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Elite Veteran
Posts: 762
  
Location: NC | How do people use the tow/haul button on their trucks when hauling?
Back info: 2 weeks ago while hauling home from a clinic my trucks transmission went. (would not shift, and tranny temp kept going up) Thankfully had a friend ahead of me with room on her trailer and she took my horses home. We then waited 4 hours for tow truck (think he wanted to miss NYC traffic, but thats another story LOL). Anyway tow truck driver made a comment that whenever we were hauling to put tow/haul on. I was always taught that tow/haul went on when climbing a hill/mountain and i was heavy, not driving down the interstate. So figured I would ask.
Oh and its a 2006 chevy silverado 3500 dually that was pulling a 2 horse aluminum bp with 2 horses. 2 people in truck, and minimal clothes. 1 bale of hay in back and 2 saddles and accessories
Thank you! |
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 I Want a "MAN"
Posts: 3610
 
Location: MD | It's there to help your truck out. Use it always when your trailer is hooked up not just for mountains and hills. Your story is the exact reason why you use tow haul. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 617
Location: London Ontario | I agree, we always use it. The hubby is a diesel mechanic and is very particular about "procedures" when we haul. We always use tow/haul, we make sure to let the truck warm up at least 20 minutes before leaving, as well as letting the truck cool down when stopping. We also try not to shut the truck off if we are just stopping for fuel or food. We also make sure not to let it go under 1/4 if at all possible. He is also pretty good at checking the truck and trailer over before I leave no matter the distance. If the brakes/tires/anything looks like they are wearing down, he fixes/changes it for me. He also makes sure I am topped up on all fluid. They are expensive toys along with our horses so we try to take care of them as much as possible. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 762
Location: NC | CE's wrapn3 - 2015-05-04 1:42 PM
It's there to help your truck out. Use it always when your trailer is hooked up not just for mountains and hills. Your story is the exact reason why you use tow haul.
Not to be rude, but I've only had this truck a year. It was bought used. Have no idea what it did before i bought it. This was the 1st time it had been anywhere other then local (40 miles and less) with 2 horses. My other truck I never had an issue and it to was bought used and was driven up and down from NY to Tn and back twice, plus ton of other adventures. But thank you for your response. |
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Location: Texas | I always use the tow/haul button when I'm pulling any kind of trailer, cattle trailer or LQ horse trailer, loaded and unloaded, which is 99% of the time.
You are right though, it should also be used with or without a trailer in higher altitudes. |
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Location: Texas | MC1993 - 2015-05-04 12:47 PM I agree, we always use it. The hubby is a diesel mechanic and is very particular about "procedures" when we haul. We always use tow/haul, we make sure to let the truck warm up at least 20 minutes before leaving, as well as letting the truck cool down when stopping. We also try not to shut the truck off if we are just stopping for fuel or food. We also make sure not to let it go under 1/4 if at all possible. He is also pretty good at checking the truck and trailer over before I leave no matter the distance. If the brakes/tires/anything looks like they are wearing down, he fixes/changes it for me. He also makes sure I am topped up on all fluid. They are expensive toys along with our horses so we try to take care of them as much as possible.
Honestly those are great tips for any type of vehicle, especially diesels.
We always give our pickup trucks and big trucks plenty of time to warm up, we also don't turn the pickups off until we reach out destination. The big trucks on the other hand will run for days without being turned off. Air filters are another small thing that can help or hurt your trucks a lot! |
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 Cute Little Imp
Posts: 2747
Location: N Texas | If there is a trailer on my truck, tow/haul is on. The only time I've left it off is when I have a TINY cargo trailer. Even then, I've only done that a couple of times. |
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 Veteran
Posts: 212
| I have always wondered about this too... I had friends that tell me its only for city driving, ones that said uphill, ones that said never... I finally realized my new truck gets better gas mileage with it on, so I guess its a win win  |
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Location: Texas | It doesn't hurt to have it on at all... |
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 Leggs
Posts: 4680
Location: lexington KY | If there is trailer hooked to my truck, the tow/haul is on. |
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 Undercover Amish Mafia Member
Posts: 9992
Location: Kansas | I have a chip in my truck, so I just use the performance hauling mode with the chip. I don't use towhaul on the truck. |
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 Good Grief!
