Towing 22,000 pounds in 124 degree heat

[fly-boy]

These trucks just get better and better!

So I towed my 22k pound trailer home from Marysvale Utah to Los Angeles on Saturday. When we reached the portion of I-15 that runs along the strip in Las Vegas the outside air temp read 116 degrees while traveling 70 mph. My trans temp read 189 and the engine was running 210.

At the top of the northside of the Baker grade I was running about 50 mph. My trans was at 209 and the engine was still at 210. I did downshift several times to keep the engine temps down.

When I reached Baker the outside temp read 124 degrees! Transmission was running 195 degrees and the engine was still at 210 degrees which is where it stayed all the way to Barstow. The outside temp gauge read 123 degrees for over an hour between Baker and Barstow!

It was a comfortable 70 degrees inside the truck the entire time!

To say I am blown away by all the newer trucks capability is an understatement! With well over 30k pounds of load to haul these trucks can flat out get the job done on the worst of towing days.

We contemplated staying over in Vegas rather than push all the way home due to the heat- It was nice to wake up in my bed at home Sunday morning. 🙂

[stsmark]

Hey Fly Boy,
How was Utah? Thinking of a trip after Labor Day and like to hear your views. What do you fly btw?
Thanks Mark

[hoopers]

Good thing your trailer tires didn't give out at those speeds and temps. A good testament to your trailer tires!

[fly-boy]

Hannibal wrote:
How do you manage 22k lbs with an 18k lb GVWR (12k~dry weight) trailer?

Are you transporting lead ingots or is your ATV a forklift?:@

Either way it's still an impressive accomplishment.

My trailer has a 21k GVWR and is over 17k dry. Load 17 feet of garage full and it is not hard to get to 22k before you put 160 gallons of water on board, 60 gallons of fuel...

[Hannibal]

How do you manage 22k lbs with an 18k lb GVWR (12k~dry weight) trailer?

Are you transporting lead ingots or is your ATV a forklift?:@

Either way it's still an impressive accomplishment.

[ksss]

That is one badss looking dually. My LBZ would not do that pulling that kind of weight. Sometimes products really don't improve much from year to year. RV's are a great example, but pickups certainly have, even while dealing with the emission issues, they continue to pull more and more performance out of these pickup. If your going to pay what they want for a new one, its good to know that your getting more than just new paint.

[_40Fan]

That engine temp gauge, was it monitored using the dash?

[fly-boy]

45Ricochet wrote:
So did you bake some cookies for the kids in the bed going to Baker :B
We always stop in Baker for the Greek restaurant, but at 124* I would have just wanted to get home also.
Good report.

On edit
Is THIS your TH specs?

Close on my specs/layout but I have a custom ordered unit with an extra couple of feet in the garage and GVWR of 21k. The hitch weight is over 4k.

The rear end in my truck is 3.73.

[bmanning]

2oldman wrote:
What's the rear end gear ratio?

I'm not the OP but IIRC all DMaxes get a 3.73.

But then again SIRI (sometimes I recall incorrectly)

[2oldman]

What's the rear end gear ratio?

[45Ricochet]

So did you bake some cookies for the kids in the bed going to Baker :B
We always stop in Baker for the Greek restaurant, but at 124* I would have just wanted to get home also.
Good report.

On edit
Is THIS your TH specs?

[MARK_VANDERBENT]

Trust me had an excursion that needed a ton of money on its front end !!! The list goes on and on

[fly-boy]

2oldman wrote:

fly-boy wrote:
Class 8 is overkill imo but there is certainly nothing wrong with having "too much" truck.

Nope. I need something new and yours is definitely in the running. Sounds really good. Does it ride nice? My old 450 is terrible.

I couldn't be happier with the ride of my truck- Having said that, I have always felt the GM trucks road a little better than the others. That said, I think the Fords have a really tough and very strong front end that requires fewer alignments.

Have never owned a Dodge so I can't speak to how they ride. However, they report big power numbers and I am sure they have a great transmission mated to them!

[2oldman]

fly-boy wrote:
Class 8 is overkill imo but there is certainly nothing wrong with having "too much" truck.

Nope. I need something new and yours is definitely in the running. Sounds really good. Does it ride nice? My old 450 is terrible.

[fly-boy]

2oldman wrote:
22k? I know many who wouldn't do that with anything less than a Class 8. I guess these newer trucks are some serious haulers.

I see your truck is black. That must get too hot to touch in this heat.

Class 8 is overkill imo but there is certainly nothing wrong with having "too much" truck.
As for truck color- I wanted another white one but I when I saw the black I decided to get it. Probably go back to white on the next one.

Taking extra water (which we always do as we travel with young kids)is an excellent suggestion. Also make sure your tires are in good shape. I have never seen so many vehicles (cars, trucks, trailers, rv...) pulled over with flats. There were dozens and dozens pulled over and I am sure many sat for a long time in those high temps!