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Who can't leave the O/D button alone?

  • always pushing button

    Votes: 42 48.8%
  • rarely push button

    Votes: 21 24.4%
  • only turn on O/D on highway

    Votes: 14 16.3%
  • what button?

    Votes: 9 10.5%

Who can't leave the O/D button alone?

7K views 50 replies 29 participants last post by  theterminator93 
#1 · (Edited)
I was wondering who uses overdrive (O/D) when driving around town (speeds under 55). I am always flipping the O/D button depending where I am driving. Does it cause wear to the trans. if the O/D is disabled for extended times. At constant highway speeds I always enable the O/D.
 
#2 ·
I think the ford manual says to lockout OD at speeds under 40mph or city driving. I usually just leave it engaged since it helps gas mileage out. i do press the button sometimes though, or friends will feel the button on the shifter and press it to see if it causes a light to come on.
 
#3 ·
I leave it off unless I am going to be doing at least 50mph for an extended period of time, so when I do have it on, it'll usually stay in OD for quite awhile.

The shift is what causes wear, not staying in or staying out of OD.
 
#4 ·
Hmm... I need to remember all that. I sometimes play with mine, but not a lot. My friend used to would turn off my overdrive every time I was out of the car or not looking at the dash or shifter. He got me a time or two, but it's pretty hard to miss that super luminescent light.
 
#5 ·
I ALWAYS lock out my OD at any speed below 70 mph. Mainly for the reason that I haven't been able to isolate the problem of the transmission slipping out of gear with light load and speeds below 70 (I have 3.08's so the rpms are around 2K) :mad:

Even on the interstate, if I'm around 70 mph and headed up a long hill, I'll pop it out of OD. :leftright

Now it's just a habit. I even do the same thing in my Mark (for absolutely no justifiable reason). :D
 
#6 ·
Its habit now, get in the car turn it on, turn off the O/D. I only use it on the highway or interstate, never in town. I even do it in the truck now without even thinking about it.
 
#7 ·
Since I have a custom tune, my normal driving shifts are a bit higher. Doesn't even think about OD until 40-45 mph. I get the TC shudder at that point...:rolleyes:
 
#8 ·
4 Cam Bird said:
Its habit now, get in the car turn it on, turn off the O/D. I only use it on the highway or interstate, never in town. I even do it in the truck now without even thinking about it.

I do the same thing in my bird. I also turn off the traction control unless it wet out. I just wish the bright a** green OD light wasn't so bright, or located somewhere else. I hate having people ask me "Hey, why's that light on in the dash? What's wrong w/ your car?" I guess they think its a CEL. Morons.:rolleyes:
 
#9 ·
I'd forget to turn it on on the highway if not for that light. I'm see myself driving a very long distance with it off at some point in the truck. The light is in the end of the shifter and my hand position blocks it from sight.
 
#10 ·
I leave it off in town. I turn it on when I hit the freeway and am not in "spirited driving" mode (which is hardly ever nowadays).

At least that is how I used to drive. My friend took my OD button out of the shifter handle, and now it is installed incorrectly. Now I cannot lock it out at all.:mad:
 
#11 ·
That little metal thing is a PITA to get back in there right when you take the button out. Its not hard to fix, pull the button out and do it. Sometimes it just takes a couple trys to get the metal thing lined up.
 
#13 ·
my bird and cat dont have it, but my f150 does .i only turn it off when im towing or offroad with it.
 
#14 ·
I use it to shift into 3rd to slow the car down when that corner is coming up, sometimes into 2nd. Does this hurt the trans? Seeing as how it is touchy to begin with. I know that power shifting can't be good either.
 
#15 ·
I just leave it alone. I won't go into overdrive below about 40 45 mph anyway. Never gives me any problem. The manual says to leave it alone unless you are towing, or in mountainous terrain. i think.
 
#16 ·
I always turn mine off unless i'm on the freeway. Otherwise, the trans flips out and shakes like crazy whenever i downshift. It goes into OD whenever i'm not on the throttle, pretty much. And then it'll hesitate for a second or so before it upshifts. I'm not exactly sure what the problem is, but I'd be willing to bet that at least part of the blame is on the TC. Oh, well. Getting a Marauder TC within a few months anyway:)
 
#17 ·
I am confused by everyone's responses.. So let me get this straight:

O/D is used by most of you all on the highway only

and you turn O/D off around town..


Wouldn't you use up more gas with the O/D off? I like driving my car A LOT more with the O/D off because to me it sounds a lot more healthier, but I don't because I was always taught that higher MPG comes out of using O/D everywhere..
 
#18 ·
i voted "what button" as i have an aod. i do run around in D 98% of the time though, not OD. i drive a lot in 2nd too.....cause it's fun, and i can!!! LOL
 
#19 ·
Wish my button worked. Broke the wires while i was replacing the main button and haven't gotten around to fixing them yet. Its been almost a year now but it took me a while to find the button after buying my car anyway so I hadn't really been used to using it anyways.

-Miller
 
#20 ·
I've driven most of the last 5 or six years at speeds under 45 mph (I live on an AF base with a 35mph max speed limit). I mostly drive to and from work and on side streets near home. I rarely hit the highway w/ my bird, maybe only once or twice a month and I have out of habit just left the trans in OD. Does anyone know of anything negative that could happen to the tranny from driving in OD at low speeds on a regular basis? (I started getting the typical T-bird tranny shudder about a year ago)
 
#22 ·
Jerry's tranny guide recommends against downshifting to second a lot. Doesn't say anything about downshifting to third. I got my manual valvebody in two days ago, so I've been doing it a lot. I love engine braking.
 
#23 ·
I know it's recommended not to do the 4->2 downshift. If you have to pass somebody on the highway, shift out of overdrive and let it shift before you punch it. So that if it downshifts, it's not detrimental to the tranny. Then once you're around, you can turn O/D back on.

You don't want to spend tons of time in 1st or 2nd though as the planetaries will build up heat pretty quickly. You don't want them too hot. :)
 
#24 ·
Sir William said:
I know it's recommended not to do the 4->2 downshift. If you have to pass somebody on the highway, shift out of overdrive and let it shift before you punch it. So that if it downshifts, it's not detrimental to the tranny. Then once you're around, you can turn O/D back on.

You don't want to spend tons of time in 1st or 2nd though as the planetaries will build up heat pretty quickly. You don't want them too hot. :)
Thank god I always did it like that... :D

That still makes me wnoder why people use D in town and not O/D.. Does it save gas any?
 
#25 ·
Because at low speeds, the car shifts in and out of overdrive a lot, and that can wear out the overdrive band. I saw my overdrive band when I installed my valve body and I think I'll start heeding that advice myself.
 
#26 ·
I live in the suburbs where we have mile stretches with not much traffic between lights and I'll leave OD on then so that it is in 4th for those stretches then if I start hitting some traffic I'll make sure it's off.

-J
 
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