Actually, unless you are towing or driving on inclines, OD should be set to on and left there to just forget about it.

IndyD

 

thats what i did. then i read this and got scared lol

 

you dont drive where i do indy, here its impossible to drive without going up and down hills, but its a force of habit, i drive like hydra it shifts better(a little harder, and holds gears a bit longer) IMO w/ OD off, and i still got 4 gears w/o od the only advantage to OD that i can see is to save gas, but when it shifts into OD under 40 or so it is usually bc i am coasting and as soon as i need to give it gas it hesitates (not much most dont notice it) and then shifts back down, w/ OD off it stays in tc lock up and pulls the speed at lower RPM, and at this point working the OD button off/on as i drive through lights ect has become second nature to me at this point

 

Hobo, NJ?

OD should be left on except for real inclines, such as mountains. For example, nothing in the States of Indiana, Illinois, Ohio or even the foothills anywhere in Kentucky would apply. Adjust accordingly.

It is bad practice to drive with OD off or to turn it on and off frequently. If you are using the OD button as a shifter, honestly you are not using it correctly. It is not a F1 car where you are up and downshifting to conditions. General usage USA wide would be to leave it on and forget it. The entire system was designed that to be used that way.

Or not. Let me know how long that transmission works out for you.

IndyD

 

it was designed that way because the majority of Americans are lazy, much too lazy to think about what gear they are in, and im actually from the northern part of NJ (think morris and sussex county if you know the state) and i have heard both schools of thought on the issue (some say to leave OD on and others say to keep it off till you get on the highway) the last two dodge trucks we got rid of both had the origional transmissions in them with 200k and 99k on them respectively, they were both driven in the manner i have described, and you also have to keep in mind that the 4.7s came with a better transmission than the 5.x series engines did.

and there are quite a number of places that i drive where the speed limit puts you on the shift threshold btwn two gears, locking OD out stops the truck from gear hunting back and forth as i climb the hills

edit: just wanted to clarify that im just sharing my experiences not trying to argue with you, and i learned the driving style from my dad who has been using it for the better part of 60 years


i actually agree 100% with hydra and that is how i manage it for myself (he just explained it differently)

 

Indy<----- If you are constantly bumping the gears meaning:

1. Stop and go traffic
2. long continuous climbing

Anytime you are going in and out of the gears continuously you should opt out of OD. Simply pushing in and out is not the theory. You should do this only if your are in this situation. Shifting in and out back and forth burns the clutches. This is done because of torque management. The only differences is the torque management is removed. When your going up a good hill that your truck shifts back and forth in and out of OD you are waring out your trans. If you shift it out of OD and lock it down the RPM's drop, heat levels drop, better response, and less ware.

There is no reason to be scared unless you are towing heavy loads. Technically, as Indy is stating it doesn't matter as the transmission is built to operate but I like to make em last and anything I can do to make that happen I'm game.

There is absolutely no issue with turning it on of off as the trans is built to do it. Although, I don't do it unless I get into this situation.

 

[quote=shrpshtr325;1960382]when you said oil was changed do you mean the trans fluid? bc if you dont know when it was changed it sounds to me like its time for a fluid filter change and band adjustment, it could also be the governor pressure sensor (i think thats what its called) but a fluid filter change it should help

i just got around to changing the oil and filter of the gear box and adjusted the band. its as if i installed a new gearbox!! amazing difference, no more gear hunting and no more clunky up shifts. appreciate the help.
by the way i loaded the D's trunk with 500kgs and it seems to be able to carry much more with ease.