TV with manual tranny? Does anyone?

Found the perfect truck, has everything I want and need and is clean, low miles and still Oem. BUT, it is a manual 6 speed. I have to think it would be a bit stressful in the hills and at stop and starts but I am all ears. Truck is a diesel dually and I am pulling from a ball hitch up to 10,000# currently but who knows what the future brings. Love the truck but want no regrets...

Some guys won't have anything else, they pick the shift points. It does get old in traffic but it's all in what the driver is used to. I drove a freight truck with an automatic and absolutely hated it, the engine was screaming all the time and fuel mileage was atrocious. However I have no desire to back to a standard in my tv.

IF you love the truck, and you enjoy a stick shift, go for it.  The RAM with the Cummins Diesel is a brute, and the MT is a good match. (Ram is the only one of the Big 3 to even offer a manual transmission in a 3500 / 4500 series truck).

IF you love the truck and think the stick is a required trade off to get the truck, better hold out for an automatic.

Only you know the answer.  It is not the truck, it will do the job.  It is your preference.

  Even though the newer auto?s are very reliable.....I hope to ?never? own one!  I hope that was clear enough!  ;D

The ?only? problem with the Ram Diesel 6 speed, is the dual mass clutch. ?If? you do a ?performance tuner?, and pull some heavy loads.....you?ll likely ?smoke? the clutch pretty quickly.

  If you ever need to replace...there are a couple of great ?aftermarket? clutch/ pressure plate systems available. Their only drawback.....a little hard to push the clutch pedal, and the transmission will become noisy. The dual mass clutch helps keep the tranny quiet....but it?s the weak link in the system!

  Good Luck with your decision!  )

Truck in question is a 2000 Ford 350 with a 7.3.

Mem, do you find the manual annoying or helpful in the mountains?

Back in my Trailer days my first Tow Car was a 4 Speed Stick. I liked it.

But then I know how to drive a Stick. in fact I drove almost nothing but stick shifts till that car bit the dust. (one automatic for a short time.. A loaner). Learned on a stick.

Had to teach my daughter a few Stick Shift things.

Hills are not a problem IF you know how to drive a stick.  You just need 3 feet.
(Ok that 3 feet is a joke. but you can either use the parking brake if it releases properly or one foot twice. Done it both ways).

Have had several manuals but not on a heavy tow vehicle and never a 6 speed. Trying to gauge the nuisance value from those who have them now or have in the past.

mobjack22 said:

Truck in question is a 2000 Ford 350 with a 7.3.

Mem, do you find the manual annoying or helpful in the mountains?

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  Short answer....No!  But, never having towed with an auto....that may not be a completely valid answer. I can only say, that I like the option of choosing what gear I want and how long I want to stay there. There is one given though...an auto runs very hot (especially under load).....that tranny cooler stuck out there in front of of everything puts additional load on an already taxed system. Nothing like “pre-heating the air headed to your ac condenser, radiator, and the turbo intercooler!

  The “only” time it is a PIA, is in bumper to bumper traffic ( which I fervently avoid), when towing our 20K 5er!

I can drive a stick shift of most any kind - have even done stick shift Class 8 trucks back in the day.  But modern automatics work so well and are so reliable, there is no way I would accept a manual tranny for towing.  There is no benefit at all, so why put up with the "3 feet" hassle?

OK, so maybe this is the only 7.3L F350 left in the world?  Would that change my mind?  I doubt it...

Memtb said:

  Even though the newer auto?s are very reliable.....I hope to ?never? own one!  I hope that was clear enough!  ;D

The ?only? problem with the Ram Diesel 6 speed, is the dual mass clutch. ?If? you do a ?performance tuner?, and pull some heavy loads.....you?ll likely ?smoke? the clutch pretty quickly.

  If you ever need to replace...there are a couple of great ?aftermarket? clutch/ pressure plate systems available. Their only drawback.....a little hard to push the clutch pedal, and the transmission will become noisy. The dual mass clutch helps keep the tranny quiet....but it?s the weak link in the system!

