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ANY QUESTIONS for dave40 aka CHEVY LOVER
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You should get a Z28 so you can go fast, like me!
How about same run down on the LS1 and maybe a comparison of the two.
Great work
More Dave More!!!!
Thanks for keeping us informed!
Cindy
Even though you copied those, you are still knowledgeable.
Can you tell me - does a silverado 3/4 ton sit higher than a 1/2 ton (I already know 4x4's are higher than 2WD)? What are the different heights for each> what factors are these heights based on?
Cindy
Given the number of errors in the report that truck trend did on Ford 5.4L vs Chevy 5.3L vs Dodge 5.9L I must say I find the report to be very
much not credible. The power specs given for the 5.3L look to much like those of the 4.8L. I can hardly be led to believe the GM powertrain steals that much power from the engine. The only way this report could be accurate is if GM Powertrain lies about its performance specs! Do you believe that?
I enjoyed all the detailed info about engines and trannys. One item the caught me attention was the one about "Manual mode" for the automatic transmission. Since I have driven manual tranmission vehicles all my life and am about to get my first automatic in a 3/4 ton Silverado, I kind of like the idea of being in control. How does this work? Are you talking about something more than moving the selector to downshift? If thats all there is, whats new about that?
- Paul
This is the first truck and the first new vehicle I have owned. I don't do much towing or hauling but it sure is nice to have that ability. I do have a large number of Rams and F-150s attempt to coax me into a race (stoplight and side by side freeway) and when I do accept I have always pulled ahead (up to 96 or 97 when the limit kicks in). Do the fords and Dodges not have limiters?
TT doesn't have that much to do. why don't they just pull the damn engine out and actually do a flywheel dyno...
Quad, do you think that the Chevy HP curve could have anything to do with its deviation from the expected trap times. especially since there are other engines with that type of curve to compare to. by reaching its max HP at such a high rpm, it is actually not at the max rpm for very long, it runs past it quickly. this means it is reaching max HP at a different time and point in the gearing than the Ford or Dodge, or whatever. The "fat" part of the powerband, the 2500-4000 rpm region (by that I mean where the engine spends most of its time during acceleration or pulling) the HP is in the 230-250 range, which would be close to what you estimate by trap time.
ET - 16.8 seconds
Trap - 81.4 mph
curb weight - 4920 lbs
Plug those numbers into any of the 1st 4 equations above, and you get 205-207 horsepower at the rear wheels. On the chassis dyno, they measured 182.
Now lets do the F150 Ford 5.4L 260 hp Triton:
ET - 16.8 seconds
Trap - 83.5 mph
curb weight - 5020 lbs
From the equations above, you get 209-228. On the chassis dyno, they measured 207.
Now lets do the Ram 5.9L 245 hp:
ET - 16.7 seconds
Trap - 82.9 mph
curb weight - 5170 lbs
From the equations above, you get 219-230. On the chassis dyno, they measured 194.
Now lets do my '94 Camaro 5.7L, 275 hp:
ET - 14.3 seconds
Trap - 95.5 mph
curb weight - 3660 lbs
From the equations above, you get 246-250. On the chassis dyno, they measured 245.
***************************************
We might not all draw the same conclusions but in general I would note that truck powertrains waste more power getting to the ground than my Camaro. No surprise there.
The numbers for horsepower from the equations look a little better than the numbers from the chassis dyno.
The numbers for Chevrolet trucks seem the most inflated, the numbers for the Dodge seem the closest to what's advertised.
Cdean's points about power under the curve seem correct. While the chassis dyno shows peak hp of 194 for the Dodge, against 207 for the Ford, the equations instead average out the horsepower under the curve over a range of rpms encountered in the 1/4 mile run. As a result of this, the Dodge tops the Ford overall with more power under the curve, 224 versus 218.
Also keep in mind, a few degrees of difference in temperature make a large difference in air density, enough to explain 10-15 horsepower difference comparing the chassis dyno results to the equations, since chassis dyno numbers are corrected for temp and barometric pressure, track numbers are not.
