I was under the impression that O/D should be used only at highway speeds and for normal city driving you should drive with the O/D Off. It seems that `05 Explorer's normal condition, when it is started, is to have the O/D On. Suggesting that it is O.K. to have O/D on all the time. Is it? Should I be turning it off for normal city driving, or does it really make a difference?
I'd suggest reading your Owner's Guide. According to the Owner's Guide you should turn off the overdrive when driving conditions cause excessive shifting from O/D to other gears. Examples: city traffic, hilly terrain, heavy loads, trailer towing and when engine braking is required. When descending a hill, use the same gear you would use to climb up the hill and do not descend the hill with the transmission in neutral. Disengage overdrive or manually shift to a lower gear.
If you don't have a manual, go to
Persoanlly, I only turn my OD off when towing. I have never had a problem with excessive shifting in town.
Ed
Ed,
Thaks for the info. My Explorer doesn't seem to shift too much in town, but I will check out the manual to make sure.
-Jason
messagenews: snipped-for-privacy@k70g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
According to the Owner's Guide you
to
There is virtually never a need to turn the OD off in any normal driving unless you are pulling/carrying a very heavy load or need the engine braking going downhill.
I find the fact that, with OD off, you have better control of your speed -- better engine braking -- that it is MUCH more desireable to only us the OD when I hit the highway.
Ford (and probably other manufacturers) build their cars that have OD so that it is normally on so that they can claim higher fleet mileage.
I've always been a little irritated at that. Every time I start mine, I have to turn the OD off. It's a mild pain, but it happens over and over and over and over.......
Alan
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It's not that I think stupidity should be punishable by death. I just think we should take the warning labels off of everything and let the problem take care of itself.
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That's fine if it works for you but is engine braking that big an issue in city driving? Is the extra gas burned worth the savings on brake wear, which also can be used to control speed.
Given the fact that engines have fuel injection, I doubt that engine braking has much impact on fuel consumption. Some, I'm sure, but probably negligible.
And, yes, it is much better to have the car slow more when you lift you foot from the accelerator than to have it coast as if it is free-wheeling. It means you don't have to touch your brakes as often.
City traffic is ALWAYS varying speed (unlike highway traffic which can settle into a constant speed) so having the OD off is an advantage in vehicle control
Try it. You might like it.
Alan
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It's not that I think stupidity should be punishable by death. I just think we should take the warning labels off of everything and let the problem take care of itself.
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I'll give it a try when I get teh damn thing back from the shop. (See posting: 2005 Explorer rear differential whine [Link:
I only have an 86 Toyota P/U to compare it to. That thing has zero throttle response in the city with O/D on, but certainly runs better in O/D at highway speeds. It is also and EFI vehicle, but 4 cylinders and
196,000 miles tend to wear > >someone told me once that towing with O/D on is very hard on the transmission, I suppose the gear that is engaged with O/D.
In principle, I think you're right that it is harder on the tranny, but I also think that they know how to design them so it isn't a problem, any more.
I have tried it and don't like it. I can do exactly the same thing, but with much finer control, by simply using the brakes. If you rely on engine braking you always have the same amount of braking whether that's the amount you need or not. I'm sure you have tried my way too and didn't like it.
Yup.
Alan
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It's not that I think stupidity should be punishable by death. I just think we should take the warning labels off of everything and let the problem take care of itself.
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I never drive my '94 (A4LD Automatic transmission) in overdrive unless I'm on the highway and not towing. In OD around town it's always shifting, hunting for gears and the torque converter locks and unlocks constantly. It drives great, shifts smooth and at the right time with the OD off. I've heard with this transmission it's advisable not to use OD around town, but don't know if that's true. It would seem so to me, it shifts less and more smoothly with OD off.
I've had 2 Explorers now, a '94 and an '05. I usually drive in O/D even when around town. But as mentioned before, I usually pop it out of O/D when towing. Except on nice flat or slightly downhill on the freeway. I used to tow a lot with my old '94. But the gears were spread pretty far apart, i.e.
3rd always seemed to rev pretty high. Plus back then I used to drive way too fast when towing, so I frequently left it in O/D (I've since slowed down!). But the great thing about our '05 is the 5 speed O/D. Fourth gear can still tow nicely on the freeway without seeming like it's revving too high. The closer gear ratio is really nice! Of course, my wife is the primary driver of our rig, and she just shifts into D (O/D on)! One thing to be aware of (especially for you '94 era Explorer owners - not sure if it's true of the newer rigs) is to change your tranny fluid frequently if you tow often. I've read that the fluid should be changed every 12,000 miles when towing frequently. I used to change ours at about every 24,000 miles. No tranny problems after 120,000 miles. Many of my friends used to tell me that their transmissions dropped right around 70,000 with no service.Richard Minami '05 Ford Explorer XLT Sport 4x4 '94 Honda Accord LX '97 Coleman Yukon
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