just picked up a 3rd gen auto runner, and I'm coming from a 2nd gen 5spd runner.
On my old runner I used to shift into 4 low and use second gear to crawl down hills with the engine controlling my speed. Is there any equivalent way to do this in a auto runner? or do you pretty much just have to ride the brakes the whole way down hills?

 

4 Lo and downshift the auto.

You should be in 4 Lo most of the time, it's easier on the whole drive train especially the auto trans. You should also manually shift your auto to keep the power up and the trans/torque converter locked-up.

 

I second this. I just keep mine in manual 1st when in 4lo and going down a steep decent. Only problem (a good one too) is that it's sometimes too slow, but at least I'm not running the risk of loosing my brakes on a steep incline. Now I have heard of people even shifting into 2nd gear in 4lo but I'm a bit queasy about that and not experienced enough to advise for or against it.

 

You won't get as good engine braking with an auto, but it is there if you manually shift to low. You might have to come to a complete stop before it will down shift to 1st.

 

4LO and 2nd with the auto works pretty darn good on steep hill descents. If you're still going too fast, shift the tranny into "L". You'll still need the brakes somewhat, but the vast majority of the braking will still be handled by the drivetrain so you'll feather the brakes instead of laying in to them. One thing to consider is that if you're driving in 4LO when the tranny is also in "L" (or even "2nd"), the engine rpms will sail up to redline very fast so don't forget to put it back in "D" after the hill flattens out. Otherwise the tranny is locked into that gear and will not upshift, it'll just let your engine rev up to 6,7,8K rpm or higher and blow up.

 

Drive in 4Lo? In that sense wouldn't you be better off in 4Hi? Just curious, as I'd think the low range gearing in 4Lo wouldn't be good in the higher gears. Not being a smart arse, I just simply don't know.

 

If you're keeping it under 10-20 mph, then driving in 4LO in "D" is pretty good for trails. But 4HI is better if you're going to go faster than that. The point I was getting at is if you're in 4LO and you have the tranny in "L" and you're going down a steep hill, at least put it back in "D" once you're at the bottom. It's easy to forget and you can easily over-rev your engine in "L" (in 4HI too). But to clarify, there's nothing wrong with driving in 4LO and in "D" and going through the whole range of the tranny gears.

 

Thanks Brian, you've just save me some time and aggravation. I got to the point I would just stop, put it in neutral, then shift into 4hi then back to the drive gear. I realize about over-revving the engine and quickly change the 4wd setting when needed.

 

Glad I could help. I tend to use 4LO a lot because I'm in the mountains 90% of the time, but on the desert trails I'm in 4HI and 2WD most of the time because they tend to be flatter and faster trails. I much prefer wheeling slow and crawling rather than hauling ass, but that's probably due to the fact that my suspension is stiff and isn't really set up for soaking up ruts at 50 miles per hour. Mine's better for steep slow ascents, crawling, and I pieced together my lift and goodies mostly for mobbin' in deep snow (my favorite kind of wheelin).

 

You may also need to actually give it a little gas so the engine revs up and the torque converter can build pressure to lock up (torque converter lock up is a good thing). This may sound a little weird to give it gas to go slower but it is true.

An auto will tend to unlock and coast unless you give it some gas.

 

4lo and 1st gear.

 

4LO and L is the only way i make it down my driveway in the winter sometimes. Seems as good as anything...