Yes what Tyler wrote. Automatics are much better at pulling up a hill from a dead stop under a load. Sticks are much more challenging when doing this. When pulling a boat out using my Ford Ranger, which is a stick, I always throw it into 4-low and it is not a problem. I do prefer a stick for driving though, I like to control shifting especially on a downhill. Automatics are not as good at compression breaking down a hill. The full size trucks are getting better at this, but still leaves much to be desired versus a stick. With my ford ranger I can go down Vail Pass heading east or west and not touch the brakes the entire way. :: Dave Scobie On Aug 25, 2015 6:42 PM, <casioqv@usermail.com> wrote:
Does it have a manual transmission?
When I had my Catalina 22 I towed with with two very similar 80s Volvo 7 series cars, one an automatic, and the other a manual. I couldn't get it up the steepest ramps at all with the manual car, but with the automatic it was effortless... it climbed up nearly at idle. I think the automatic torque converter really helped- I would guess it generated at least 10 times the force from a standstill as the manual did. In my opinion a manual transmission is great for towing a boat, but only on cars with a low range 4WD, otherwise they can hardly generate any force from a standstill.
Sincerely, Tyler Davis, CA M15 #157 Defiant
----- Original Message ----- From: "stevetrapp" <stevetrapp@q.com> To: "For and about Montgomery Sailboats" < montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com> Sent: Tuesday, August 25, 2015 5:30:49 PM Subject: Re: M_Boats: sorry to bring it up again Towing
My Subaru Forester did not seem to have enough muscle to get my M-15 up the launch ramp when I did outhaul. This happened at ramps on Lake Couer D' Alene in Idaho, and again at a ramp on South Puget Sound. Now I use my aging, but reliable Ford Ranger V-6. Steve M-15 # 335