On Oct 22, 9:39*am, "Eisboch" wrote:
"BAR" wrote in message

...

jim wrote:

Even my car can and has towed 2300 lbs. It's not a big deal.

Ask Don how he stops the little Ranger 4x2 and the 2300 lb load. I would
bet that the little itty bitty transmission in that little Ranger 4x2 is
about at it's end of life.

I don't know about that. *The Ranger is a tough little truck for it's size
and should handle that weight without any problems.
It uses a Mazda transmission that has been well proven.

My son in law had a Ranger, I'm guessing '95 or so, had the Mazda four
cylinder with manual tranny. Well, the tranny started leaking pretty
badly out of the rear seal, and he had a friend that put a junkyard
tranny in it. He filled it with gear oil, like most manual trannys.
Well, when everything cooled down on the truck at night, the next
morning it was very hard to shift. We did a little research, lo and
behold in the shop manual, there it was. The manual tranny used ATF
fluid as a lubricant!

On Wed, 22 Oct 2008 09:39:11 -0400, "Eisboch" wrote:

I don't know about that. The Ranger is a tough little truck for it's size
and should handle that weight without any problems.
It uses a Mazda transmission that has been well proven.

Back when we had two horsies, a mule (which was incredibly smarter
than both the horsies put together), goats, sheep and a freakin' cow
when we were living up at the farmhouse, I had a 4 cylinder
w/automatic 4X4 Ranger - I beat the snot out of that truck hauling
hay, wood, feed, gravel, sand for bedding - you name it. On more than
one occasion (when I was still an active hunter) through the woods to
drag out a deer or a brace of resident goose.

I beat it up so bad, that at 180K miles I sold it to one of the local
farmers for $150. :)

You know that truck is still running on it's original engine and
tranny? It's 14 years old and still bouncing around pastures chasing
heifers and hauling bales of hay and silage out to the feed lots.

It's nothing but a flat bed and cab now - no fenders even the last
time I saw it, smokes like hell, but it still runs.

On Wed, 22 Oct 2008 09:45:09 -0400, "Eisboch" wrote:


"Tom Francis - SWSports" wrote in
message ...
On Wed, 22 Oct 2008 09:01:34 -0400, "Eisboch" wrote:

If you like Fords (as I do), you might want to try out a gasser F-250
before spending the extra bucks for the diesel.

Yeah - I'm pretty much a Ford guy.

Well, I can't do anything about it now - another couple of weeks
maybe.

I do know they are getting desperate - maybe it's time to go looking
at a new truck.

You can try mine out if you want. Bring your boat and you can compare.

I will.

Thanks.

wrote in message
...


My son in law had a Ranger, I'm guessing '95 or so, had the Mazda four
cylinder with manual tranny. Well, the tranny started leaking pretty
badly out of the rear seal, and he had a friend that put a junkyard
tranny in it. He filled it with gear oil, like most manual trannys.
Well, when everything cooled down on the truck at night, the next
morning it was very hard to shift. We did a little research, lo and
behold in the shop manual, there it was. The manual tranny used ATF
fluid as a lubricant!
---------------------------------------

I had the same experience with an '87 Ranger, except it was done by
Jiffy-Lube.
They did their typical sales routine and recommended changing the
transmission gear oil. I stupidly agreed.

The high school kid working there after school drained out the ATF and
filled it back up with 90 weight gear oil.
The next morning I couldn't put it in any gear until mid afternoon when the
temperature warmed up.

Eisboch

Eisboch wrote:
"Tom Francis - SWSports" wrote in
message ...
On Wed, 22 Oct 2008 02:27:52 -0400, "Eisboch" wrote:

"Don White" wrote in message
...

Even my little Ranger 4x2 had a tow mode button in the auto transmission
lever.
I used it all the way on my 5000 kilometer round trip towing a 2330 lb
load last year.

Ford, GM and Chrysler used to have auto transmissions in their full sized,
heavy duty trucks (250 and 2500 series and up) that had a button to simply
disengage overdrive for towing purposes. That wasn't ideal, but it
helped.

Now-a-days GM uses the Allison transmission in their 2500 series.
Beautiful
transmission for towing or hauling a heavy rig.
Ford came out with it's "Torqueshift" transmission that acts very
similarly
to the Allison. Both do more than simply disengaging overdrive. They
both
change the shiftpoints, holding the vehicle in gears longer under heavy
load
and provide significant engine braking when slowing down. Ford's
transmission uses a different gear set on downshifts than it does on
upshifts.

