Ugggg Truck problems

[alpacalips]

The 10 speed in the F150 and GM half tons was co-developed, but the 10 speed in the Super Duty is a separate beast.

Ford–GM 10-speed automatic transmission - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[Hay Dude]

I don’t want a 10 speed. Too expensive & complex for a pickup to pick up a little better fuel mileage.
Juice aint worth the squeeze.

 

[Robin Veerman]

I've driven Toyota Tacomas since 1991, all but the first one were 4x4 and standard transmissions. Drove them over 100K Kms per year with very few issues, although several had frame warranties extended due to poor steel with one frame replaced at 550k kms. Even with high mileage they were easy to sell with the combo of 4x4 and manual trans. The phone would ring off the wall once I put them up for sale.
Now in my retirement I have a babied 2013 TRD OffRoad manual 4x4 and I have the itch to replace it. My son will get it. I probably will buy a new Tacoma TRD Pro in the next year or two...but might go auto this time...
Tacoma trucks have been perfect for me, veterinary use, but the domestics are awesome if you want a purpose built rig right from factory. Something not possible from Toyota.

 

[Shenandoah MF1760]

The Toyota Tacoma V6 and Jeep Gladiator are the only trucks that you can buy new in the U.S. with a manual transmission in 2023.

And my understanding is that the Gladiator will be discontinued.

I like manual transmissions, they're what I learned to drive with and they are also something you can partially service on your own.

Although there are times when they don't shine too brightly.

Earlier this year I was stuck on a long uphill grade on I-10 heading out of California with both lanes diminished due to an accident at the top involving a pair of tractor-trailer rigs. The constant shift into gear/brake/neutral to go a couple of feet got old very quickly.

 

[Robin Veerman]

True enough. In the same/similar situation while tripping on my HD we would pull onto the shoulder and ride slowly along, trying not to pi$$ off the other motorists. Stop and go is especially difficult on a M/C.

 

[Dunno]

Sorry to hear of your troubles. Ford lost me with the 6.0/6.4 diesel debacles. My brother and I had 13 Ford vehicles between us. His old F350 with 6.9 or 7.3 diesel 4-speed was bulletproof and how Ford earned their reputation. I went to Chevy 2500 6.0l and another bulletproof truck, except for rust. Now I have a ‘14 Dodge Cummins 3500 with Aisin, knocks down 20.5 real mpg on highway weighing 9500lbs. Might look there next, but can’t say of newer trucks. The smog equipment DEF stuff is killing these rigs. No longer 500k mile engines with smog hooked up.
While stationed in Bosnia years back had use of a Toyota Highlander (I think) with diesel and 4-spd. Basically a Suburban with a manual and a diesel, nice rig. Not a fan of any Jap trucks, but that was a good rig.

 

[RandR10]

I'm a die hard manual fan in both my trucks and cars but it's hard to argue with how well a well built automatic handles towing duties. It just makes everything easier, and if you drive them right they can still rival a manual's fuel efficiency. That said, if I could have found a used Super Duty with a manual for similar money to my current one, I would have still bought that instead. I've also been searching for a deal on a manual parts truck for cheap so I can swap mine. Unfortunately those get snatched up quick or they're more than I'm willing to pay. The reliability factor and the control you get from a manual is still more important to me. I'm not sure why manufacturers don't like them. Maybe people money shifting them and over revving the engines? Or maybe some lug the truck engines down low and beat up the engine and drivetrain that way? Hard to keep people from doing such things with your product if it's a manual. It may also simply be a sales volume issue. No point in co-developing a manual option for your platform when almost nobody buys them in the new market.

 

[Bearsixty7]

The manufactures have been trying to kill off the manual transmissions in pickups for some reason.
About 20 years ago my parents were told that GM (I think) would not warranty a pickup with a manual transmission for towing.

Too many heavy RV's being sold and people not knowing how to drive a manual, burning up clutches or just scared to drive it!

