For the purpose of towing, Auto or Man?

[Windsor342ci]

Hi guys,

Over the weekend I done a bit of towing. 1200 kms to be exact. Lets round it off and say I was towing my max braked tow capacity.
The car I was using was my 4wd. 2.7L TD Pathfinder Auto.

Now on the way to work this morning I noticed it only happen once, but as it went To go into the next gear, it revved a little more then slipped into the gear. At this stage my assumption is that my bands are slipping. Not this is not a concern for me as I will happily fix it. Admittedly the work horse is a little older now with just over 330,000kms on the clock. I had the box serviced less then a year ago. So understanding it ageing, but here's my question;

On the weekend my wife and I had a look at the new Ford XLT Ranger. We both fell in love and considering buying one now towards the end of the year. (Doing my part for FoMoCo)

So simply, for the purpose of towing a heavy load, is a 6 speed auto rated better for the sake of lasting the distance more the a 6 speed manual? Or vise verser? If so, why?

Thanks in advance

[Crazy Dazz]

The reality is that most Auto’s are fine for towing, especially modern ones, although I always recommend fitting an oversize transmission cooler.
But yes, towing, carrying a load, going flatchat up a mountain, all work your tranny harder, so all other things being equal it will wear a bit quicker.
In theory, a manual is better suited (provided you don’t ride the clutch) but in practice you may find an Auto easier.

I’ve only ever had to replace two transmissions, and both were manuals. All my autos generally got by with a service, some seals, o-rings, etc.

[mik]

i reckon as long as you don`t over stress them, lug them in top gear(o/d) for extended periods they should be ok, towing heavy in over drive puts a lot of stress on them, i did a 5000 k holiday run towing a but ugly old 1200 kilo van +family , ran it in direct(3rd) the whole trip, Auto is still fine a couple of years later, not to mention majority of the hills it would hold road speed nicely,
for a couple of k`s i watched the dte in o/d, the extra load on the motor running the tall gear it used considerably more fuel anyway.

[Jim Goose]

Manual gearbox if your gonna be towing heavy loads continually...

Even if you fit a large cooler it places a lot of strain on an auto (specially mountain driving) and should the auto fail usually you end up with no gears at all, at least with a manual your always bound to have a few cogs left!

[302 XC]

Well serviced auto with trans cooler will go the distance
Theres many a manual box that people dont know how to tow correctly and have done the 5 th gear (or overdrive)
Ive towed many a heavy load up many hills in my auto patrol and the trans fluid is as good as the day it went in
Know you and the cars limitations

[4.0i_SiX]

much prefer an auto for towing. As stated, fit the biggest transmission cooler you can and possibly an electric fan. Heat is what kills an Auto.

[Luke Plaizier]

Falcon BA Sedan has 1600kg rated capacity on Auto, 1200kg on Manual, with same 160kg towball down weight. As for why that's the case - I'm not sure. My theory was that the torque converter reduced shock transients on the driveline, thereby not overloading the driveshaft, diff and axle half shafts.

But I see that Ranger has the same ratings for Manual or Auto on models that sport both, so that whole argument goes out the window.

So these days I guess it comes down to personal preference. The auto is still probably likely to have the better fuel economy in the long run if that helps the decision making process. And in my opinion, modern turbo diesels are a munt to drive with a manual - they keep dropping off boost. Change, lull, whoosh, clutch, change, lull, whoosh, clutch.....

As for durability? Great question. The difference is not that much these days. We'll know the real answer to that in 3 to 4 years time to be honest. Everything else now is a best-effort guestimate.


Lukeyson

[cobramania]

We used to tow heavy loads with the work vehicles, (1200kg or slightly over).
The manual one went through 3 clutches, 1 flywheel & 1 gearbox in 5 years. Stopping & starting (traffic lights, intersections, just plain traffic) on hills, kills clutches & manual transmissions (bends the cogs teeth, eventually they break off). Have had no probs. towing the same loads with an auto.

[Yellow_Festiva]

Would use an auto any day of the week.

[Ausromeo]

Love my ZF in the ute for towing. Can be driven like a manual if need be. It just does everything right and is effortless to drive even with a heavy load.

