Follow the Instructions-What Could Go Wrong?

Question

i'm sick--no, worse than that. we have (had) a Geo Tracker 4 x 4--our little toad. read the directions; set the tracker. DH didn't like the way it towed. tried something else--still didn't like it. finally DH declares he'll just put the transfer case and the manual transmission into neutral. we stopped approx every 200 miles to run it and push the oil thru the tranny. saw a guy towing a tracker and asked him. he said he just followed directions--transfer case into neutral and manual transmission in 2nd gear. hubby protested but went along when i set it--he looked at it and thot he made sure it was set as instructed. we didn't make it 3 miles before we were flagged and looking back see the tracker is smoking. hole in the engine--totally ruined. DH maintained it shouldn't have been in 2nd gear--didn't make sense to him. that's what the book said--and the way the guy showed me. tranny was getting sticky--i thot i was helping to save it. what went wrong?

rv2go · Answer

I towed a 1995 Geo Tracker 4x4 for years and thousands of miles.  Went by the book.  Never a problem.Transfer case in NTransmission in 2nd.Manuel hubs unlockedSteering wheel unlocked.

scottg · Answer

Sorry to hear about your car. Maybe a new eng will fix it?
FWIW, I can't imagine why one would use second gear. If somehow the eng was still engaged it would be running at horrendous RPM's.
I either would have put it in neutral/neutral or if there's some explanation why it must be in gear, Neutral/OD just in case.
When ever I read or hear of an engineer claiming something that doesn't make sense, I research it because they're probably wrong. Just my experience.

mowermech · Answer

IMO, it is obvious that the transfer case was not in NEUTRAL, or somehow got bumped into gear.
That is why I always towed my Jeep with the transmission in 5th or 6th gear. It kept the transmission from turning, but if the transfer case somehow got into gear the chance of catastrophic engine RPM was minimized.
When towing the Jeep I always put the transmission in gear and let the clutch out to make sure the vehicle did not try to move, thus verifying the transfer case is truly in neutral. I do the same with the Dodge 1500, except it is an automatic tranny. Once I verify that the transfer case is really in neutral, then the tranny can be put in gear (or in PARK, in the Dodge), and we are ready to go.
So sorry to hear of your disaster. So far, I have been lucky.

wa8yxm · Answer

I suspect it is a case of something being changed from one model year to the next and the book not being changed till the year after that.

Either that or the tracker is like Jeeps.. Some of them you put the tranny in gear (Park or 2nd works well) put the transfer case in NEUTRAL and tow all you want.

others can not be towed 4-down without major modification.

And that is the same model, and the same year, different options.

tinyandthegang · Answer

The transfer case had to have been in gear. There is no other way the engine could have been turning. Vehicles with a transfer case should always be towed with the transfer case in neutral and the transmission in gear or park if an automatic. The reason is that if the transmission is left in neutral that the transfer case may have enough internal drag to spin the transmission. Most transmissions are built to be lubed when driven by the input shaft and do not lube when driven from the rear.

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Follow the Instructions-What Could Go Wrong?

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