.. I've got a 2013 RAM 3.6L with the 8 speed automatic transmission. So far it has been doing quite well. The transmission seems to slip a little when driving or backing my trailer up my paved driveway, and does better shifting to 4WD Low. However I haven't had that issue on the highway.

An annoying thing I discovered last summer when I was driving/towing up my back hill. I'd set it to 4-Low, and get a run for the hill. About halfway up the hill, I'd lose all power, and finally discovered that it had upshifted at the bottom of the hill, and couldn't downshift fast enough mid hill, nearly stalling the engine. How annoying. I wish I had the manual. I've started manually limiting it to 4-Low, first/second gears, and I seem to be fine, well, until it started raining and everything got slick.

An 8 or 10 speed manual might be nice, but would be a royal pain to shift, especially if it had two sticks like some of the big trucks.

On the newer Fords that have Shift-On-The-Fly or knob activated transfer case, you can use 4LO with the front axle/hubs disengaged to give you 2LO for moving heavy trailers around, makes it much easier on the transmission and driveline.
You use one of the upper Fitter switches and add a relay under the hood in the Vacuum operated hub system to open the circuit. I did on our F350. Can you do that on the Ram's?

 

[jgmo]

I got little to no trouble in stop/go with my '66 F250 slickside with the 300 six and 4 speed box. Put 'er in granny 1 let out the clutch and I can get out and take a stroll next to her to stay loose.
Matter of fact, that's how we used to use her to catch hay bails on a trailer when she was new.
Reach in the window every once in awhile for a minor course correction going down the row then jump in at the end to turn her around for the pass going the other way.

I just wish I could still do that u-turn at 73...

....My bad back has me thinking that power steering is a.... (Martha Stewart moment)...
GOOD THING.

2020 trucks??? Where in the WORLD do y'all get your money???

 

[Jstpssng]

I have a friend who always preferred manual transmissions. He drove every one of them like they had a creeper gear, always starting off in second; yet only one truck I can think of actually had that style transmission. Once we were at a stop sign coming up a hill pulling a trailer with two snowmobiles on it. He put it into second slipped the clutch and beat on that F150 until it started moving.
Perhaps that's why manufacturers have moved away from them?

 

[CliffordK]

I don’t want a 10 speed. Too expensive & complex for a pickup to pick up a little better fuel mileage.
Juice aint worth the squeeze.

I generally like my RAM 3.6L with an 8 speed auto.

The 3.6L is rated at about 305 HP, which is about the same as the vintage Chevy 350, perhaps even higher than some of them. But to get the high HP, it must scream a bit.

And gone are the days when a pickup would get less than 10 MPG. When empty, I can get from 20 MPG to 25 MPG or so. As good as the old half pint Ford Ranger.

I've driven 3 and 4 speeds, and there are often times when one extra gear, on the high end, or the low end would be nice, especially as freeway speeds have been creeping up. Or as some people mentioned, finding that perfect gear for creeping along in a traffic jam.

Is 10 speed better than 8?

 

[CliffordK]

On the newer Fords that have Shift-On-The-Fly or knob activated transfer case, you can use 4LO with the front axle/hubs disengaged to give you 2LO for moving heavy trailers around, makes it much easier on the transmission and driveline.
You use one of the upper Fitter switches and add a relay under the hood in the Vacuum operated hub system to open the circuit. I did on our F350. Can you do that on the Ram's?

Thanks for the suggestion. I might dig around and see if I could switch into Low range without 4x4. However, there haven't been many instances when I've felt that 4x4 would be bad for low range. A short few feet on the driveway it doesn't matter, and may help some with fir needles on the pavement.

I use 4x4 on gravel from time to time to prevent spinning. I could probably make do with 2wd, but no need to toss gravel around.

I did have one instance when my pickup threw itself into limp mode, and I had to put it into 4x4 low to limp into a safe spot up a hill where I could stop. It turns out that I was driving during plowing and disking season, and the air cleaner got clogged with dust. Yet the response to throw it into limp mode while on the freeway and flash a warning light was annoying.

