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Towing Reccomendation

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caryhenry

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Tallahassee, Fl
I am going to be traveling to california from florida this summer and I'm going to be towing my motorcycle on a 5x8 trailer (800lbs combined weight). I just wanted to know if it is ok to tow in OD since this is such a light load and I'm going to be driving at 70 mph most of the way there.
 
This has been discussed ad-nauseum in previous posts throughout the lifetime of CK5. /forums/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif A quick search may/will give you the answers to any towing questions you have.

But a quick answer is maybe. If your tranny is constantly shifting in and out of OD and D or your lockup convertor is constantly locking/unlocking I would say stay in Drive (3rd). But if there's no shifting/hunting as I described, it should be fine to tow it in OD (4th)

And finally, PLEASE make sure you are running a tranny cooler. Preferably, the largest one you can afford.

John
 
When you mean stock tranny cooler, are you saying the one in the radiator? If yes, you need to add an external tranny cooler. They can be had for ~50 bucks approx. You can pick them up at most any parts store or at Summit Racing

The one I recommend is This One.

Hope this helps.
John
 
The stock one I have is not IN the radiator, but is attached to the front of the radiator next to the attached oil cooler.
 
I would think you'd be ok then. Just make sure your fluid is in good condition (changed recently) and you should be fine.

John
 
1-10 between here and cali is mostly flat highway.800 lbs is like having a mother-in-law riding shotgun,only quieter.you should be ok.if traffic gets thick and your slowing down and speeding up alot,i'd put er'in drive.if your going to central or northern cali,there are some real hills there.leave it in drive.
 
i should have said i-10 is pretty flat until new mexico west.thats where the hillys start.
 
3car- Towing weight behind you is a little different than carrying weight on your truck. Look at it this way:

Put 100 lbs on your back and go for a walk up a slight incline. Now put 100 lbs in a wagon and try to pull it behind you at the same speed up the same incline. It's a lot harder to do, isn't it?

The difference between these two situations is when a load is in the truck, it's essentially part of the truck- the load does not detract from the accumulated momentum. When you're pulling a trailer on it's own set of wheels, you're basically towing a dead weight that is constantly trying to come to a stop due to the fact that it has no momentum of it's own.

Does that make sense?
 
With a 305 for power, towing in OD will depend a lot on how your truck is setup. Axle ratio? Tire size? If you're pulling 3.42's and running a 33" tire, you'll do better to tow in Drive. 3.73's, 31" tires and with a good cooler, you can get away with OD most of the time. If you install a good trans temp gage in your trans oil pan, you'll beable to keep a good eye on what's happening inside the trans.
 
B&M sells one, connects up to the cooling lines. It looks pretty good too. I used an Autometer "Trans Oil Temp" gage along with their sensor mounted in the bottom of the T400 pan in my previous Suburban. Worked well and kept me well informed. I just like the Autometer appearance better. Summitt also sells these too.
 
This statement is no where near true. Take a 7000lb and put it in the bed of a truck... then put it on a trailer and tow it behind... which is better?

Ken H.


[ QUOTE ]
3car- Towing weight behind you is a little different than carrying weight on your truck. Look at it this way:

Put 100 lbs on your back and go for a walk up a slight incline. Now put 100 lbs in a wagon and try to pull it behind you at the same speed up the same incline. It's a lot harder to do, isn't it?

The difference between these two situations is when a load is in the truck, it's essentially part of the truck- the load does not detract from the accumulated momentum. When you're pulling a trailer on it's own set of wheels, you're basically towing a dead weight that is constantly trying to come to a stop due to the fact that it has no momentum of it's own.

Does that make sense?



[/ QUOTE ]
 
The 7000 lbs in the truck has no drag of it's own due to the fact that it doesn't have it's own set of wheels. A trailer has more friction and adds to drag, plain and simple.
 
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