The 1/4 mile makes a pretty good chassis dynomometer. All the trucks are really close in ET and Trap speed, and the difference in horsepower is accounted for by weight, Chevy lightest, Ford, then Dodge the heaviest.
I note from the Truck Trend comparison that the Chevy has the lowest first gear, and the slowest trap speed. What that means, is it is probably the quickest truck out to 60 ft. It makes it's ET time by coming off the line the hardest. The other trucks make up by charging harder at the finish. So that's where your advantage lies, at the start, if you have a Chevy. At the finish if you have a Ford.
Racing isn't fair. It's more fun winning. Take 'em off the line, race to 40 or 50 mph, declare victory and don't give a rematch. Having giddy-up punch from the stop light is what lets you get in front first, and shut the door.
Class dismissed.
Racers build engines to make more horsepower because horsepower is torque X rpm X K. (K is a constant factor and oes not change). So horsepower is affected by torque and rpm. More of either equals more horsepower. Higher rpm means you can run a lower gear for more acceleration, more torque means more acceleration.
But, more torque means quicker acceleration. The flat torque curve of the Chevy should put more torque available more of the time and equal more acceleration. The fact that they got a weak engine and still equalled the F and D in acceleration shows that it works. If they had tested a normal engine, the Chevy would have soundly trounced both of the other guys.
Mile
Any opionion on Gibson vs Borla catbacks would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Scoon8
Any advice appreciated.
1. The gas pedal is hard to push for the first 1/4 inch. Almost like its stuck. I know this is minor but it is starting to bug me. It seems to be worse when the engine is cold and also when I am in tow/haul mode. 80% of the time it is smooth as silk. What can cause this problem to come and go is a mystery to me.
2. When in tow/haul mode the shift from 1st-2nd is harsh. I did not notice this problem until last week when it made such a clunk I thought the rear end was going out. This seems the worst after truck is fully warmed up.
Thanks for you comments -
Mike Freeman
STRANGE WAYS HAVE YOU PUT YOUR TRUCK TO USE? Best Stories Win Truck Force Action Prizes!! In my neck of the woods, when the Amish don't know your name, you'll probably be called "Jakey" sooner or later. My time was sooner when I received a scratchy phone call from an "Amish Pay Phone Booth". (They keep phones away from where they live, often in shacks where rain fouls-up the connection and voice quality.) The voice on the other end was unmistakeable, an Amishman. "Hey", says he "you're the hearse driver for mules aren't you Jakey?" Half asleep, I thought some buddy was putting me on, so I said, "ya, sure, you got Jakey the mule hearse man." "What can I do for Abner", I enquired? (You call all Amishmen Abner if you don't know their names.) "Well, I got this mule ain't doing me no good no more cause he's dead and I gotta get him outa the front of my place cause my Wife don't like dead things and it's startin' to sticnk some, you know." "In a flash of brilliance, I replied, "I guess it does ... don't all dead mules stink Abner?" "Yeah, Jakey, you got that right and I'm Milo, not Abner." "Abner's my cousin." Do you know him Jakey?, he asked rather suspiciously." No, I don't really know Abner well", said I, "but how do I get to your place to get the mule?" "It's gonna cost you fifty bucks and you've got to have the men to load it on my truck." "It's against my Religion to lift dead mules." "Really, Jakey, and what religion might that be?" I told him I was sorry but that it was also against my Religion to tell him the name of my Religion. "That would be too Worldly", I said. He replied, "Well Jakey, I certainly understand that, but do you think you could make it $35.00 for the mule carcass?" I shouted, "Hell no, I was going to get you for $75.00 plus mileage but I kinda felt you were the type of man that deserves a break." "Maybe not." "Oh no Jaakey", he said quickly, "I am that type of man and I deserve a break for true" "Fifty it'll be and you'll get no more argument from me." "To get to my place, you first pass Intercourse on the way toward White Horse, passing