tatest wrote:
Ford Focus ST is manual transmission only, all the bells and whistles. At a price.
But wait. Since you are asking here, you probably want to tow it. Ford does not rate the ST as towable. This likely has more to do with suspension, wheel alignment and tire wear, and ground clearance, than it has to do with the transmission.
I've been doing a little research about towing manuals. I've read over the years that no Mazda manual is listed in there owners manual as RV towable. But people tow Miatas all the time. Until 2005 Mustang manuals could be towed. When the body was upgraded in 2005 suddenly the manuals couldn't be towed. On a Mustang forum I'm slowly finding that Ford didn't change the manual transmission that year (at least for the V6). I think most car makers don't want to take the warranty risk for RV towing.
But mechanically if the manual transmission has an oil slinger on the output shaft, then it is definitely towable. Sometime in the recent past most car makers started using an ATF transmission fluid instead of a heavier gear oil. I'm wondering if that might be part of the problem.
Then there's the guy who has successfully towed his Ford Taurus with an automatic transmission by simply letting it idle while he's towing it. This keeps the transmission lubed and cooled. Seems too simple and easy.