When towing, these transmissions make the vehicles much more safe and
controllable and also reduce strain on the engines.
Let me tell you - that is a BIG difference between the heavier duty
pickups and the POS F-150 that I bought.

BIG difference.

My truck is a nice truck - all leather, options up the wazoo but it
just doesn't tow for crap. Even with the 5.4.

I've revised my opinion - if your going to tow anything over 2,500
lbs, step up to the 3/4 or 1 ton class pickup.

Once I get back in decent shape, I'm looking for a good used F-250
diesel to tow my boats with.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it. :)


I am finding that the F-250 Superduty with the same engine you have (the
5.4L) is more than adequate for towing, but I think it is more due to the
TorqueShift transmission. The 5.4L is not a powerhouse like the diesel I
had, but you don't need it. The transmission in tow/haul mode picks the
correct gear, holds it as required under load, and makes towing a breeze.
In other words, it acts like a truck. It does not prevent going into
overdrive, although it rarely shifts into OD when towing, unless on the
straight and level and above about 65 mph. I love how it downshifts
through the gears when slowing down, very much like the Allison
transmission.

If you like Fords (as I do), you might want to try out a gasser F-250
before spending the extra bucks for the diesel.
The F-150's, last I knew, do not come with the TorqueShift transmission.
They have a "tow/haul/ mode, but it's not the same. I believe the light
duty F-150 trucks use the standard, 5 speed electronically controlled
transmission, the same one used in Mrs. E's Navigator. My son has an '08
F-150. Both his truck and Mrs. E's '08 Navigator drive and shift the same
way .... more like a car. Works fine, but for towing the TS is better.

Another benefit is this: Ford originally designed the TorqueShift
transmission for use in their diesel powered pickups in order to handle the
additional low end torque. They worked so well, Ford decided to also use
them in the rest of the SuperDuty series, including the gas engines. It
means you have a very durable and heavy duty transmission .... an important
consideration if you intend to tow much.

Eisboch


Ford's new transmission was designed by Allison. It's not a copy but a
brand new 5 speed that Ford has all the rights to. I drove one that was
behind a V10. What a racket that combo made. Shifted nice though.

"Tom Francis - SWSports" wrote in
message ...
On Wed, 22 Oct 2008 08:18:58 -0400, "Eisboch" wrote:


"Boater" wrote in message
...


BTW, that donation you made to the GOP...how do you think it looks on
Sarah's back as part of $150,000 wardrobe you helped pay for...I guess
it
does mean you *can* put lipstick on a pig, eh?


Right. It's just not fair. Obama has to pay for his own $1,400 suits.
Helps to connect to the middle class, you know.
Of course, his income from two "memoirs" pay for them. Or do they?

BTW .... how do you write two memoirs as a young man who really hasn't
done
anything of importance yet?

He didn't write them.

Ayers did. :)

Ayers wrote the first one. The second one either Obama wrote or a different
ghost writer. 2nd one, not as well written and different style.

"Eisboch" wrote in message
...

"Tom Francis - SWSports" wrote in
message ...
On Wed, 22 Oct 2008 02:27:52 -0400, "Eisboch" wrote:


"Don White" wrote in message
.. .



Even my little Ranger 4x2 had a tow mode button in the auto
transmission
lever.
I used it all the way on my 5000 kilometer round trip towing a 2330 lb
load last year.


Ford, GM and Chrysler used to have auto transmissions in their full
sized,
heavy duty trucks (250 and 2500 series and up) that had a button to
simply
disengage overdrive for towing purposes. That wasn't ideal, but it
helped.

Now-a-days GM uses the Allison transmission in their 2500 series.
Beautiful
transmission for towing or hauling a heavy rig.
Ford came out with it's "Torqueshift" transmission that acts very
similarly
to the Allison. Both do more than simply disengaging overdrive. They
both
change the shiftpoints, holding the vehicle in gears longer under heavy
load
and provide significant engine braking when slowing down. Ford's
transmission uses a different gear set on downshifts than it does on
upshifts.

When towing, these transmissions make the vehicles much more safe and
controllable and also reduce strain on the engines.

Let me tell you - that is a BIG difference between the heavier duty
pickups and the POS F-150 that I bought.

BIG difference.

