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Thread: Manual vs auto in a tow rig

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    PghOffRoad Forum Addict! 13below0's Avatar
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    Manual vs auto in a tow rig

    Ok most of us that tow alot are running dirty diesel trucks, lets talk stick shift vs auto pros n cons. I may look into a newer truck and have found a few stick trucks that catch my eye. Now I know everyone wants a cummins with a manual tranny but most of the people that buy these trucks are just stupid kids that got rid of there riced out honda for a truck (sorry Justin) lol is the stick that much better? What about loosing boost if you have to shift up hill, is it a issue or not? The newer trucks are making enough power that I dont think a stock clutch will last very long. So lets hear it. This is not a dodge vs ford vs GM debat. I have drove all of them and have alot of seat time towing with each manufacturer. Just want to know the likes n dislikes of the auto or stick.
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    I went from the duramax/allison to the cummins 6 speed. the allison=strongest auto and only one i would run honestly, dodge and ford are known to need replacements

    Pros of the auto (at least what i liked):

    -no boost loss when shifting. i get this out of the dodge. If i dont let fully off the pedal though i do not get the boost lag, not talkin powershifting, just the slightest little bit left on the gas keeps it from dumping the boost.

    -smoother pull out, backing up. the manual has a bit higher reverse gear than id like and its been a mild annoyance putting the boat in the back building.

    thats about it... the dodges are de-tuned with the manual. my truck was rated at 615lbft torque, and the autos are rated at 800. the tq curves however show the 800lbft drops fast and its back to 615. plus what you lose in the slush, I am not sure how much crazy better it is, i never drove an auto dodge, i wouldnt buy an auto dodge till they put an allison in it.

    pros of the manual (at least what i like, and i prefer the manual over the allison after having both)

    -I can pick what gear i want when i want. the allison was constantly shifting, and it seemed like most people drove 1 mph under where it went ino OD and lockup, it either shifted in and out constantly at 47mph or just kept the TC unlocked. It killed my gas mileage and definitely made the trans temp go up more than i liked. When towing it seemed to never be where I wanted it gear wise to handle the load.

    -no friggin trans temp gauge to watch. when it was hot and the AC was on... well forget it, turn the ac off, the trans was getting hot.

    Thats really about it. I like a manual for what i use a truck for, as for the idiot kids and their smokestacks... an auto is the way to go for racing, i have no idea why they want a stickshift for douchenozzling.

    as for the new trucks, I was not happy with how my truck pulled before i did the tuner and stuff. i have since found out that i have the 3.42 gears (i thought they were 3.73) and thats a good reason why i wasnt too impressed. after the work I did to it it is very impressive even with just the 20 hp tune, and i would venture to say if i would have got the 3.73 gears I wouldnt have ever done anything to it. the DPF regen kinda sucked when it happened but not bad otherwise. I have been towing about 6700lb on the 100hp tune and i am not getting any clutch slippage yet, I do however tend to be easy on the truck. I also average (hand calculated) 19.5 mpg on the 100hp tune.
    Last edited by justin'sbig7; 06-18-2012 at 06:04 PM.
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    PghOffRoad Forum Addict! 13below0's Avatar
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    I never thought much about the axle gearing. I was actually thinking of 3:55s just to keep the rpm down at cruising speed but may look a bit more into it. I was thinking auto cuase my girlfriend actually drives my truck sometimes so that would be a bonus. Always wanted a hand shaker Im just not sure its for the right reasons lol. Found 3 2010 fords with a manual tranny. It would get deleted and a mini max right out of the gate.
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    I wouldn't buy a Ford or Dodge auto, I'd buy a Chevy tho.
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    PghOffRoad Forum Addict! 13below0's Avatar
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    Well if your paying I will drive whatever. But if Im making the payments it will more than likely have a blue oval on the front..
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    www.RalphsOffRoad.com RalphDogg's Avatar
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    The pro for a stick is slowing down by downshifting, the pro for a automatic is the non shifting and comfy driving stance.

