Idling engine while towing questions
..We now have two toads: DW's daily driver, a Kia Sedona van (that has Remco lube pump to allow towing), and my daily driver, a Ford Fusion Hybrid (flat-towable from the factory, woohoo!) Reality is...
Forum Discussion
Well, last week I had the van in at the dealership, having them replace the pressure sensor the Remco pump uses (at their expense - they accidentally fried the sensor last time it was in to fix the first leak).
Had a long talk with the technician there. He knows for a fact that the Kia's transmission will be fine if we just idle the engine when towing. Sooo, its good to know that is a viable option as well, if the lube pump ever has any issues again. Still, though, the only way I'm going to feel safe towing the van, is if we bring with us 4 or 5 quarts of tranny fluid, in case it springs another leak and pukes it all out again, haha. :)
He also confirmed what I suspected - removing the pump setup completely and trying to sell it is just not realistic. By the time you replace the tranny pan (that now has a hole drilled in it for the pickup for the pump), and pay for all the other labor involved in removing the pump setup, you've pretty much spent waay more than you'd possibly get selling the pump. Sooo, the pump setup stays on, we're pretty much stuck with it, whether we use it or not.
..And to be honest, now after our 2nd trip we just got back from using our other, new vehicle for towing behind the MH (new Ford Fusion Hybrid)....I'm not sure how much if at all, we'll ever tow the van with us behind the MH. The Fusion is soooo much more fun to drive, and so much more simple and stress free for towing.
Once the 'newness' (is that a word?) of the Fusion wears off, we will probably use the van again, but for now...I really like the simplicity of towing with the Fusion - no lube pump, no costly modifications or worries about transmission frying, or crazy procedures needed whatsoever to tow it. Just put it in neutral and go.
Will
Had a long talk with the technician there. He knows for a fact that the Kia's transmission will be fine if we just idle the engine when towing. Sooo, its good to know that is a viable option as well, if the lube pump ever has any issues again. Still, though, the only way I'm going to feel safe towing the van, is if we bring with us 4 or 5 quarts of tranny fluid, in case it springs another leak and pukes it all out again, haha. :)
He also confirmed what I suspected - removing the pump setup completely and trying to sell it is just not realistic. By the time you replace the tranny pan (that now has a hole drilled in it for the pickup for the pump), and pay for all the other labor involved in removing the pump setup, you've pretty much spent waay more than you'd possibly get selling the pump. Sooo, the pump setup stays on, we're pretty much stuck with it, whether we use it or not.
..And to be honest, now after our 2nd trip we just got back from using our other, new vehicle for towing behind the MH (new Ford Fusion Hybrid)....I'm not sure how much if at all, we'll ever tow the van with us behind the MH. The Fusion is soooo much more fun to drive, and so much more simple and stress free for towing.
Once the 'newness' (is that a word?) of the Fusion wears off, we will probably use the van again, but for now...I really like the simplicity of towing with the Fusion - no lube pump, no costly modifications or worries about transmission frying, or crazy procedures needed whatsoever to tow it. Just put it in neutral and go.
Will
