What to tow with, dodge or chevy?

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an RV or an interest in RVing!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
See posts with no answers
D

dbarnes

New member
Joined
Feb 13, 2008
Posts
3
I have a question...obviously.  I have had a 2004 chevy 4x4 with the 5.3 and it did what I needed it to until recently we bought fleetwoods new evolution E2 camper (3000#) to have more room with the kids when camping.  Now when we go up any long hill the truck has to shift down to second and it drives me crazy.  I have been looking at chevy and dodge diesels.  My friend has an 03 duramax with a 7500# 5fth wheel and it tows it great.  As for Dodge, what kind of luck have people had with the 5.9, and is there any difference between going standard or automatic?  Also, what kind of mpg have you gotten?  I drive daily about 75% highway? 
Thanks, and sorry it is so long! 
 
Either truck should be good as long as the weight limits are not exceeded. If it were me I would prefer the Dodge but that is personal preference.
 
I think a diesel might be a little overkill for that trailer. With the price of diesel these days I don't think you'll ever recover the additional upfront cost of the diesel over a gasoline engine. There are plenty of gas engines that can pull that weight easily and gas mileage will be pretty close to what the diesels get, especially unloaded.

That said, I  have the Chevy Duramax and get 18 mpg empty and 10 pulling a 14,000 lbs 5th wheel. I've had good luck with the Chevy and would recommend it if your mind is made up on diesel. The Dodge with the Cummings would be my second choice but it didn't have the towing capacity I needed. Good luck with whatever you get.
 
I'm all about the Dodge.

Stick or auto is a matter of preference. I know a lot of guy's who use and prefer the stick, but they live in more rural settings. A stick would drive me nuts in the city.

Mileage is going to be the worst it's going to be when you first get the Ram. Probably about 14mpg, but once you break it in, 17+ mpg's are not unheard of at all.

Feel free to check out this forum for more help on hauling with Dodges

http://www.dodgeforum.com/forumid_143/tt.htm


I agree 100% with Bross about diesel fuel being more $$ than gas, however if you tow often you'll get better mpg's with a diesel. Even if you don't tow, you'll get better mileage, the engine will last 4x's longer, and it's less expensive to maintain, however the intial cost is a lot more.

You may have a 300lb camper today, however you may not always have a trailer that light. Should you decide to upsize, you'll aready know that you have a tow veichle that can handle it if you have a diesel.  ;)
 
Thanks for the info.  I have been going back and forth for months...diesel or 6.0.  The two biggest factors I like about the allison is the 5 speed and diesel in general is the mileage.  Even though it isn't a huge difference it would still kill me to know I'm only getting 12-14mpg(and even worse towing).  The hope is to own the diesel forever and eventually get close to breaking even.
 
We tow a 38' 15000# fiver with a 06 Dodge CTD, 6 speed manual.  Manual so I don't have tranny problems to worry about.  Just got done towing it from Washington State to Florida.  Downside of Dodge is their shortbeds.  Dodge has a shortbed that is 6'3" rather than the 6'6" on every other brand.  The rear axle is also closer to the rear window on the Dodge SB.  With a fiver this places the nose uncomfortably close to the cab -- even with a slider hitch.  Mileage is 11-12 towing and 19-22 unloaded depending on speed.  Both Chevy and Ford were substantially more $$$ than comparably equipped Dodge.  You will need an exhaust brake on the Dodge to tow anything heavy.
 
dhamblet said:
We tow a 38' 15000# fiver with a 06 Dodge CTD, 6 speed manual.  Manual so I don't have tranny problems to worry about.  Just got done towing it from Washington State to Florida.  Downside of Dodge is their shortbeds.  Dodge has a shortbed that is 6'3" rather than the 6'6" on every other brand.  The rear axle is also closer to the rear window on the Dodge SB.  With a fiver this places the nose uncomfortably close to the cab -- even with a slider hitch.  Mileage is 11-12 towing and 19-22 unloaded depending on speed.  Both Chevy and Ford were substantially more $$$ than comparably equipped Dodge.  You will need an exhaust brake on the Dodge to tow anything heavy.
Click to expand...

Perhaps it's the hitch that you are useing. I know several people pulling with Dodge shortbeds with no problems at all.

