Drive or Overdrive in city

[greenbeer]

I was thinking that maybe the reason my A4LD has gone 194K miles with no problems what so ever is because I drive it in the Drive position whenever i drive below 50mph. Any thoughts?

 

[jimcom]

Thats an interesting theory, what justification/reasoning do you have?
Not saying it doesn't have merit, I'm honestly intreged.
My 94 explorer has over 200K, never been in anything but OD.

 

[TSTONE]

That is an interesting thought:

I did the same thing with my 93 and never had any trans issues.

 

[Albino 94LTD]

I'm at 140k. The only time I take it out of OD is when I tow our boat.

I did flush, install a second aux cooler and a filter/temp sensor and guage last fall.

BTW Greenbeer, are you coming to the NW X BBQ ???

 

[axionplaya]

Drive all the way in the city... the rpm gets too low in city and you gotta have the xtra "scoot" to get pass all the slow drivers hehe

Roy
_________________
1996 Ford Explorer XLT
4WD
4.0L SOHC V6
K&N Filter
Flowmaster

 

[JackC]

Been wondering about this too, I drive at speeds between 45-55 with lots of hills every day.

 

[greenbeer]

i just think this because when below 50 in O/D the motor lugs and causes the tranny to bounce from O/D to D. This makes me think a lot of wear on the tranny, plus increased heat????

Albino, when is the NW X BBQ?

 

[Albino 94LTD]

Albino, when is the NW X BBQ?

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It's also my avitar caption.

 

[davidmmm69]

never push the overdrive button I always leave it on.
never really had a reason to take it out of over drive...

 

[therise21]

i mainly do highway driving, but even when i am in city type areas i leave it in overdrive. the manual says its the "normal driving position". i was also under the impression that the tranny wont switch into overdrive unless you are over 50mph.

 

[svande8952]

I have 136,000 and I always drive in OD unless rock crawling.

 

[aldive]

I am always in OD except when towing the Jeep.

I did some testing for gas mileage in city driving using d vs OD. I found virtually no difference in mileage.

 

[Ford_Racing_Guy]

I was thinking that maybe the reason my A4LD has gone 194K miles with no problems what so ever is because I drive it in the Drive position whenever i drive below 50mph. Any thoughts?

same here.

i've done this with all vehicles since someone told me that it helped to do so.


it also seem to be easier on the tranny when you aren't shifting out overdrive everytime you mash the gas

 

[NOTAJP]

Keeping the tranny in D while below 50mph will keep the tranny from shifting constantly (wear and tear). There is no added gas expense and has proven that trannys tend to last longer.

 

[greenbeer]

Click here

It's also my avitar caption.

You can tell I pay attention

 

[huskyfan23]

I use drive under 45. I don't like the constant shifting into OD and it bogs me a little more than D in the lower speeds. My tranny guy says D in city will prolong the tranny life too

 

[jimbo74]

this has been discussed sevaeral times defore... try a search for this or very close peramaters and you will find everything... i put drive, as this was how i used to drive my X in the city... the tranny if going less than say 55 will hunt for best economy in OD and will eventually fry the insdie of the tranny... it really isnt needed to be in OD unless you are going faster than that and at a cruising pace... it might actually be worse on mileage/wear to have it in OD all the time, especially with stop and go city traffic

 

[HR57]

Hummm, to OD or not to OD, that is the question. I hadn't thought of it till this thread.

 

[svande8952]

wait a second, am I missing something? I thought overdrive didn't kick in until after 40mph or higher depending on vac pressure. What does OD have to do with 'city' driving if you never exceed 40 mph? It never should be 'hunting' for OD unless you're in the middle ground (40-50mph)

 

[huskyfan23]

It shifts OD when a certain speed is given by the speed sensor.