FireHawg wrote: 4x4ord thanks for the input. The Ford, exhaust braking mechanism concerns me somewhat on pulling the trigger on the purchase. I'm in Northern Virginia area and we have some hilly, windy roads in VA, PA, MD and WV that we would might travel to get to various camping locations. Obviously no hillls like they have out in the western part of the US but hills just the same. Some with very long grades so the braking does concern me. Whats the weight on your FW? The Raptor is 11480 empty and 15500 gross. We haven't been anywhere near gross on our recent travels but there is a lot of weight back there pushing.. The FW weight is close to the F350SRW limitis so I think I would feel much better with DRW.
Depending on how I am loaded my total combined truck and trailer camping weight is 24000 - 25000 lbs. I tow this trailer through the Rockie Mountains without issue. On the prairies I use the truck for a much heavier gooseneck trailer. I will describe the performance of the Ford exhaust brake coming through the Creston / Salmo pass in BC Canada to the performance of my old GM (without an exhaust brake) pulling the same trailer through the same pass. The down hill grade of this pass is approximately 16 miles long and with the grade varying from 7 to 9%. When I went down that grade with the GM I had to shift the truck into 1st gear - second gear was a run away. In first gear the truck would accelerate to about 40 miles per hour where it was revving just over 5000 rpm. Using the Ford to pull the same trailer I found I had two options I could follow:
Option 1. if I just let the truck do what it wanted to I would have to use the wheel brakes - it would go down the hill in 4th gear and I would have to continually be slowing the truck down and then letting it accelerate again.
Option 2. If I slowed down to 45 mph the computer would allow the truck to downshift to 3rd gear. In 3 rd gear the engine easily held the weight back and I would on occasion find myself feeding it a little coal to prevent it from slowing down too much. To prevent it from shifting back into 4th gear I would use the paddle shifter on the gear selector to disallow 4th 5th and 6th gears.
I should have said that if you slow to 45 miles per hour the truck will downshift to 2nd gear where it easily held the weight back and I would use the paddle shift to lock out 3rd 4th 5th and 6th gears.
Although I realize many on here prefer the dually I am glad I chose the SRW F350 for my RV. I would prefer a dually for the gooseneck loads where I am approaching 40,000 lbs combined truck and trailer. The truck handles the gooseneck just fine on the prairies but if I were to hit the scales I am likely overloading my rear tires at times.
* This post was
edited 07/04/12 07:13am by 4x4ord *
2011 F350 SRW short box 4x4 CC 6.7 PS King Ranch
B&W TurnoverBall and Companion
2003 Citation Supreme 34 RLTS
FireHawg wrote: Ricatic thanks for the input. I forget what Ford calls it, but how does the electronic shifting on your F350 work going downhill to help slow the rig down? Does it do okay?
Cummins12V98 thanks. The 05 is sitting in the shop today, has been there since last Wednesday. The dealer replaced the tranny under warranty in February. I may have 1000 miles on it since then. I just took possession of the FW the first week in June. So up until that point my 05 had never towed anyone accept for a 16' landscape trailer with 7 motorcycles on it once for about 1k miles. Other than that it has never towed anything.
The tranny is only slipping when climbing steep grade at low speed (10-20 mph) or when pulling the FW on occasions. The issue is not noticeable during normal driving. The dealer advises they can't find anything wrong. No codes in the computer. Tranny fluid is clean and shows no signs of burning.
When I bought this truck I thought it would last me for a long time but I'm starting to think it may be time to part ways.
Based on what you are saying, your torque converter is not locked at that speed and you are relying on fluid coupling to be moving at that point. You say "or pulling FW on occasions", if at that time you are in 2nd gear your converter probably is unlocked and yes it is slipping and that is normal. Typically 3rd and 4th are when the torque converter goes onto lockup not 1 & 2.
Get a 2012 RAM MAX TOW Dually and it will put a smile on your face!
