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Comments
Now for ducking the question....Lets start with a better ride, subjective, I agree. Then, how about bigger seats, more butt room, 3 people in the front and rear. A Real Rear seat, talking extended cabs now, not 4-doors, by the way you can get a crew cab dodge (it will cost ya). A quieter ride, handling may be a toss-up. Shorter turning radius. Less cost for required maintenance, Yea, I know, 100,000 miles before 1st required maintenance, but at what price? Will the plugs really last 100K when working? Sure hope so, because, changing plugs in Fords new generations engines will not be easy. Last, but not least, the Dodge costs less, because you don't have to pay for the Frontal Lobotomy to be happy with your purchase. You do know the power pedal is the long thin one on the right, not the small roundish on the left? Thats the emergency brake, but the Cummins will still pull with it on.
Wildman
Two questions: 1. Either one of you drive long haul before? and not pickup trucks.
2. What engine did you run in your truck(s)? Mine were Cummins, Cat, Detroit, and Navistar. Cummins and Cat had far less maintenance then any of them.
Apples and Oranges, I make the payment so I could care less what anyone thinks, I bought my Ram because of the Cummins, if Ford had a Cat I would have probably bought it, but it has an International engine which I do not care for. Go with what you know and the heck with everyone else...............Bill
Bill knows what he is talking about. Ask around shops about diesels, if you want power that will last, its either CAT or Cummins.
Wildman
Wow, pulling an 8-horse trailer, is really doing pretty good. About 1,000 lbs per horse, plus ~4,000 for the trailer, total ~12,000 lbs, I guess thats not that bad.
If you want dependable power, and good mileage, you need a diesel. Bite the bullet up front and spent the money, as the mileage of the gas will really get you down. Some of my friends have bought 460s (Ford) and V-10s (Dodge), and seem to not use them as much as we use our Cummins, because it is costing an arm and leg for fuel.
Wildman
What kind of mileage are you getting out of your V-10? loaded/unloaded?........Bill
The 4.30 axle ratio, duallys and 4x4 cost me a couple mpg. I get 9.5ish in a city/hwy combo and 11.5-12 hwy. With the Bigfoot in the bed, my rig weighs around 11,700+, so I'm running about 500+ over the 11,200 GVWR. I get 8.5-9 mpg hwy with the camper on and the speed in the low to mid 60s. I can get 10 on flat hwy if I keep it at 55.
I worked four 10s up here this past summer, so I was heading out of town every weekend. I'd leave straight from work on Friday and return Monday evening. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings were spent doing laundry, getting more groceries, dumping tanks, refilling the water tanks and, of course, transferring the fish from the camper to the home freezer. On Friday, the process started again. The weekend trips ranged in distance from 250-600 miles roundtrip, with Seward being the shortest and Valdez being the longest. Homer was a regular stop, which is about 400 RT.
We were suppose to have a la nina effect that would bring cold and dry weather. We are getting some of that now. Temps this morning were slightly below zero, but on average, it hasn't been that cool. We actually had two storms right before Christmas that were called the Pineapple Express, or something like that, because they originated in Hawaii. Temps hit close to 50 and everything melted. Although it's slightly below zero today, it's pretty tropical compared to the people who live in Fairbanks in the interior of the state. Official temp this morning up there is -42.
Your right about mine Cummins with 3.55 & auto. Its a shame they can't come up with a automatic transmission that would fit in a pickup and handle 600+ lbs of torque. It really seens ashame that they have to choke that little engine back to 420. Maybe Allison will do it in a couple of years.
I bet its beautiful up there in Alaska...I am going to have to check it one of these days.
With what's available out there now, I'd probably opt for the manual tranny on any of the diesels that are going to have 500+ torque, at least until the auto trannys have been thoroughly tested. I've also heard some rumors that Dodge may be getting an Allison in the future.
The quality of selection when I buy again in 4-5 years is going to be much better than when we bought this time around. The diesels are obviously going to be different, cranking out as many hp as the current gassers. The mpg of the gassers is getting better with more power. Chevy is rumored to have a monster V-8 coming out along with their diesel for this new heavy duty line. I believe it is a 8.01L that will have about 340hp and 460 torque. I think Ford has been tinkering with a V-12 for as long as they've had the V-10 on the drawing board.
I did have one major problem with my truck. At 9,300 miles, a ticking noise started. I took it in to dealer that day. It threw a rocker arm. Ford replaced the engine under warranty, no questions asked or demands made on my part, so I have no complaints. The way I see it, the engine will last that much longer. I have over 26,000 miles on the truck now.
I believe Dodge is out of the running for the Allison, and they are working on their own heavy duty auto.
for lots of info, check out the Duramax/Isuzu/Allison Combo Topic
because fords computer progams for there deisels
are different for the two, to compensate for the
two transmitions..as far as the Allison trans
its a five speed auto yes but its no better than
a four speed auto except for its power rating..
the trans has another gear between first and 1to1
gear....and its a very heavy trans but good!
