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Date Posted |
Forum
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RE: Dodge 3500 towing heavy

the 17in that i bought have a load rating of 3086 Pounds for one that should be enough for the camper then right. when i frist bought the truck i did put air bags on the back to help i would like to put an Exhaust break on it eventually
In contrast the 265/75R16's on my 2001.5 RAM 2500 had a 3414 pound rating or 628 pounds more per axle.
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Me Again
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08/07/23 07:51pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Dodge 3500 towing heavy

Redeeming things: Trailer is a tripe axle, which tend to have lighter pin weights.
Negative things: 17" wheels and tires, the unwanted step child of truck tires in modern times.
Tow it once and see if you want to spend money to upgrade suspension, wheels and tires, or invest in a new truck. Tranny will be on the list also. The 48RE can be rebuilt to be strong, just another 4-6K. If it was me, I would look for a 2015-16 SRW Aisin tranny 3500 ram. You get a 7K rear axle rating, exhaust brake and lots of power to tow the trailer. I towed a 39'+ 16k fifth wheel with a 2015 SRW 3500 4x4 and it did great.
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Me Again
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08/06/23 05:51pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: 2023 Power Stroke vs 2023 Ram Cummins Towing Challenge

I think the secrete to better grade braking is electric axles on the trailers. Charge the batteries on the way down and help pull
on the way up.
I do not think many owners realize that Fords going down a hill on cruise control or ACC that the truck applies the service brakes including the trailer brakes. This could lead to overheating the trailer brakes without the driver realizing it. I am not sure if the others GM and RAM are the same now. I sure miss my 2015 RAM's exhaust brake going down passes and hills(always had nice cool service brakes) on my yearly commute to AZ and back to Wa.
https://i.imgur.com/zEgHlvpl.jpg
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Me Again
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08/02/23 09:13am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: 2023 Power Stroke vs 2023 Ram Cummins Towing Challenge

I do not think more gears in a RAM/Cummins will change towing performance very much. What it could provide is truck that can perform equally as a towing monster and a freeway cruise. My 2015 with Aisin and 3.42 gears was a freeway cruiser, that towed at 24,500 lbs combined just fine. As it is now, if one wants really heavy duty towing you go for 4.10 gears. So with more gears you could have your cake and eat too. What occurs on the IKE will not change that much, and I6 is just what it is, a quarter horse not a race horse.
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Me Again
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07/29/23 08:10pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: 2023 Power Stroke vs 2023 Ram Cummins Towing Challenge

At my age(will complete my 8th decade on the planet next June) I am slowly deciding that being the first to the top of the hill is not that important anymore.
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Me Again
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07/19/23 04:25pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: F150 5.0 V8 or V6 Twin Turbo

F150 3.5EB Tow Test...
Link
The 2.7L is a better choice for light towing and grocery getting. More reliable than the 3.5L and 5.0, and loads of low end grunt!
https://i.imgur.com/OC8mKlWl.jpg
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Me Again
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07/01/23 10:42am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: F150 5.0 V8 or V6 Twin Turbo

Thanks everyone for the valuable feedback. Didn't buy either today. One was sold and the other just had too many miles for the year. I am in no rush but this info is very helpful.
Save up some money and get a 2021, the best 14th Gen Year. After that they kept deleting stuff. Love the 12" horizontal display. Mine is a XLT 302a, with lots of options.
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Me Again
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06/03/23 03:57pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: F150 5.0 V8 or V6 Twin Turbo

I have had two 2.7L EcoBoosts now. A 2020 Ford Edge ST, that was a blast to drive. And now a 2021 F-150 with the 2.7L, which has more lower RPM grunt than the 3.5. The 3.5 is tuned to make power at higher RPMs. The F150 2.7L is claimed to do 0-60 in 6.1 secs. I just towed 1550 miles AZ to WA with my KRX SxS on a trailer weighing 3100-3200 pounds and the truck bed and back seat full of stuff for the Summer in the NW. Mileage for the trip was 15.3 MPG. I had head winds fro Quartzite, Az to Ely, Nv that had mileage down to 12.5 for 460 miles.
https://i.imgur.com/tTUwfsBl.jpg
Left Ely had tailwinds and I was getting good mileage. This was on I-84 after fueling in Twin Falls, Id 19.9!
https://i.imgur.com/yUYmqaRl.jpg
I also made the trip with the Edge ST with my trike on the trailer, averaging 17 MPG. Both did great. The both could/can get 24 MPG bobtail.
https://i.imgur.com/0UdL19pl.jpg
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Me Again
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06/03/23 10:52am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Crecent City via 199 Grant's Pass or 299 Redding

For trailering 199 has some tight spots for big rigs. Going North I always go from Lodi to Petaluma to go North on 101. Going South I would go out 38 to Reedsport and South on 101. A friend from Eureka told me the 38 is the lowest alt route to the coast. We towed a 5th wheel South many times between Christmas and New Years, four times we went to the Coast because on snow on the Siskiyou's. 299 is not recommended for large rigs.
I spent a year and a half at Point Arena, Ca one Higway 1 in the USCG and would run to Seattle or Port Angeles a lot back in summer 1967-1969, in a 1967 SS/RS 350 Camaro.
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Me Again
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05/12/23 02:39pm |
Roads and Routes
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East Valley of Phoenix to Boulder City

