question about towing with 08 H3 with manual tranny
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Joined: Nov 2018
Posts: 10
question about towing with 08 H3 with manual tranny
we bought an 08 H3 with the 3.7 with the rare 5 speed manual tranny. In the next year we are wanting to do some travelling and want to use the H3 to tow a small travel trailer. So I looked up the capacity and to my surprise found the manual is only rated at 3000 lbs max (while the auto is 4500 lbs). So I have a few questions:
1) why would the manual have a lower capacity than an auto?
2) more importantly, if I were to get a trailer just under 3000 lbs (say 2900 loaded), and thus under the max rating, could I tow a trailer across country without expecting clutch or tranny failure? I guess the question is, if the engineers rated the capacity at 3000, is this rating meant for short 30 minute trips to the lake, or can the truck tow this for 5000+ kms without expecting issues. I know the engine won't have problems since the same motor in the auto can tow 4500, so again it is just the tranny that I guess is the question.
1) why would the manual have a lower capacity than an auto?
2) more importantly, if I were to get a trailer just under 3000 lbs (say 2900 loaded), and thus under the max rating, could I tow a trailer across country without expecting clutch or tranny failure? I guess the question is, if the engineers rated the capacity at 3000, is this rating meant for short 30 minute trips to the lake, or can the truck tow this for 5000+ kms without expecting issues. I know the engine won't have problems since the same motor in the auto can tow 4500, so again it is just the tranny that I guess is the question.
Senior Member
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 8,999
From: C-Town
Automatic transmission with a torque converter is going to be able to tow heavier loads than a vehicle of the same type with a manual transmission. The easiest way to adjust torque for towing is simply to drive in a lower gear that is specified for towing. Manual and automatic transmissions both have overdrive gear ratios, which will reduce RPMs, which in turn increases fuel efficiency and provides a quieter ride, but they also reduce torque. In the case of a five or six-speed manual or automatic transmission, you can drive in fourth gear to tow heavy items. For a four-speed automatic, driving in third gear is the best way to decrease engine load and also increase torque. Owners can also increase the tire size to reduce torque and decrease tire size to increase it. They can also spec their towing vehicle with a different axle ratio (a 4.10:1 axle ratio vs. a 3.7:1 will give you a 10 percent increase in torque).
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