light towing - O/D on or off?

[crispins]

I want to tow my 14' boat which weighs around 1,200 lbs with the trailer 900 miles.

It is all flalt, can I keep the o/d on or turn it off?

 

[429CJ-3X2]

I've pulled my 6x12 enclosed trailer at 65 mph on a couple of 250 mile round trips and switched back and forth between O/D on and off depending on terrain. I don't know what it weighed, but it has more frontal area than your boat, so it would pull harder at or near the same weight. I had a 700 lb 4 wheeler in it the one trip, so it weighed more than your boat. O/D on going downhill or on the flats was no problem. On a 900 mile trip you'll get a feel for when you can turn the O/D on.

 

[Tech By Trade]

Leave it on unless it starts hunting. I pull a 17.5 ft lund with my v6, and its quite flat here in Saskatchewan. I leave it on towing to the lake and back without issue between 100 and 110 kmph. I also pull a 3500 lbs hybrid trailer, when I pull it the OD goes off and the speed stays btw 90 and 100 kmps.

 

[429CJ-3X2]

Two weeks ago I hooked my '02 ST to the enclosed 6x12 trailer and headed off on a 2 hour trip to get some ST parts from a craigslist seller. First hour was going north on I-35. Had a stiff tailwind, which seemed to get stronger as the afternoon went on. Trailer was empty. Truck has 3.73 gears and stock sized 235-70-16 tires. I-35 between Des Moines and HWY 20 has several long, but not too steep hills. I was able to leave it in O/D and maintain a steady 68 mph on all but the steepest parts. I turned O/D off maybe 5 times. When I headed west the tailwind became a 25 mph crosswind and O/D wasn't even possible as the trans wouldn't even shift into O/D. All was good after I turned north again, and it stayed in O/D the rest of the trip up. I picked up 300-400 lbs of parts. I stayed on 2 lane roads coming home because I knew it wouldn't shift into O/D, and wouldn't go 65-70 on the interstate into that wind. I didn't want to be "that guy" going 50-55 on the interstate. The route home was flat, and I had no trouble maintaining 55-60 either into or across the wind with O/D off.

As I braked for the stop sign in Boone coming home, I heard a noise and thought for a second it might be my brakes. I quickly realized the sound was the racers on the dirt track just ahead. Whew!

 

[01STrunner]

I leave OD on unless it's really hilly, the trans starts shifting all the time, or if the trans gets really hot (235* or so).