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RE: Anybody got an '09 Ram yet?
Whats up with the rear bench? I thought it was like the other offering from the competition. Remember, this is the first run. The 8ft oprion may be available next year. Look how long it took GM to put their 6 speed in their Silverados.
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Keith99RS
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10/10/08 10:55am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Ford 6 Speed Automatic Tows 9200lbs? - How So?
Same way the Titan tows 9,500lbs with 3.31's. 6 speed transmission allows change in the final drive ratio with a lower 1st gear..
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Keith99RS
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10/09/08 09:29pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: DIY: make your own leveling blocks better, cheaper
Bright orange is priceless when it comes to not losing any of them. Probably the intent.
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Keith99RS
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10/09/08 09:27pm |
Travel Trailers
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RE: Anybody got an '09 Ram yet?
2004 Titans suffered from a bunch that madeit out with under filled rear diffs. There was a recall/TSB on this. The 2005MY was much better and the issues decreased as production went on. In almost all cases the failures were related to the spider gears "folding" and failing. Dana used a powdered metal manufacturing method for these gears and it appeared from the pieces parts I have seen in the diffs that failed they mushed over like they were never hardened fully. If you research the failures it reeks of a material defect, not an engineering defect. Failures were all over the board. There have been failures in Titans used as a soccer mom vehicle, meanwhile there are those who tow heavy with some frequency that have had no issues. The folks with multiple failures, one cannot discount some other problem or some form of user inflected issue. I just cannot fathom going through 3-4 axles. Sorry. That bucks the trend for first time failure percentage. The other area I personally have had problems with is rear axle seals. I have been through 3. No problems anymore. If one does not notice this leak in time it will run the diff low and cause overheating. Lets face it, many vehicle owners do the fill it with gas and oil style of maintenance. The diff replacement of choice is to go with a Detroit Tru Track. It eliminates the spider gears and I have yet to read about a Tru Track failure on TitanTalk. That is the weakest area of the truck and an area Dodge may have been able to help with. Other than that Nissan was doing just fine with a first entry into the fullsize club. They trumped what Toyota offered out of the gate with the first Tundras. Too bad gas prices hammered all the fullsized sales. Timing is everything.
That being said, the new Dodge does look nice and I will certainly give it a test drive. However I am probably going to be in the market for a 250/2500 model for my next truck. Hopefully Dodges styling looks good on their HD's too!
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Keith99RS
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10/08/08 02:11pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Blue tank use for black water??
Accidents may happen but *knock on wood* I have never had an issue with handling blackwater. Use care and proper procedure and it should not matter if you are draining it into a blue tote or a dump station. I treat my tote as if it were a waste tank. Regardless of what it has held, black or grey, it gets a thorough rinsing and chemical treatment as required. Blank tank draining is always done first and followed by grey tank draining every time I use it for that purpose. Same as when you dump at the dump station. I like the flexibility of not having to break camp just to dump 35-40 gallons of waste water. I bought my TT so I would not have to live like I was still tent camping and enjoy using the shower (still do military style but not to the point they are practically a sponge bath) and other facets that add waste water without having to be a total water mizer. FWIW my family of 3 goes 6 days or so by the time the black tank is needing an emptying. Our typical stay is about a week. Needless to say I am not using my tote a lot for the black tank. The black tank simply does not fill nearly as fast as the grey.
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Keith99RS
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10/08/08 12:02pm |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Who is leaving out this weekend & where are you going
Headed to Acadia, camping at Blackwoods with the In Laws for 8 days. It has become an annual trip for us. My 3.5yo son has been asking me when we are going for 3 weeks now! :)
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Keith99RS
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10/07/08 09:55pm |
Campgrounds, Resorts and Attractions
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RE: 2009 ford f150
Yes, I saw it there a couple of days ago. I am seriously considering trading my 2001 F-150 for a new 2009 version early next year.
