How the heck do you guys back up a loaded tanker with an automatic transmission??? This crap is impossible. I miss having a manual. The slosh just overheats the clutch on this dang automatic.

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bizzywhipped@reddit

I don’t haul liquids but my buddy does. He says pull ups is what gets to your tractor. Gotta learn to do it in one smooth motion. I can’t do it with dry van most days. Skill I guess.

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With my manual I was able to feather the clutch with the liquid movement, but the automatic is like hurchy lurchy and when it lurches it causes the slosh going backwards which then stops the tractor in its tracks. It makes me look like a damn noob in front of everyone at the truck stop haha!

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CleanSeaPancake@reddit

I've noticed some autos you can actually feather the clutch just by feathering the throttle, while others like to hurka durka Bing bang Oops anytime you make contact with the throttle

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Vast_Obligation8213@reddit

Yea, it seems like he just has either an older automatic or just a shit truck in general

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legendofthegreendude@reddit

In freightshakers, at least the one my company has, you got to turn on creep mode. It gives you more wiggle room.

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StolenRage@reddit

How do you turn on creep mode? I have had it turn off plenty of times, but never figured out how to turn it on in the first place.

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legendofthegreendude@reddit

For mine its under the transmission settings, same area you find the eCoast setting.

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StolenRage@reddit

Heh. Mine doesn't have that.

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CleanSeaPancake@reddit

I've had some where you could go even slower than creep mode, truly just like floating the clutch, and others for some reason will not do that

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ValuableShoulder5059@reddit

I love creep mode in the farm tractor. 0.03mph. Also measured in feet per hour or maybe more accurately in feet per day. She will pull hard trying to do that speed too.

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Down2EatPossum@reddit

Also with the lightest taps the the brake pedal on a freightliner, interrupts the clutch.

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Peterbiltpiper@reddit

I hate automatics!

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Nero-Danteson@reddit

I have a shaker and just leave it in manual mode. Granted I'm dry van so the most I carry is like bottles of water

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Financial-Walk-4660@reddit

Do tanks still do this if they have the baffles inside the tank?

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SaltyTips@reddit

Baffles only slow down the slosh by putting incomplete walls and catch the momentum over a longer duration make it more of a smooth shove not a sudden lurch when the fluid hits the front of the tank. If your jerking back and forth it's gonna slosh no matter what. Personally in my KW 680 I put it in reverse and let off the break until it's just depressed and it will start pushing me back in a creepish mode. The way my trainer explained it was use just your big toe to regulate how much the hill assist will engage.

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Financial-Walk-4660@reddit

Thank you

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Inevitable_Meet_7374@reddit

The truck will either not move or take off at mach 3. Its so damn frustrating

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Ancient-Composer7789@reddit

Is your tractor a Peterbilt? I've had the lurches with a Peterbilt automatic transmission. Volvos don't lirch.

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Riyeko@reddit

Someone once told me to put the auto into auto mode to back up and deactivate the hill assist.

Hope that helps (I still have issues)

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Prankishmanx21@reddit

Try disabling hill start assist. Should be a dash switch for it.

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e0240@reddit

That's what I think about. Who is watching and judging. Then I'm like can they do any better. Probably not.

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Jacktheforkie@reddit

I’m driving a rigid curtainsider and the auto makes me look like I’m a noob

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Chris_MS99@reddit

Turn off the hill start assist if you can, it’s probably engaging too often when it doesn’t need to and holding the brakes when you need it to creep. Then you have to goose it to push past the brake assist and you end up moving too fast and too hard.

I haul fuel and have to get into some pretty tight stations and it’s fucking terrible when the hill start gets all inspired. Don’t do much backing in a TNT

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Montavious_Mole@reddit

Freightshaker?

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RappingRacoon@reddit

Just do it slower bro 😂 I don’t understand the hate towards automatics like seriously. I’ve been driving for 8 years and been around the block with autos and manuals. I’ll take auto any day of the week. Stop and go traffic? Auto. highway? Auto. Concrete mixer curb Jobs? Auto tanker? Auto. I’m hourly bruh. I Take it slow.

