I'm in the market for a tow rig and I know that a manual is the most ideal for the job but I only pull a few times a year and don't really don't need a manual anyother time. How do the newer Ford automatics pull in the hills(specificly "00 F250 4x4). Does the torque-converter lock up good? Can you manualy down shift while decending? What do they call there autos? thanks in advance, troy
I have put some pretty good loads on mine of the last 30k miles and haven't any problems. The Torque-converter locks up well though on the 4R100 it is without a doubt the weak link.
The first year SDs (99s) had extremely fragile TC, but after that they seemed to have straightened the problem out somewhat. A good shift kid (transgo tugger HD2) will make you think you had a whole new transmission in your truck. Firms up shifts by increasing line pressure.... A massive trans cooler, trans gauge, shift kit, and possibly a beefed up TC will be everything you need for tons of reliable miles out of the Ford autos while towing.waytogo
The ford auto trannys have been pretty good to me over the years. I tow quite a bit with the auto, no mods to it or anything, and it goes and goes up and down the highways with ease. I did have to replace the one on the '95 at about 230k miles.
My rig has 175k on it now and it has always been used to tow heavy. I fressened my 4R100 up at 100k. It never failed on me I just have a friend that did not mind doing it for a few beers in return. I have been really happy with mine. waytogo
How heavy do you pull? A bigger cooler and shift kit will help. If it's in your budget, I'd recomend a billet triple disk converter, but they run about $1200. It made a big difference in mine.
