Technical Maximum speed whilst in 4x4

[PDXPanda]

My Panda did not include an owner’s manual, so wondering what the maximum speed you can be driving while engaging the 4x4 lever. And, what is the max speed you can drive once you are in 4x4? Thx

 

[Dragon Man]

in my Sisley it says a max speed of 60kph which is 37mph. however if you understand how the 4x4 system works you can use it at almost any speed given the conditions are right. theres no differential between the front and rear axle. meaning that one wheel on the front and one on rear must (and will) spin at the same speed. which is not good when cornering on a solid surface as it puts a fair bit of torque twist on all of the rear wheel drive system right up to the front diff. as the rear wheel drive takes its power from a ring gear on the front diff. its a bit of a lazy way to do it but it is cost effective and it does give you a tiny bit of a diff lock feature... without locking diffs on axles. handy if say one of your front wheels was in free space spinning up but both of your rear wheels were still on a solid surface.
sadly in ice it does mean that cornering while having the 4x4 system engaged would make your car more likely to loose traction and drift.. but only while making a turn. on a strait or a very mild curve its really good. it does make them quite good at power sliding in ice and snow though.

i have always followed this: the 4x4 system is not really designed to be used all the time. its one of those "if you get stuck use this to get you unstuck" things. ive used it in ice going up a hill and it .. well it made it up the hill. it didnt in front wheel drive only.

hope this helps

 

[PDXPanda]

Thank you so much for sharing your insights and experience, I really appreciate it! I'll be taking this to the local ski slopes around Mount Hood. Will be interesting to see how it compares to my AWD Subaru Outback with Nokian snow tires.