I was at the dealer yesterday. I had to take the tech out for a ride so he could here the noises from my back window and the rear axle. We got talking about different things about the truck. I told him one thing to make sure is that if you have the center console shifter, you put it in drive and not 2nd when you pull out in traffic. Sometimes when i put it into drive, while i'm not looking, or in a hurry, I slip it into 2nd by mistake. The truck feels like it's being held back or tied down. He told me that the 2nd gear on these trucks is 2nd gear. So if you put it in 2nd from the beginning, it is truly in 2nd. It doesn't start off in 1st, then shift up to 2nd, like my other vehicles do. He also said Ford should redesign the shifter pattern because of the overdrive button. The button should be removed because when you have the center console shifter, it makes you want to downshift like a stick and when you do that on these trucks, you go right to 2nd. He also said that if you are pulling someone out that is stuck or you are in snow or mud, put it into 2nd. Because if you put it in Drive, it starts out in first, and if you start out in first, you will spin your wheels more easily. So if it's raining and you are in a hurry and stopped at a redlight, put it into 2nd to keep the wheels from breaking loose on an agressive take off, then put it into drive.

 

The highlighted stuff is, like, WTF??? Of course you will go to second if OD is Off (or On) and you decide to pull it into 2nd. So what? The tranny/PCM still protects you from yourself. Go ahead and jam it into 1st and see.

Just don't do it in poor traction conditions. If you do, then you are a good candidate for the Darwin award anyway. Crap - you want the safety ***** to take away your right to control your auto shifting too? Jeez.

I do agree that the button should be MOVED, not Removed. It should be on the stick itself ( or on the wheel?) - it's annoying to reach where it is now.

The balance of your info is already common knowledge w.r.t Ford auto trannies. It's been that way for awhile. Search. Read the owner's manual.

 

?????????

 

Sorry - I get all pissy when the obvious is promulgated - obviously

Why, RMS would say that I was 'Pithy' ! LOL!

Don't sweat this - it's all probably due to my period.

 

I would say don't mess around with the shifter unless you are stuck. But under normal driving, there is no reason to use it. I does infact destroy the transmission earlier and puts a lot of wear and tear on it. As far as Ford putting in a console shift in a truck is too funny. I knew people were going to treat it like a stick shift.

Anyhow, that O/D off (tow/haul) has a purpose... for towing or hilly terrain.

Then again, if Ford put a 5.4l V8 with a short throw stickshift and a console, then I would see the need. Ford are you reading this?

 

It's not a true 'tow/haul' like some others (e.g: chebbie) are. Only turns off OD; does not alter any shifting parameters.

As for wear/tear - don't really think so - the PCM still controls what the tranny will actually do, within predefined limits.

Far worse are the idiots who routinely kickdown 4-2 @ WOT. Now that's abuse.

Most folks are too lazy to bother anyways - the reason they bought an auto in the first place.

 

MGDFan i agree with everything you said

As for the OD button on the one's with the center console shifter (like mine) i dont see why the button should be removed or even moved.

FX4ME Quote

"The button should be removed because when you have the center console shifter, it makes you want to downshift like a stick and when you do that on these trucks, you go right to 2nd."

I dont see where you or the tech were going with this. I'm thinking you probably mis-understood him or he just doesnt know what he was talking about.

 

Where we were going was that when you drive one of these trucks with the center console shifter, People like to drive them like a shift stick. I personally would like to have the shift pattern on the console like this. P-R-N-D-3-2-1 That way i could bump it down when i'm towing or going down hill if i want to. I know how to do it, but i would like to have them all in a row like that.

 

Thanks, Copper.

The Button - I'm a lefty & it just bugs me ergonomically - on the stick would work better for me, personally.

In fact, one of the things in my 'mod' jar is to investigate installing a second OD button (in parallel) in the actual stick.

Cheers
Bubba

 

Far worse are the idiots who routinely kickdown 4-2 @ WOT. Now that's abuse.
This is why the shifter needs to be reconfigured. When i first got my truck, i did excactly that, and i was corrected after reading it here. As far as the shift points or parameters, i have no problems. I was just stating that i learned that when someone is stuck, or you are on a slippery surface, put it in 2nd for better traction. I did not think of doing this before, and i thought i would share the knowledge. Who reads the Owners Manual? I don't even know where it is. It took up too much space in the glove box....

 

I hear ya, but that reference applies to WOT high load shifting only - and reconfiguring the shifter will not prevent that behavior because you can do the same thing with your right foot by simply planting it while in OD. Goes from fourth, waves at third while passing through it and ends up in second.

Doing that with the shifter at light load/part throttle is not the same at all....

Anyone remember Green Acres and the 'PRNDL' ???
Prolly not - this rumpus room is just crammed with 20-somethings.
Nappy-time, kids

BTW - remember I don't know WTF I'm talking about. lol

Cheers
Bubba

 

Why would anyone spend $20,000-$40,000 on something and then lose the instruction manual that explains how to use it.

2nd. has been second gear on Ford products since they started using 3 speed automatic transmissions. I don't know about now but on the earlier ones, 2nd gear was controlled by a band instead of clutches like first gear used. Slippage on a band destroyed the band much quicker than slippage of the clutch.

This is one of the few transmissions where you can start out in second gear for slippery conditions.

 

i knew that about the tranny before i bought the truck which is why i like it,
2nd gear is actually 2nd gear it dosnt go from 2nd to drive, and 1st is actually 1st. its the best way to design it, helps for towing and its better in snowy conditions

 

[QUOTE=osbornk]Why would anyone spend $20,000-$40,000 on something and then lose the instruction manual that explains how to use it.

Because i can......

 

Please explain how downshifting is killing the transmission?