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    Quote Originally Posted by justin'sbig7 View Post
    as for the idiot kids and their smokestacks... an auto is the way to go for racing, i have no idea why they want a stickshift for douchenozzling.
    because in an auto you cant go straight into fourth gear from a stop to roll some badass coal
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    I've had both manual and automatic transmissions, and both have their pros and cons. We have an auto in our Dodge in case my wife has to get behind the wheel. Our truck is stock, no pressure boxes or any of that stuff. We pull a 27ft. 7,000lb camper, so the 5.9 isn't even breathing hard. The 48RE is holding up just fine, but I don't beat on it. I do prefer towing with the auto, especially backing up hill (most of the NFS campgrounds in the Allegheny National Forest, or good old Ohiopyle SP). My 06 2500 is getting 17 around town with the auto and summer fuel, got 12mpg on 79 towing our camper to Erie and back @ 65mph.
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    Quote Originally Posted by 13below0 View Post
    I never thought much about the axle gearing. I was actually thinking of 3:55s just to keep the rpm down at cruising speed but may look a bit more into it. I was thinking auto cuase my girlfriend actually drives my truck sometimes so that would be a bonus. Always wanted a hand shaker Im just not sure its for the right reasons lol. Found 3 2010 fords with a manual tranny. It would get deleted and a mini max right out of the gate.
    I know youre a blue oval guy, and all brands have their +/-, but i really suggest you look hard at reviews on those engines. ford has had some real problems with the last three generations 6.0, 6.4 and now the 6.7 as well. not bashing, but keep it in mind.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sloth_Fratelli View Post
    because in an auto you cant go straight into fourth gear from a stop to roll some badass coal
    lol. Bingo! Mine will roll some hellish coal if I'm towing.

    I love the ability to pick a gear. Mine's an older beast (02), but it still gets around nicely. The NV5600 granny gear is a real treat for towing too. Niiiiice and easy in those bumpy ass parking lots at RC, etc.
    Something catchy goes here.

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    PghOffRoad Forum Addict! 13below0's Avatar
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    If you read any forums you can come to the conclusion that there all junk The dually was a 6.0 and we really never had a problem with it. I take care of my junk and most of the issues on the fords is pretty much just a lack of maintance on the newer trucks. I can get the x-plan on any of the big 3 from work and have looked at dodges also. I havent drove a 2011-12 yet. They all have there problems, and there all great until you have to work on them. Im just un sure if its my inner ricer that wants a stick or not.
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    I would have loved to get an auto. The idea of $5k or more in tranny upgrades kept me from getting one though. I ended up with a G56 in my 2005 dodge. When I started boosting power, I needed a clutch. For $1700 I ended up with a South Bend 3250 dual disc. It's all I'm ever going to need.

    Turbo lag is a bitch. Does it bother the truck and towing? Not really. The boost recovers fast but it definately falls off to nothing.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sloth_Fratelli View Post
    because in an auto you cant go straight into fourth gear from a stop to roll some badass coal
    i hate watching douchebags roll coal... and people wonder why we now have to deal with addatives and regeneration on newer diesels... *sigh*
    taking unsafe rigs to a whole other level

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    Quote Originally Posted by 13below0 View Post
    If you read any forums you can come to the conclusion that there all junk The dually was a 6.0 and we really never had a problem with it. I take care of my junk and most of the issues on the fords is pretty much just a lack of maintance on the newer trucks. I can get the x-plan on any of the big 3 from work and have looked at dodges also. I havent drove a 2011-12 yet. They all have there problems, and there all great until you have to work on them. Im just un sure if its my inner ricer that wants a stick or not.
    Not talking forums, my friend was a for diesel tech (now in heavy truck repair) when the 6.0s came out they had a lot of lemon law buybacks over the injectors. Then i know of 3 people who had the 6.4 twin turbo and all had big problems within 6k miles. The 6.7 i have only heard rumors on, dont know anyone with one personally.

    The cummins 6.7 has headgasket issues when you turn up the boost, it goes back to the pay to play though.
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    diesel or gas, I like towing with the auto but I am one of those guys that does not like standard shift... I have towed with the ford/dodge/chevy autos and never had a problem. The ford and chevy would have more towing miles on them and the fords get retired at around 300k miles and yet have had to replace a trans... we do not do any power adders to the engine so that probably helps out with the longevity. I am pretty sure that all of the newer auto's will downshift while in tow mode when the brakes are applied.

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    Quote Originally Posted by 13below0 View Post
    I havent drove a 2011-12 yet.
    I'll let you take my 2011 around the block...for the right price on that 30' gooseneck you have for sale


    In all seriousness though, I'll agree with Justin in that the Allison would be the only auto I’d want in a diesel. From what I’ve been reading, the new H.O. dodge's are getting decent reviews with the 68RFE's since they upgraded the torque converters to handle the bump in power, but it’s still an auto transmission in a dodge lol.

