twin creeks replied:

have chains, but have never used them with the prado - even doing the guthega run in 1ft over the rd - drove best without the chains. tried them on the rear only - was far from encouraging - lots of noise, vibration - a reduction in confidence though in steering - constant 4wd is best without chains untill you reach the steep.

Member - Kiwi Kia replied:

There is nothing special about Australia when it comes to using chains. If you need them you need them ! Why do you say that they are certainly not needed on all wheels in Australia ? There are very steep grades and narrow roads in the mountains (eg. Bright to Hotham Heights on 'The Great Alpine Road'). Ice is ice where ever you are in the world.

Some vehicles may have a problem with clearance when chains are fitted on the front wheels and you could damage brake lines or guards. I have not seen this on high ground clearance four wheel drive vehicles (could be different on 4wd cars).

Some people say that if you have front wheel drive and steering then fit them on the front. If you have rear wheel drive then fit them on the rear. When going down a steep hill I like to have steering, braking / traction and not have the rear end try and overtake me. Don't be cheap with your vehicle or your passengers valuable lives, get a set of four chains if you think that you might need them.

Love The Outback replied:

Hi Clayton
I drove on ice & snow in Europe every winter - daily. My car wasn’t even 4WD.
I never owned the wheel chains. Mind you, mountains were lot, lot higher than in Australia. Sometime with up to 4 meters barriers, you drove like in tunnel without a roof.
However you have to know how to drive on these surfaces. We didn’t get our car licences like here. We learned for 7 months in proper school , including driving at night, on black ice and in snow.
If the government there would give licence like here, young people wouldn’t live very long…And it wouldn’t make any difference if they would drive with or without chains……..
Ciao Dana

Member - Mark B (VIC) replied:

Hi Clayton,
I drive to the snow regularly, but having a cruiser rarely need to fit them. When I do, the people who work up in the resorts always advise to fit chains to the front wheels. The reason being that they also provide better steering. Fitting just to the rear could mean less than adequate steering on icy/snow covered roads.
I wouldn't expect you'll have any clearance problems. Just fit them when/if you need to, drive a short distance (a few hundred metres) and stop and retighten. And of course, you'll be going slow as they do cause vibrations etc.
I understand that 4WD's with sophisticated electronic controls (ie soft roaders) such as Mercedes ML etc. require chains on all 4 wheels to work properly, as the electronic brain controlling the wheels is confused if only fitted to 2 wheels, and they don't really provide the proper 4WD traction - but this shouldn't affect you in a Prado.
Cheers, Mark.

Lachie replied:

Hi
If you run your hand around the inside of the front tyre there is hardly 1/2 an inch clearance between the tyre and the calliper or what ever it is.
If someone out there has chains put them on the front wheels and tell us how you go.
Lachie

traveller2 replied:

There is less than a finger width of space between the top spring/suspension mount and the inner wall of the tyre on all the 120 Prado's I've looked at. It is hard enough fitting different size tyres let alone chains.
That would be agood reason for not fitting them to the front.
Another example of modern 4wd's not being designed for the conditions expected of a 4wd.

CraigB replied:

Hi Clayton,
The reason why the manual states rear is because of clearance or lack of in the front in some overseas models.
As Toyota stated, the manual is "generic".
They need to cover themselves for all situations and countries.
Australian spec vehicles differ from those overseas and in the case of the Prado Australian spec vehicles have slightly more clearance at the front.
Therefore, chains on the front of the Australian spec Prados are ok.
However, as a general rule of thumb, chains on 4wds usually are best fitted to the rear wheels except in situations where "black ice" is present or the snow is compacted so much as to make steering unsafe.
Hope this helps.
Regards
Craig B

Member - Shane D (QLD) replied:

I would put them on the front because you will have traction, brakes, and steering if it really comes to the crunch.
they have to go to the back for traction purposes on rear wheel drive.
If you get opportunity to be able to have a test fit before you go, that might come in handy with regards to assessing clearence's.
Remember to lock center diff if you put them on the front,if its got traction control. . . . . dunno.....should be same as sand(guess)
Shane

Member - Clive G (NZ) replied:

Hi Mud Plug.
I have a 100s cruiser with IFS and my manual says the same about no chains on the front. About 3 yrs ago I rang Toyota NZ tech dept about it. They were quite helpful. Seems the reason is clearance, with the vulnerable spots being the top steering pivot, the ABS cable at the top pivot and the plastic inner guard when on full lock. I have never used chains on the front, YET, but would if I had to. You can get chains with a lighter chain on the sides to give more clearance. If you need to put them on the front make sure they stay tight, drive slowly and go easy on the steering.
CliveG NZ

Muddy doe (SA) replied:

As Lachie and Traveller stated above, the clearance from the top of the front tyres to the top of the suspension tower is very slim.

They would want to be very small chains and really tightly fitted. I don't think I would be doing it.

Muddy

Mud Plug Polock replied:

Cheers,for all the replies,
I did think the clearance was marginal at best. But thought I'd see if anyone had tried or used them on the front as this has always been my preference on other 4b's I've had. Only had the Prado for just under a year and I'm pretty happy with it. But the chain thing is a bit of a let down, think I will look into some low profile chains. Will put a posting on with results.