I recently discovered that I have had the Overdrive button on all the time, and I like to know if its supposed to be that way, or Am I supposed ot leave it off with the little light on...("O/D Off")
Has me a little confused w/ there being a light to tell me its off and all

 

Unless you want to fill the tank on a continual basis, the best advice I can give is to leave overdrive on and the power button off. This will save you gas since it will optimize usage. Now when you want that quick burst of power then OD off and power on. The lights on dash are there to let you know status.

 

I have tested my fuel economy on both power on and power off settings and found no difference in fuel use at all. However turning the overdrive off could alter the fuel use as the motor revs harder and thus increase fuel use.

 

O/D stands for overdrive !!
This doesn't mean leave it on all the time !!
Lugging around at 60 or 80 KPH in top gear loads the engine up , over time this is detrimental to the engines health .
I never have O/D on til after 90 KPH and it use's bugger all more fuel , fuel is wayyyyyy cheaper than having to replace your engine earlier than you should !!
Not to mention [ but I am ] you can't accelerate quickly if you have the O/D on a low speeds .

 

This has to be one of the funniest threads I've seen on a car forum. What are you guys "down under" smokein? And can you ship some to us?

 

Okay... I think you have the idea... but reveresed. Overdrive is always ON... unless you turn if off. By turning it off, (lights shows up) your telling your transmssion not to shift into 4th gear. Thats all. So unless your hauling something heavy at low speeds, I would leave it ON (light off).

 

I disagree , a few extra rev's will be better for your engine in the long run rather than making it slug , it's not actually an extra gear , just a torque convertor lockout , stops any slippage .
O/D off [ light on ] till at least 80 KPH which in US speak is 50 MPH is a good thing , hey this engine rev's to 7000 RPM and it's only 4 litres and you want to make it mope around down at 1500 RPM ???
No right , make it sing !!

 

Are you serious? Did it ever occur to you that more reves = more wear?

Overdrive is an extra gear... its called 4th in the case of the first gens. Where are you getting this information from?

 

Think about what you do when running an engine in ?
You are told NOT to load it up and make it lug !!
A few more rev's means lighter load , what would be easier on you , lifting one big heavy 100 Kg box from here to there or lifting 4 x 25 Kg box's from here to there ?
Same principle applies to your engine , more rev's = lighter load = less wear to a certain point .
All engines have a optimum working range and although I don't know exactly what the 1uzfe range is , I can say that it's not down at 1500 odd RPM !!
As to the gearbox if you call a submarine an airplane , no matter how many times you say it , IT STILL CAN'T FLY , calling the gearbox a four speed doesn't alter the fact that it really is just a 3 speed with a torque convertor lockout , what would you call it ?
Calling it a four speed sounds better and is more conveniant , the later model [ late 98 ] is actually a four speed with a convertor lockout , again called a 5 speed for the same reasons .
Even at high revs a torque convertor has slippage , locking it so it is a direct drive has the effect of an extra gear .
Go and talk to an engineer about loads on engines .

 

Why would you take off overdrive to go around town? The only way I would take the overdrive off is to have some fun. Otherwise you are just wasting gas and adding more stress to the tranny with elevated heat.

 

the overdrive is in fact the 4th gear selector in the ucf 10.11.20 this is because these cars came with 4spd auto trannies (on the ucf10.11 it was L, S, D, and the OD switch that selected gears 1-4, on the UCF20 it was L, 2, 3, and D)

 

So all you guys are telling me that if you had a 5 speed manual , you would all be driving around town in fifth gear ??
Seeing as fifth gear in a 5 speed manual is essentually the O/D .

 

lol, this thread is too funny

 

this is an AUTOMATIC trans your talking about, keeping it in O/D (ie-4th in ur case) does NOT mean that it will stay constantly ini that gear. it basically shifts up when u hit a constant speed.

the transmission "kicks down" or downshifts when it senses that more torque is needed to get the car moving or moving faster if it is already in motion.


i agree, this thread is flippin hilarious, this is some basic basic auto trans stuff. (no offense )

 

When I had a 5 speed I would go through the gears as normal. The only time I would stay in a lower gear and keep my revs up was to catch my powerband and catch some unsuspecting fool on the road. By the time the other guy is getting power I am shifting into the next gear at 7000RPM. I miss that SE maxima sometimes.