differentials.... I was wondering, since the tercel's 4wd is split 50-50 power, is there a speed limit or a max speed that the car should never go over when 4wd is on? And another thing, what would be the max speed for EL? Everyone that I've asked has different answers, since nobody i know has every driven the car in their life.

[Neu]

In the FSM at the top of the page, Factory Service Manual it tells you all of this.

The top speed in 4wd is pretty much as fast as it will go. Dont turn though.

The EL i think, THINK, is 10mph. 1st gear is 15 mph I think.

Again it's all in the FSM.

[terkill]

ah thanks... but why don't turn? is it really that delicate?

[Neu]

It's fine to turn on a slippery surface like snow or mud. It's just it doesn't have a transfer case so it's really difficult on the rear axle when you turn on a hard surface. If you really want to hear it, put 4wd on and make a sharp slow turn, and you'll hear it. Then you'll never do it again.

In the FSM it says for optimal mileage to shift from 1st gear at 15mph. EL should be about 7mph.

[Neu]

Yeh I just spent 20 minutes going through the FSm and I can't find it. I know it's in my FSm in my car, which is an 85..but heh, weird.

[SirNik83]

took the tercel to Eureka CA this winter... in a hail storm. driving thought the redwoods. it was so much fun, because it was like i was in a turbo 911. every car on the highway was going like 40 because they were sliding around. and all the 4x4 rigs were also going slow.. and i was going like 65, normal highway speed. made me fall in love with the tercel all over again.

I've had it up to 85 in 4wd on a rainy drive down I-5. and I've had the car up to 105 going down him

I installed the 110 MPH speedo because i was tired of seeing the needle peg on that hill.

[Neu]

took the tercel to Eureka CA this winter... in a hail storm. driving thought the redwoods. it was so much fun, because it was like i was in a turbo 911. every car on the highway was going like 40 because they were sliding around. and all the 4x4 rigs were also going slow.. and i was going like 65, normal highway speed. made me fall in love with the tercel all over again.

I've had it up to 85 in 4wd on a rainy drive down I-5. and I've had the car up to 105 going down him

I installed the 110 MPH speedo because i was tired of seeing the needle peg on that hill.

105 that's it? I've gotten it to 115 and it was SCARY! That's the last and only time i do that.

[ARCHINSTL]

What kind of hills do you guys have to get to those speeds in our bricks - 45% grades?
Never forget that old aviation maxim:
.........."There are old pilots and there are bold pilots - but no old and bold pilots..."
Tom M.

[simon84]

I had some great days bombing around this winter on icy snowy roads with my studded snowies on.
It's pretty great when the tables turn and the Tercel is one of the faster, more nimble cars on the road.
A fleeting pleasure that must be appreciated when you get chance.
Good tires are essential.

[Petros]

Many times I and my wife have forgotten to shift out of 4wd when we get to the paved highway (we live up 3 miles of steep gravel roads and use the 4wd daily). We would drive it normally at all speeds, including on the freeway, and not even notice a difference in handling or safety. Usually we notice it when we pull into a parking space and notice it is hard to make slow tight turns and then "oops, it is still in 4wd!". The most annoying thing is it gets slightly worse fuel economy in 4wd. If you make a habit of driving tight turns on dry pavement in 4wd you will likely only wear out your tires and CV joints faster. The drive train is still turning when you are in 2wd, so there is no difference in operation or feel of the car. It would only matter when you make tighter turns or dry surfaces.

The speed limit in EL (or any other gear) is based on the tach red-line. If you have no tach you should know how the max safe engine speed sounds, or get a working tach.

[shogun]

i dunno what my speed was but i took the speedo all the way back to 0, does any body know how fast that is????


and still had a little left in it, but no more road

[Neu]

Depends on which speedo you had. the 85 mph one or the 115. If it's the 85,which i bet it is, I'd say you were going 115 or so.

I've had mine aroudn 115

[ESI-RStarion]

I've hit 110 with 195/75/14 tires on her, took a week and a day to hit it but she made it. scary as shit. after speedometer correction thats roughly 125mph never again my friend, she rarely sees over 50 indicated anymore(bout 60mph with speedo correction on the new tires). Of course this was done on a closed course on private property, I never break the law..

[happyhippies]

ESI How did you lift your tercel w/ celica brakes? I have some ideas for building a lift but would like to hear whwt others have done.

[ESI-RStarion]

I'm sure theres a thread around here somewhere but I just used 4 front jeep cherokee springs and cut/bent to fit in stock perches. My brother was the mastermind behind the brake setup, we basically stumbled around a junkyard for hours on end comparing parts and mock fitting them on a tercel that was in the yard.