My truck is a nice truck - all leather, options up the wazoo but it
just doesn't tow for crap. Even with the 5.4.

I've revised my opinion - if your going to tow anything over 2,500
lbs, step up to the 3/4 or 1 ton class pickup.

Once I get back in decent shape, I'm looking for a good used F-250
diesel to tow my boats with.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it. :)


I am finding that the F-250 Superduty with the same engine you have (the
5.4L) is more than adequate for towing, but I think it is more due to the
TorqueShift transmission. The 5.4L is not a powerhouse like the diesel I
had, but you don't need it. The transmission in tow/haul mode picks the
correct gear, holds it as required under load, and makes towing a breeze.
In other words, it acts like a truck. It does not prevent going into
overdrive, although it rarely shifts into OD when towing, unless on the
straight and level and above about 65 mph. I love how it downshifts
through the gears when slowing down, very much like the Allison
transmission.

If you like Fords (as I do), you might want to try out a gasser F-250
before spending the extra bucks for the diesel.
The F-150's, last I knew, do not come with the TorqueShift transmission.
They have a "tow/haul/ mode, but it's not the same. I believe the light
duty F-150 trucks use the standard, 5 speed electronically controlled
transmission, the same one used in Mrs. E's Navigator. My son has an '08
F-150. Both his truck and Mrs. E's '08 Navigator drive and shift the same
way .... more like a car. Works fine, but for towing the TS is better.

Another benefit is this: Ford originally designed the TorqueShift
transmission for use in their diesel powered pickups in order to handle
the additional low end torque. They worked so well, Ford decided to also
use them in the rest of the SuperDuty series, including the gas engines.
It means you have a very durable and heavy duty transmission .... an
important consideration if you intend to tow much.

Eisboch


They must of improved the 5.4L from the 1999 Expedition I had. Dang gas
hog, without a lot of mountain tow power. Most milage I got was 16.5
returning from Los Angeles on I-5 and lots of slow traffic. Do not think I
ever got over 65 mph in a 350 mile trip. My Duramax gets about the same
mileage towing at 55 that the Expedition got in normal freeway driving.
About 15.5 mpg. Just returned from a trip to Burney, Calif last Thursday.
Towing boat (4400#), and the popup slide in camper (1400#) and going over
some 3000' hills, I got 13 mpg for the trip.

"Jim" wrote in message
. com...


Ford's new transmission was designed by Allison. It's not a copy but a
brand new 5 speed that Ford has all the rights to. I drove one that was
behind a V10. What a racket that combo made. Shifted nice though.


Never knew that. Having had both, no wonder my impression was that the Ford
transmission behaved very similarly to the Allison.

Eisboch

"Calif Bill" wrote in message
m...



They must of improved the 5.4L from the 1999 Expedition I had. Dang gas
hog, without a lot of mountain tow power. Most milage I got was 16.5
returning from Los Angeles on I-5 and lots of slow traffic. Do not think
I ever got over 65 mph in a 350 mile trip. My Duramax gets about the same
mileage towing at 55 that the Expedition got in normal freeway driving.
About 15.5 mpg. Just returned from a trip to Burney, Calif last Thursday.
Towing boat (4400#), and the popup slide in camper (1400#) and going over
some 3000' hills, I got 13 mpg for the trip.


The 5.4 is an old engine design, but is pretty bullet proof. It's also been
improved upon since then.
My wife had an early Navigator (2000) that, in addition to a horrible
suspension system, had a 5.4L that couldn't get out of it's own way. She
currently has an '08 with the same engine, but it is reasonably peppy,
having significantly more horsepower than the earlier one. They have
vastly improved the suspension system on the Navigator also. It's actually
very comfortable to drive.

I think the Navigator's 5.4L is a higher output (horsepower wise) version
at, I think, 340 hp. My truck is only rated at 300 hp.

Eisboch

"BAR" wrote in message
...

Ask Don how he stops the little Ranger 4x2 and the 2300 lb load. I would
bet that the little itty bitty transmission in that little Ranger 4x2 is
about at it's end of life.


I apply the brakes as needed.
After the big trip I noticed a burnt smell in the transmission fluid so I
took it directly to the dealer to have the transmission drained & flushed.
New fluid was added and all is right. It had less than 10K miles at that
time.
I blame the overloading on the trailer suspension collapsing, causing the
tires to wear right through the heavy steel fenders.