Auto Transmissions (NF)

[Clampet]

Just wondering..

 

When driving a car with an auto transmission, do any of you ever use the other gears like 3, 2, 1? I was told to always drive it in D or overdrive, if so equiped. Putting the car in the lower gears is a risk, so I was told.

 

Any opinions to the contrary?

[Muskieman]

EH!

 

It all depends on what you are doing.. Let's say i'm bogging with the expedition or i'm towing my boat into a remote lake with a rough road under 20kph.. I'm in 1st..4x4 hi gear.... same situation where there is a possibility of slipping or getting stuck 1st gear is too prime.. too low easyer to spin..so I use 2nd ..can send more power to the wheels without slipping. very often if you get into a situation like this in drive or overdrive ...you'll give it a shot of gas to get out and the tranny will kick down into first and you'll spin and get stuck or slip.

 

force of habit for me I use 1st to pull my boat out of the water ..

 

same as a standard ...pick the gear that's most useful to you at the time...

 

just don't go down the highway doing speed limit in 2nd you'll cause more than tranny damage.

 

150.000 k's i've had my truck since it had 13.000k's and have been doing this very very often..

I'm always in the bush using the 4x4 ..3 or more times a week and have had no problems with my tranny..

[2 tone z71]

in the winter,on backroads,offroading in mud ,pulling boats around etc ill use a varity of gears mostly 1 and 3 ,I also seldom drive in OD on the highway with the big tires

[Mike the Pike]

Sometimes Paul when I want to go fast I put it in R for Race.

 

I use the low gears when taking my boat out of the water to tell you the truth I don't think it makes a difference because I have tracktion control on my van.

 

I have geared down going down a huge mountain in BC switched to 2nd gear with my car rental cause we could smell the brake pads burning and yes it slowed us down.I sometimes slip the tranny into Neutral when conditions are slippery in Montreal snow storms this really does help you stop faster on ice.Not sure it does damage to the tranny but I think Tybo may have the answer to that question.

 

Mike

[SBCregal]

around town driving... use drive

highway driving... use od, keeps the rpm down and increases mileage

towing/hauling or heavy loads.... stay in drive, OD will overheat the transmission and cause damage

[pigeonfisher]

EH!

 

It all depends on what you are doing.. Let's say i'm bogging with the expedition or i'm towing my boat into a remote lake with a rough road under 20kph.. I'm in 1st..4x4 hi gear.... same situation where there is a possibility of slipping or getting stuck 1st gear is too prime.. too low easyer to spin..so I use 2nd ..can send more power to the wheels without slipping. very often if you get into a situation like this in drive or overdrive ...you'll give it a shot of gas to get out and the tranny will kick down into first and you'll spin and get stuck or slip.

 

force of habit for me I use 1st to pull my boat out of the water ..

 

same as a standard ...pick the gear that's most useful to you at the time...

 

just don't go down the highway doing speed limit in 2nd you'll cause more than tranny damage.

 

150.000 k's i've had my truck since it had 13.000k's and have been doing this very very often..

I'm always in the bush using the 4x4 ..3 or more times a week and have had no problems with my tranny..

 

 

That is a nice ride!!!

[JohnF]

Just wondering..

 

When driving a car with an auto transmission, do any of you ever use the other gears like 3, 2, 1? I was told to always drive it in D or overdrive, if so equiped. Putting the car in the lower gears is a risk, so I was told.

 

Any opinions to the contrary?

 

Probably only shift manually if you want to do a little street racing and think you've got a better feel than the transmission for power band. With many (or all) of the newer vehicles the computer does a better job than most drivers of handling adverse road conditions. Some vehicles have full manual over ride so you can get the sporty shift feel or get better feel for slippery conditions, if you have that knack. For the most part I just go with the final drive selection for my driving. My SUV has an override setting for situations like hauling a trailer up the ramp but it's definitely not recommended for cruising. My wife's car has a transmission selector for sporty driving or sedate driving but I don't think I've ever used the S setting other than to try it out. It just makes more noise anyhow. Now with the heightened awareness of street racing I doubt I'll be using it again.

 

JF

[Deano]

OD should be mostly used, the transmission will select the proper gear for speed, torque

D should be used when pulling trailers or a heavy load

2nd if needing to slow down on a hill to not heat brakes as much, also can be used for power up hills without having to floor the vehicle for passing gear to kick in.

1st when pulling a short distance, like a boat out of water, this ensures the torque will stay to the wheels in slippery conditions(loose gravel). Also many fourwheel drives in low range/first gear will pull the vehicle along slowly, even up most and over most hills without applying the gas.

 

My son has been driving my 4x4 since he was nine years old, just put it in 1st gear/ low range and it won't stall when he popped the clutch, and just moved along slowly so it's easy for him to stop.