  Good Luck with your decision!  )

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I have owned five Dodge Rams with Cummins diesel and manual transmission and two Mustangs with 5.0 and 5 speed. I still have the two I purchased new (1996 3500 5 speed and 2003 3500 6 speed).  I LOVE a manual transmission but for the reason you mentioned, I am seriously considering the Aisin 6 speed in my next new truck, which besides a brief ownership of a Jeep Liberty diesel will be my first ever automatic transmission.  A Dodge Ram Cummins forum I am a member of has several members that have been very unhappy with their G56 manual transmissions because they get very hot and can distort the aluminum case enough to cause wear of the bearings and the transmission fails.  There have also been numerous cases of clutch failures from the dual mass flywheel.  My 2003 has the cast iron case NV5600 6 speed and it has been flawless.  It never had the dual mass flywheel, but I still upgraded to the larger surface diameter one when I installed the South Bend clutch at about 160,000 miles.  With the stiffer pressure plate and bigger clutch, it is not as fun to drive and gets downright tiring in stop and go traffic.  I never have had any issue with towing anything and I have a gooseneck tilt trailer that has two 8000# axles that I haul equipment on. Backing the TT into an uphill blindside campsite sucks with a manual transmission.  It would be much easier with a fifth wheel.  I still love my manual transmissions and wish Dodge Ram would have stuck with the NV5600 transmission and it would be a no brainer on the new truck purchase.

Thanks guys!

I've had both, and with the newer 6 and 8 speed auto's built for the torque of the newer diesels and add the engine brake into the equation, you'll love towing with a auto. As a side note, newer Dodge Rams have a higher tow rating with a Auto tranny over a manual tranny, better gear ratios options also. I have the 6 speed auto and I turn the engine brake on every time I drive the truck, really helps stretching brake pad life. You already have the truck you like, but don't be shy of the newer auto trannys if your thinking of another tow vehicle,,,gregg

Why not? The rest of the world does.
Drove all over europe including the Alps Austria Switzaland Italy Spain Francs Germany  with a manual trans and 21ft tt

SIL and DD bought a manual trans despite my opinion a year ago for his camper.  Today he wishes he had bought an automatic.  Manuals still have their place, but it is pretty small a place.  Same with my truck.  I have a super low miles 4x2 for sale, but nobody wants to buy it because everyone has been brain washed that 4x4 is a must have.

So donn, tell me about you?re truck...

Yes get that 6 speed, even if it's not your favorite it's way better than the 4 speed auto that would come in that truck. Its tough enough but 4 gears wasn't enough options when towing with mine.

glockholiday said:

Yes get that 6 speed, even if it's not your favorite it's way better than the 4 speed auto that would come in that truck. Its tough enough but 4 gears wasn't enough options when towing with mine.

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Newer automatics in trucks are 5 or 6 speeds.  So thats plenty of gears to keep the motor in the sweet spot for power.  With todays ECMs and TCMs automatics for the most part are superior to manuals.  Thats the main reason Ram is the last truck builder that offers a manual.

I have a 2000 F250 with the same 7.3 / 6 speed manual transmission, works great for towing, though I can't say anything about in the mountains as I live in Louisiana, and it is mostly a farm / work truck.  It is geared with a low first gear, under normal driving one starts out in the second gear, which is labelled 1st.  I bought mine 9 years ago next week (4th of July sales special in 2009) it now has 225,000 miles and is still going strong.  I don't really like to do city driving in it (I have driven it in downtown Houston 2 or 3 times over the years), but it is not too bad as there is plenty of torque so starting from a dead stop only requires lift up on the clutch, not accelerator pedal timing action required. 

Anybody wanting a quality tow vehicle, you can read my ad or send me a PM

If you're comfortable driving a stick shift, go for it.  Those are very good rigs.  I towed with sticks for years before I got old and lazy.