Posts: 6343
Location: Cap'n Joan Rotgut.....alberta | Mine doesnt have tow haul..;)M |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 600
Location: Oklahoma & Texas | I always use it.. regardless but i have a 3h w/an 8 ft LQ... that being said.. your bumper pull w/2horses and aluminum at that - shouldn't have stressed the tranny much.. even if doing a lot of up and down shifting.. sooo yea thats odd.. but you're right buying used there's no telling what happened to the tranny before you had it - howeve ryou would have noticed something before now if something was wrong with it.. best thing you can do for your engine and trans - is allow proper warm up time - dont put it in gear til its done warming up when the engine down cycles and then dont change gears without being completely stopped nor take off until your trans has had a time to engage so you know when you move the shifter from park to drive and you hear/feel it change - wait until that is completely done before pressing the gas pedal... cause otherwise parts are moving inside and if you hit the gas they are not fully in place.. a transmission is a seriest of teeth basically like gears and they thread together - so the more you shift or move w/o it being ready the moer they grind down til eventually they dont work no more.. or they get so thin from grinding they break off and hence you cannot shift to either a specifc gear or any gear. usually a gear or two will go out before they all will.. OH and dont ever shift into reverse while moving forward.. get to a complete stop before reversing and vice versa if you are moving backward do not shift to a forward gear til you are completely stopped.
If you have any sort of extended warranty you may be covered - also make sure you didn't hit anything - sometimes you can hit something w/your driveshaft or undercarriage or bottom out maybe if you get stuck and because the lower portions of transmissions tend to be aluminum they can break easy and dmg that way.. or driveshafts can be jammed up into them... just a thought.. |
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What Name?
Posts: 1994
| Funny story. I actually hauled with my brothers big new dodge yesterday. He never mentioned the tow/haul button to me. I noticed about halfway through the haul it was having a hard time changing gears ( i've driven mostly manual trans vehicles so its very noticeable to me ) ... lol my co-pilot was like.. you have the T/H button on.? I was like.oooops. |
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 Expert
Posts: 3815
Location: The best kept secret in TX | I have a manual trasmission on my 96 7.3L F250 and she has over 250k miles so I don't have tow/haul on my personal truck when hauling to local events lol. But my SO rebuilt the transmission/engine when we got her to prevent it from having any major issues. When I tow farther out I use my dad's truck. It's a fully deleted 2013 F250 6.4L with 120k+ miles on the engine/tranny and a programmer so I don't use tow/haul on it either. I never haul on performance tho. Dad does but I'm always scared to turn it all the way up since his trucks head isn't studded yet. I haul one click down from performance mode and it does just fine for me. SO said it was safe to do so I can always blame him if anything happens to my Dad's truck while hauling haha.
I pull a 32ft aluminum shell stock trailer with one or two horses plus hay/feed/water/clothing. Never had a problem yet.
When my SO (Heavy diesel mechanic) pulls anything with his 2014 dodge 1500 he uses tow/haul all the time when pulling. He pulls his dirtbikes a lot and car hauler a lot too. His truck is bagged for a bumper pull horse trailer but he's yet to pull the horses with it. But I guarentee he will always have it in tow/haul mode if he ever pulls the horses for me.
