Hope every one had good christmas and have a good year,now my question with automatics do you tow in drive or lock in other gear some say in drive some say lock into gear,also on more modern cars have been told no need for transmission cooler????.
The car in question is a ford 1 ton cab chassis auto the weight of van and extras no more than 1.7 ton.
Just looking at current model Ford 1 ton have been told different things from dealers some say will void warranty if i fit a tranmission cooler and as for towing in drive or locked gear i am getting told different things from dealers so i am asking people that may have real life experinces of these things.
The new model Ford 1 tonner have 6 speed autos with sequential shift.
I have a 1998 Prado Auto (no cooler) towing a Avan Camper, Avan around 980kg Max and Prado is around 2500kg max. I read the Tacho along with speed and try to keep revs a tad above 2000 as much as possible. I find driving with overdrive on and NO cruise control works well, I am able to adjust speed when approaching hills etc. I usually sit on 90kmh unless the speed limit is less.
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Personally I would have a transmission cooler fitted. I think Ford have weight graded tow packs for Autos. If it is a ford approved system you will not void your warranty.
A couple $thou spent now could save Thous $ later.
I tow 2200Kg with a 3lt BT 50 auto it came standard with a trans cooler. I only tow in 4th never o/drive.
G'Day John, When you buy your ute, if you add a towbar or towpack it will not include an extra trans cooler - Ford say the one that comes standard with the ute is sufficient for towing. The main reason that people fit an extra cooler is extra insurance however unless you are towing something near 2300KG it probably is not necessary - Ford would make you fit one if it was deemed necessary. The owners handbook will tell you what gear to drive in - I have a 4 speed Territory and you drive in PERF mode which locks out overdrive. Modern transmissions such as the ZF 6 speeder must have their oil kept at a constant temperature the same as the engine for efficiency and long life etc - if you did fit an extra cooler you may affect this performance and this is why Ford say no to fitting an extra cooler. The standard cooler uses a heat exchanger unit bolted to the side of the engine that uses engine coolant to maintain the transmission oil temperature constant. Bottom line is to do what the owners handbook says and you cannot go wrong. My owners handbook has quite a bit on towing and I'm sure Ford have put a lot of research into what is said. The Falcon design is well proven over many years. Falcons and Territories have a good name for towing and overheating is something you never hear of. The ZF 6 speed box is one of the best available. Good Luck.
Might add also with the territory it is best to disconect the supplied radiator cooler for the transmission ie by pass it alltogether and fit an extra cooler either supplied by ford or an after markket one
Not sure if this will be the same as your ute but it is in the territory
Reason being the ford ones that go through the radiator are known to break and or leak This contaminates the transmission with coolant with the end result being a blown transmission This is quite common and is a known issue
Also another problem withthe ford transmissions (this is applicable to the 4 speed in the territoy so could be same for the 6 speed) is that Ford say they are sealed for life and dont need servicing (not sure how long life is in Fords eyes)
Generally most agree that about 80000k they do need fluid change
Did mine at 98000 and was well over due
Plenty of info on it on the ford forums
-- Edited by snapper49 on Sunday 6th of January 2013 07:56:54 PM
-- Edited by snapper49 on Sunday 6th of January 2013 08:12:08 PM
