I've towed my camper about 6 times now, so still getting used to it on my new to me 2011 F-250 6.2. Trailer weighs around 7000# loaded up, so not big. But I am in the mountains at 8000', so lots of climbs.

Is it me or does the Tow/Haul suck? When I use it, it shifts down to 2nd a lot and holds 2nd way way too long. Sounds like my engine is going to jump out after being at 5K RPM for a while. I can't get it to shift out of 2nd, so have to wait.

This last trip I didn't use it and locked out 6th gear. It drove so much better, shifted when it should and mainly stayed in 3rd to maintain 65-70 on the hills. The throttle input is different, so I had to floor it to get it to shift down on the grades, but I can live with that.

Anyone else notice this?

 

Yeah Tow Haul mode can be finnkey. It works nicely while going down a grade though. However, I found in running in Manual mode is nice on the highway. TH mode is good on downgrades and getting up to speed out of toll booths or on ramps. I hope this helps.

 

It basically changes the shift points and sometimes it doesn't shift as we think it should. It does help a lot on the downhill or stopping for traffic light.

 

The first thing I do when towing in the hills is to lock out 6th gear. Sometimes 5th. If it's really bad, I go into manual mode and control the shifts myself.

 

So when using TH do you normally leave it in Drive the whole time and let the engine do the shifting itself?

I ask this because I will be using TH for the first time this weekend (new to me truck) and I've always downshifted to 2nd when going downhill and towing. Just trying to figure this thing out!

 

You are correct. Push the button after starting engine and take off and enjoy. But remember it does change the shift points in transmission. when you touch brakes on the downhill you will notice the difference.

 

I've always just pressed the button and forgot about it. Once in a while I'll manually drop it to 5th prior to hitting a big hill.. sometimes it helps the truck maintain speed and not drop to 4th, sometimes it doesn't.

 

My towing experience was 100% better without using the T/H button on my last camping trip. I'm in the mountains (8,000'+), so I'm going up some good grades. I'm going to use the T/H button when going down grades only from now on. I'll also continue to lock out 6th and maybe 5th when not on flat land.

 

I just did a short pull this weekend. Round trip was about 60 miles. No T/H or M for me this weekend. Drive works just right for this trip. Yes there was some elevation change due to our version of "mountains" here in New Jersey. I have a couple of longer trips coming up. One to Hershey's High Meadow and one to Knoebel's in the next few weeks. Those have some hills. I anticipate smooth sailing and the use of the T/H button when off the highway for the local road grades and control.

 

I seen comments about locking out 6th and maybe 5th gear. How do you lock out a gear?

 

When in D push the down arrow on the gear shifter.

 

I find tow/haul is too aggressive sometimes. There were a couple times I was getting on the expressway & the truck downshifted to 2nd. Scared the crap out me the first time. The tuck could have stayed in 4th and been just fine. I find locking out gears works best most of the time. I was wondering it Tow/Haul was designed for heavier loads.