Manual-vs-Automatic

[ODAMO]

Which tranny works the best for off raod? Which one makes the most of the I5 engine?

[ODAMO]

Which tranny works the best for off raod? Which one makes the most of the I5 engine?

[f5fstop]

My opinion, the auto is better for off-roading. I have tried both, and when crawling up a mountain or rock, you don't have to worry about riding a clutch when going over large boulders, etc. You just can't let the clutch out all the way to crawl real slow. (Jeep allows you to remove the clutch fuse to allow you to crawl the jeep with the ignition switch...as you turn the key, the vehicle jumps forward and the low torque starter actually moves the vehicle.)
Some will like the manual.

[trebor]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Some will like the manual. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I perfer the manuel (which I did not get, My wife won that battle) over the auto for the feel of the engine and the lack of lost torque. I know the H3 auto is pretty tite in the torque loss area but you do lose some in the upper end when you need the momentum to get up that last little bit of that steep sandy hill. On the other hand if you are not experienced with your vehicle you will have the same problems that the reviewer had in the Truck Trend article, always hunting for the right gear.

Most rigs and race trucks today have an auto in them, one less thing to worry about, don't have to find the right gear.

I am kinda old school and perfer to have a little more control.

[ODAMO]

Is the auto the same one thats found in the Colorado? Does it have a lock-up converter?

[evldave]

Thinking longer term, once you put that supercharger on there, the stick is much more simple, which means less things to break with the stress of offroad.

Also, an automatic doesn't have full lockup in 1st gear (I think), so you can't use the compression of the engine going downhill to slow you down (and to me, downhill is a helluva lot more scary than uphill). Had a friend once with a mid 90s cherokee that wired his automatic to lock up the converter in 1st gear (with a switch, it will stall the engine if you stop).

I have a stick in my Cherokee and it took a long time for me to learn how to use it offroad. In my opinion, it's more work, and takes longer to learn, but if you are serious about offroading it will be worth it.

So what did I do? I got the auto. go figure...