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Walaby's avatar
Walaby
Explorer II
Jan 17, 2016

New Tow Vehicles - Ram 2500 CTD

Decided after a good amount of research to upgrade my TV to a 3/4 ton diesel. Searching for quite some time, and found a great deal on a 2014 Ram 2500 CTD. My truck was okay for my trailer, but I plan on greater distance traveling, and going through mountains etc, so I just felt like I wanted to have more than the Sierra 1500 short bed.

Did have one question for folks who have Turbo Diesel's. Reading through all the owners manual info etc, I noticed the chart for the cool down times for the turbo, based on weight towed, hills or not etc... So, according to the chart, I have to let the truck idle for a couple of mins (up to 5 mins, depending on severity of towing). That's fine, and I undertand it, but it got me thinking about fuel stops.

So, when you fill up at the pump, after towing your rig at highway speeds, do you leave your truck idling, or cut it off?

Thanks in advance.

Mike
Tow Vehicles

26 Replies

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  • 6_7_tow_rig's avatar
    6_7_tow_rig
    Explorer
    Jan 17, 2016
    While towing I never shut the truck off while filling up. I always let my truck cool down. Same goes for the campground. Once I back in, level up and unhitch its perfect timing.
  • Greene728's avatar
    Greene728
    Explorer
    Jan 17, 2016
    As other's have stated, by the time you exit the highway and make it to a stop at the pump you've probably already idled, slowed, enough to have lowered the egt to an acceptable level. But if your not sure, let it idle for a couple minutes while you do a walk around to inspect tires, loads, etc then fuel up. This is what I do.
    And I only worry about it at all while the outside temps are hot and the truck has been towing hard. During normal driving and operations its a non issue.
  • OH48Lt's avatar
    OH48Lt
    Explorer
    Jan 17, 2016
    The best way to monitor your temp is with an EGT (Exhaust Gas Temperature) meter. There are many types. On my Ford diesels, I just used a dedicated meter (in a bank with a voltage and tranny temp gauges). Easy to install, one hole to drill in the exhaust manifold, tap it, screw in your pyrometer and run the wires. No guessing after that. There are various plug-in monitors, if Ram reports that info out on the OBD II port.
  • spoon059's avatar
    spoon059
    Explorer III
    Jan 17, 2016
    If you are rolling HEAVY and have your EGT's up very high, you might want to leave it running to cool down for a little while. Generally speaking, by the time you slow down to get off the highway, drive on a local road and navigate through the fuel lanes, you are probably down to a low enough temp.

    I have an Edge CTS programmer that shows EGT's. I have yet to see them high enough to cause concern though.

    Think about this though, Ram doesn't show EGT's in any of their monitors. Also, they don't have one word about it in their manual. I don't think its nearly as much of a worry on newer trucks than it was on the older trucks.
  • jus2shy's avatar
    jus2shy
    Explorer
    Jan 17, 2016
    Walaby wrote:
    Decided after a good amount of research to upgrade my TV to a 3/4 ton diesel. Searching for quite some time, and found a great deal on a 2014 Ram 2500 CTD. My truck was okay for my trailer, but I plan on greater distance traveling, and going through mountains etc, so I just felt like I wanted to have more than the Sierra 1500 short bed.

    Did have one question for folks who have Turbo Diesel's. Reading through all the owners manual info etc, I noticed the chart for the cool down times for the turbo, based on weight towed, hills or not etc... So, according to the chart, I have to let the truck idle for a couple of mins (up to 5 mins, depending on severity of towing). That's fine, and I undertand it, but it got me thinking about fuel stops.

    So, when you fill up at the pump, after towing your rig at highway speeds, do you leave your truck idling, or cut it off?

    Thanks in advance.

    Mike


    Typically, the time you spend going through the stop signs, lights, getting setup at the pump and such is sufficient enough for cool down.
  • Cummins12V98's avatar
    Cummins12V98
    Explorer III
    Jan 17, 2016
    Walaby wrote:
    Decided after a good amount of research to upgrade my TV to a 3/4 ton diesel. Searching for quite some time, and found a great deal on a 2014 Ram 2500 CTD. My truck was okay for my trailer, but I plan on greater distance traveling, and going through mountains etc, so I just felt like I wanted to have more than the Sierra 1500 short bed.

    Did have one question for folks who have Turbo Diesel's. Reading through all the owners manual info etc, I noticed the chart for the cool down times for the turbo, based on weight towed, hills or not etc... So, according to the chart, I have to let the truck idle for a couple of mins (up to 5 mins, depending on severity of towing). That's fine, and I undertand it, but it got me thinking about fuel stops.

    So, when you fill up at the pump, after towing your rig at highway speeds, do you leave your truck idling, or cut it off?

    Thanks in advance.

    Mike


    When traveling with RV in tow at rest areas and truck stops or even a regular fuel station the truck stays running.

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