Thanks In Advance
Bob.
converted gas engine, and you won't get the maximum torque. The dodge is a Inline 6, and is a miniature version of what you find in Peterbilts and Kenworths. I still haven't seen the sorry words of "PowerStroke" on the side of a Peterbilt or Kenworth. At the same token I haven't seen the word "Cummins" on side of a Ford or Chevy, just Dodge. If you get a Dodge Cummins, you will love it, trust me. A friend of mine bought a superduty Ford, and the Transmission gave out at about 8,000 miles, and he had to wait a month and a half to get it back. Just trying to help.
Your buddy had a bad break with the tranny. The previous track record of Dodge tranny problems is well documented. It sounds like they have made progress though, and I've even heard rumors they may get an Allison. The new Chevy diesel will have the Allison. All indications are that it will be superior to any other tranny out there.
The Cummins is a good engine and the PSD owners that I know love theirs also. Drive them both. Talk to owners of both. Do a little research on both and then buy the truck that you think will work best for you. I'd dismiss comments by anyone that outright bashes either engine, truck, or manufacturer. There are plenty of people with good and bad stories about their Dodges and Fords who will give you some constructive feedback.
Just because you don't see Powerstroke on the side of an 18-wheeler doesn't mean then engine is crap. The Navistar engine is a widely used engine. that same engine is in thousands of school buses, delivery trucks, 2 ton trucks: medium duty market. International doesn't cater to the heavy duty markets like Caterpillar, Cummins, John Deere.
Just because Cummins is in 18 wheelers, doesn't make the Dodge a great combo. it ain't the same engine. fortunately, the same Cummins in the Dodge is the same engine in many medium duty market applications, just like the Powerstroke.
Powerstroke is a great engine with great power, if diesel is the way you want to go. Hydroturf, I think you would be happiest with the Ford you've ordered. But maybe check on the Ford w/V10, for availability. personally, i question some things with Dodge trucks, but the Cummins is reliable, and the transmissions are not best, but better than in the past.
Roomer has it, that the Alison is dead for the Dodge, but a 5 speed called the "Brute" will be an option. For my money, its the Dodge all the way because of economy, ride, room, power, and looks, oh and cost. Oh, by the way, for anyone interested, the 5.9 does come in truck tractors, a series called HotShots. Both 5.8 and 8.3 cummins are offered in hot form for pulling extra loads.
Good luck,
Wildman
80,000+ GVWR trucks? almost none, Auto's in large trucks (not Heavy Equipment) are not typically made for high speed, long haul, large load applications, like manuals trannies are designed for. I have auto's in my (2) International Navistar 6x6 15 ton stake trucks at work, we lose alot of power in them, and when we load them heavy, the trannies get pretty darn hot.
I get tired of shifting sometimes, but I would rather have a manual behind my Cummins then an auto any day, for heavy pulling.....Bill
Thanks Again
Bob
The probelem is we towed a trailer with a Skid steer on it. Total tow weight was under 10,000 lb.
Power and fuel milage were terrible.
Reasons we're considering are
1) Not broken in yet
2) Air filter plugged(we checked the AF indicator in in showed OK
3) Any other indeas?
Other than that we love the truck.
I'm no Cummins expert, but what do you consider bad mileage?
A '98 with only 4,000 miles? I'm not the person to ask, but I think that is the year the 24 valve version came out, and they had a few software problems that caused poor mileage and low power. Ask your local Dodge dealer about that.
Maybe ask in the Dodge Ram forum, some owners may know better than I.
hope that helps.
cdean
My folks have a 97 F-350 PSD dually with the 4.10. With their fifth wheel in tow, the combined weight of truck and trailer is over 17,000 pounds. They average about 10mpg towing and 16 empty. In ideal conditions (flat interstate, no wind), they might eke out 12 towing.
10,000 pounds is a pretty sizeable load. The mpg won't be awesome, but if you're getting less than 10-12 towing or 17-21 empty with the Cummins and 3.54, you probably have a problem.
Thanks for the comments.
Under tow load, we only got 6 mpg.
Wildman
You should jump over to topic 1274 (2000 Dodge Ram II) once in awhile, we have some good discussions and could use your Dodge Ram
viewpoint ..........Bill
I'd like to hear the experiences of those of you who live in cold climates, and about whether the PSD or Cummins would be better for very cold weather starting?
I have used a cummins for winter bird hunting in eastern Oregon at cold temperatures. Down to the teens without a problem. A little sluggish, but got it going. I know most places to camp in the winter in the Sierras rarely get colder than that, and if you are camping in the northern rockies at temperatures colder than that, I don't know why. But you probably wouldn't need a block heater in most conditions you would want to camp in (at least in the lower 48). There are also fuel additives to consider, but I don't know anything about those.
I own a 2000 Ram Cummins, it comes with a grid heater, and a plug-in block heater. I live in Missouri and lately it has been w/windchill, down into the single digits, I try to plug in my heater below 40 degrees, as specified by the owners manual, but often I cannot due to no outlet avaliability. With dual batteries 750CCA each, it has never been a problem to start my Cummins. The book does not recommend fuel additives, just fuel types i.e. Diesel #1 when ambient temperatures are reached, if you would like me to look it up I can. Cummins also comes with a fuel filter heater to prevent gelling.......Bill