It gives the truck extra gears from what I understand about his hour long description about tow/haul LOL
But at the same time, tow/haul being on or off won't save a transmission that has a certain amount of miles/wear and tear/ and lack of general maint. or one that is overheating from going out. Transmissions need general service just like engines:) Not saying you neglected it by any means please don't misunderstand me!! I simply mean, if it's an older truck, the previous owners didn't take care of it, or it has a certain amount of miles, nothing will stop it from giving out. Unless you have it serviced for preventative measures:)
Good luck to you!! |
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 Expert
Posts: 1395
Location: Missouri | We use tow/haul all the time, anytime a trailer is hooked to the truck. Save for like a teeny tiny trailer hauling a ride in mower or something. |
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 Tough Patooty
Posts: 2615
Location: Sperry, OK | Any time my truck is hooked to anything, trailer, boat, camper .... anything no matter how light/heavy, my tow haul is on. If it is heavy enough, I can turn my overdrive all the way off on mine, so that is what I do when warrented. |
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Tough Patooty
Posts: 2615
Location: Sperry, OK | IRunOnFaith - 2015-05-04 4:01 PM I have a manual trasmission on my 96 7.3L F250 and she has over 250k miles so I don't have tow/haul on my personal truck when hauling to local events lol. But my SO rebuilt the transmission/engine when we got her to prevent it from having any major issues. When I tow farther out I use my dad's truck. It's a fully deleted 2013 F250 6.4L with 120k+ miles on the engine/tranny and a programmer so I don't use tow/haul on it either. I never haul on performance tho. Dad does but I'm always scared to turn it all the way up since his trucks head isn't studded yet. I haul one click down from performance mode and it does just fine for me. SO said it was safe to do so I can always blame him if anything happens to my Dad's truck while hauling haha.
I pull a 32ft aluminum shell stock trailer with one or two horses plus hay/feed/water/clothing. Never had a problem yet.
When my SO (Heavy diesel mechanic) pulls anything with his 2014 dodge 1500 he uses tow/haul all the time when pulling. He pulls his dirtbikes a lot and car hauler a lot too. His truck is bagged for a bumper pull horse trailer but he's yet to pull the horses with it. But I guarentee he will always have it in tow/haul mode if he ever pulls the horses for me.
It gives the truck extra gears from what I understand about his hour long description about tow/haul LOL
But at the same time, tow/haul being on or off won't save a transmission that has a certain amount of miles/wear and tear/ and lack of general maint. or one that is overheating from going out. Transmissions need general service just like engines:) Not saying you neglected it by any means please don't misunderstand me!! I simply mean, if it's an older truck, the previous owners didn't take care of it, or it has a certain amount of miles, nothing will stop it from giving out. Unless you have it serviced for preventative measures:)
Good luck to you!!
It doesn't give it extra gears, just lowers your gear ratio so it pulls longer in each gear before shifting, to not wear out the bands in the transmission. |
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 Total Germophobe
Posts: 6443
Location: Montana | On an automatic, ALWAYS put it on. You will (as it appear have learned ) burn up a transmission eventually, and usually sooner than later (our friend did it on a SINGLE trip by not pulling his rig out of over-drive...never hauled before and never had a problem). That is why they put that button on there. Another person we know had to put a new transmission in their 2006 Dodge Cummins 3/4 ton because of the same reason...it is a very exspensive for such an easy little button to push. |
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Expert
Posts: 3815
Location: The best kept secret in TX | ACEINTHEHOLE - 2015-05-04 4:07 PM IRunOnFaith - 2015-05-04 4:01 PM I have a manual trasmission on my 96 7.3L F250 and she has over 250k miles so I don't have tow/haul on my personal truck when hauling to local events lol. But my SO rebuilt the transmission/engine when we got her to prevent it from having any major issues. When I tow farther out I use my dad's truck. It's a fully deleted 2013 F250 6.4L with 120k+ miles on the engine/tranny and a programmer so I don't use tow/haul on it either. I never haul on performance tho. Dad does but I'm always scared to turn it all the way up since his trucks head isn't studded yet. I haul one click down from performance mode and it does just fine for me. SO said it was safe to do so I can always blame him if anything happens to my Dad's truck while hauling haha.
I pull a 32ft aluminum shell stock trailer with one or two horses plus hay/feed/water/clothing. Never had a problem yet.
When my SO (Heavy diesel mechanic) pulls anything with his 2014 dodge 1500 he uses tow/haul all the time when pulling. He pulls his dirtbikes a lot and car hauler a lot too. His truck is bagged for a bumper pull horse trailer but he's yet to pull the horses with it. But I guarentee he will always have it in tow/haul mode if he ever pulls the horses for me.
It gives the truck extra gears from what I understand about his hour long description about tow/haul LOL
But at the same time, tow/haul being on or off won't save a transmission that has a certain amount of miles/wear and tear/ and lack of general maint. or one that is overheating from going out. Transmissions need general service just like engines:) Not saying you neglected it by any means please don't misunderstand me!! I simply mean, if it's an older truck, the previous owners didn't take care of it, or it has a certain amount of miles, nothing will stop it from giving out. Unless you have it serviced for preventative measures:)
Good luck to you!!
