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5R55E... Lets discuss towing in overdrive!


Tractorman

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My dad has a flat-nose motorcycle trailer. It is 14' long inside, 8' wide with wheel-wells inside, and 7' tall inside--I can touch the ceiling with my arms up, but just. He bought it on EBay and I went to Detroit to pick it up for him. At the time, I had a Ranger with 29" tires, a 4.0 manual and 3.55 gears. It was empty, not very heavy, and I moved it through town easily. Once I hit the on-ramp, at about 60mph a hand grabbed the trailer and held me back. I left it in 4th, set the cruise at 60 and got 12mpg. It was enough truck, but I had to go slower. It wouldn't have been that much different with a couple 800# bikes inside. The weight was nothing--it was the air resistance.

Yes, V-nose is better. V-nose is not better if your truck is the same size as the trailer. V-nose is better if your truck is punching a little hole in the air and a big trailer won't fit in it.

Cruise doesn't matter with an auto. The cruise control knows not what the tranny is doing. The tranny can't overload itself. You can't force the tranny into a gear it doesn't want to be in. newer trucks with tow-haul simply keep the tranny into a lower gear and do not let it upshift at the slightest reduction of load. To tow with an auto, it doesn't take the fingertips of a piano tuner to reliaze the bloody thing is constantly down and upshifting. Just pop it down to the next lower gear if it keeps trying to go there. It takes no special skills.

A manual is not physically stronger than an auto. The things the Ranger auto fail for are not stress related.
What I meant with the cruise control is that it will try to hold a certain speed (duh I know) but will work the gas and cause it to unlock the converter prematurely instead of just letting the speed drop a little to get over the small hill, overpass, ect.

I mention this because it kind of leaves two choices: Tow with OD off, set cruise, don't worry about it, and have lower MPG, or leave OD on, don't set the cruise, and then just manually control the gas pedal to avoid the unlocking/downshifts on hills and get better MPG.
 


Will

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I agree, to a point. But with very much of a trailer, it doesn't take very much of a grade to get the torque requirement to spike. This is what the torque converter is for. It isn't just a fluid coupler. They want to unlock it early because it splits the gears between OD and whatever is below it. If your tranny is programmed well, which is what Tow-Haul is, it's going to be doing what's best for the truck to just put it in gear and let the computer do the unlocking and shifting.
 

85_Ranger4x4

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I agree, to a point. But with very much of a trailer, it doesn't take very much of a grade to get the torque requirement to spike. This is what the torque converter is for. It isn't just a fluid coupler. They want to unlock it early because it splits the gears between OD and whatever is below it. If your tranny is programmed well, which is what Tow-Haul is, it's going to be doing what's best for the truck to just put it in gear and let the computer do the unlocking and shifting.
Unless he has a F-250+ or a newer F-150 all the button on the end of the shifter does is lock out the OD. The tow-haul in the bigger trucks changes shift points, shift pressures and probably cam timing if applicable.

Cruise vs non cruise does make a big difference when you are hauling trailers.

1. The truck naturally doesn't downshift as often on hills when you use the pedal. Dunno why but that is the way it is.
2. You can be proactive and know see how big the hill is beforehand and can build a little extra speed to help carry you through. The truck has no idea what it is getting itself into until it is in a panic fit rowing threw gears to find the right one.
 

TomB1269

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As most have stated here, and the data you personally have gathered gives you bullet proof evadence that you can tow in OD. As other have stated heat is the killer. For most towing with OD off is a safe bet as we do not have the monitoring systems you have installed. The only exception of course is down hill. With OD off the engine will assist in maintaining speed on a down grade with less brake required. Finally, if you are going to tow and use cruise control as I do then OD off is the safer option as you do not get caught on an up hill and the trans jumping 2 gears down. If your useing foot control of the throttle then you can determine at what point to make it shift.
PS: your 2500 Rpm range also makes a huge difference, if you were down around 2000 rpm the engine would be lugging down more and the trans would shift more.
 

Gotta_gofast

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I've got a few parts on order for the transmission.

Summit 18x7x1.5 cooler
Superior shift kit
Sonnax boost valve (increase ratio)
Borg Warner EPC solenoid
New Inch-Pound torque wrench (lost mine, need one for vb bolts and band adjustment)

Still need to order the boring crap like amsoil fluid (I should look to our vendors as I'll need about 3 gallons), filter, gasket, and a drain plug kit.

Oh, and a side note, I ordered a powertrax no-slip and the wife is giving me a new SVT mustang finned diff cover.

Anyway, you guys might wonder why I'm getting anal about the trans. Its not that there is a problem, I'm just trying to prevent future problems (and the wife agreed to letting me spend some tax dollars on a supercharger setup).

As for the enclosed trailer, I'll just scratch the idea as research has shown a significant hit in fuel mileage. Its a damn 4 wheeler after all, a little potential rain shouldn't hurt it! lol
 

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I have hauled more than that in the bed alone. Kept OD for an entire 1400 mile trip. With a travel trailer stock gears and stock tires you will probably loose OD whenever you hit hills...Want to kick back into OD you could bump to 4.56's loose some in town MPG's but gain towing MPG's.
 

Jspafford

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Just an FYI.. I pulled a 5x10' enclosed trailer (not v-nose) with my 1989 Bronco II with 3.45 gears loaded with furniture from top to bottom.

Truck didn't like it, but I kept it in OD when on the flats and 4th on the hills (M5OD Manual)

So if a 22 year old 2.9L can do it, a Ranger should be fine.

I also pulled it around empty and almost forgot it was back there...except when stopping.
 

racsan

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my enclosed box trailer is a V-nose. its a 6x10 haulmark, its 8' tall overall and really loads the truck down at highway speed. when i pulled it home empty i put it in o/d just out of habit (btw i do have the M5OD manual) it held its own with the cruise as long as i was on level ground or going downhill, the slightest grade would cause me to drop ground speed like a parachute was deployed. but if i put it in 4rth and set the cruise, it will maintain speed all day as long as there isnt too big a hill in front of it. V-nose didnt do much for my fuel milage, its still frontal area. i get about 10-12 towing. and i get the same results when i use my wifes '97 S-blazer to pull. it has the 4.3, auto, 3.45's i never try towing in o/d with it. (it has nearly 185,000 miles) empty the blazer does better on fuel then the ranger (and its a 1,000 pounds heavier) but towing the trailer its the same news. manuverability is better in the blazer, due to wheelbase and automatic trans. but if im doing alot of back & forth i just put it in low range and leave the front hubs unlocked. as long as the engine isnt hunting gears and can maintain speed with the cruise, o/d is probly useable, but ive found with my trailer i dont even try. open trailers are a different story. its all good in town but much above 45 mph and the load increases dramatically.
 

Gotta_gofast

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One of this winters projects is going to be welding up an aluminum trailer. I got an awesome deal on a new TIG welder (replacing the old one) so I'm itchin to use it. lol I don't really want to get 10-12mpg driving across the state(s) when I can run an open trailer and get 16ish.
 

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