It does not over heat the clutch. I’ve driven smooth bore food grade and baffled non food grade tankers. It’s not a big deal if you just do it slow and smooth. Remember, slow is safe. Good luck driver

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pixeltok@reddit (OP)

Haha definitely! But it for sure overheats the clutch when the "clutch overheat" warning is going off hahaha!

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BigSchmitty@reddit

I’ve gotten that warning in my day cab twin screw cascadia. Ease on the throttle to reverse and the truck bounces really bad, so I ease off. Then back on again to continue backing and I get the bouncing again. Then the clutch overheat warning. 272k on mine, I’ve seen other drivers at my company have the bouncing issue too, even with an empty trailer.

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Responsible_CDN_Duck@reddit

"clutch overheat" warning is going off

It's important to realize that's not normal, so there is an equipment or operator issue.

What trips some guys up is they try and drive the automatic in the rig the same way they drive an auto in their car, or like a manual.

Break out the manual. Read through, and see what the rig is expecting you to do. May be a subtle change, could be big.

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RappingRacoon@reddit

This right here. You can’t feather an auto the same way as a manual because depending on the transmission shift points and previous wear/tear, it could buck like a damn horse. There’s so many factors that can be overheating that clutch but none of it is normal. Also when you’re backing or doing a pull up, you can’t hit the throttle immediately or too fast, otherwise yeah it’ll heat up. that the liquid surge adds tens of thousands of pounds in kinetic energy to the clutch/driveline/transmission… everything basically… so yeah it can cause a lot of issues.

And also agree that the model and year of trucks can operate completely differently. I’ve driven various Volvos across different years, and each one shifts and drives in its own unique way. It’s all a learning curve. Patience is a virtue.

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aDragonfruitSwimming@reddit

Reversing with Eaton AMTs is a pain in the butt.

You have the choice of 'nearly moving' or 'launch'.

Good luck.

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Present-Ambition6309@reddit

Well ya don’t get all sloshy with her first of all, can’t take her home that drunk. Got have some finesse with her. Ease in to it, slowly apply pressure to the pedal.. 🤣

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AndromedanPrince@reddit

my tank is a whore and doesnt behave sometimes, i gotta force her to do right

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Present-Ambition6309@reddit

Careful good way to catch a domestic 🤣

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RevolutionaryDebt365@reddit

If it's an automated trans, have the it set to blended pedal in reverse.

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Ambitious_Air_6103@reddit

You will get used to it Oldschool

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Raptor2Five@reddit

Try turning off hill start assist, helps a good bit in freightliners at least

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ElectronicGarden5536@reddit

Look for a manual setting that keeps the truck in a gear. Its how i used to drive my tank so it would throw me into neutral to save fuel. Spooky just hitting a curve loaded and youre not putting power down.

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First_Strength_3289@reddit

Git guud newb 😂

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shadowmib@reddit

I like the automatic for just driving around but for backing up I'd really prefer manual where I can feather the clutch. I drive dry van but it pisses me off when I'm trying to back up to hook up to a trailer and I give it a little pedal and it doesn't hardly want to move so I give it slightly more and it decides to back into the trailer going 70 and I'm afraid I'm going to shear the kingpin off

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AndromedanPrince@reddit

loaded tanker does thw same thing. ive gotten the finesse down more now but it use to be all or nothin lolol

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SaltyTips@reddit

On most autos you should never be touching the pedal if you trying to back up on trailers. On mine I'm never off the break, sometimes it takes the electronics a second to engage but just letting off the break until you start moving and then feathering the break like you'd feather the clutch. Just one toe breaking a hair to slow you down and off a hair to let it push harder.

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skipei@reddit

Got baffles in our tankers, so just like any other regular trailer

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pixeltok@reddit (OP)

Yeahhhhh I'm not so lucky all of our trailers are smooth bore except for a few compartmented trailers

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AndromedanPrince@reddit

schneider?

