miketphoto Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Greetings, I just bought a 1993 with no owners manual. What is the E-AT switch on the dash? And how do you use it? Also, I have noticed that mine sits a little lower in the back than it does in the front. Is this an indication of a crapped out rear suspension? Lastly, what viscosity oil should I be running? I live in NC so temperature is moderate and I do a mix of short drives and some longer commutes. Thanks Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 1)E-AT is for power or normal mode. Power holds the transmission in gear a little longer before shifting up. 2) Probably sagging rear springs. It's not uncommon on older rigs. If you want to lift, search Jeep Grand Cherokee coils. If you want to go back to stock height, get a new set of stock springs 3) 5w30 Oh, and Welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketphoto Posted June 2, 2011 Author Share Posted June 2, 2011 Thanks for the quick reply. How does the E-AT differ from the overdrive button? Seems like they do the same thing? (Please excuse my ignorance, I have never had a truck with either switch.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Overdrive off turns your 4 speed transmission, into a 3 speed transmission. No overdrive. Power mode will still allow for overdrive to engage, but it will hold gears longer before shifting, to keep the revs higher if you're towing/hauling. A combination of the two is probably best if you've got a heavy load. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketphoto Posted June 2, 2011 Author Share Posted June 2, 2011 Ok that makes sense. Thanks for the education. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Also, in hilly country, especially when towing, it is a good idea to disengage the overdrive. It is better for the tranny and the VG30 motor has no issues with revving high. Personally I run 10-40 oil out here in Cali. B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RustyButTrusty Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Greeting from Winston-Salem! I personally run 10w30 in mine year round, and it seems to do just fine. However in winter months I do allow the engine to run for about 30 seconds before putting it in drive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cachefinder Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 (edited) Also, in hilly country, especially when towing, it is a good idea to disengage the overdrive. It is better for the tranny and the VG30 motor has no issues with revving high. Personally I run 10-40 oil out here in Cali. B I live just down hill from the OP in South Carolina...been running 5W-30 for years (got my 92 SE new in 92) but I had some 10w-40 I needed to get rid of and it substantially quieted down/eliminated the valve-train chatter I had before. That is with ~323000 miles. I'll likely stick with that...since I got 20MPG on that first tank of gas. Edited June 2, 2011 by Cachefinder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nismothunder Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 Welcome to the forum, Everyone has answered your Q's. Dont ask anything about oil(there is a open thread on it thats long), this is a biggie because everyone has there own choices on it. The factory reconmmends 5w30 -10w40 dpending on your weather type. I can personally adgree that a 5w30 or 10w30 is the best for northern areas. But I will give one word of advice, do not run any 5w-20 in this engine. It doesnts matter what people say, 5w-20 is way to thin for a 15+ year old engine, it may provide a little more mpg but it will burn off in 1500 miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketphoto Posted June 2, 2011 Author Share Posted June 2, 2011 Thanks everyone for all of the advice. This seems to be a great forum with good folks on it! I look forward to posting some more as things arise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 (edited) I only use overdrive once I'm up to about fifty, and I've yet to find a situation where I needed the E-AT "power" setting. The overdrive makes the trans heat up more during stop and go traffic, or city driving, or towing, or driving 4x4. (Heat and automatics don't like each other.) It also makes the truck sluggish at lower speeds (it feels like there's a little old lady pedaling as hard as she can under the hood, especially on hills). It's a highway gear. Turning the overdrive off also gives you more engine braking when you let off the gas. Let off in overdrive and you coast; disengage the overdrive and the truck slows pretty quickly. My commute includes a couple decent-sized hills, and in underdrive (dunno what else to call it) I seldom have to touch the brakes. Also, according to my dad, don't use overdrive in snow. Apparently it kicks the gearing around more, making the truck more likely to slip, or something. I don't usually drive over fifty in snow, so I don't worry about it. (I'm new here too, and sites like this are why I love the Internet. ) Edited June 3, 2011 by Slartibartfast Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nismothunder Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 (edited) How 'bout saying Locked out instead of under drive. Under drive is gear reduction. Say first gear is 6.12, so an under drive(second box) would be 20% more then that. Or 7.344. Then there are gear splitters... Hell i'll just post a link for everyone. Splitter/underdrives Edited June 3, 2011 by nismothunder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 ^ Hadn't thought of that. Locked out it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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