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What Gear To Tow In?

Discussion in 'Towing & Hauling' started by Greg Marmalard, Apr 8, 2019.

  1. Apr 8, 2019 at 8:08 AM
    #1
    Greg Marmalard

    Greg Marmalard [OP] New Member

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    Howdy,

    I was always told to never tow in over drive, no way no how!

    I'll be hitching up for my first Airstream tow on Wednesday.

    Manual only mentions staying in 4th for better handling and engine braking performance but not imperative to avoid OD.

    Does Tow/Haul mode disable 5th and 6th?

    With my Tacoma it was strongly advised to keep in in 4th but no tow/haul mode...

    Thanks,

    Greg
     
  2. Apr 8, 2019 at 8:50 AM
    #2
    TacoWuzzaTurd

    TacoWuzzaTurd Loving my Tundra

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    Believe you'll want to switch over to "S" mode which is a shift limiter. Some people call it "Sport" mode but I think that is a misnomer. Anyhow if you switch to "S" mode it allows you to select a gear. If you select 4th gear, it will never shift beyond 4th gear. I think for a real light load on relatively flat and level terrain it won't matter as much but if you're towing more than say ...I dunno... 1500lbs or 2000lbs or doing a lot of climbing through mountain passes and hills maybe you want to select 4th gear and keep it there to stay out of the overdrive gears.
     
  3. Apr 8, 2019 at 10:11 AM
    #3
    Danimal86

    Danimal86 Looks clean even when its dirty!

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    What's the trailer weigh?
    Ours TT is small and light so I just let the truck do it's thing.
     
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  4. Apr 8, 2019 at 10:20 AM
    #4
    Greg Marmalard

    Greg Marmalard [OP] New Member

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    It's ~4000 pounds...Substantial but not crazy heavy.

    I'm also curious about "beast mode" for towing as I understand better mileage but may be nice to have the sway control active first couple tows....

    Thanks,

    Greg
     
  5. Apr 8, 2019 at 10:46 AM
    #5
    Stumpjumper

    Stumpjumper New Member

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    I tow a 5000 lb boat and used D most of the time. D is OK if I can maintain speeds above 65. TT with have more wind resistance than even my bay boat so you might be better off in 4th. Depends on terrain and wind. My Tacoma got 1 mpg towing the big boat with 93 octane but I was able to run tank low and almost run a full tank before filling up. I am guessing that towing my bass boat it might have been half that. I saw no difference when not towing. Harder to do that with the 38 gallon tank in the Tundra.
     
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  6. Apr 8, 2019 at 10:51 AM
    #6
    Ps3udonymous

    Ps3udonymous Who is the smart ass that changed the title?

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    I was read this as what do you wear when your towing...depends, if it's a boat probably t shirt, swim shorts, may flip flops.
     
  7. Apr 8, 2019 at 10:56 AM
    #7
    Newm

    Newm New Member

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    I always turn tow haul mode on and slide it over to S and keep in 5th. If I feel the torque converter unlocking and locking to much in 5th I'll drop it down to 4th and let it eat until the road flattens out some then back to 5th. My .02
     
    Last edited: Apr 8, 2019
    Y0TA PR0, Capt J-Rod and 15whtrd like this.
  8. Apr 8, 2019 at 11:12 AM
    #8
    ColoradoTJ

    ColoradoTJ Certified tow LEO Staff Member

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    Drive with TH mode on.

    Enjoy what the engineers designed for you.
     
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  9. Apr 8, 2019 at 11:14 AM
    #9
    Danimal86

    Danimal86 Looks clean even when its dirty!

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    I use tow haul when I'm already moving. The throttle is too sensitive for stop and go driving.
     
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  10. Apr 8, 2019 at 11:17 AM
    #10
    Y0TA PR0

    Y0TA PR0 Dirt biking & fishing

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    I tow my TT through the mountains of BC on TH and on D no problem! Truck knows what it’s doing, so I can concentrate on the road.

    My trailer is just over 4000lbs dry.
     
