Re: Winter question for cargo van owners
While adding weight at the extreme rear of the vehicle will give you more traction per added pound, it comes at a price. The pendulum effect of having weight behind the rear axle makes it harder to catch a rear-end slide and the vehicle will also be a lot more prone to spin out if you break traction. Driving through a slippery banked turn at speeds lower than the designed for speed of the turn, rear-heavy vehicles will have a tendency to slide the rear end into the turn. Adding overhanging rear weight is a bit like willfully turning your vehicle into a Corvair, you are sacrificing the handling needed to keep the momentum and the ability to stay out of big trouble.
As for diffs, a lockable diff can be a great thing for getting going when you are stuck, but a limited slip diff that truly works without compromizing aspects of the handling is very expensive as an aftermarket gadget that just doesn't make sense for this kind of application.
While adding weight at the extreme rear of the vehicle will give you more traction per added pound, it comes at a price. The pendulum effect of having weight behind the rear axle makes it harder to catch a rear-end slide and the vehicle will also be a lot more prone to spin out if you break traction. Driving through a slippery banked turn at speeds lower than the designed for speed of the turn, rear-heavy vehicles will have a tendency to slide the rear end into the turn. Adding overhanging rear weight is a bit like willfully turning your vehicle into a Corvair, you are sacrificing the handling needed to keep the momentum and the ability to stay out of big trouble.
As for diffs, a lockable diff can be a great thing for getting going when you are stuck, but a limited slip diff that truly works without compromizing aspects of the handling is very expensive as an aftermarket gadget that just doesn't make sense for this kind of application.
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