Towing with an automatic

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sandr

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I have been told that its not the best idea to tow with an automatic as you can roll down hills and they are very hard work
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We are looking to buy a 4WD and a trailer in the next few months, and i only have an auto licence!

Surely there are people who tow quite happily with an auto?????
 
I was always under the impression that automatics were the better vehicles for towing with as gear changes etc were smoother? Know nothing about the downhill bit but I am sure, providing you are purchasing a capable enough 4x4 I can't see how this should be a problem. Still, I am no 4x4 expert!
 
I tow with an auto shogun and its fab, it does all the work up and down hills and tows much smoother than my friends manual!
 
I tow with my Mums LWB Shogun its heaven! Never had a problem, and as mentioned the gear changes are V smooth, its like theres no trailer.
 
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I was always under the impression that automatics were the better vehicles for towing with as gear changes etc were smoother?

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Yeah it supposed to be better for horse, trailer and car. ym friend specifically bought an automatic for towing.
 
Thank you, i was starting to have a small panic, thinking ill never get transport now!

Actually a Shogun is what we have been looking at! Do you have the sport style one or the normal one?
 
My Husband tows my horses about and much prefers using my Mum's automatic Discovery to anything else. When going down a steep hill he will sometimes use the 1st, 2nd and 3rd manual gear options that the Discovery provides, but this is personal preference as Mum doesn't use it and the Disco copes perfectly.

I don't personally tow the trailers (no Grandfather rights
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) but IMO the auto does make the going really smooth for the horses and I prefer them to travel with the Disco than the manual Defender we also have.
 
I now tow with an automatic and love it, the automatic tows more smoothly and you can always shift it into a lower gear when you go downhill, i have had no problems with it at all in fact it's much easier as you don't have to worry about changing gear at juctions and roundabouts etc, the only thing i would say is that when going uphill the automatic won't go up to the next gear when in a manual you may try but have to change down again, so we really do chugg up hill which isn't a problem as i tend to be on the slow side when towing anyhow, hope this helps
 
I tow with an auto as well. I think it's just personal preference to be honest. Some won't tow without one some won't tow with one!
All the modern auto's give you the option of using the gears anyway should you ever need to.
 
My husband is in the car business & I must admit i've tried most of the 4X4 range and personally I find an auto better, I've got a diesel Mercedes ML auto and its great to tow with much smoother than a manual & ditto what Ifield says modern autos are versatile.
 
We have manual and auto 4x4's (Disco's and Defenders) on the farm and tow horse and cattle trailers with either. Everyone prefers to tow with the auto tho!
 
Way back when - when we towed dinosaurs and powered cars with our feet
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- it used to be common to recommend standards over automatics for towing because of issues with transmission cooling and gear wear. Also, many early automatic vehicles did not change particularly smoothly, especially when loaded, making for a jerky ride. (You also used to see HUGE differences in gas mileage but even that's not so true anymore.) But any modern automatic suitable for towing will have all the proper gear for the job and it's not an issue anymore. I think many people actually prefer autos now.

I would say I still prefer a standard on particularly bad "going" - ice and snow, which doesn't come up much here, anyway - but my current Disco is the first automatic vehicle I've had and I love it.
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I tow an Ifor 505 with a Mitsubishi L200 auto and it's great.

I haven't used the lower gears for hills, just used my brakes. But I live in Lincolnshire so it's not that hilly!
 
Automatics are perfect for towing. You must use a lower gear for prolonged hill work, particularly down as the engine transmission will overheat.
 
I towed with a Mitsubishi Pajero LWB Auto & had no problems at all. It was a very smooth & powerful tow vehicle, a pleasure to drive........ want to buy it? I've now got a lorry.
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I tow with an Auto....its so simple although my Shogun has a tiptronic gearbox so I can override the auto and use the gears down steep hills(of which we have many in Devon), which gives me the best of both worlds...I don't know how that would work with your licence!
 
I have an auto 2.5Tdi Discovery and previously, when we had little ponies, had auto Volvo estates. It's essential that the car has a decent transmission cooler as the auto box will cook without one. I much prefer autos to manuals for towing, a smoother ride and no worrying about hill starts!

I knock it down to '3' when approaching an uphill climb, at about 2000 to 2400 rpm, and try to keep it at about 3000rpm when climbing a hill - it takes practice to get the timing right, so it isn't having to kick-down and avoids labouring. The Volvo had a button on the auto stick to stop it changing up from 3rd to top when towing - as it wasn't locked into 3rd it could still change down - though on a motorway run, say, they seem ok in top. Go for a LWB rather than a SWB for better stability. Good luck!
 
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