2011 Ram Laramie Longhorn 3500 Dually Long Bed, Cummins 350/800 HO, Towin Machine
B&W Companion Hitch, Maghytec Trans and Rear Dif Covers, AMZ/OIL Top To Bottom
2007 1/2 Mobile Suites 36 SB3 27,000# Combined
FireHawg wrote: Ricatic thanks for the input. I forget what Ford calls it, but how does the electronic shifting on your F350 work going downhill to help slow the rig down? Does it do okay?
Cummins12V98 thanks. The 05 is sitting in the shop today, has been there since last Wednesday. The dealer replaced the tranny under warranty in February. I may have 1000 miles on it since then. I just took possession of the FW the first week in June. So up until that point my 05 had never towed anyone accept for a 16' landscape trailer with 7 motorcycles on it once for about 1k miles. Other than that it has never towed anything.
The tranny is only slipping when climbing steep grade at low speed (10-20 mph) or when pulling the FW on occasions. The issue is not noticeable during normal driving. The dealer advises they can't find anything wrong. No codes in the computer. Tranny fluid is clean and shows no signs of burning.
When I bought this truck I thought it would last me for a long time but I'm starting to think it may be time to part ways.
Based on what you are saying, your torque converter is not locked at that speed and you are relying on fluid coupling to be moving at that point. You say "or pulling FW on occasions", if at that time you are in 2nd gear your converter probably is unlocked and yes it is slipping and that is normal. Typically 3rd and 4th are when the torque converter goes onto lockup not 1 & 2.
Get a 2012 RAM MAX TOW Dually and it will put a smile on your face!
X2
At 10-20 MPH on steep grade manually put it in low. I have to do this every time I return from camping on a 15% gravel road.
Thanks everyone for your input. It's good to hear what different people are experiencing in the real world and not have the brand wars! I appreciate all the comments being provided.
4x4ord great input... Cummins12V98 & 45Ricochet thanks for the input.
The local Ford dealer has told me I can factory order an F350 (6-8 wks), $5K below invoice which includes current incentives, plus any new incentives at the time of delivery. Stopped by the GMC dealer today on the way home from work. Spec'd out a 3500 factory order (2013, 10-12 wks)at invoice and GM will only honor incentives at the time of delivery. Dodge salesman called me back for a test drive this evening but I was tied up with other things. I'm having a hard time with the new Dodge body style and especially the DRWs. But I will test drive it to see how it is.. 3500 Laramie HO.
Ok everyone.... After spending a lot of time speaking to different people, reading forums, reading reviews, visiting dealers of the big 3 and test drives I have finally decided on a new tow vehicle.
The wife and I drove from VA to OH this past weekend to pick up a new 2012 GMC Sierra 3500 SLE, extended cab, 4x4, DRW, long bed, cloth, am/fm/xm/cd, snow plow prep (not that it's needed in VA). Not full of options but enough for my needs. Pretty excited about the new purchase. Very pleased with my purchase and pleased with my transaction at Junction Buick-GMC in Chardon OH. If you're looking for a new GMC check them out and talk to Matt Emrick at Junction. They treated me good and offered a better deal than any local dealer - more importantly they had what I was looking for!
Thanks again to everyone for your input. I can't wait to get the hitch installed and take our first camping trip in two weeks..
Elkhorn98
2010 GMC Sierra 2500HD 4x4 Duramax/Allison w/45 gal Transfer Flow Tank
RBW X16 Slider, Yamaha EF 2400iS
2007 Springdale 245 5th Wheel - E-Z Flex HD Suspension & Mobile Outfitters Shock Kit Upgrades
with Firestone Transforce Ht Lt 2357515 C tires
great choice...but I want the extra room the crew cab provides. I am anxiously waiting to see the new GM twins CC which is due to be released as an early 2014...
Then it will be a battle between the anticipated non-DEF Dodge and a GM...
Regards
Ricatic
Debbie and Savannah the Wonderdachsund
2009 Big Horn 3055RL
2006 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 Dually LTX with the Gold Standard LBZ Engine and Allison Transmission
2011 F350 Lariat SRW CC SB 4WD 6.7 Diesel POS Gone Bye Bye
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