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edsavage404@reddit

Does your truck not have creep mode?

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AndromedanPrince@reddit

how do i activate it? it comes on by itself on loose gravel lol

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AndromedanPrince@reddit

it sucks especially with something under 8lbs pg, u in reverse but it pushes u forward. u gotta make sure u lined up how u need and give it a lil extra gas. trying to ease it will always be a struggle.

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EscapeWestern9057@reddit

It's not an automatic if it has a clutch, it's a automatically shifted manual transmission also called an "auto stick". Basically a manual transmission that uses solenoids and a computer to do your shifts.

A true automatic won't have a clutch to overheat and will use planetary gear sets.

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Regular_Doughnut8964@reddit

My sister needs a creep mode.... should see some of the things that follow her around...lol

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HopeItMakesYaThink@reddit

When I was forced to move tankers around the lot, it was very important to NEVER shift between drive and reverse quickly. Come to a full stop for around two seconds to let fluids settle. Only then do you go from reverse to drive and vice versa. Keep the speed low until you are comfortable with how fluids react. When you begin moving tankers, treat them like the fluids inside are irritable and just begging for you to upset them. With time, you learn their particular personalities.

Some fluids move faster, others are viscous and build up more force when they slam the front/back of the tanker. As long as you roll slow and shift between drive and reverse even slower, you should be fine.

Oh! Since you are driving automatic, turn off your cruise control and push the negative setting until your creep RPM is as low as it can go. 600-700 is ideal when nursing a tanker. Again, don’t shift between drive and reverse quickly at all. You will do great. Everyone warms up the transmission the first few times, sometimes going into weeks. Be patient. You got this.

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ChiTruckDGAF@reddit

Yup. I have to stop for 5 seconds every once in a while to let things settle down occasionally. I try to be super gentle on the throttle and brakes but it still happens. What kind of truck is it?

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AdventurousLawyer646@reddit

Bet it's a freightliner 💵

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ChiTruckDGAF@reddit

My guess too. Three years of driving one without a stick and I'm getting tired of them.

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AdventurousLawyer646@reddit

1.5 here hated it out da gate. Don't like any automated trans actually. Nothing but problems for me every since. The kw prior to this freightliner was better with op's complaint.

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Actual-Media897@reddit

You'll get used to it and in no time you'll be able to back up with out even noticing. Plus all the newer trucks are way better with the automatics and feels like a 4 wheeler.

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Inevitable_Meet_7374@reddit

I hate backing up any automatic truck

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daemonescanem@reddit

Have zero problems with this. We don't have a customer where we don't have to back up.

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RdyPAINmoveDISCIPLIN@reddit

I can't back up regardless

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JengaKittens@reddit

Unfortunately, same 😔

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TheHookahgreecian2@reddit

I pay a yard dog to back in for me

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SHADOWJACK2112@reddit

And I accept that gratuity

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Present-Ambition6309@reddit

You forgot the landing gear!

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TheHookahgreecian2@reddit

Lol 😁 anytime

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Present-Ambition6309@reddit

I sit on my catwalk with tears and a cardboard sign…. 🤣

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4d72426f7566@reddit

Check out the song, Give me 40 Acres by The Willis Brothers

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Spankpocalypse_Now@reddit

Same. The surge is the least of my fucking problems when I’m backing up.

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SellingOutOfMXCO@reddit

Get your rub railin, kynedyne strapping, come along chaining skateboard outta here!!!

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J4R131@reddit

Same here lmao

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pixeltok@reddit (OP)

You aren't supposed to say that out loud lol

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TastyOpossum09@reddit

Don’t stop backing. If you do just pull forward.

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Maleficent-Ad5232@reddit

Just take your time, go show and go easy and always brake softly.

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santanzchild@reddit

Stop doing a dozen pull ups. If you have to do more than two the slosh is going to start getting you.

Remember smooth is your friend. Hard breaking and sudden acceleration is only goimg to exacerbate the problem.

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snarksneeze@reddit

Unless you time it just right...

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Dangerous-Physics-37@reddit

Practice makes perfect …..