Thank you! I only halfway paid attention to his answer lol |
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 The Vaccinator
Posts: 3810
Location: Slipping down the slope of old age. Boo hoo. | MC1993 - 2015-05-04 12:47 PM
I agree, we always use it. The hubby is a diesel mechanic and is very particular about "procedures" when we haul. We always use tow/haul, we make sure to let the truck warm up at least 20 minutes before leaving, as well as letting the truck cool down when stopping. We also try not to shut the truck off if we are just stopping for fuel or food. We also make sure not to let it go under 1/4 if at all possible. He is also pretty good at checking the truck and trailer over before I leave no matter the distance. If the brakes/tires/anything looks like they are wearing down, he fixes/changes it for me. He also makes sure I am topped up on all fluid. They are expensive toys along with our horses so we try to take care of them as much as possible.
Oh my - your husband and my husband must have learned from the same person! This is what we do, too. (And we made sure to have a transmission cooler installed on the truck.) |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 762
Location: NC | Thank you everyone!! learn something new everyday. Actually what took the tranny out according to allison transmission place was a bearing. That knocked everything out. They couldnt even rebuild it and had to get a new core to then rebuild. The truck was used, so not sure before me. i do know that im extra vigilant and checked all fluids prior to leaving. (tranny fluid was still good when checked at rest area to try and figure out what was wrong) Its always turned on early to warm up. My old truck the tow/haul button didnt work but it never had an issue. Only reason i got rid of it was traded in for this truck. |
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Sock Snob
Posts: 3021
| Things come to mine are what kind of truck, how many miles, was trans serviced. Also, is there a cooler for trans as in tow package, are there extreame like live in mountains. Was there enough fluid in trans as well as right kind. There are a lot of different things that could go wrong, had one in here had a small leake in cooler hose got low in fluid. Also, hauling a too big trailer with the truck, seen a lot of people with a 250/2500 trykng to haul a 3 horse trailer with 14foot lq, i bought a trailer from some people had a 14 lq they had a short bed chevy 2500, and has owned it for several years.
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 My Heart Be Happy
Posts: 9159
Location: Arkansas | You have a wonderfully thoughtful husband! |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 629
Location: Roping pen | Allison transmissions are very touchy about the transmission filter. Especially, the 2005--2007 years. Those filters need changed every 10k at the most. AND fluid at 50k of towing or 75k or normal driving IMO. I know the book doesn't say that, but my experiences show that, by doing this, you can save a lot of issues.
IMO, it sounds more like a plugged filter causing the bearing failure, not the tow/haul mode. A dirty filter will starve the bearings from lubrication.
All the tow/haul does is to raise the shift points and will help with grade shift down/braking. By raising the RPM thru the power curve by increasing the shift points, the transmission increases the fluid pressures, which allows better lock up thru the shift plates/rings/torque converter.
I wouldn't say "always" use the tow/haul, when towing, but I would recommend 90% use. Also, using it can also help with certain speeds/head winds/grades or other conditions when not hauling.
Good luck! |
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 Expert
Posts: 2457
| ACEINTHEHOLE - 2015-05-04 4:07 PM IRunOnFaith - 2015-05-04 4:01 PM I have a manual trasmission on my 96 7.3L F250 and she has over 250k miles so I don't have tow/haul on my personal truck when hauling to local events lol. But my SO rebuilt the transmission/engine when we got her to prevent it from having any major issues. When I tow farther out I use my dad's truck. It's a fully deleted 2013 F250 6.4L with 120k+ miles on the engine/tranny and a programmer so I don't use tow/haul on it either. I never haul on performance tho. Dad does but I'm always scared to turn it all the way up since his trucks head isn't studded yet. I haul one click down from performance mode and it does just fine for me. SO said it was safe to do so I can always blame him if anything happens to my Dad's truck while hauling haha.
I pull a 32ft aluminum shell stock trailer with one or two horses plus hay/feed/water/clothing. Never had a problem yet.