However, my wife is still waiting for her new Ford Excape, which we ordered back on August 18th. We got word from our dealer a couple of weeks ago that the Excape may will not arrive before the end of this month, October. And it is just a regular XLT model, not a Hybrid.
If it takes Ford that long to deliver, I may reconsider whether or not to order a 2009 F-150.
:h Why are you waiting for an Escape? The dealer can't locate one for you? Almost two months is a long time for a nonhybrid and a vehicle that is pretty vanilla when it comes to options. It isn't like the Escape comes with a myriad of rare options one might want/need like some trucks do. The XLT is pretty much bread and butter. Just a little confused, especially as the 2008MY is winding down. There should be plenty. Did you ask some other dealers if they had access to any faster or even one in stock?
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Keith99RS
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10/07/08 09:01am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: running lights on travel trailer
Not sure who is worse here...
Oh, I have a hybrid, mine doesn't have canvas, and I DO have mini-blinds thank you.
Good grief.. this is all kinda silly....
Tenters, pop-ups, and hybrids don't have those "neat things called miniblinds". In fact, the canvas AMPLIFIES the light from those bozos. Makes the whole inside GLOW!
Well then, sounds like the PuP and Hybrid crowd need to go and buy a "normal" trailer so they can have those "neat miniblinds"! this way they won`t complain, but something tells me they like to complain anyway!
And you will buy me this "normal" trailer? No?
I don't have rights becuase I don't have what YOU consider a "normal" trailer?
I think he was referring to the canvas ends, not the solid side windows.
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Keith99RS
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10/07/08 05:35am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: My 6.0L gasser doesn't seem to be up for the task
Is your 5'er's 9500 lb estimate including it's pin weight and the hitch in the truck along with the truck's passengers? Most do not include the pin weight and that's another 1800 to maybe 2500 lbs additional to pull alone. At any rate, I'd actually weight ypur rig when loaded and ready to pull so you really know it's weight. The large diameter tires are of no help at all. As said, they alter your effective drive ratio at the ground surface considerably.
I am a little confused here as I think many others will be. Isn't the pin weight a percentage of the weight of the 5er? I know what you are saying about the hitch, but the pin weight thing makes no sense. If the TH weighs 9,500lbs, it weighs 9,500lbs. The pin weight would be how much of the TH weight is distributed to the pin.
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Keith99RS
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10/06/08 08:25am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: warped brake rotors?????
Bad castings, cheap rotors, overtightened lug nuts, and pads not properly seated. I do know that a friend had issues with his F350 and Napa rotors. Had them replaced real short 2X then went with another brand. Problem solved.
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Keith99RS
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10/06/08 08:00am |
Around the Campfire
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RE: My 6.0L gasser doesn't seem to be up for the task
You definitely need lower gears running 35's. Somewhere in the range of 4.56 or so to bring you back within the stock power range.
Another cheaper option would be to buy another set of rims equipped with stock tires which will give you back the power. I did this for a couple of years before I changed the gears in my Ford. Even with stock tires and about 7" of lift, stability was never really an issue.Part of the reason for the lift was so I could fit wider tires which were needed to be able to pull this truck and trailer through deep sugar sand. The thinner tire were sinking in the sand bad.
What did you do to the TH to stop it from sinking? Surely the TH tires are even narrower than the trucks were and it is just as heavy or heavier. What kind of tires are on it that needed a 7" lift for width? Just curious, not trying to be a pain.
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Keith99RS
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10/06/08 07:48am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: My 6.0L gasser doesn't seem to be up for the task
Is that 8,000lbs dry weight for the TH the quoted weight or actual? Seems to me gear, a bike and full FW tanks is quite a bit of weight and possibly more than you think. 9,500 sounds like a light estimate with the FW tank full.
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Keith99RS
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10/05/08 10:02pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: TV shocks
WHat TankerDude said works or you can got the route I did and install the Roadmaster Active Suspension Kit. Worked great on my Titan. Pretty easy DIY too. Controls roll, axle wrap and reduces squat when loading up the truck.
http://www.activesuspension.com/
Will be giving it a run with the TT next week. So far it has done everything they advertised it to. Truck was even more solid in crosswinds.
