What is best for towing- automatic or manual

[rache]

I have been having disccusions about towing with a gear stick or automatic. Does anyone know which is better- any experiences?

[Nookster]

I would say manual - u have greater control of speeds and the car/ trailer in general.

[DITZ]

i would say automatic, you can't burn the clutch out.

[rache]

that is what a good friend of mine said- that you can burn it out. Had not thought of it till she said

[Piaffe]

ok - there's no clutch to burn out on an automatic, but if you buy the right car in the first place, this isn't an issue.

Automatic transmissions can cost a lot of money to repair - sometimes more than the car is worth, they also will burn more fuel.

I would personally choose a manual 4x4, diesel.

[rache]

4x4 diesel- do you have any preference without burning up the deisel- wasting full? which 4x4 to look for?

I know a few people with gas converters now as it is alot cheaper to run as dont 4x4's eat petrol/ diesel???

[chev]

You get the same umber of miles per gallon on gas but it costs far less because we don't pay tax on it, like we do for petrol/diesel. That said, the government is planning to start taxing gas - so it'll be no cheaper at all in the long term when they do. Much better for the environment though.

We have two towing vehicles - one diesel, one petrol, both old Landrovers. The diesel actually doesn't pull as well as the petrol (3.2l Perkins Diesel) although it's a far better car to tow with in that you have far greater engine braking with a diesel (so when you put it in a low gear and drive down a hill it doesn't run away like a petrol engine will tend to.) and there's more power in low revs, which you need when towing. Petrol engines are better for cruising along once you've got going!

We've had a Shogun (not impressed), an Isuzu Trooper (turbo diesel - great car), a petrol Nissan Patrol (brilliant for towing but didn't hold the road as well as it could - very thirsty too) and the Landrovers.

I'd have an old Landy every time - comfort is a bit lacking, but all you need to do is hose them out and they stay clean. Noisy, but cheap to maintain and repair and provide hours of in-car entertainment; we play travel games like "Name That Rattle", "What's That Burning?" and our favourite, "Guess What Fell Off On The Last Bump". They'll go anywhere and tow anything. Brilliant machines! :D

[DITZ]

you will burn the clutch out if you do alot of hill work. depends what your region is like. I had to tow up a steep hill to get to my yard and the manual struggled with it. That said, it does depend on your engine size. I had a 4x4 2.6L and it struggled.

Automatic transmissions are expensive to replace but towing a trailer wont damage it in itself whereas towing actually does knacker the clutch.

Whilst driving on the flat an automatic will select the most suitable gear for you too and as such will save on petrol - but diesel is cheaper.

[Nookster]

You could go with either one but I always added ££££ to maintance cost for an auto.

Then there's the control issue that a manual has over an auto. For towing weight you just can't beat a manual for total control under all conditions.

[tasha]

We have a Subaru Forester Automatic. It 2l and Mum loves it. The engine is so quiet she forgets its on (she has tried to start it when already started once or twice!!). It tows well and is a hell of a lot more reliable than our last car, a Landrover Discovery. The Disco kept shifting gear all the time up hills (was an auto) and kept breaking down etc. Was also very sluggish and boxy.

[Wally]

Arrrgghhh! not an automatic, you have little real control, give me a manual box any day.

We have a maunal Forrester, but I'm not sure I'd really be happy towing much with it. It just ain't heavy enough. Two ponies are just about all I'd be happy towing.

I just hate auto's for towing, no engine braking at all if you are not careful the flippin' thing tries to run off with you.

[Kanuma]

i have a Merc 4x4 and it is an automatic ive never had a problem with it at all, it doesnt hunt gears and it pulls alot better then most of the manuals weve had!!!!! it realy depends on how good an automatic it is, i had a little car that was an auto matic and it changed gear 3 times going up the drive!!! if you get a good automatic then it is the best, with out Merc you can lock it into any gear you want very easily if you need to, we have never had to and we have been in some hairy situations with it and a trailer

[tasha]

We have a maunal Forrester, but I'm not sure I'd really be happy towing much with it. It just ain't heavy enough. Two ponies are just about all I'd be happy towing.

Ours copes fine with both ours in, a 15.2hh TB and a 14.3hh Arab, an Ifor Williams trailer. Up and down hills no problems.

[Dizzy]

I use a 2.8 Diahatsu 4Track TDi, and its brilliant. We have big hills in our area, and I've had to stop half way up one, with a big horse in the back - I was sweating cobs as I'm pretty new to towing, but my jeep can pull for England.

The down side of my vehicle is that it has wide tyres - on soft ground, it does tend to slake around, even in 4WD. I do have high and low box in 4WD, but I've never used low - that is probably the answer.

I wouldn't like an automatic, I like to be able to change down when I need an extra boost.

My friend (who owns the big horse) has a big automatic car, she was with us when we had to stop half way up a steep hill, and she said she didn't think her car would have managed it.

I honestly don't know, I have 2 horses, both wieghing approx 500 K, I've only pulled them individually, with absolutely no problem (apart from my stupid mistakes) It did feel more of an effort to pull Herbie (the big one ;) but it wasn't a problem, I used my gears and never felt under powered.

[virtuallyhorses]

Just on the automatic vs manual - don't think that 'you can't burn the clutch up' doesn't also apply to automatics - just having an automatic transmission doesn't mean you don't have gears! :)

It's also important to be aware of the differences in towing power between autos and manuals - many automatics have a lower towing weight than the same vehicle with a manual transmission - automatics can also trash their transmission through two other mechanisms - 1) heat. Auto transmissions can heat up a lot - check whether your vehicle can add or already has an A/T oil cooler 2) Overdrive - never use overdrive when towing. Auto transmissions can\will do something called 'seeking' when at higher speeds (basically it can't decide what gear to use and swaps around a lot) or under stress up hills if overdrive is left on - this causes the equivalent clutch burnout for autos.

Dizzy sounds like both those vehicles are underpowered for the job. The low gear box is actually more for downhill control on 4WDs.

Its important to get a towing vehicle suitable for your needs, take a look at my towing page for all the variables (http://worldzone.net/recreation/virtuallyhorses/travelling.html)

I've got an auto Nissan Terrano (Pathfinder) 2.7L turbo diesel - rated at 2.2tonnes it never misses a beat towing 2 large horses up steep hills (and I've never had to use any 4WD to do it) I do use high 4WD on gravel or slippery surfaces but only for control not pulling power.

[Dizzy]

VH, the diahatsu has never faltered pulling horses on the road, or rough track, whatever the gradient. Its wide tyres in uphill mud, that proves a problem. Instead of gaining traction, they aqua plane, and slake around. I've driven a diahatsu with ordinary tyres over our local fells (moors) and it handled brilliantly.

[chev]

It's usually the tyres that cause that kind of problem. For hard going off road (like lots of mud) you need proper mud tyres. Any 4x4 will struggle in mud if it's fitted with road tyres. We managed to get a Patrol stuck in our gateway because it had the wrong tyres. Changed the tyres, and it went everywhere, even through the swampy bit.

Unfortunately, mud tyres are no good on the road. They just aren't designed for it. We wrote the same Patrol off when we hit black ice with our mud tyres on - rolled it and travelled a good 200 yards upside down, complete with kids. Not nice.

You can get all purpose tyres, which can be used both on and off road. They'll solve the problem of skating in the field (although they won't cope with serious off-roading) and are fine on the road, although they can add to noise and fuel consumption.