1300 mile tow report

Ah I see.
Thank you!

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/1300-mile-tow-report.431490/#post-12428906

 

Very nice boat. How long is the boat. Looking forward to taking out my 17 foot boston whaler. Thanks for the tow review.

 

With an auto the main reason you don't tow in overdrive is because of the heat buildup. In lower drive gears your input and output shafts are locked.This means for one there is less heat build up, and two there is engine braking (just helpful when towing to take strain off brakes, another system that can have bad reaction to excessive heat buildup..). The reason more heat builds up with overdrive is a few factors compounding each other. For one thing when you are in overdrive the output shaft is then spinning faster than the input shaft, so there are more parts spinning around inside of the transmission, friction between these parts leads to more heat. The other thing is you are now spinning at lower rpm, so your trans pump is not generating as much flow, and the effectiveness of your trans cooler is decreased. Keeping it in drive helps to reduce the internal friction because the input/output shaft are locked, and your rpm is higher so your trans fluid flow is increased and the cooler operates better.

I don't really see the heat buildup in a manual transmission being any different between different gears (they all operate essentially the same, so the same type of bits are going to be rubbing against each other regardless), so the only reason to keep it in a lower gear is to keep rpm up so your trans pump has more flow to the cooler. if Toyota says to tow in a certain gear, I'd probably listen to them.

There might be some other reasons, or maybe I'm completely wrong. This is my understanding of things though, so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong (wouldn't be the first time that's happened when I've decided to open my mouth ...).

 

Thanks for the explanation, but don't you mean keeping it in 4th helps reduce the internal friction, not drive?

 

Nice review, nice to hear the 3.5L holds 6th fine. Long live the MT!

 

When I say "drive" I am referring to the "drive" gears that are non-"overdrive." These gears have the input-output shaft locked. In a standard 4 speed auto you have 1-2-3 that are all drive, and then a 4th over-drive. I am not sure about the 6 spd auto in the Tacoma. I don't own one and I'm not familiar with the specifics concerning which gears are the drive and which are over-drive.

 

Ah, i gotcha. Yeah, 5th and 6th are both overdrive gears.

 

Still for @gearcruncher

Thank you @JoeRacer302 for your input.

I would also like to know more about this for myself. I have the MT, and I do a fair amount of towing.

 

I'm actually not sure if the manual has a trans cooler or not. However, assuming it does, you may look into a trans temp gage. That will tell you if the gear you're running in keeps enough flow through the cooler or not. If the temps are high, drop it down a gear and get the rpm's up to get more flow through the cooler. I'd also do the same if it were an auto.

This is my first manual truck, so I'm still learning about it myself! My last truck had an old 4 speed auto in it, so I'm a lot more familiar with that kind of setup

 

@JoeRacer302

So what about the heat build up? Isnt that where the trans cooler with the tow package helps out??

 

Yes. I have the trans cooler.

 

You still have to keep flow through it, and that flow is from a mechanical pump that is rpm dependent. If your rpm isn't high enough then your flow isn't high enough. This all depends on the load, heat being generated, and the flow rate. Really the only way to be sure is if you are monitoring trans fluid temp. If it gets high, then you aren't getting enough flow (or you've simply exceeded the capabilities of the heat exchanger).

 

2nd gens with the 6mt didn't have a trans cooler. Not sure about the 3rd gen.

 

Is the cooler in front of my radiator not the trans cooler??

 

That's only part of the equation. Over dive gears put a lot of stress on the gears when towing.

 

Yes, I believe so. And you have a 6 speed? When I built my truck online, it specifically said that only the autos came with the transmission cooler as part of the towing package.

 

The manuals do not have a cooler. The cooler you are referring to on your trucks is either the HVAC condenser or the power steering cooler.

 

Thx. Panga is cool. The Zuk 140 excellent engine, note it's really closer to a 130-135... That said, super solid engine. There are 3 or 4 internal anodes (easy access). They are super thin in diameter (not like the pencil thick ones in Yammy). Most dealers do not look at during routine service. In salt they burn out fast! Plan to replace at every 100 hr service. Very quiet engine, keep it under 5k rpm and awesome fuel economy, (low to mid 4 better). Only issue I ever had is seals on tilt trim, at about 600 hours.
Do not buy fancy electronic gauge..analog to digital conversion system poor. Save yourself the $500.
As to weight, think only adding maybe 410lbs with engine (but fuel, ice etc obviously adds more).

 

Yea, I wasn't sure if they did. Thanks for clearing up that question