[Mickxr8]

After rebuilding an `el 4sp auto` am not surprised 1 little bit if a 6sp fails under load , no built in safety margins when it comes to bands and clutch pack failures , give me a c/4 or fmx anyday , can tow houses around all day in the middle of summer

[Matty4]

I've towed boats and caravans over the 2T mark with both my old 4sp Terri and my current 6sp Terri. Auto wins hands down for me, especially since I can use the ZF in manual mode but not have to worry about slipping clutches on hill starts etc....

[Polyal]

Luke I have had the general same thoughts as you.

I was under the impression for whatever reason an auto will carry a higher rating.

Maybe humans are to harsh with the clutch with a manual while towing? Dont know, I would think that would be the weak link.

This is a damn good question, I would like to know the tow ratings of say the BF GT auto vs Manual, or a FG XR8.

[Polyal]

Originally Posted by Matty4

I've towed boats and caravans over the 2T mark with both my old 4sp Terri and my current 6sp Terri. Auto wins hands down for me, especially since I can use the ZF in manual mode but not have to worry about slipping clutches on hill starts etc....

Smoothness aside, which one would you say is better for towing?

Id be worried with the ZF, only because if something goes pop, atleast the old BTR is relatively cheap to rebuild.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by Mickxr8

After rebuilding an `el 4sp auto` am not surprised 1 little bit if a 6sp fails under load , no built in safety margins when it comes to bands and clutch pack failures , give me a c/4 or fmx anyday , can tow houses around all day in the middle of summer

The old EL 4spd is nothing like the ZF. I have every bit of faith in the ZF. It's german engineered for a start. Keep it cool and it should go forever. For towing purposes it can be driven like a manual anyway.

If an auto is kept cool, and has it's oils kept in top notch condition it should outlast a manual when towing.

[mac_man_luke]

My XR8 is rated to 2300kgs, ZF tows great.

[Fairlane]

Auto never had a problem towing 2 ton very long distances with my BA 4 speed. Just leave it in third on the highways shift use the tiptronic and make the engine do the work and not the gearbox.

Mine did have a factory trans cooler though, makes a world of difference.

[cobramania]

Originally Posted by Polyal

This is a damn good question, I would like to know the tow ratings of say the BF GT auto vs Manual, or a FG XR8.

The BFII GT/GT-P with the standard Class 1 tow pack, can tow 1600kg both auto & manual. If towing with the auto, they recommend using it in performance auto mode, to keep the transmission temperatures cooler. It doesn't say anything in the owners manual, but I'm pretty sure using the Ford Class 2 or heavy duty tow pack, you can tow 2300kg with a GT/GT-P. The Class 2 tow packs have to be installed at the factory, & can only be used with the auto (not available with a manual), pretty sure the Class 2 tow pack includes a larger trans. cooler, that's partly why it has to be installed at the factory.

[Kynan]

There's no way I would tow with my GT-P haha... I'd rather stick to the 4wd

For towing I find autos better especially when reversing the boat down our steep battleaxe driveway...

[Matty4]

Originally Posted by Polyal

Smoothness aside, which one would you say is better for towing?

Id be worried with the ZF, only because if something goes pop, atleast the old BTR is relatively cheap to rebuild.

I would still recommend the ZF.
The simple fact is for me the spread of ratio's feels better as from memory 1st is lower in the ZF as opposed to the BTR and it just "felt" more comfortable doing it.

I haven't done anything additional to my ZF (like coolers) etc, and it has 100K on it now. Having said that, it's in for the 105K service today and I'm having the trans heat exchanger/cooler thingy replaced for peace of mind.

[smally289]

Id prefer auto myself.
General rule of thumb when towing heavy loads with an auto is to manually select 1st when taking off. This engages the rear band and takes the load off other internal components. Same for doing burnouts, but in a Pathfinder or a Ranger, I guess this is not your plan!

[Windsor342ci]

Originally Posted by smally351

Id prefer auto myself.
General rule of thumb when towing heavy loads with an auto is to manually select 1st when taking off. This engages the rear band and takes the load off other internal components. Same for doing burnouts, but in a Pathfinder or a Ranger, I guess this is not your plan!

Hahahhaha! Well the Ranger has a healthy 470NM at some pretty low RPM, Im sure it could pull one off it pushed hard enough.

Now Im sure they do, but the Ranger we looked at was a manual so I cant be 100%, but do the new Rangers have a semi Auto option like our current model Falcons?

[ebxr8240]

Auto with cooler and check what final drive, wheels you have..
Your better off with std aspect wheels ..
Lower final drive helps big time...Less stress on trans ...