On our trip to Niagara Falls we noticed the engine downshifting when we were going down grade. It may have done this before, but I can't recall.Is this unusual?Nothing unusual about the shifting before or after, just want to make sure it's an expected behaviour.Tow/Haul mode didn't make much of a difference.

And I'll bet you were in cruise control, too. That is not how you go down a hill in a gasser. You want to be in manual control of the transmission, I like 4th gear.

I was taught to drive by a old logger many years ago ,and he told me you go down a hill at the same speed you go up, so with my tow haul on i go down hill and tap my breaks when i need to slow down, most of the time i just maintain the same speed and never touch the breaks.Feels so good. and safe.

azdryheat wrote:And I'll bet you were in cruise control, too. That is not how you go down a hill in a gasser. You want to be in manual control of the transmission, I like 4th gear.What difference does it really make if the ECU decides to downshift to fourth or if you manually downshift to fourth? In either case, you're descending in fourth gear and using appropriate engine braking. It's okay if you prefer to shift manually, of course, but I don't see how that's the only appropriate method one could use in this case.I think the computer will also downshift automatically for engine braking (under some conditions, at least) when tow/haul is engaged. Some other automatic transmissions on other vehicles will do so generally as a matter of course.

Keeps it from shifting into 3rd and having rpm's over 5000. I've tried keeping it in D and the speed creeps up. Manual is much better at maintaining a safe speed.

My F150 will try to maintain a constant speed going downhill. If I am doing 55 when I start down the hill the tranny will frequently drop to 5 or 4 when I take my foot off the gas even when the cruise is not on. If I apply even a little pressure to the gas pedal, the tranny stays in 6 and I gain speed going down the hill. With cruse on, I may end up in 3rd by the time I get to the bottom.

F53 downshifting on hills | Good Sam Community

15 Replies

BarabooBob
Explorer III
Jul 23, 2018
I don't know about the 6 speed for a V10 but the 6 speed on my Ecoboost with selective shift tranny can be shifted manually or left in auto and you can downshift to whatever gear you want. The tranny will not shift until rpm's are low enough to safely make a downshift so no worries about blowing an engine.
Monkeyman_and_L
Explorer
Jul 23, 2018
I will say this, compared to when I towed a trailer with an Expedition the downhills were easy to manage. I did very little braking and just gave it a tap when I thought it was going a bit faster. Never felt like I rode the brakes at all.
hohenwald48
Explorer
Jul 23, 2018
The Ford V-10 ECM will not allow you to over rev the engine. It's not going to break but it sure sounds like it sometimes. Especially when the cooling fan kicks in while descending in a lower gear.

Although the 6 speed can be manually shifted to 4th gear, it can't be manually shifted to 5th. The 5 speed can be manually shifted to 3rd but not to 4th.

Sometimes, when descending, you can see the road straightens out ahead but the ECM keeps the transmission in the lower gear. If you turn off tow/haul, the transmission will upshift and you can then turn tow/haul back on and it will not down shift if you stay off the brake. It's good for building some speed down hill to get up the next hill when you have enough visibility to see the road ahead. The ECM just can't look ahead to see what's next.
georgelesley
Explorer
Jul 23, 2018
Monkeyman_and_Lady wrote:
Wasn't using cruise control. I do that on flat runs and it's great.

Didn't see much of a change in behaviour with tow/haul. What exactly does that do except change where the shift points are?

Good to know it's expected on the 6 speed tranny. DW was concerned it was going to break or something.

Tow haul automatically downshifts when you apply the brakes and sometimes will downshift when it senses you speeding up. The best way to use tow haul is to brake to the speed you want as you crest a hil you can see you will want braking on. Tow haul will then downshift to the appropriate gear and try to keep you near that speed.

On gentle or small hills you will not see much if any benefit. On our recent trip we descended a few 13% grades with very little braking needed. You just have to stay ahead of the need to slow down and not wait until you are 1/2 way down a long grade to engage it the best practice is to practice with it and learn how to use it. When in up and down terrain, just keep it engaged. There is no harm in leaving it on all the time, but no particular benefit on flat ground other than some additional braking effect.

While in Indianapolis rush hour I was very happy I had it on once when traffic suddenly stopped in front of me and I was able to barely stop. Without the tow haul on it would have been a closer call than it was.

It will hold each gear a bit longer before upshifting which can take a bit of getting used to, and each time you start the engine it must be turned on again.
Monkeyman_and_L
Explorer
Jul 23, 2018
Wasn't using cruise control. I do that on flat runs and it's great.

Didn't see much of a change in behaviour with tow/haul. What exactly does that do except change where the shift points are?

Good to know it's expected on the 6 speed tranny. DW was concerned it was going to break or something.
wallynm
Explorer
Jul 23, 2018
Newer cruise control system will attempt to maintain speed up and down hills. The old system just tried to maintain your speed and once you exceeded the set speed it just allowed what ever speed above the set speed the vehicle would go.
wildtoad
Explorer II
Jul 23, 2018
hohenwald48 wrote:
DrewE wrote:

What difference does it really make if the ECU decides to downshift to fourth or if you manually downshift to fourth?

There is no way to manually shift a Ford TorqShift 5 speed transmission into 4th gear. I don't know what transmission the OP has.

2016 and beyond F53’s come with a 6 speed tranny, and shifting into 4th is quite possible.
hohenwald48
Explorer
Jul 23, 2018
DrewE wrote:

What difference does it really make if the ECU decides to downshift to fourth or if you manually downshift to fourth?

There is no way to manually shift a Ford TorqShift 5 speed transmission into 4th gear. I don't know what transmission the OP has.
georgelesley
Explorer
Jul 23, 2018
We just finished a 10,000 mile trip to Alaska and back. The tow haul was on constantly when we drove in the mountains. Use it, get used to how it works, turn cruise off and enjoy. Wonderful feature.when you have tow haul on and use the brakes, the transmission will downshift as soon as it can to hold speed down, then upshift when engine reaches 5,000 rpm

DW drove half of our trip and loved it as well. Hardly used the brakes all the way thru the Rockies.
wildtoad
Explorer II
Jul 23, 2018
OP, yes that is a “feature”. Nothing wrong with the engine/tranny. First couple of times it gets your attention, just like when the cruise cuts out altogether going up a hill if it can maintain the set speed - 10mph.