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Driving in 3rd?

tyhuck

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tyhuck Senior Enthusiast

tyhuck

Posted
Posted

OK, I know people do it all the time while towing, but is it bad for my truck to drive in 3rd ALL the time? I ask because my truck has 35s and 3.42 gears, and I just had the transmission rebuilt and I want to keep from tearing it up again. Those 35s put a rather large strain on the trans. and I was thinking that driving in 3rd would help remedy that constant shift in and out of OD.

 

I guess what Im asking is this. Is it going to hurt anything to drive in 3rd everywhere, or would it be better to keep it in OD and let the computer manage my shifting?

pwall Senior Enthusiast

pwall

Posted
Posted

I wouldn't think it would hurt anything at all.

I towed for years with my 2002 YukonXL in 3rd (I never tow in 'D') and after 200,000kms (125,000miles), never an issue with the transmission.

MikeNH Senior Enthusiast

MikeNH

Posted
Posted

Nope. You'll be fine. The computer still manages everything in 3rd, it just doesn't use 4th. No different than me in my 2011 driving the truck in 4th or 5th to keep it from bogging,

tyhuck Senior Enthusiast

tyhuck

Posted
  • Author
Posted

What's keeping you from re-gearing? Cost?

 

 

Yeah, I have been quoted a little either side of $1500 by a couple of different shops and I just dont have it laying around. Plus, I have 2 more years left of payments so it will be after that before i can get the regear done.

KMGZ400 Senior Enthusiast

KMGZ400

Posted
Posted

i drive in 3rd all the time. i have a 4.8 on 285's and it isnt exactly a powerhouse. i think its better for the trans to shift into 3rd in most situations where it would be constantly shifting from 3 to 4

 

i have a 120,000 on the original trans and it still shifts great surprisingly.

  • 2 weeks later...
Big Whiskey Senior Enthusiast

Big Whiskey

Posted
Posted

I agree with the previous posts. Driving in 3rd won't hurt a thing. In fact, it may even help extend the life of your transmission, because all of that switching and hunting from 3rd to 4th isn't good for it. I drove my old '06 in 3rd a lot when I was on country roads, because it couldn't hold 4th....and I only had 285's with the 3:42 gears.

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