rsh_757
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Re: 2016 Titan XD Cummins- TFL
I love it. I have been waiting for that! The comforts of my wife's Armada and a nicely powered diesel with very comparable weight/power ratio. I won't be trading or selling my CTD Ram anytime soon, but I would gladly fork up for a newer truck of that makeup and give it a solid chance at a long life in my garage.193Views0likes0CommentsRe: Ram 2500 Gearing
camp-n-family wrote: Just returned from a 3400km trip which took us through some pretty good hilly areas around the Finger Lakes of New York. I tow with the combo in my signature. Trailer weighs 7600lbs loaded. Overall the truck towed ok but there were a couple of hills where it really struggled. It is the smaller 5.7 Hemi engine but I never encountered this problem with my old similarly powered Tundra. The Tundra pulled the TT fine which is why I went with the Hemi instead of the diesel. (6.4 was impossible to find at the time of purchase) I'm wondering if there is a problem or if it's just the tall 2nd gear. On 2 seperate occasions we had to start a climb of a fairly steep, long hill from a stop. The truck would pull hard and accelerate quickly in 1st up to around 5500rpm and then shift into 2nd. That's when it would struggle. The Tundra would continue to pull hard and accelerate, then shift into 3rd etc. The Ram just died and couldn't even hold speed. The shift into 2nd would drop the RPMs right down to 2500, out of the power band and it would bog down. Speed would keep decreasing but it wouldn't shift back to first. There was no way to get it into the higher RPMs of 2nd gear where the power is. I had to drop it into 1st and was stuck holding it at 5000rpm (~25mph) to climb the hill. The drop in RPM between 1st and 2nd is too great. Is it normal for this truck and what others have experienced? I expected better. It was a fairly steep grade each time but only pulling 7600lbs of its rated 13,500lbs. The Ram does weigh 800lbs more than the Tundra did and has 4.10 vs 4.30 rear gearing but I still would have thought it could accelerate uphill, or at least hold speed. Wow, that is really shocking. I have owned a diesel Dodge forever and questioned my neighbor for buying the gasser 2500 HD with 4.10's. It seemed like a waste to go gas if one was going to change the ride that much. It didn't get the best mileage, but it felt like it had more than enough yank for his 8k TT. Backed it up a long driveway with little effort too. It might be like the wife's 2008 Armada. That thing has some weird gearing setup with its tow package and it feels like it can tow the world even though it is a halfer. It isn't the most powerful thing, but towing stuff is right in the wheelhouse.546Views0likes0CommentsRe: For you who don't like the GM truck's IFS system
IFS isn't bad, it just isn't as good as having a solid axle setup in certain circumstances. I think it is great on the halfers and other 5-6 lug trucks. I would certainly challenge the GM's nice, smooth and Buick-like ride with the 2012 Super-Duty Diesel. That thing rides like a Presidential Limo, so I don't really see the "advantages" of having IFS in a truck.268Views0likes0CommentsRe: Diesel vs gas......................
Tankerhank wrote: what has antiques got to do with today? Unless you drive one. Well, OK there Shankerspank. Maybe you should ask yourself that since you know, made the reference? Do you mean to say that after your weak attempt at ridiculing me with your greatness that you won't even back it up? I expected more from man with your level of integrity (well maybe not) Then again, having you around is validation that Franklinman1999 is not the only one of his kind.243Views0likes0CommentsRe: Diesel vs gas......................
Tankerhank wrote: .... 32 valve "wild" design *LOL!!!! 4 valves per cylinder (Penta head) is a standard for the modern motor as it allows for efficent flow of air/fuel. "Modern motor" *G* it has been around for nye on 40 years, not as old a design as a pushrod motor but to each their own. Motorcycles use it as it allows the motor to sping upwards of 16,000 RPM without parts exploding! For grunt nothing replaced cubes. Well, it looks like this nuisance just isn't going to quit. Hankertank, sadly, you probably really think you are witty. Quit embarassing yourself, someone you actually know might read this stuff. Maybe you just don't get it "g" My comment was pointing out that Chrysler made that HP out of a 5.7 without that technology and no other pickup could touch it in 2002 when it came out. You have manstroked the 5.7 enough for having just a little bit more and it took much more engineering/development to get it and at this time, it really isn't more. While you are on your trip of being a wealth of knowledge, go ahead and tell me which light duty pickups built 40 years ago that came with V-8 gas engines contained anything other than push rods and 2 valves per cylinder. Then tell me which ones had that 30 years ago, then 20 years ago, then show me a list of light truck, V-8 engines older than 1996 that had 4 valves per cylinder. I bet it is pretty small if any exist at all. Now the old man had a 91 ZR1 Corvette that fit that bill, but it surely wasn't offered in any GM pickups. Come on Einstein, I am waiting to be blessed with this information. Of course now, you find it all over the place. I am somewhat confident that the first one found in a v-8 powered pickup was the Ford triton series. That of course is a guess and have no actual wisdom to back it up. So who did it and when? Was it Ford, Dodge, GM, international or jeep. We know Toyota didn't offer a truck with a v-8 in it until the mighty first gen Tundra, Nissan not until Titan so that pretty much leaves the domestics in the V-8 truck world of the United States.243Views0likes0CommentsRe: Diesel vs gas......................
As far as gas engines go, I still put the 8.1 GM at the top. It really pulls well and in many cases doesn't have to rev to get the job done. My partner has a 2002 8.1 and he has to force it down in gear to keep the juices in the tranny flowing. The hemi doesn't have near that displacement and does the job, but that 8.1 was made to pull heavy. Too bad they don't make it anymore!243Views0likes0CommentsRe: Diesel vs gas......................
I thought I read somewhere that the Hemi was tested to some crazy amount of running hours under load at high RPM's without missing a beat. I pulled. 31' trailer with my 1500 hemi and 3.92 gears all over the place around here (we have mass hills) and I was not afraid at all to run it at 4k up every hill. That was never the problem. However the 31' trailer and wind was not to mention the mileage, it really sucked it down on the hills. The crazy part is that it isn't some 32 valve wild design engine. It is a 16 valve push-rod motor and it makes tons of power for it's size and even more now. You are correct, there is an attraction to the low RPM power, it is nice to cruise up hills and even on the really steep ones at 22-2400 rpm's (I know guys that spin them higher) but my package just doesn't need it. The hemi will move a load if given the chance.243Views0likes0CommentsRe: Diesel vs gas......................
I don't recall Hannibal ever disliking diesels. On the contrary he has repeatedly mentioned over the years how his next truck will probably be a newer Cummins powered Ram, but he is giving his current Hemi a shot at providing lengthy service and it will. Sure, I like to argue the topic as much as the next guy, but Hannibal is no diesel hater. Heck, if I recall he has tooled his axle to 4:56 gears which puts his gasser in tow monster territory. It is almost like he is doing the Hemi thing as an experiment :)207Views0likes0Comments
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