The RAM will more or less shift between 2WD high and 4WD high on the fly. However, it requires the vehicle to be moving less than 3 MPH for a very slow shift into low range, so it isn't practical to jump in and out of low range very frequently.

 

[arto98607]

15 trucks in 20 yrs, wow.

Probably adds up to more in sales tax & titling fees etc. than I have spent on trucks in the last 20 years!

Oh well, each to his own.

 

[Tomtint]

15 trucks in 20 years? Not selling me on the longevity of Ford trucks...

Some years we would swap out 2 or 3 for tax reasons.

 

[dodge man]

Ford uses a vacuum system for their 4x4 engagement, I think that unique to them. There is probably a way to get 2 low In GH and Ram trucks but don’t know how.

I’m pretty sure the 10 speeds skip gears in normal driving and only use 8 speeds normally. My F150 is a 2017 and has the old 6 speed and I’m glad. My son’s work truck is newer and has the 10 speed and he doesn’t like it.

 

[Topzide]

BD diesel makes a 2 low kit for Ram. Wiring, switch and some relays.

 

[Hay Dude]

You couldn’t give me a manual transmission now. The automatics, most with manual shift feature are greatly improved and make driving so much easier.

Heck my IH 7500 dump has a Allison 3500 series 5 speed and it’ll pull like a train.
Looking at buying an IH tandem axle hay truck and I won’t buy one without an allison auto.

 

[KeithT]

There was a recall on early 2020 super duty 10-sp transmission. The first gear (planetary) was not properly hardened and could degrade over time leading to transmission fluid contamination and then transmission failure. I have a 2020 F350 PSD, I had the recall recently completed. I have 27K miles, never a problem. No problems at all before or after the defective part replacement.

 

[Muley Gil]

Sorry to hear of your troubles. Ford lost me with the 6.0/6.4 diesel debacles. My brother and I had 13 Ford vehicles between us. His old F350 with 6.9 or 7.3 diesel 4-speed was bulletproof and how Ford earned their reputation. I went to Chevy 2500 6.0l and another bulletproof truck, except for rust. Now I have a ‘14 Dodge Cummins 3500 with Aisin, knocks down 20.5 real mpg on highway weighing 9500lbs. Might look there next, but can’t say of newer trucks. The smog equipment DEF stuff is killing these rigs. No longer 500k mile engines with smog hooked up.
While stationed in Bosnia years back had use of a Toyota Highlander (I think) with diesel and 4-spd. Basically a Suburban with a manual and a diesel, nice rig. Not a fan of any Jap trucks, but that was a good rig.

I was in Kosovo from 2002 to 2004, as an international police officer. We had Toyota 4Runners with the diesel engine and a 5 speed manual transmission. Those were pretty much bulletproof. They survived being driven by third world types.

 

[Gem99ultra]

So I have been a Ford guy since about 2003.. Had probably 15 of them or more. Currently have 3 of them. I bought a 2020 F450 Limited to use primarily for towing a 19K pound 5th wheel and occasional other towing needs. Went out this am to hook up a trailer and the wrench light came on.. Then the truck wouldn't move in drive or reverse... I shut the truck off and restarted it, Could then move it in Drive as well as reverse.. But the wrench light came right back on.. Off to the inter web I go and apparently the 10 speed transmission is a problem child in these trucks.. Have an appointment this week at the dealer to look at it. Truck has 15k miles on it so its under warranty.. Hopefully its a simple fix and does not tie up the rig long... Its supposed to be pulling our camper to Fla next month..

Ford 2019 and 2020 10-speed transmission have a serious defect, a defect that Ford does not seem to be able to correct. Son's 2020 10-speed F150 Lariat cost him over $8K in (non)repair bills and another $40K in lost trade-in value for a 2023 model. He had both Ford attempt repairs as well as certified transmission shops. None we able to FIX the problem of the 2 years of figihting the problem.
Sorry, this is of no help to you, but you sure aren't alone with the problem. Good luck.