AT vs 6spd / Color

[ERohloff]

Getting close to ordering an '05 3500 DC TD SRW. Need to nail down 1. Transmission and 2. Color.



Re 1. Will do occassional pulling of 7000lb TT and / or 2000lb slide-in popup (2nd bedroom for when extended family camping). The 48RE would i'm sure do just fine but sorta like doing gears. Just retired so no routine rush hour traffic involved.



Question to Tomeygun and Big Bob (via Butch at DD) : What's the split AT vs Manual do you see (sell)? Stopped at one Dodge dealer here near the Twin Cities and a salesperson said " Can't keep the 6 spds in stock. Sell faster than we can get them in. Even got people calling in from out of state for them". Went back to the same dealership a week later, look'in, ran into a different salesperson and he said " Don't get the manual, poor resale, we can't get rid of them. "

Will likely go with the 48RE so the wife can drive it better even though would go with the 6spd if not for others occassionaly driving the truck BUT just curious on the split being sold... ... ... ... And the resale issue.



Re: 2. Color. Black looks the "sharpest" but by far the worst to clean (so as not to scratch) and to keep clean. Will likely however go with Silver as it still looks good against all that chrome and is an order of magnitude easier to keep look'in sharp! Had 3 black and 2 silver trucks so "been there".

Just curious of you two dealer guys - What's the best, second best and poorest selling colors for the HD Rams?



So if you guys(anybody) don't have any real imp questions to address give these "trivial but curious ?'s a shot... ... ... .....



bob r...

 

[Dieselfitter]

bob,

If your towing is going to be 95% interstate, than the auto isn't a bad choice. but if your going to be hooked when driving through hilly , twisty secoundary rds. where the transmission will be shifting alot out of lockup. I would choose the 6 sp. when the auto is unlocked it just doesn't have the pulling power to get the load moving.

I just spent 7 yrs. with an auto, and never again .

too expensive to upgrade and repair.

with the 6 sp. you can even add a modest upgrade in power without any ill effects to clutch or transmission. Or if you chooce to add an exhaust brake = alot less controvercial with a stick.



In defence to the auto : My experence is with a 98 12 valve auto that I put $6000 into over 90,000 miles. ( too much money per miles in my book )

The new automatic may perform better and last longer. Time will tell.



good luck with your new truck

the new 05's are lite yrs. away from my old 98'

I had the same remarks when I bought my 98



DUG

 

[klenger]

You will love the 6 speed. Very few members with 6 speeds have any regrets, but quite a few with autos have traded to get the gears.

 

[Buffalo]

I agree with Dieselfitter and Klenger. I have a '91. 5, w-250 with an upgraded ATS auto with the TripleLok Torque Convertor. It works great but, the cost was over $6000. 00 plus 5 Days in Denver, CO. (motels,etc. ) and the drive from Phoenix to Denver, and back. At the time, they were the only ones, that I found, that could put a locking TC in an old Dodge. It was expensive but, It Works! That was the big reason for going with the 6-sp. in my '03. I have pretty much the same truck and weight trailer, as You. The 6-sp is excellent for towing. Would not trade it for an auto. As has been said, the auto is definately better in rush hour, stop and go traffic. The 6-sp is, aparently, very heavy-duty. And I like that. If there is a downside with the 6-sp, it's the fact that, mine at least, shifts slowly. As I have read on this site, the reason for this is that there is so much heavy -duty mass inside the trans that it just doesn't move as easily as a smaller, lighter-duty, trans. The first 3 gears are pretty close ratio so, with the 3. 73 rear-end, I am not a rocketsled leaving the stoplight. I think the auto is faster, off the light. I didn't buy my truck to drag race so, I'm OK with not having the fastest truck in town. In my opinion, the 6-sp really shines when towing. I did an 8063 mile trip with my trailer this past summer and loved the trans for towing. I would suggest that You take an auto and a 6-sp for an extended test drive, paying attention to the shifting characteristics of the 6-sp. Leave the salesman back at the dealership and do a lot of shifting. Then, make Your decision. Hope this helps. Joe F(Buffalo)

 

[DaveMorris]

Those 6 speeds are nice, if you like to tow heavy and alot... If you are just pulling your load 9000lbs (max)... then I would really consider an auto.



I have driven my buddies 6 speed for about 500 miles in towns and on the highway... On the highway it was just find, but in town that thing is terible all you do is sit there and shift, shift, shift, shift,...



I pull 7-9K and wouldn't take my auto for anything... . not to forget the "high idle" feature you can't get on a stick... or down the road if you ever decide to install a remote starter...

 

[DPelletier]

I'll through in my thoughts;



- Ken hit the nail on the head. Lots of people with autos wish they got the 6 spd (I was one of them) and you very seldom ever hear anyone say they wish they got the auto instead. When I bought my first truck, it was a split second decision with no real research as my F-250 was dead and I needed a truck asap. After buying it and joining the TDR, I regretted my auto decision more and more as time went on. Autos have some advantages, but if your on the fence, my vote is for the 6 spd.

