Upgrade truck or get used to new trailer and keep

[Xctrygirl]

So to ![](ake this post less annoying I’ll try to be brief and sum up the dilemma I am having.

Facts:
2006 Dodge Ram 2500 cummins diesel SLT crew cab with 4x4 and long bed, 3.73 axle. 151k miles, so young for a Cummins diesel. Rated to 12,800 lbs

New (to me) 2008 Horse trailer extra high and long (24’, 8’6" high inside) GVW of 14k. All aluminum.

Empty is probably close to 7k. Can hold 3 horses, I may do that here and there but not every trip.

I just sold my old horse trailer that was a 1999 Hawk 2 horse goose with dressing room. GVW on it was 7k. Fully loaded may have made 6500. 7k doubtful.

So my truck was absolutely gleeful pulling my old rig. Now with the new trailer and 2 horses hills are challenging and anything under 35 mph there’s a get up to speed situation and it’s hopping through the gears more than before. I am positive there is a part of the issue is me not being used to hauling a bigger load again so it’s possible I am still on the learning curve of how/when/where to accelerate and such.

My husband says that a 10 year old truck won’t still have the same towing power, torque and hp and such that it did when it was new.

We’re wondering if this rig/setup is too much for the truck. I have not tried hauling the trailer with anything else to compare. The new 2500/3500 has a lot more capability but due to the DEF crap the mileage is much worse. (Y’all probably know this better than me.) This is of course bypassing the whole $75k price tag too.

My truck friends from the horse world say stay with the 5.9L. It’s the best Dodge diesel engine and you’ll get way better mileage hauling without having to pay for the blue stuff.

To be fair I have not gone over 3k rpm’s ever with the new rig so it’s not like I am asking it to really struggle. On the highways it was really smooth, once I got up to speed. We’re just debating if it’s in over it’s engine or will it be ok? I think it’s hard because I am used to the truck and trailer and horses zipping along, and at 10k pounds we’re not there anymore.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

~Emily

Pic: [IMG]http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m147/Xctrygirl/Beluga%20-%20Adam%202008%202%20plus%201%20Trailer/13151407_10153632649222759_7103693529514943167_n_zps8eydte0b.jpg)

[cutter99]

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[Xctrygirl]

Yes but as mentioned the gas mileage in a new diesel is crap now because of the new emissions elements and the DEF crap.

Some friends I spoke with are getting single digits per gallon while towing.

My current truck is still getting around 15 mpg highway towing 2, and 13 mpg towing on local roads with 2.

I just don’t want to have to buy gas at the same rate as unleaded but at a price for diesel. I’d have to see a LOT of compelling evidence that shows that the new 2500/3500 would not drop the gas mileage as low as I have been told before I would jump into a new truck.

FYI I did the whole build your own truck thing with a Tradesman and it came to 75k sticker. None of the dealers within 200 miles had a truck with all the specs I put in, hence how I came to the price.

Emily

[cutter99]

People don’t buy large trucks to tow safely and get good fuel economy. You do not get both.

[FitToBeTied]

Towing and fuel economy don’t go together. Safety is what matters.

[beowulf]

[QUOTE=Xctrygirl;8694901]
Yes but as mentioned the gas mileage in a new diesel is crap now because of the new emissions elements and the DEF crap.

Some friends I spoke with are getting single digits per gallon while towing.

My current truck is still getting around 15 mpg highway towing 2, and 13 mpg towing on local roads with 2.

I just don’t want to have to buy gas at the same rate as unleaded but at a price for diesel. I’d have to see a LOT of compelling evidence that shows that the new 2500/3500 would not drop the gas mileage as low as I have been told before I would jump into a new truck.

FYI I did the whole build your own truck thing with a Tradesman and it came to 75k sticker. None of the dealers within 200 miles had a truck with all the specs I put in, hence how I came to the price.

Emily[/QUOTE]

I think that’s the compromise you have to make; safe, or efficient. I know you obviously want safe.

For what it’s worth, I have almost always gotten single digits when towing… even in the older models.

Your husband is right though, that a 10 y/o truck just won’t have the same panache. When was the last time you had the transmission looked over? In theory your 2500 SHOULD be able to pull 2 just fine…

I wouldn’t be leaping out a window to spend $75k if what you’ve got is working, but I’d make sure it is working first.

[Foxtrot_s]

We drove our Diesel 7.3 Ford F250 for twenty three years with not a speck of trouble and transmission was fine. Replaced the clutch once. It hauled our loaded truck and camper and the water all over B.C’s mountains for years and was used as a work truck too. Can’t speak to automatic transmissions, but our manual truck hauled and hauled, not speedy, but chugged along safely for sure.

We always try to maintain out vehicles and keep them - currently driving a 14 year old VW TDI Jetta wagon.

[FLeventer]

Ok so I tow my 4H with LQ with a Ford 350 with a 6.0 diesel. It tows well, with no issues but its slow because the load is heavy. I can hitch up a 2H GN and fly all over the place easy as pie.

Get used to the bigger load before getting a new truck IMO. Your 2500 should have no issue pulling that trailer.

[airhorse]

I would check into aftermarket upgrades to give your current truck some more power. That 3.73 rear end is good for mileage, bad for towing.

Personally, I wouldn’t tow trailer your size on a single rear wheel, but that’s just me. 2+1 trailers put a lot of tongue weight on the truck.

Tow ratings are limits, not goals.

[Xctrygirl]

[QUOTE=Foxtrot’s;8695139]
We drove our Diesel 7.3 Ford F250 for twenty three years with not a speck of trouble and transmission was fine. Replaced the clutch once. It hauled our loaded truck and camper and the water all over B.C’s mountains for years and was used as a work truck too. Can’t speak to automatic transmissions, but our manual truck hauled and hauled, not speedy, but chugged along safely for sure.