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TruckNoob@reddit

In most automated transmissions there should be a programming option to let the first bit of your accelerator travel control the clutch. For exactly this purpose. You can have it set to one of 3 main behaviors for both forward and reverse. one is urge to move which is when you let off the brakes it will slowly or not so slowly engage the clutch until you start moving the second is “Blended pedal” where your accelerator controls it and to go above idle you apply full accelerator The last is standard which the initial movement of the accelerator controls the clutch. If you move it more than a very small amount it will speed up the engine and close the clutch.

This is the manual for eaton Ultrashift series. Starting from page 10 explains the 3 behaviors i mentioned Most automated transmissions will have something similar with whatever terminology they like to use.

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TruckNoob@reddit

Understanding how its programmed to behave helps considerably, and also will make faults easier to identify when it starts to behave abnormally.

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DMEuphoric@reddit

I’m LTL and had this problem except I was slamming into docks.. something that’s helps a lot with the automatics I’ve noticed is turning off hill assist while backing up

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LongHaulinTruckwit@reddit

Ahhh the Lurch. Gotta love it.

You have to learn to use the brake pedal strategically.

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onetwentytwo_1-8@reddit

Go slower.

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Lopsided-Original865@reddit

I haven't really noticed a difference, but 99% of my day is pull through lol. But I'm local, so I don't have to mess with truck stops other than the fuel island

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RKK-Crimsonjade@reddit

I think he is talking about the tendency of them to stop while your backing up. Have to hit the gas to get it moving again. I see that being a problem with a tanker/ heavy haul

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DblDtchRddr@reddit

Which is easy to fix - hit the HSA button and turn it off while you're backing. Hell, I pull boxes and I do that bumping docks so I don't slam them.

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Liz4984@reddit

Yup! My school called me “cone killer” when I went backwards.

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Gonzotrucker1@reddit

I drove an automatic truck one day and that was enough for me. Trying to back into a dock sucked. Every time I bumped the dock it pushed me forward again. Almost impossible to get to go backwards just an inch.

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GenoIndeed@reddit

If there’s a button for turning off hill assist, it should help since the brakes will release when you let off them instead of holding for a bit longer

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haydukelives56@reddit

i used to haul liquid eggs in a smoothbore tanker in a freightliner cascadia. i’ve found that the best way to avoid the lurching aspect of reversing in an automatic is to pull ahead as far as whatever yard you’re in will allow so you can start backing with basically straight tires. then as you slowly start to gain rear momentum you can turn the wheel gently, which allows for fluid motion and momentum to work to your advantage and minimize slosh. however this really only works when you have a big ass hard to work with, which happens less often than we’d all hope. otherwise just go slow and find what works best for you

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clarobert@reddit

I do it several times a day -not a big deal. If your contents are sloshing, you approached your set up too fast. Slow movements while setting up and while backing.

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thestug93@reddit

You kind of have to work with the slosh. Sometimes if you time it right you can start backing just as liquid pushes you in the direction you want to go. If you miss time the slosh all you get is clutch slip and you go nowhere. If thats the case don't force it, just brake or be patient and wait for the push. The more you force the truck to move the jerkier it gets and the more it sloshes and then you're just working against yourself.

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TruckinTuba@reddit

I thankfully never had to, only auto we had was a spare, and the work I did rarely called for backing up, even parking

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Foreign_Hyena_6622@reddit

Some autos have a slow mode for reversing push th button and good to go

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OnAJourneyMan@reddit

Never hauled tanked, can’t speak to the slosh but I do dislike automatics for backing, the creep mode is super annoying, trying to use the brake to moderate speed just kills the creep mode and you come to a stop. Makes it a little more difficult to hit a dock gently and smoothly which I pride myself on. That said I’ll still take an automatic any day of the week. It’s not a huge issue, just a minor annoyance to work around.

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Equivalent-Ad2783@reddit

I press the button after I do a hard break after a 180.

I just roll backwards. I don't even need the gas.

There's working and working start, son.