When my SO (Heavy diesel mechanic) pulls anything with his 2014 dodge 1500 he uses tow/haul all the time when pulling. He pulls his dirtbikes a lot and car hauler a lot too. His truck is bagged for a bumper pull horse trailer but he's yet to pull the horses with it. But I guarentee he will always have it in tow/haul mode if he ever pulls the horses for me.
It gives the truck extra gears from what I understand about his hour long description about tow/haul LOL
But at the same time, tow/haul being on or off won't save a transmission that has a certain amount of miles/wear and tear/ and lack of general maint. or one that is overheating from going out. Transmissions need general service just like engines:) Not saying you neglected it by any means please don't misunderstand me!! I simply mean, if it's an older truck, the previous owners didn't take care of it, or it has a certain amount of miles, nothing will stop it from giving out. Unless you have it serviced for preventative measures:)
Good luck to you!!
exactly - on some of the older models of chevy/gmc trucks it removes the overdrive mechanism making it more efficient for the tranny to haul a load. The newer models it will change the gear ratio, effectively doing the same thing.
OP - my current pickup is the first auto tranny I've ever had, I use the tow/haul every time when pulling loads. |
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 Lady Di
Posts: 21556
Location: Oklahoma | I have a 2006 crew cab GMC dually that I pull my trailers (both goosenecks/one has a 10 ft full LQ) with....I have almost 150K miles on it....it has a transmission cooler installed....I rarely/almost never use the tow/haul button. I live in OK where it's flat or there's small hills. The dealer told me (and he also has daughters that barrel race) that I didn't need to use it unless I was pulling big hills (it says the same thing in the instruction manual)....I leave mine in overdrive all the time and have never had any trouble with the transmission. I guess I've been extremely lucky. I don't like to use it on the flat because it cuts my fuel mileage in half. I guess I should be worried now? I have a close friend who has the same model only in a Chevy and she's never had any trouble, either....and she pulls HUGE trailers (a 6 horse and a 3 horse with a 14 ft LQ). |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 617
Location: London Ontario | I like to think the cost of a tranny out weighs a little high fuel bill but thats just me |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 1162
Location: White Mountains of AZ | I have a 98 Cummins, automatic, but it has a has a gear vender, exhaust brake, torque lockup converter....should I still put my tow-haul on? |
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 I Chore in Chucks
Posts: 2882
Location: MD | always on!
Edited by Crowned Image 2015-05-05 12:01 PM
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 762
Location: NC | dianeguinn - 2015-05-05 11:49 AM
I have a 2006 crew cab GMC dually that I pull my trailers (both goosenecks/one has a 10 ft full LQ) with....I have almost 150K miles on it....it has a transmission cooler installed....I rarely/almost never use the tow/haul button. I live in OK where it's flat or there's small hills. The dealer told me (and he also has daughters that barrel race) that I didn't need to use it unless I was pulling big hills (it says the same thing in the instruction manual)....I leave mine in overdrive all the time and have never had any trouble with the transmission. I guess I've been extremely lucky. I don't like to use it on the flat because it cuts my fuel mileage in half. I guess I should be worried now? I have a close friend who has the same model only in a Chevy and she's never had any trouble, either....and she pulls HUGE trailers (a 6 horse and a 3 horse with a 14 ft LQ).
Mine literally just hit 160k miles on the day it died...just a heads up. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 762
Location: NC | MC1993 - 2015-05-05 12:40 PM
I like to think the cost of a tranny out weighs a little high fuel bill but thats just me
After spending almost 5k for a new tranny I agree with you! |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 372
| ACEINTHEHOLE - 2015-05-04 4:07 PM
IRunOnFaith - 2015-05-04 4:01 PM I have a manual trasmission on my 96 7.3L F250 and she has over 250k miles so I don't have tow/haul on my personal truck when hauling to local events lol. But my SO rebuilt the transmission/engine when we got her to prevent it from having any major issues. When I tow farther out I use my dad's truck. It's a fully deleted 2013 F250 6.4L with 120k+ miles on the engine/tranny and a programmer so I don't use tow/haul on it either. I never haul on performance tho. Dad does but I'm always scared to turn it all the way up since his trucks head isn't studded yet. I haul one click down from performance mode and it does just fine for me. SO said it was safe to do so I can always blame him if anything happens to my Dad's truck while hauling haha.
