What Is Toyota's Crawl Control And Which Vehicles Come With The Feature?

Toyota has many SUVs in its lineup that are meant to be taken off-road, whether that's traversing over rocky paths or exploring sandy desert paths. In a continued effort to make its vehicles more capable in the toughest of terrains, the company has implemented a feature called Crawl Control. This mode is designed for taking on tough terrains at slower speeds, so only its rough-and-tumble cars have it. These off-road vehicles include the Toyota Land Cruiser, Toyota Tacoma, Toyota Tundra, and Toyota 4Runner.

Toyota has a handful of vehicles equipped with both Multi-Terrain Select and Crawl Control. Only one at a time can be selected, so you'll need to pick the system that works best for each situation. 

Multi-Terrain has settings for mud and sand, loose rock, rock and dirt, mogul, and rock. Crawl Control is meant to assist the driver by controlling acceleration and braking for you, keeping you focused on steering. It does this by automatically modulating the throttle and brakes while on low speed settings. There are five settings within Crawl Control, too, including ones for steep hill climbs and ones for dramatic descents. Another setting lets you get up to speeds of 15 miles per hour, changing the throttle and brake for you (sometimes loudly).

If you're gearing up for your next off-road Toyota adventure, it's best to know how to use Crawl Control in case you find yourself on tougher paths. Crawl Control is a set-it-and-forget-it feature, meaning it works in the background to ensure better traction and control while you focus on steering. There is a certain way to activate Crawl Control safely, however. 

First, the vehicle must be stopped completely. While stopped, have your foot on the brake. Shift into neutral and turn the four-wheel-drive control switch to 4-Low. Now, get into your desired drive gear — either drive or reverse. Turn Crawl Control on — the location of the button depends on which Toyota SUV you're in. Then choose the speed — there are five total. 

One and two are the lowest speeds, meant for downhill rock, gravel, or mogul conditions. Two and three are best for uphill mogul. Three, four, and five are used for uphill snow, mud, gravel, or moguls. 

Once you have the right mode selected, take your foot off the brake and the car will automatically start at a consistent, slow speed — you can temporarily go faster if you press down on the gas pedal, but it's best to just take it slow on extreme conditions and focus on steering.