I am heading North in a few weeks towing a SxS on a trailer and have taken the 93 to Kingman and on the the Vegas area many times. I do not like the 93 from Kingman to Vegas area.
I thought I might try a different route this year.
Take the 60 then I-10 to Quartzsite and 95 North to Parker, cross the bridge and pick up the 95 North again at Vidal Junction.
Any recent experience with this route. Hilly or mostly flat? I have read about being sure to drive the speed limit in Searchlight.
TIA Chris
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Me Again
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04/22/23 07:46pm |
Roads and Routes
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RE: Ram Cummins/Aisin Failures

A little more on the "Ball Joints" being bad. My truck is a pavement princess with no off roading no different than the guy in the video. Can't get much easier duty than my truck gets or his concerning ball joint wear.
Wait a minute here, I know for a fact that you drive on California highways all winter and commute North in the spring and South in the fall on I-5 in Northern California, which are similar to "off road" roads in other states.
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Me Again
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03/21/23 01:57pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Ford 150 lightning recall

Want to see a lot of EV on the road, come to the Phoenix area. Tesla's everywhere. I would note that we snowbirds come each fall to try and slow traffic down, and each year we fail. Speed limits have been complete thrown out now. I do not know why they even maintain the speed limit signs.
I still think that built in batteries in EVs was a mistake, they should have been swappable. Pull into a swap station and the robot swaps the battery for a fully charged one and bills you for the amp hrs used and sends you on your way in a couple minutes.
I fly electric model airplanes and race 1/10 scale RC trucks. Both hobbies are based on swappable batteries.
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Me Again
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03/15/23 05:27pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Some worry about payload……

We don't need no stinkin solid frames. :B
Or tailgates that will open if the frame is twisted a bit on uneven ground.
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Me Again
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03/07/23 05:28pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: RAM 3500 with HO 6.7L Cummins SRW

My F-150 has a 10 speed and it spends a lot of time shifting gears, sometimes skipping a gear. I am sure that 7 or 8 would have been just fine behind the 2.7L ecoboost that has a broad torque curve down low. It is said that it is snappier and more fun to drive than the 3.5L ecoboost.
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Me Again
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02/26/23 03:36pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: RAM 3500 with HO 6.7L Cummins SRW

If I kept my 2015 3500 4x4 HO SBW SB Laramie at 70 MPH it would break the 20 mpg barrier easily. Towing at 24,500 lbs combined with tall 5th wheel netted 10.5-11 mpg. Did I ever say, "I loved my 3.42 gears"? 80 MPH at 1750 rpms.
I still think they got rid of the 3.42's as a concession to the 68 RFE's taller 1st and 2nd gears.
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Me Again
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02/26/23 08:10am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: New HD truck bed rails too tall for 5th wheel

Just go to your nearest dealer and measure the bed rail height. Measure the front overhang on the 5er. Done.
Not really! What about the amount the rear compresses with his load???
Like I said he won't know if the RV needs any adjusting until his RV is FULLY LOADED and hitched.
^^^^ What Ron said! ^^^^
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Me Again
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02/21/23 08:43am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Ram Reduces Max Tow Ratings

This could be an issue for some who feel it necessary to stay within the manufacturers maximum tow ratings. For others of us it really doesn’t make an iota bit of difference what the manufacturer’s tow rating is…. If we feel comfortable towing 5,000 lbs over the tow limit we’re probably going to tow 5,000 lbs over the manufacturer’s tow limit …. putting a different sticker on the door pillar isn’t going to change the way the truck behaves.
Except for BC, which somehow enforces weight limits that other areas do not concern themselves with. In my home state of Washington one can purchase tonnage that exceeds that stickers in the door jam. No one with a pickup is going to exceed the Federal Bridge Weight laws that are enforced at weigh stations. Hot shot haulers tend to laugh at the internet weight police.
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Me Again
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02/18/23 08:12pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Ford's issues

Its the dealerships that really cast a shadow on manufacturers. Charging huge markups just because they could and when was the last time you bought a car at a dealership. It takes hours. Sure ford has had its share of issues, but so does everyone else.
Bought a 2020 Ford Edge ST in June of 2020 and traded it in September 2021 for a 2021 F-150. They gave me more than I paid for the Edge and 2K off MSRP on the F-150. Of course in both transactions I took my daughter-in-laws father with me. He use to manage the dealership! The Edge ST was a service loaner with 1500 miles on it and 9K off MSRP and full warranty.
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Me Again
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02/13/23 07:46pm |
Tow Vehicles
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Ford's issues

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YS9fgsncYBY
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Me Again
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02/13/23 05:33pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Alarming spalling failures on 7.3 Godzilla

Looks like the same thing they had going on in there V10's. we had them at work and went through engins like crazy in the f550's we had. later we found out because they were never shut off and spent a good 15 hours a day idleing every day they wern't getting enough oil at idle and killing cams.
in the video he has a cube van which if it is a delivery truck will spend large amounts of time idleing ... who knows..
New Hemi engines have the same issue!
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Me Again
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02/12/23 09:16am |
Tow Vehicles
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