[wagv]

hi guys
im getting acamper shortly and have been told by acouple of people that if you tow in fifth you can stuff your clutch and gearbox
does anyone knows if this is true or not

thanks
wozza

[alien]

thats bullcrap... i think you'll find you spend more time in 4th just to keep your revvs up though - 5th isnt a strong gear, so a slight incline will see you dropping to 4th and even 3rd depending on the steepness/wind direction/weight of trailer.

as for stuffing the clutch and box, nup... very doubtful.

[royce]

In what?

generally in a lot of gearboxes overdrive gears arent designed with as much strength in mind as generally you arent accelerating heavilly in those gears so yes it can be easy to wreck 5th gear if you labour it or use a heavy foot in those gears

but cruising along on flat ground and not using alot of power is liekyl to be find unless you are towing all day every day, and assuming some kind of suzuki you arent going to tow a lot of weight

wont effect the clutch any either

[Moph]

5th is an overdriven gear while 4th is 1:1. I've towed a loaded 5x3 for 7000km all up cruising in 5th about 75% of the time and it is still quiet and shifts sweetly. Just be sensible changing between 4th and 5th - no clutch dumps to shock load the gears - don't ride the clutch and don't let the engine lug under load ... you'll be fine.

[SuziBlu]

If you do not want to shorten your gearbox life, 4th, 1 to 1 is the go.

5th is overdrive, and for 99% of cars, unladen only.

The engine may well be capable, the very small over drive is the weak point, do not use it.

[wagv]

thanks guys
i have got a 2.5l gv and the camper is on a 6x4 trailer

[steak_knife]

wagv wrote:

thanks guys
i have got a 2.5l gv and the camper is on a 6x4 trailer

I used to tow sierra's on car trailer in 5th with a gv, you should be fine with a lil camper..

[SuziBlu]

Steve, I use to have a worked 460ci big block ute that would go hard with a trailer, but it shat 5th out eventually. No dramas really, just you no longer have 5th, overdrive.

Soon worked out, even with just the ute load, 4th only, 5th is very weak and will shit itself, for the sake of a few dollars in fuel, the cost of pulling a gearbox, stripping, and redoing 5th, is just not worth it.

Plus, with most cars, the useless power in 5th, 4th is the go.

[Joe]

SuziBlu wrote:

Steve, I use to have a worked 460ci big block ute that would go hard with a trailer, but it shat 5th out eventually. No dramas really, just you no longer have 5th, overdrive.

Soon worked out, even with just the ute load, 4th only, 5th is very weak and will shit itself, for the sake of a few dollars in fuel, the cost of pulling a gearbox, stripping, and redoing 5th, is just not worth it.

Plus, with most cars, the useless power in 5th, 4th is the go.

What sort of ute and what sort of five speed?

[royce]

SuziBlu wrote:

Steve, I use to have a worked 460ci big block ute that would go hard with a trailer, but it shat 5th out eventually. No dramas really, just you no longer have 5th, overdrive.

Soon worked out, even with just the ute load, 4th only, 5th is very weak and will shit itself, for the sake of a few dollars in fuel, the cost of pulling a gearbox, stripping, and redoing 5th, is just not worth it.

Plus, with most cars, the useless power in 5th, 4th is the go.

what box? arent many dedicated big block 5 speeds out there and a gv isnt a 460

FWIW ive spent at least 5000km this year in a you wouldnt expect the model japanese 4wd with a little turbo diesel pulling a lot more than 3 tonne, its been doing this for quite a lot of km now and 6th gear is fine, no signs of any wear on it at all, but its done sensibly

[Scrawny]

My Prado has a whine in 5th gear due to ( I suspect) towing in 5th gear. As it's been mentioned, 5th is fine for towing while cruising but do not load/labour it. It is a big gear driving a smaller gear.

Royce, is the shitbox Nissan 1:1 in any gear?

[royce]

I would have to think that 5th is 1.1 but never bothered to check

Prado boxes are shit too

[Scrawny]

royce wrote:

I would have to think that 5th is 1.1 but never bothered to check

Prado boxes are shit too

Still going ok after 340,000kms though

[royce]

except for the whine

[Scrawny]

royce wrote:

except for the whine

That's why I said ok


And yes, 5th is 1:1 in said shitbox

[Fatzook]

Sierras have a weak 5th. Mine is almost done already. Only rebuilt the thing 6 months ago

2nd will be next to go, as thats the gear I take off from the lights in

[imatt]

Use 5th when towing only on flat, downhill or slight uphill, I've had two ford gearboxs rebuilt both shat 5th gear due to weight. The vehicles were a courier 4wd TD spacecab and a ranger 4wd TD spacecab, neither did much towing but had constant load on tray eg tool boxes, ladders and assorted tools. I'm not saying suzuki boxes are weak in 5th but as a general rule 4th is best because it is 1:1. If anyone was thinking of buying a courier/ranger/bt50 watch out for gearbox issues, both of mine happened just after 100,000kms (no warranty) and my mates bt50 went at 30,000kms. If using my disco v8 auto I drop it to 3rd when towing on hills as D is an overdrive gear.
Cheers Matt

[Kooz]

wagv wrote:

hi guys
im getting acamper shortly and have been told by acouple of people that if you tow in fifth you can stuff your clutch and gearbox
does anyone knows if this is true or not

thanks
wozza

I tow 1800 Kg of boat 90 km each way along the highway behind a GV. No probs in 5th once you get it rolling. And its better on clutched that my new 2.5 DI Nissan.

[SuziBlu]

joseph wrote:

SuziBlu wrote:

Steve, I use to have a worked 460ci big block ute that would go hard with a trailer, but it shat 5th out eventually. No dramas really, just you no longer have 5th, overdrive.

Soon worked out, even with just the ute load, 4th only, 5th is very weak and will shit itself, for the sake of a few dollars in fuel, the cost of pulling a gearbox, stripping, and redoing 5th, is just not worth it.

Plus, with most cars, the useless power in 5th, 4th is the go.

What sort of ute and what sort of five speed?

Started as a C6, F150 4wd, blew 3 C6s, an a dana 60 diff, of those up in very short periods, even getting special builds, ended up with a ZF, all up cost a fortune, sold cheap as.

The main trouble was the 460s in the effys were a fairly low hp engine, like about 220 or so, mine put out a dyno run of over 530, torque was insane.

I got it stock, and added power mods after power mods, till it kept breaking things, stupid really. Nothing on earth like the power or sound of a big block.

It would tow a 32' trihull on triple axles at 120k with ease, and when required, gain speed for short distance overtaking with ease. Beside eating gearboxes, fuel worked out in the end, towing, at about 6mpg.