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Keith99RS
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10/04/08 08:40am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Any Sterling deals out there?
The HD Dodges only have a 36,000 mile power train warranty????? YIKES!
I may be wrong, but I believe the Hemi HDs have the lifetime powertrain warranty.
The Cummins engine has the 100,000 mile warranty, and in the cab/chassis models the Aisin transmission has a 180,000 mile warranty.
Still a little suprised as many manufacturers cover the whole powertrain for around 6yrs/60k now it seems.
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Keith99RS
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10/02/08 09:55pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Check out these Dyno numbers - 08 Diesels
That is OUR real world experience. 5 new chevy diesels (2 company, 3 personal), only 1 new dodge diesel and 2 older ford diesels. The only trans we've had worked on other than the dodge is one of the fords at about 89K for a replacement.
The decision was made to try a new Dodge and our experience has just not been good. When you loose a shop truck for a week that's equipt with racks for a half ton with nothing it's a problem, especially when it's less than a year old.
From what I've heard the manuals were bulletproof. That's all that was stated. It wasn't an assault as you are trying to make it.
I suppose I'll just have to go sell my truck to buy what you have so you consider me smart! Or maybe you can head on over and we can hook together and see who breaks first. Maybe then I would be as cool as you and you'll let me in your cool club.
Geez.... Go ahead and rant on....
*edit* And yes, if I paid 50K for a new chevy and got 13K on it with what should be light usage for a 3500 series vehicle I would be pissed and I would consider it a piece of crap.
Ooooh! A tow off. The hallmark of intelligence. Nothing says testosterone like hooking two trucks together and trying to ruin both of them.
BTW, per your post you were considering all HD Dodge auto trannies pieces of crap. Not just the one your company owns. That was the issue with your statement. Apparently one bad apple does ruin the barrel for you?
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Keith99RS
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10/02/08 09:51pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Check out these Dyno numbers - 08 Diesels
I suppose I'm ignorant for having a shop vehicle at the dealer for that exact issue. 2008 with nearly 13K on it. Never loaded over 2K of cargo and defiantely no programming. I suppose that's on odd occurance right?
Myself, the boss, and 2 other shop employee all have d/a's with a cumulative 182K with zero failures on alot heavier loads.
Don't confuse experience for ignorance!
If your D/A had a tranny issue with 13k on it would it be a piece of junk too? Seriously. You know of one truck with a problem so they are all bad? For your one bad example I am sure you will find 10 or more posters here with that tranny that have had zero issues and like it just fine.
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Keith99RS
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10/02/08 02:21pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Don’t buy State Farm RV insurance
Didn't State Farm also get into some hot water for playing the wind vs water damage game after Katrina? I seem to remember them being mentioned on more than a few news programs.
FTR I have Amica. They were great on covering my truck after I cracked it up on black ice. Rates did not change even. I hope I never need them for the TT, but they were pretty good about asking questions and answering them when we insured it with them.
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Keith99RS
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10/02/08 02:14pm |
General RVing Issues
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RE: Any Sterling deals out there?
The HD Dodges only have a 36,000 mile power train warranty????? YIKES!
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Keith99RS
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10/02/08 11:28am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Front or rear bed?
Both have advantages and disadvantages. I like the front bed as it allows me add tongue weight when needed or if it is a TT with a light tongue to start with. Downside is that end of the TT is usually closet to the road in a no pull through site. Rear beds can reduce tongue weight, but you need to be careful you don't reduce it too much packing under it or you'll have too light a tongue. Might be nicer in a back in site as you are futher from the road.
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Keith99RS
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10/02/08 09:30am |
Travel Trailers
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RE: K & N Cold Air Injection
IIRC Cummins specifies not to use the K&N anyways :)
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Keith99RS
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10/01/08 09:26pm |
Tow Vehicles
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