I pull a 32ft aluminum shell stock trailer with one or two horses plus hay/feed/water/clothing. Never had a problem yet.
When my SO (Heavy diesel mechanic) pulls anything with his 2014 dodge 1500 he uses tow/haul all the time when pulling. He pulls his dirtbikes a lot and car hauler a lot too. His truck is bagged for a bumper pull horse trailer but he's yet to pull the horses with it. But I guarentee he will always have it in tow/haul mode if he ever pulls the horses for me.
It gives the truck extra gears from what I understand about his hour long description about tow/haul LOL
But at the same time, tow/haul being on or off won't save a transmission that has a certain amount of miles/wear and tear/ and lack of general maint. or one that is overheating from going out. Transmissions need general service just like engines:) Not saying you neglected it by any means please don't misunderstand me!! I simply mean, if it's an older truck, the previous owners didn't take care of it, or it has a certain amount of miles, nothing will stop it from giving out. Unless you have it serviced for preventative measures:)
Good luck to you!!
that's not how it works at all.
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Tough Patooty
Posts: 2615
Location: Sperry, OK | arion - 2015-05-05 3:56 PM ACEINTHEHOLE - 2015-05-04 4:07 PM IRunOnFaith - 2015-05-04 4:01 PM I have a manual trasmission on my 96 7.3L F250 and she has over 250k miles so I don't have tow/haul on my personal truck when hauling to local events lol. But my SO rebuilt the transmission/engine when we got her to prevent it from having any major issues. When I tow farther out I use my dad's truck. It's a fully deleted 2013 F250 6.4L with 120k+ miles on the engine/tranny and a programmer so I don't use tow/haul on it either. I never haul on performance tho. Dad does but I'm always scared to turn it all the way up since his trucks head isn't studded yet. I haul one click down from performance mode and it does just fine for me. SO said it was safe to do so I can always blame him if anything happens to my Dad's truck while hauling haha.
I pull a 32ft aluminum shell stock trailer with one or two horses plus hay/feed/water/clothing. Never had a problem yet.
When my SO (Heavy diesel mechanic) pulls anything with his 2014 dodge 1500 he uses tow/haul all the time when pulling. He pulls his dirtbikes a lot and car hauler a lot too. His truck is bagged for a bumper pull horse trailer but he's yet to pull the horses with it. But I guarentee he will always have it in tow/haul mode if he ever pulls the horses for me.
It gives the truck extra gears from what I understand about his hour long description about tow/haul LOL
But at the same time, tow/haul being on or off won't save a transmission that has a certain amount of miles/wear and tear/ and lack of general maint. or one that is overheating from going out. Transmissions need general service just like engines:) Not saying you neglected it by any means please don't misunderstand me!! I simply mean, if it's an older truck, the previous owners didn't take care of it, or it has a certain amount of miles, nothing will stop it from giving out. Unless you have it serviced for preventative measures:)
Good luck to you!! that's not how it works at all.
Edited by ACEINTHEHOLE 2015-05-05 4:22 PM
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 Reaching for the stars....
Posts: 12708
| My tow/haul must be backwards. When you engage the button and bring on the light it downshifts (usually) and raises the RPM's.
I towed one time in tow/haul, about a 3 hour trip each way, and spent over $400 in fuel. I regularly make the same haul without the tow/haul these days (same drive, hilly VA country) and spend about $110 round trip. And the first trip was probably 12 years ago when diesel was much, much cheaper.