Bird-in-Hand and when you get to the big street in Blue Ball, turn left and go 2.7 miles to the white place with a red barn and a green roof on the house ... that's me" "Name Milo Stoltzfoos is on the box." "You can't miss it." Wearing my full respirator mask and blasting the AC, I drove my Black Beauty into Milo's spread just past dusk to see some 15 Amishmen, several with Coleman Lanterns lighting-up the huge, dead mule. They told me it weighed between 1200 and 1500 lbs. dead. With a hoist hanging out of the upper barn window and hundreds of feet of 1" manila line, they manhandled the dead thing into my well protected cargo area (I'd stopped and bought a throw-away plastic drop cloth at the Hardware store to protect my sano super machine.) My Super Duty shocks and struts hardly budged when they dropped the big dead thing into the truck. Milo tried writing a check, but I reminded him about my Religion and how we only deal in cash. He looked cheated because he couldn't cheat me, which he'd loved to have done, and I blasted off the the renderers. The Flowmasters amde a beautiful sound on that quiet country night and Amish Farm, and just getting $50. from an Amishman is a jackpot rarely duplicated in my experience. If you need Jakey's Hearse, Just call Truck Force Dave. Next time I'll tell you about the $1,000.00 fine I helped a friend pay to his nasty ex -wife. He took 50,000 pennies and dumped them into my truck bed filled with corn syrup (on protective
plastic sheeting). My job was to dump the whole load in her front yard and give her a note from him that said something like, "Here's your grand [non-permissible content removed], I hope you have fun taking it to the bank!
She yelled, screamed and groaned and I told her, I'm Truck Force Dave, alias Jakey the Hearse Man, I can't help you ... I just deliver in style!!
If you've got a good story (and they have to be better than these), send them with pictures if possible and we'll make you a WEB-SITE STAR and send you a Truck Force Gift of great value. Well, sort of.
Anyone have pictures of Putco SS Skins on their truck??? If so send them to Dave! Dave I can't see the black ones on your black beauty, they just blend in too much. I'd love to see plain SS installed on a Pewter Silverado!
dp2000@webtv.net
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question among queries on HP, torque, ect.
My child placed pencils on the concave passenger
dashboard and on a quick stop, rolled into a
"black hole" between the windshield and the dash
and disappeared (pencils, that is). The opening
is about an 1/8th of an inch along the entire
dash. Is there an easy way to access this space
behind the dash in case this pencil begins to
rattle? Should I leave well enough alone?
99 LS reg cab 2wd. Thanks -
Awesome Dave-40 Commander In Chief/U.S.TruckForce
http://community.webtv.net/dp2000/USTF
My 2000 SLE seems to run a bit hot.
Living in Tampa Bay doesn't help..I guess.
Take it easy..
LT1
I own a 1999 Silverado LS 2500 with the Vortec 6000 and Auto transmission. It has a 3.73 Ratio Rear Axle with Locking Differential. It also has Autotrac and the HD Trailering Package. I don't care for the tow-haul mode. The shifting pattern is really weird. It shifts really hard while towing a 7500 travel trailer. How much harm am I doing by just leaving it in drive and using tow-haul on steep grades and heavy traffic?
send your Truck Pic's to dp2000@webtv.net
and vist U.S.TruckForce at
http://community.webtv.net/dp2000/USTF
How hot is too hot? My Red line is 260 degrees. I have never seen it go that high. Towing in Tow-haul, I get roughly 8-9 miles per gallon. Towing in Drive and using Tow-haul on grades and heavy traffic I get 10-11.3. A gallon here and there makes quite a difference on a 6,000 mile trip. I do not want transmission failure however. I have been driving Chevy Trucks since 1965 and by far this is the best one yet. It's had it's minor problems but my Chevy Dealer is the best and he takes care of me and my truck very well. Chevy still rules in my book!
could hear a pin drop. Now, pencil has begun
to vibrate and is driving me crazy. Dealer not
real interested in pulling the dash - I'm not
either. Looking into a fiberoptic instrument to
snake into this space and grasp it.. Any
other creative ideas? (wife says get used to it!)