    When I was looking at new trucks, I test drove a new F250 and it seemed like the transmission was hunting for gears WAY too much. Maybe this is the norm with the newer trucks (I’m used to how my XJ shifts and never drove an auto Ram), but I didn’t like it none the less. I can’t add and any +/-'s to the duramax as none of the Chevy/GMC dealers around me never have any on their lot.

    If you’re doing 100% highway towing with the truck, I would probably consider the auto (just for the comfort factor/ability for other people to drive). I'm no veteran when it comes to towing either, but I could also see the auto making it easier to maneuver a trailer when trying to park it or fit into a tight space. My truck serves as my DD as well, so I enjoy being able to pick my own gears...especially when driving in town, but I would consider an auto if all I did was tow with it.

    If your undecided I would try to drive all of your options in both the stick and auto to see what your most comfortable with.


    And as for the kids and their riced out Honda's, I don’t know who they'd be racing with the 6spd. I feel like I’m rowing a damn boat every time I go down the road with mine
    Last edited by XJchris98; 06-19-2012 at 08:37 AM.

  17. #17
    I dd an 11 f250 gasser with the 6.2 auto
    It does hunt for gears when I'm towing, hunts worse in tow haul mode
    The old Chevy 6.0 gasser I used to tow with never shifted
    Ford tows much nicer though with more power
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    I've had both in diesel trucks. And towed about the same amount/weight with them. The only reason my chevy has the auto is I really didn't like how the manual drove. Then I drove an allison equiped truck and was sold. It was really about the whole package, they all have to work together to be good. I would pick a manual in an older dodge over auto for the same reason. The package as a whole seemed to fit better.

    90% of the time I would pick a manual over auto, but with all the computer controls the auto's have gained alot of ground and I think are pretty equal if not better in some cases than manual.
    Last edited by oros35; 06-19-2012 at 09:05 AM.

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    I dont own a truck but, my take on it... the bonus to having an auto over a manual is when you need someone else to move the truck. You have a much smaller pool of people to choose from usually.

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    I don't really have any turbo lag when I downshift. I just give the throttle a little "blurp" to increase rpm to match the lower gear and it will keep some boost.

    Don't have any experience towing with an auto. Good friend of mine has a 6.7 cummins with an auto, he says he misses the manual when he has his pulling truck (8,000 lbs) or tractor (12,000lbs) on the gooseneck. Likes the auto for daily driving tho.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Azzy View Post
    the bonus to having an auto over a manual is when you need someone else to move the truck. You have a much smaller pool of people to choose from usually.
    Thats a plus for buying a manual! If your not an experienced enough driver that you can't drive a stick, I don't want you driving my ride!

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    I think if you could find an auto that would be reliable and not heat up too much than the consistency would be nice. Overall I like the simplicity of a manual and even if it loses a little boost and takes a while to get up and go, you still know what to expect.
    Heat the hole freeze the shaft

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    Xjchris, $3500 and you can come pick it up.
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    Quote Originally Posted by justin'sbig7 View Post

    -no friggin trans temp gauge to watch. when it was hot and the AC was on... well forget it, turn the ac off, the trans was getting hot.




    as for the new trucks, I was not happy with how my truck pulled before i did the tuner and stuff. i have since found out that i have the 3.42 gears (i thought they were 3.73) and thats a good reason why i wasnt too impressed. after the work I did to it it is very impressive even with just the 20 hp tune, and i would venture to say if i would have got the 3.73 gears I wouldnt have ever done anything to it. the DPF regen kinda sucked when it happened but not bad otherwise. I have been towing about 6700lb on the 100hp tune and i am not getting any clutch slippage yet, I do however tend to be easy on the truck. I also average (hand calculated) 19.5 mpg on the 100hp tune.

    I have had 2 trucks with the allison, one gasser and the other is a diesel. I liked towing with the gas engine the best.... but in either truck never had a problem with trans temp and in fact the newer truck doesn't have a dedicated gauge for the trans. I will say both trucks were stock so maybe that is why they did not give me any troubles.. same with the fords we tow with and they are the 5.4l, so as long as you don't mind the engine screaming they do ok.


    2 questions, didn't you buy the truck new? did the dealer tell you the wrong gear ratio?
    is the 19.5mpg while towing?

    I only get around 9mpg with mine while towing

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    Quote Originally Posted by 13below0 View Post
    Xjchris, $3500 and you can come pick it up.
    That's a good price!

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