2003 F250, about 85K, ticking time bomb for any problem that can happen. I'm knocking on wood as I write. |
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 Strong Willed Woman
Posts: 6577
Location: Prosser, WA | I've wondered this as well. We have two 1999 F350's. One is a manual and the other is an automatic. Haven't had the automatic as long and didn't know how to use the button. I usually have it in overdrive when I'm hauling on flat surfaces. Seems like if I can drive 70 mph on the freeway then it does much better in overdrive? It has 270k miles on it. |
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| ACEINTHEHOLE - 2015-05-05 4:20 PM
arion - 2015-05-05 3:56 PM ACEINTHEHOLE - 2015-05-04 4:07 PM IRunOnFaith - 2015-05-04 4:01 PM I have a manual trasmission on my 96 7.3L F250 and she has over 250k miles so I don't have tow/haul on my personal truck when hauling to local events lol. But my SO rebuilt the transmission/engine when we got her to prevent it from having any major issues. When I tow farther out I use my dad's truck. It's a fully deleted 2013 F250 6.4L with 120k+ miles on the engine/tranny and a programmer so I don't use tow/haul on it either. I never haul on performance tho. Dad does but I'm always scared to turn it all the way up since his trucks head isn't studded yet. I haul one click down from performance mode and it does just fine for me. SO said it was safe to do so I can always blame him if anything happens to my Dad's truck while hauling haha.
I pull a 32ft aluminum shell stock trailer with one or two horses plus hay/feed/water/clothing. Never had a problem yet.
When my SO (Heavy diesel mechanic) pulls anything with his 2014 dodge 1500 he uses tow/haul all the time when pulling. He pulls his dirtbikes a lot and car hauler a lot too. His truck is bagged for a bumper pull horse trailer but he's yet to pull the horses with it. But I guarentee he will always have it in tow/haul mode if he ever pulls the horses for me.
It gives the truck extra gears from what I understand about his hour long description about tow/haul LOL
But at the same time, tow/haul being on or off won't save a transmission that has a certain amount of miles/wear and tear/ and lack of general maint. or one that is overheating from going out. Transmissions need general service just like engines:) Not saying you neglected it by any means please don't misunderstand me!! I simply mean, if it's an older truck, the previous owners didn't take care of it, or it has a certain amount of miles, nothing will stop it from giving out. Unless you have it serviced for preventative measures:)
Good luck to you!! that's not how it works at all.
It doesn't give it extra gears, you would have to physically place more gears into the truck for that to happen.
It doesn't change "gear ratios", gear ratios are the ratio between the different sizes of the gears. In order to change that, you would have to change with physical gears as well.
It does, though, (which i think was briefly touched on the above post) change the point at which the truck shifts gears and when the torque converter locks to optimize performance in towing heavy loads.
We bought our '08 F250 used, and the tow/haul mode has never worked. We have hauled our 4 horse gooseneck probably 25,000+ miles, and it has worked beautifully. But, we have a tuner on the truck, so this could have something to do with it.
Hope this helps! :) |
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 Buttered Noodles Snacker
Posts: 4377
Location: NC | IRunOnFaith - 2015-05-04 4:01 PM I have a manual trasmission on my 96 7.3L F250 and she has over 250k miles so I don't have tow/haul on my personal truck when hauling to local events lol. But my SO rebuilt the transmission/engine when we got her to prevent it from having any major issues. When I tow farther out I use my dad's truck. It's a fully deleted 2013 F250 6.4L with 120k+ miles on the engine/tranny and a programmer so I don't use tow/haul on it either. I never haul on performance tho. Dad does but I'm always scared to turn it all the way up since his trucks head isn't studded yet. I haul one click down from performance mode and it does just fine for me. SO said it was safe to do so I can always blame him if anything happens to my Dad's truck while hauling haha.
I pull a 32ft aluminum shell stock trailer with one or two horses plus hay/feed/water/clothing. Never had a problem yet.
When my SO (Heavy diesel mechanic) pulls anything with his 2014 dodge 1500 he uses tow/haul all the time when pulling. He pulls his dirtbikes a lot and car hauler a lot too. His truck is bagged for a bumper pull horse trailer but he's yet to pull the horses with it. But I guarentee he will always have it in tow/haul mode if he ever pulls the horses for me.
It gives the truck extra gears from what I understand about his hour long description about tow/haul LOL
But at the same time, tow/haul being on or off won't save a transmission that has a certain amount of miles/wear and tear/ and lack of general maint. or one that is overheating from going out. Transmissions need general service just like engines:) Not saying you neglected it by any means please don't misunderstand me!! I simply mean, if it's an older truck, the previous owners didn't take care of it, or it has a certain amount of miles, nothing will stop it from giving out. Unless you have it serviced for preventative measures:)
Good luck to you!!
