Tow/Haul button not working.

[Roysen]

Tow/Haul button not working. (SOLVED)

This is my first post here on GMT800 so "Hi everyone".
My car is a Tahoe LT 2002 and my TOW/HAUL button have stopped working. There is no light up in dash and no difference on the gear up or down. I have a Haynes Repair Manual but I cannot find this button in any of the wiring diagram. Do anyone have any wiring diagram for this or some good advise how to troubleshoot this?

 

[Roysen]

Solution for TOW/HAUL button.

Found the problem with my TOW/HAUL button. I found this video on youtube and my wiring was broken at the same place as in the video. I just repaired the cable and everything is okay again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtXPwPrXhFc

 

[hotrodpc]

That's a very common problem. Someone needs to do a Tech Write Up with pics and instruction to posted up and a Sticky made on how to correct this.

 

[silverado13]

mine wont work if i just push the button but if i pull out on the shifter as if i was changing gears, and then push the button, it works fine

 

[hotrodpc]

Very well could be the same thing wrong with yours. And when you're pulling up on the shifter it making the ends of the wires touch.

All the Tow/Haul mode does is change shift points and delays and/or disables converter lock up.

Alot of guys get a dual tune done to their trucks. Then the switch is used for Tow/ Haul Ass mode. Actually, one tune is for econo mpg and then hit the switch now it's Haul Ass performance mode. Find you someone who burns chips and it can sure be done. But not with broken wires in the switch.

 

[burgundybeast04]

Same problem with my truck

 

[silverado13]

yeah ive read into people taking them apart and re soldering them but aint no buddy got time for dat

 

[burgundybeast04]

Maybe if I ever decide I want to tow something I'll look in to it haha, I've had my truck just over a year now and all I've had to haul is a truck load of wood so not too worried about it

 

[Nasty02Avalanche]

The Tow / Haul inop problem is a known problem.

Soldering the wire will not solve the problem, the harness is already compromised. Just think about how many times it has been shifted from park to drive to reverse to park.

The repair involves installing a new shift lever and taking apart the cover around the column.

A more simple repair is to take apart the column, take the wire off the plug, solder a simple two conductor wire to a switch / mounted beneath the dash.
When you want to haul something, just click the switch one time and it will activate the tow haul mode. A push button momentary switch would work best. Just do not leave it switched on, or you will have transmission problems somewhere down the road.
The switch - if just toggled momentarily will automatically reset when you shut off the vehicle.

 

[silverado13]

ive towed light things with my 1997 Z71 and it didnt have tow haul mode and nothing wver went wrong

 

[Goat]

Imma just fix mine where did ya get the cable from and what did it cost

 

[Nasty02Avalanche]

I've towed light things with my 1997 Z71 and it didn't have tow haul mode and nothing ever went wrong

I'm not sure, because I never asked the Engineer that worked for GM that I knew personally that was the plant manager of the Oshawa and later was transferred down to Michigan to the GMC truck plant the reason why they incorporated the Tow / Haul mode.
My guess is that they knew that the new brakes they were using were not capable of stopping the truck on a long term basis or while towing a heavy load. The newer engine with more horsepower and a truck with less weight and a frame that was stronger then anything previous all lead to a lot of problems that were already anticipated before the truck was ever built.

Just the fact that GM changed the design of the transmission in 1999, 2000 and 2001 tells me that they knew that they had a problem with the design of the transmission, but that they needed something right now to put into the truck and so they didn't care if they built a bunch of junk. I would guess that they figured the failure rate of the transmission to be somewhere around 10% during the warranty period and that if they could get the owner beyond the warranty period, the owner would have to adsorb the expense of having the transmission repaired or replaced out of their own pocket.

When you have 3 model years and none of the transmissions interchange - you know that they knew that there was a problem and they were trying to fix the problem as they continued making the truck.
The way they fixed the problem was to make the transmission longer, put more clutches and steels in the clutch pack and a heavier shell of a different design and change the length of the drive-shafts.

 

[Goat]

I never used it just hit it one day and nothing happened lol I pull a racecar every 2 weeks

 

[Nasty02Avalanche]

The tow / haul switch holds the transmission in gear longer and shifts faster than the stock configuration.
It also uses some dynamic braking, applies a lower gear while freewheeling downhill and applying the brake.,
My guess is that you were manually shifting the transmission, which causes the wire to the switch to fail and eventually the transmission will fail when the Shell breaks.

There is whole web pages devoted to the shell problems and cures.
The weaker - standard shell in a 02 Chevy would crack longitudinally.
The heavier stainless steel shell would crack around the weld where the shell was attached to the hub spline. Some failures would even take the splines off the shaft.

 

[silverado13]

The tow / haul switch holds the transmission in gear longer and shifts faster than the stock configuration.
It also uses some dynamic braking, applies a lower gear while freewheeling downhill and applying the brake.,
My guess is that you were manually shifting the transmission, which causes the wire to the switch to fail and eventually the transmission will fail when the Shell breaks.

There is whole web pages devoted to the shell problems and cures.
The weaker - standard shell in a 02 Chevy would crack longitudinally.
The heavier stainless steel shell would crack around the weld where the shell was attached to the hub spline. Some failures would even take the splines off the shaft.

i appreciate your productive input

 

[burgundybeast04]

Never thought of this until now and probably no one here will know the answer to this, but if I were to put my truck in towing mode on my edge evolution programmer would it accomplish the same sort of thing?

 

[silverado13]

ehhhhhh, i guess, but its pointless to delay the shift points during daily operation

 

[burgundybeast04]

Edge evolution *** I meant lol damn autocorrect ....

 

[silverado13]

still doesnt add the dynamic braking though

 

[hotrodpc]

I actually like parts of this idea. To must make another switch, possibly drill a small hole in the column cover and install a micro switch into a non moving part and out of the way of any moving parts so that the wires don't get compromised. You could actually even use a pilot lit micro switch if you wanted as an added tell tale light along with the Tow/Haul lit up on the dash. Most won't use the Tow Haul much anyway. I rarely did, even when towing unless it was quite heavy.