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  11. Apr 8, 2019 at 1:20 PM
    #11
    CMB

    CMB New Member

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    Not nearly enough room here!
    We tow every year to Canada/New York area from Maryland, probably 4500 lbs. 450-500 miles each way. Because I stay in 'S' Mode, I stay in Cruise Control much of the way up and back. If you're someone who'll make an effort and take the time to learn your truck, your towing experience will be more enjoyable and less harmful to your Transmission. Your Tundra's Sequential Shifter allows you to choose the proper gear to be in, for how long, depending on load, speed and conditions. Any Transmission Tech will tell you, constant shifting up and down while the Torque Converter struggles to remain locked, will cook your Transmission Fluid over time. Tow-Haul or not, choose the highest gear that prevents these needless 'multi-shifts'. Modern Carmakers have had to include Soft Ware that forces downshifts with a 'brake-tap', when descending hills, because the average driver will NEVER:eek2: touch their shifter except for P-D and sometimes R!:D
     
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  12. Apr 8, 2019 at 1:27 PM
    #12
    lewi3069

    lewi3069 New Member

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    Our TT with the SxS in it is roughly 4500-5000lbs. I hit tow/haul and let the truck do the rest. Too many people worry too much about doing all of this extra stuff. The truck was designed for the common idiot to hook up a trailer and go. If you're a little higher than that bar you will be more then fine.
     
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  13. Apr 8, 2019 at 3:23 PM
    #13
    Y0TA PR0

    Y0TA PR0 Dirt biking & fishing

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    Its funny how you say all that ^ but yet you leave your truck on cruiser control, Yup that’s really knowing your truck when towing. :rolleyes::D

    By using D, your transmission knows what it’s doing and knows what you want if you know how to use the throttle instead of cruiser control, And no it doesn’t constantly shift up and down.
    When going down hill yes it shift down by brake-tap, wouldn’t that be same thing if you had it on S mode and down shift yourself?

    But hey S mode works good also. It’s how you want to drive it. :thumbsup:
     
  14. Apr 8, 2019 at 3:31 PM
    #14
    Capt J-Rod

    Capt J-Rod New Member

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    I'm with @Newm I run tow haul, S mode and usually 5th... It hunts too much in D. It also try to pull 6th at too low of an RPM. Mileage goes to 10 anyways LOL!
     
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  15. Apr 8, 2019 at 3:46 PM
    #15
    bsktball55

    bsktball55 New Member

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    Put it in drive and tow haul and let it eat. If it starts shifting too much then maybe drop it down to 5th or 4th, but if it's able to hold gears while in drive, just let it be.
     
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  16. Apr 8, 2019 at 4:18 PM
    #16
    CMB

    CMB New Member

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    Not nearly enough room here!
    Yep, I was just being funny leaving my truck in "Cruiser" control. Can't expect everyone to understand. The OP was asking for advise from owners who tow. What I do has been working for me.
     
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  17. Apr 8, 2019 at 4:26 PM
    #17
    Y0TA PR0

    Y0TA PR0 Dirt biking & fishing

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    Lol awesome! :thumbsup:
     
  18. Apr 9, 2019 at 1:22 PM
    #18
    Greg Marmalard

    Greg Marmalard [OP] New Member

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    Well...

    Since I'll be towing with a Tundra with only 500 miles on it (don't have a choice) would be keeping it in S 4th gear tow/haul mode and cruising <65mph be a wise choice?

    It's a flat 200 mile trip in 80°-90° AZ weather.

    Again I'm not sure nor can I seem to find specifics of tow haul if it controls more than shift point for the transmission or in fact limits OD...

    Thanks,

    Greg
     
  19. Apr 9, 2019 at 1:45 PM
    #19
    Devcom

    Devcom Miles per Gallon? More like Smiles per Gallon!!

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    This is what I do and I have not had a problem even up this decent sized grade on we have over here.
     
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  20. Apr 9, 2019 at 2:06 PM
    #20
    ifishinxs

    ifishinxs New Member

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    None! I tow a boat weekly
    I tow a 4,000 boat up and down a 3000 ft grade weekly, year round. TH and put it in drive and go. No need to over think it.
     
  21. Apr 17, 2019 at 6:37 PM
    #21
    DM 2018 Tundra

    DM 2018 Tundra New Member

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    What type boat do you tow?
     
  22. May 15, 2019 at 10:15 AM
    #22
    MNBighead

    MNBighead New Member

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    I tow on a regular basis and S5 in tow haul mode usually is the ticket. D with tow haul = too much gear hunting for my liking and just leaving it in 5th gear S5 produces the same mpg anyway. The truck seems happy.
     
    ATHiker likes this.

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