We always try to maintain out vehicles and keep them - currently driving a 14 year old VW TDI Jetta wagon.[/QUOTE]

Sadly I had a 7.3 Ford but sold it when I "Gave up horses and moved to California. "

That horseless span lasted a whopping 5 months. LOL

Em

[Xctrygirl]

I will always want safe.

I have looked into upgrading and or chipping the truck to help it with more power etc.

I am not opposed to a dually and part of this discussion being opened is to figure out if the situation merits a change or not. And if so, to what.

Since I am more than likely to be having 2 horses with an occasional 3rd it’s a beginning point on the mileage. The truck and trailer are capable of working together but as a conscientious person I don’t want to overly stress the truck if it’s ill equipped for the actual towing, nor do I want to open the door to a less than ideal safety environment for the horses I love and who will be towed in it.

Safety trumps mileage but mileage does have a factor in the overall equation.

Does anyone have any insight on the after market upgrades that folks can do to improve their trucks?

Emily

[Lucassb]

Here are some aftermarket add-ons that can improve towing performance: http://www.trucktrend.com/how-to/towing/1502-the-nine-must-have-upgrades-for-diesel-towing/

For what it’s worth, I’d certainly take the truck to a good mechanic to make sure everything is still in good working order. If the mechanicals are all functioning correctly there is no reason the performance should be particularly degraded.

I tow my GN with a 17 year old F250 PSD. It has about 120k miles on it now and looks and runs like a champ. Still pulls every bit as well as it did when new.

[fanfayre]

Maybe one of the injectors is going bad. That would account for loss of power and lack of fuel economy.
IIWM a mechanic would be 1st stop.

I had heard the '06 Cummins were a bad batch…
But what do I know- I drive an '01 Duramax;)

[grinanride]

Hmmm. Looking at the pic I suggest you get your trailer weight and tongue weight at a truck stop… You can add air bags on the truck… I think the tongue weight may be more than you might expect with the extra height, you might raise the nose a slight bit too…
Risa
Happy Trails Trailers .com
Balanced Ride Trailers .com
( and a Dodge owner )

[tangledweb]

[QUOTE=Xctrygirl;8694814]
The new 2500/3500 has a lot more capability but due to the DEF crap the mileage is much worse.[/QUOTE]

I don’t think that’s true. You probably can burn more diesel with spirited driving in a 400hp modern truck than in a 300hp 10yo truck but if you drive both at similar speeds you should get better numbers from a new one.

I’ve got a 6.7 ford. It gets 14 or 15 mpg towing a big trailer on a mix of roads. For most people it does not really matter anyway. It’s not like you are comparing a truck to a Prius. If you do 10000 towing miles a year the difference between good truck mileage and bad truck mileage is about $500 per year.

[Xctrygirl]

[QUOTE=tangledweb;8695857]
I don’t think that’s true. You probably can burn more diesel with spirited driving in a 400hp modern truck than in a 300hp 10yo truck but if you drive both at similar speeds you should get better numbers from a new one.

I’ve got a 6.7 ford. It gets 14 or 15 mpg towing a big trailer on a mix of roads. For most people it does not really matter anyway. It’s not like you are comparing a truck to a Prius. If you do 10000 towing miles a year the difference between good truck mileage and bad truck mileage is about $500 per year.[/QUOTE]

It’s actually been proven to be true…

I know folks don’t understand why I am looking at fuel economy but it is a budget expense. If the cumulative budget expenses don’t stay in the allowable (affordable) areas I naturally investigate to see if there’s a way to get the category back where it belongs.

With the Hawk the truck towed in the 20 mpg range. With the new trailer (and this is based on only short runs so it may go up with a hwy trip) it’s towing around 13mpg or less.

While that’s a sizeable difference, I posted on Facebook asking what mpg friends of mine are seeing with tow vehicles under at least a 10000# load. The results from them shows that there are ways (Tuners, chips, etc) and trucks that can get the number back up into at least the higher teens. That to me is worth investigating.

Also I am playing around with the idea of consolidating down to one vehicle. It’s just an idea now, but I would much prefer less car payments leaving the bank monthly. That’s another reason that mpg would matter.

~Emily

[ThirdCharm]

How about a well-kept, bigger, but not ‘new’ truck? My 24-year-old Cummins Dodge dually tows circles around my husband’s newer F350. And gets about 18mpg.

Jennifer

[Guilherme]

What’s the GCVWR on the truck? What does the truck weigh? What does the trailer weigh empty? What are the GVWRs on each? How much do you load onto the trailer?

I’ll bet money you’re overloaded. One way to ruin the towing experience is to burn out a tranny by overloading it.

Look up the numbers and do the math. If you’re under, I owe you a beer!

G.

[soloudinhere]

I know at least 3 people with newer 6.7L Cummins who report getting above 20 in around town driving. Fully loaded down with 4h slant I saw 11mpg, but considering most fuel is burned when getting the trailer moving this makes sense.

Everyone I know with a 2+1 is surprised by how badly it tows once they get it. Lot of tongue weight, not so good cargo weight distribution. A friend just downgraded to a 2h because her 2001 8.1 gmc 1 ton dually was struggling to pull her 6h head to head with one horse in it.

Also worth noting that we just looked at crew cab 4x4 2500 big horn with a 6 speed and these trucks can be had all day long for low 40s so I think your pricing may be off base, but I dont know what you equipped. The 3500s are definitely not $30k more expensive.

[asterix]

I agree with guilherme - it’s math. Look up those numbers and weigh the rig at a truck stop.

Not sure I buy the idea that an older truck somehow tows worse than it used to. I haven’t changed my setup in years and my truck feels the same as it always did.