Toyota Fortuner – Top 5 offroad features

The Toyota Fortuner is the best selling car in its segment hands down. It competes with the likes of the Ford Endeavour. The reasons being the road presence, build quality, and of course the off-road capability. It is a car known to tackle difficult terrains. We tell you the features that help the Fortuner perform its off-road tasks.

Hill descent and hill hold

This feature is very crucial during off-roading. When the car has to go down steep slopes, this feature comes into the picture. It keeps the car in a lower gear so that the car gets engine braking and it does not go faster than the owner desires while going down the slopes. The system also automatically applies brakes to the car. The hill-hold control comes into the picture when climbing the hills. The big problem is that if you always have the idea of accelerating hard so that the car does not go backward. This mode keeps the car in place and does not move until you press the accelerator. Therefore there is no need to continue holding the brakes.

Active traction control

The Active Traction Control (ATC) comes into help primarily while off-roading, or on a slippery surface like when driving on snow or mud. Power from the engine is only sent to those wheels that really need it. If one wheel is in the air, power is cut-off from that wheel, sending it to the other wheels that are on the ground, which helps the vehicle forward, without getting stuck.

Limited Slip Differential (LSD)

This detects the slip on the wheel and applies the brake and more torque on the opposite wheel. A limited-slip differential is necessary for offroad driving. It allows the car to get a lot of advantage in situations of low traction. The limited-slip differential is will also be of use while on the uneven elevation where not all wheels have traction. The Fortuner also gets Toyota’s limited-slip differential. This differential is a system that sends power to each individual wheel depending on which one needs power. The ground clearance is 220 mm which allows a wading depth of 700mm. This is very useful as it crosses shallow water bodies with ease and without any damage to the engine. It also helps in the Fortuner taking on rough roads and the body not getting damaged.

Toyota Fortuner gearbox

The massive torque of the engine nature helps a lot when one is off-roading. The car also gets a low-range gearbox. This gearbox is only offered in serious off-roaders and helps in very difficult or uphill terrains. It keeps the engine in the powerband so that you get instant power even when climbing steep hills

Electronic Drive Control

This is a Sigma-4 concept high and low range 4WD with Electronic Drive Control system. It allows the driver to select the range on demand but this also automatically adjust by taking a lot of things under consideration. The car is based on Toyota’s Innovative Multi-Purpose Vehicle (IMV) platform. The suspension damping is also adjusted to provide maximum comfort.