OVERDRIVE

[vik singh]

IS it better to drive with O/D off in the city when doing about 49milke or 80KM.....Because the the transmission shop i went to told me to keep it off and it will save ut 5th gear clutch as well since thease trucks have problems....Do the the 5th gear cltches have problem onthe ST(wearing out to fast)

 

[Kevin Palmer]

Under normal circumstances leave it on. But if your in an environment where it keeps cycling on and off and it is a pain in the but turn it off. Normally towing and going thru the mountains you would have it off as well...

 

[Yardsale]

There is no specific clutch problem related to fifth gear in my experience ('01 with 132,000 mi.). I'm no transmission expert, but I don't believe there is dedicated fifth gear clutch. In fact, there is no fifth gear, per se - second gear is "created" by utilizing the overdrive on first gear, so the four-speed transmission becomes a five speed.



In general, disengage (turn off) the overdrive when the transmission shifts often, such as on mountain roads, or when you want the engine to assist in speed control (to alleviate brake fade caused by heat).



Others - chime-in ...

 

[Andy G]

I would agree with the above posters......



But I do drive over 2 mountain passes everyday and never take it out of overdrive manually. It will come out by itself, and pretty well stay out until the top of the pass.



My (former) Dodge Durango on the other hand, would shift many times going up a hill if I didn't lock it out of OD. The ST has got a much better tranny........................IMO......

 

[Marvin Atherton]

Please clarify one thing for me about the Overdrive button. With the OD light ON is overdrive on or off? When driving in heavy rain I push the button so that the light is ON and feel more drag on the transmission. Otherwise, I drive with the OD light off.



Thanks

 

[Fred]

O/D light on = overdrive off.

 

[Lou M]

Check your tach with the OD light on then off. The rpms will be higher with the light on, meaning that the OD is off. I usually drive with the OD off when I'm below 50 mph. Keeps it in the power band in case I need to accelerate quickly.

I also have the larger 265 size tires and haven't had the chip installed yet to correct. So my speedo reads a bit low too.



Lou...

 

[Yardsale]

On mine, the overdrive light reads "O/D OFF" ... I figure, if it's lit, it means the overdrive is off.