I have an 04 F350 DRW with the 5 speed Auto. I'm leaving for Bowling Green, KY. next week and am planning on towing my open car trailer weighing approximately 6000 lbs. Do most of you put the tranny in Tow/Haul mode for the whole trip or do you only use it when you are pulling hills or driving on city streets?

 

It will help mostly in city driving (it increases line pressure to hold gear shifts longer). Of course, some people leave it on all the time, towing or not. I don't know if there are long-term tranny issues with doing that.

 

Welcome to FTE and thanks for joining us in the Towing forum!

Are you going to be taking a 'Vette to Bowling Green on the trailer?

 

I took out an Expy to Wickenburg, which was about 2500 miles, and I only used the Tow/Haul mode for the automatic downshifting when descending out of Flagstaff on I-17S. It worked great for me. I really don't think the tranny cares much one way or another unless you have it hunt gears a lot, in which case I'd kick it into T/H. I don't know much about city driving, because the Wickenburg land is right off a highway.

 

Horsepuller: Unfortuneately I don't have a 67 427/435HP Sting Ray in my collection. I am taking one of my 70 Monte Carlo SS454's to the Monte Carlo Nationals. I will be taking a tour of the Vette plant and museum while I'm out there.

Cowboy Brett and Steina: Thanks for your input. My dad's 99 Silverado has the T/H mode and we only used it when we were climbing hills. It doesn't sound like the Ford works any different ... except it holds the downshift while decending hills.