Here's a shot of someone I know pulling with a Megacab dually ...

 

Attachments

  • Bigriver RESIZE - E3D859E2A75345EF861F007D488147AB (2).jpg
    Bigriver RESIZE - E3D859E2A75345EF861F007D488147AB (2).jpg
    12.3 KB · Views: 51
We have a 2005 Chev.4door,DuraMax, short Bed and tow a 32' Keystone Cougar fiver, no problems at all. The Allilson is hard to beat, it down shifts helping on the breaking. I do not know its behind the truck--it tows so Great.  BUT we Just brought a Slidin for the truck which we will be able  to tow the Boat and or Jeep.
Go With the DURAMAX ;D
Have a safe and great day.
Walt
 
Since I'm new to this - what is an exhaust break, and how much $ do they run, how are they installed...?
 
You want a dependable diesel engine...? Go with Cummins.  As of yet, I haven't seen a Duramax engine in an eighteen wheeler ;D ;D ;D
 
I went with the duramax back in 2002. haven't been disappointed yet. cummins speaks for itself though. either truck would be a good choice. a friend that we trailer with alot has a dodge. loves it. lots of power and very dependable. kinda hard on front end parts and rides a little rougher than our Dmax....
 
As of yet, I haven't seen a Duramax engine in an eighteen wheeler
Click to expand...

True enough, though it is starting to appear in medium duty trucks (MDTs) in the US.  The Duramax is an Isuzu diesel and Isuzu is one of the major diesel power plant manufacturers worldwide. There are over 20 million Isuzu diesels out there, ranging up to 300 HP, and Isuzu trucks are used widely used outside the US.
 
i agree that the D-Max has a pretty good diesel engine in them and the Allison tranny is awesome. The only thing I would suggest to anyone who is considering a D-Max is to keep an eye on engine running temp as well as EGT's. The D-Max was, ( and maybe still is ) useing aluminum heads that had a tendancy to warp.

Keep an eye on your temps and you should be good to go.  ;)
 
I went from a Dodge diesel to a GMC diesel in 2006:

http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/showthread.php?t=128250

I went from a fitth-wheel to a motorhome in 2008:

http://www.rvtrader.com/rvdetail704491.htm

 
"I went from a Dodge diesel to a GMC diesel in 2006:"


Comparing 1999 Dodge to 2006 cheby... eeh ?  Why not compare 2006 Dodge to 2006 Cheby....


http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/showthread.php?t=128250

I went from a fitth-wheel to a motorhome in 2008:

http://www.rvtrader.com/rvdetail704491.htm


[/quote]
 
BronekR said:
......Comparing 1999 Dodge to 2006 cheby... eeh ?  Why not compare 2006 Dodge to 2006 Cheby....
Click to expand...

This is an experience with two truck I have OWNED. In 2005, before I purchased the GMC, I looked hard at Dodge and Ford also; the decision to go with GMC was easy, it had the ALLISON 6 speed and the HIGHEST fifth-wheel tow rating - 16,600. With all these advantages, "Bobtailing" with this GMC averaged  21 MPG; that's not too shabby for a MONSTER 6.6L, V-8 turbo-diesel.
 
mayfair said:
Perhaps it's the hitch that you are useing. I know several people pulling with Dodge shortbeds with no problems at all.
Click to expand...

I have made cab-fifth wheel nose contact with both a Reese 15k slider and later with a Pullrite Superglide.  Each time it cost me about $700 in repairs.  It depends on the size of the trailer nose, the slopes at the sides of it, and the placement of the pin.  But Dodge Shortbeds are 6'3" long (not 6'6" like all other trucks, and the distance from the center of the rear axle to the cab is about 6-12" closer on Dodge shorties than either Ford or chevy all combining to place the trailer nose closer to the Dodge cab.  I now pull with a Dodge CTD Long bed..
 
I would consider one other thing in this decision.  Sit in an RV park and listen to the noise the Fords and Dodges make compared to the Duramax.  The Duramax is much quieter.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Members online

Total: 835 (members: 6, guests: 829)

Forum statistics

Threads
131,973
Posts
1,388,455
Members
137,722
Latest member
RoyL57
Back
Top Bottom