Ohhhh you got one of the GOOD ones!!!!! Can't beat a late 90's 7.3L F250!!! I have a friend you had one used it hard till it had close to 500,000 miles on it!!!! then sold it and as far as I know the person is still using it!!!!
edited to add plus love the way those older square body trucks look!!!! I am super jealous! Wish my hubby was a diesel mechanic!! hahaha
Edited by HorsesNHarleys 2015-05-06 6:30 AM
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 Veteran
Posts: 107
Location: Michigan | Tow/haul in most automatic transmissions just alters the shift parameters. There are no ratio changes or increased power handling.
If you use a programmer using a tow calibration is completely different than enabling tow/haul on the transmission. You should still use the tow/haul mode.
Specifically for the Allison in the GM trucks one push of the button enables tow/haul mode. It raises the shift points just a bit on the up shifts, but the real difference is in how it changes the shift parameters for the down shifts to enable a degree of engine braking. This really helps save the brakes on both the trailer and truck when slowing from highway speeds. If you push and hold the tow/haul button in addition to enabling tow mode it will also lock out the overdrive gears, 5th gear in the pre 2006 models and 5th & 6th in the newer 6 speed models. This mode should only be used when hauling very heavy or in hilly terrain where the transmission would be constantly shifting in and out of the overdrive gears.
For those of you with the GM trucks just swap out the spin on external filter once a year and do the fluid every 80k or so, Allison recommends changing the internal filter at overhaul only. When you do the fluid use a good high-end synthetic like Transynd or MobileDelvac. Another easy upgrade to help with cooling is to simply swap out the shallow pan for a deep one, easy direct swap and it will hold another 3 quarts of oil. |
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 Certified Snake Wrangler
Posts: 1672
Location: North MS | My piece of crap new to me truck is in the transmission shop now (actually the last 3 weeks 5 days, but whose counting). I ALWAYS put tow haul on. I haven't even been through 2 oil changes since I got the truck but 99% of the time it was pulling on the weekends for short trips. Mine actually has 2 button clicks. One is for tow haul and the other is overdrive off. On regular towing trips I do one click, if I get in any form of hills I do two clicks. As to what is wrong with my truck- I have no clue. Still waiting on a phone call. Once I pulled out the driveway and it never went into 2nd (unloaded thankfully). A helpful neighbor pulled me into a safe spot out of the road after I only made it a mile to the nearest turnaround. Dropped the pan, changed the filter and governor pressure solenoid plut tightened bands and it was shifting smoother than ever. A month later I put it in 4lo to pull out of a slightly muddy spot at a show with my trailer and it never went into 2 hi again. Hoping I get it back this week. I have a 6 hour one way trip to a show in 2 weeks and REALLY REALLY want to put it through its paces before I'm stuck somewhere way away from home. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 762
Location: NC | bluerose2001 - 2015-05-06 10:43 PM
My piece of crap new to me truck is in the transmission shop now (actually the last 3 weeks 5 days, but whose counting). I ALWAYS put tow haul on. I haven't even been through 2 oil changes since I got the truck but 99% of the time it was pulling on the weekends for short trips. Mine actually has 2 button clicks. One is for tow haul and the other is overdrive off. On regular towing trips I do one click, if I get in any form of hills I do two clicks. As to what is wrong with my truck- I have no clue. Still waiting on a phone call. Once I pulled out the driveway and it never went into 2nd (unloaded thankfully). A helpful neighbor pulled me into a safe spot out of the road after I only made it a mile to the nearest turnaround. Dropped the pan, changed the filter and governor pressure solenoid plut tightened bands and it was shifting smoother than ever. A month later I put it in 4lo to pull out of a slightly muddy spot at a show with my trailer and it never went into 2 hi again. Hoping I get it back this week. I have a 6 hour one way trip to a show in 2 weeks and REALLY REALLY want to put it through its paces before I'm stuck somewhere way away from home.
I def feel your pain! mine was out 3 weeks and it was tough. We ended up moving it from the first tranny place after the guy said oh well its too expensive to do with allison parts but ill rebuild it myself. Nope moved it to allison transmission dealer and then it still took another 2 weeks. |
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Tow/haul button question