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RE: Check out these Dyno numbers - 08 Diesels
The 48RE is the most reliable tranny ever installed behind the Cummins. It has proven to be better than the G56 manual. The 68RE may eventually do better but they had some issues in some '07.5 trucks. The other thing to consider is you can rebuild a Dodge or Ford tranny for a fraction of the cost of the Allison. I can tell you the integrated exhaust brake on the Dodge is impressive in mountain towing.
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windellmc
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10/03/08 07:48am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: '08 F-150 Test Drive (And Tow!)
I towed a Jayco 29FBS with an '04 Supercrew with tow package and 18" wheels. That suspension that feels so sweet driving around town is not fun with trailer in tow on the highway. There is also no good gear in the tranny for hwy driving with that trailer. OD off was sort of okay on the highway but the tail wagged the dog too much for my taste.
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windellmc
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09/18/08 11:03am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: '08 F-150 Test Drive (And Tow!)
I think OD off on the F150 does do the downshifting for better engine braking at least my 2004 seemed that way. I personally would not tow 8k with any crew cab 1/2 ton currently on the market except maybe the Dodge Megacab (but it's basically a 3/4 ton).
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windellmc
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09/18/08 06:31am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Best MPG?
If you go Dodge you should get better mileage with the '01-'04. '04.5 was an emissions change.
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windellmc
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08/28/08 02:14pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Nice write up on the '09 Ram 1500's
True about the mirrors. Same doors on 1500 and 2500 vehicles for Dodge.
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windellmc
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08/27/08 02:20pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: New Truck Decision
If you want to put 200k towing miles on the truck I would stick with the Cummins. You are talking about a lot of high stress miles there. I would also find out the cost to rebuild the Dodge, GM, and Ford auto trannies because with that kind of abuse any of them might fail in that time frame and I have heard but never verified that the Allison tranny is extremely expensive to rebuild compared to the Dodge and Ford.
Also GM no longer offers manual transmissions with their diesel engine. Ford does but I have never seen one. Dodges are somewhat common but their current manual tranny is not as smooth as what you have now. The Dodge auto tranny has been very reliable since late 2004 models in fact they have been more reliable than the manual tranny.
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windellmc
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08/27/08 02:19pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: To Dodge or not to Dodge?
I don't think you will have any trouble with warranty work in WY for a CA bought truck. All the big 3 cut production on trucks over the last year so I am not sure there will be as many left over '08s available a year from now so the deals may or may not be as good if you wait a year.
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windellmc
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08/27/08 02:09pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Nice write up on the '09 Ram 1500's
Towing 9100 lbs with any normal 1/2 ton is crazy in my opinion (heavy 1/2s that are basically 3/4 ton exempted). Maybe Dodge is just being more realistic with their tow ratings? If you plan to tow 9k lbs you are well into 3/4 ton territory.
The Grand Cherokee has always had rear coil springs. How do they tow for their size range?
I think the last time Dodge released a new 1500 body it followed on the 2500+ the following model year.
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windellmc
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08/27/08 08:15am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: '08 Dodge Turck Deals
The Chrysler lifetime power train warranty does not apply to the diesels only the gassers.
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windellmc
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08/20/08 01:17pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Towing with a Jeep Wrangler
I was thinking short wheelbase Wranglers were rated to tow up to 2000 lbs. The new 4 door ones that have a really long wheelbase are still only rated up to 3500 lbs. I think whether or not you need a tranny cooler will be the least of your issues.
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windellmc
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08/18/08 08:41am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Ford's latest reflash does indeed improve mileage
I consider it pretty damn good. My 1998 gas Dodge 1500 Laramie QC 2wd truck never saw over 9mpg towing a 5500lb boat and trailer and it sure was not near the comfort or quality of any of my Ford diesel trucks. 10.9mpg horrendous? Have you ever pulled a high profile heavy fifth wheel?
Yep, with a truck heavier than yours. The truck alone weighs 10,000 lbs (its a 2001 Dodge Ram 3500 4x4 DRW cab chassis with the Cummins HO with the six speed manual outfitted with a dump bed).
That truck has pulled loads heavier than your trailer numerous times, and can easily get better than 10 mpg doing it, usually getting around 12 mpg with the heaviest loads. I am sure your truck is more powerful and faster and has more fancy do dads, but we use this truck for work, not loafing around with an RV, although it has towed a fifth wheel RV trailer outfitted with a gooseneck adapter on a few occasions.
My point is, 10 mpg is horrible for diesel engines that just a few years ago could get mid teens pulling similar loads, albeit slower. Ford will be glad to get that new scorpion diesel under the hood.
It's not the weight that really pulls down the highway fuel economy it is the air drag. My diesel truck can get close to 18 mpg empty but drops to 10-11 towing our trailer. For reference my F150 with 5.4L engine only made 7-7.5 towing. I would be shocked if your 360 did any better than that towing my trailer.
My trailer is really tall and is basically a big box on wheels. Comparing that to a flat bed with a backhoe on it is not a good comparison. My parents tow a 15k horse trailer and get 12 mpg vs my 8k travel trailer at 10 mpg.
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windellmc
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08/15/08 01:13pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: CTD 5.9 (2007) or CTD 6.7 (2008) - Which is "better"?
5.9L built starting Jan 1, 2004 have lower emissions and worse mileage than those built before Jan 1. Don't assume your 2003 5.9 gets the same mileage as a 2007 5.9. Comparing autos to autos I would expect the 6.7 to get better highway mileage than the 2007 5.9. City mileage might be a little worse with the 6.7 but probably not noticeable unless you drive all city.
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windellmc
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08/15/08 07:04am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Upcoming diesel changes due to emissions laws
The estimates I have seen for urea is that it would cost as much as diesel per gallon and since it is made from oil it should increase and decrease in cost accordingly.
I assume you are testing 2010 emissions compliant engines in your fleet? Who is the manufacturer? I know CAT is out of 2010 and Cummins is not using SCR for class 8 trucks so that leaves DDC or Volvo? The cost estimates I posted were for Euro 4 emissions levels so it may very well be different for 2010 US emissions limits.
Here is a paper written by Ford in 2004 that shows why they chose urea. I guess we will see what happens.
http://www1.eere.energy.gov/vehiclesandfuels/pdfs/deer_2004/session11/2004_deer_hoard.pdf
The technology for 2010 has been in production at Cummins since 2007 and what you will get in 2010 is a 2nd generation of the 2007 engines instead of a completely new system from Ford and GM. Truth be told though even a 5% fuel economy increase is hard to measure for an individual with a single pickup truck so it may not matter if the urea systems return 5% better mileage.
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windellmc
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07/29/08 12:08pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Upcoming diesel changes due to emissions laws
Urea is actually fairly expensive and the manufacturers that are using it in Europe/Korea estimate the cost of urea adds the equivalent of 3-5% worse fuel economy which typically negates the fuel economy advantage and instead of a NOx adsorber there is an SCR catalyst which also wears out over time. The difference is a worn NOx adsorber will be unnoticeable to the average driver but a worn SCR may slip urea out the tail pipe.
Both are expensive to replace.
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windellmc
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07/28/08 09:13am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Dodge CTD 6.7 liter mpg
The regen takes a lot less fuel if you are loaded for instance towing or running up steep hills. A regen in town eats the fuel.
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windellmc
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07/01/08 08:52am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: For those that have a Focus Or a Fusion
Now I need to find out what is wrong with my Mercury Milan (Fusion clone). I get 28-29 mpg in mixed hwy/city driving with more hwy than city and have never seen over 29 mpg running on the interstate at 70+. I have seen 31 at 55 but that was on the overhead and it is about 1 mpg optimistic. It is an automatic with the 4 cylinder.
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windellmc
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06/19/08 12:30pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: 2006 Ford F 150 4x4
I hear 4 kids and quad bunkhouse and immediately think Excursion or 3/4 ton Suburban. A 3/4-1 ton Dodge Megacab might also be good. Any 1/2 ton truck is pretty marginal on GVW with an 8k trailer before you try to put 6 people in the cab plus bikes, firewood, etc. in the back.
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windellmc
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06/16/08 02:14pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Honda's Civic is now U.S. best selling vehicle
I hope Ford, GM, and Dodge all go out of business for building cars of poor quality, or get bought out by the foreign competition. People could just as easily bought a Chevy Cobalt or smaller Ford, but they bought a Honda. In college today most teach that buying an American car is a sign of stupidity, that a person did no research into quality, safety, or longevity before making a major purchase and as a result any one brand of Big 3 cars are repo'd more the next three foreign competitors combined--in a time when Toyota outsells GM as a leader.
I hope you lose your job too sir.
I am in college today, and the only people who still believe that Foreign Manufacturers make better cars than Domestic Manufacturers are those people who walk around with a starbucks in one hand, and a cell phone in the other. Basically, the Yuppie, turned up nose crowd.
You seem to fit this mold perfectly by implying that those who choose to drive a domestic car are somehow not as intellectually intelligent as you perceive yourself to be.
I meant the good colleges, the ones with dorms so their students don't have to live in RVs.
And I guess I shouldn't say I hope they go out of business. I should have phrased it, when they go out of business. GM closes more plants monthly, Ford can't sell any F-series. They both build******and have let the American people down and as a result the Japanese are on top. Toyota sells more worldwide, Honda Civic is #1 here. All of it built by Americans in non-union plants. The UAW will be a thing of the past when they run the Big 3 into the ground and what will be even worse is all the retirees will lose their money as well. It's just a matter of time. WorldCom had 85000 employees, Enron had quite a few, Airlines have went that way and manufacturers such as Plymouth and Oldsmobile are a thing of the past. The Big 3 better get it together or some of you may not have a choice but to buy a "Japanese " car. The Honda Civic is one of the most reliable cars, gets great gas mileage, and costs more than its American counterparts but they are on top because more and more American's see it my way and buy from companies who build cars to last more than the term of their loan or warranty.
So apparently the "good" colleges leave out things like researching a purchase to find out that Ford and GM now outpace Toyota in quality with serveral models?
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windellmc
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06/05/08 11:48am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Towing MPG - 2007 CTD and 7.5k lbs 5th wheel?
Lately I have noticed almost everyone on the road slowing down. I ran 55-60 in Illinois Memorial Day weekend (trailer speed limit is 55), and I really did not have any problems getting passed at silly speeds.
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windellmc
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06/03/08 07:34am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Towing MPG - 2007 CTD and 7.5k lbs 5th wheel?
That is a small 5'er so I would not be surprised if you are in the 12-13 mpg range especially at 55 mph but it could be as low as 10 mpg I suppose.
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windellmc
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06/02/08 01:35pm |
Tow Vehicles
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