Oh, and as your example shows, salesmen generally can't be trusted. 6spds in our local dealerships are always in demand and command higher resale value.



As far as color goes, the silver is nice and not too hard to maintain. My Patriot blue truck looks good but chips and scratches show up way more. Black would obviously be worse.



Cheers,

Dave

 

[DPelletier]

I forgot,

Whatever you do, do NOT base your decision on a test drive between the two trannies. The NV-5600 (not sure about the Getrag) takes some time to get used to. The first week, I blew several shifts and ground the gears a few times but it hasn't happened since. After years of driving 4 and 5 speeds, the tighter gates and weird reverse position throw you off until you have had a wee bit of time in the drivers seat.



Dave

 

[SAvery]

I just went from auto to 6 speed and I will never go back. The thing is, that there is no chance at this point to order one with the NV 5600, so you will have to take your chances with the Getrag. The dealership told me that once the Cummins 300+ HP became 50 state legal, that CA started sucking DC dry of 6 speeds. They must love 6 speeds in the sunshine state. That changed the dynamics for the rest of the country. As for the high idle, my manual will idle higher in the cold temps here in CO. I just can't set the thing to idle higher. When I first start it and it is really cold, the thing will idle at 1000 rpm until I drop the clutch to leave. Someone on the board said that is a standard feature to idle higher in cold weather, but the ability to set the idle higher using cruise at any time is limited to the auto.

 

[mberry]

Coming from an Auto to the 6 speed, I too will never go back to the auto. The 6 speed most definitely take a while to get used to. If you take your time and pay attention to how it likes to shift, it will become second nature in no time. Like Dave, I too have blown several shifts when I first got it. It's not too fun in traffic at times but it's not really an issue most of the time. It more than makes up for the traffic in my mind when I consider how heavy duty it is. I love the 6 speed.



I will say this. My auto never gave me any trouble in 2. 5 years and 70K miles but it SUCKED towing in the hills around here, and that was with my measly 3,500# boat.



As for color, I think that is a far too subjective and personal choice to offer an opinion. Get whatever color you want.

 

[tschwab]

See my sig for my choices. I originally wanted to get the 6spd, if you tow alot and heavey, it is probably the better way to go. My wife drives the truck as her work car to and from work, it is mine on the weekends, so the 6spd was not an option. Now that it is all said and done, I'm glad we got the 48RE, it has gotten very good press with very little problems if any (at least if you don't turn up the power). Most recently, I have read some posts where the 48RE is BETTER than the ford transmission or the Allison in the chev. It is smooth and I don't miss rowing thru the gears in all of the heavey stop-n-go traffic congestion where I live. White is a classic color, looks great and is easy to maintain, not to mention it is cooler, if you plan to travel to hot states. Good luck!

 

[LesStallings]

Once I realized that the 6-speed was spring loaded to the 3-4 position, the transmission got REAL easy to find the gears.



With no load, second gear starts are my norm. Just shift out of second and the shifter will spring perfectly in position to be pushed forward to 3rd.



Down shifts from 6th to 5th are a no brainer and the need for lower gears again benefit from the spring loading for 3-4th.



Once you figure out the shifter, it is exactly as it should be and is a pleasure to drive.



With a load, I can't imagine anything better! In first gear, usually I can just let the clutch out at idle and then mash the go pedal unless I'm at max weight or on an incline.

 

[Bertram65]

I would not worry about towing weight if you are within the factory limits of the truck, there have been very few problems with the 48RE, and the warrantee is 7/70 so Dodge must have some confidence in it. The 48RE has 3rd gear lockup so locking and unlocking is not an issue unless you are running at very slow speeds <40mph or in heavy traffic, I would much rather have the auto in traffic anyway as shifting and using the clutch can get uncomfortable after an hour or so. In the northeast you cannot find a stick anywhere, the dealers do not order them as there is almost no demand, resale is less as well as everyone wants the automatics.

 

[Tomeygun]

Getting close to ordering an '05 3500 DC TD SRW. Need to nail down 1. Transmission and 2. Color.



Question to Tomeygun and Big Bob (via Butch at DD) : What's the split AT vs Manual do you see (sell)? Stopped at one Dodge dealer here near the Twin Cities and a salesperson said " Can't keep the 6 spds in stock. Sell faster than we can get them in. Even got people calling in from out of state for them". Went back to the same dealership a week later, look'in, ran into a different salesperson and he said " Don't get the manual, poor resale, we can't get rid of them. "

Will likely go with the 48RE so the wife can drive it better even though would go with the 6spd if not for others occassionaly driving the truck BUT just curious on the split being sold... ... ... ... And the resale issue.



Re: 2. Color. Black looks the "sharpest" but by far the worst to clean (so as not to scratch) and to keep clean. Will likely however go with Silver as it still looks good against all that chrome and is an order of magnitude easier to keep look'in sharp! Had 3 black and 2 silver trucks so "been there".

Just curious of you two dealer guys - What's the best, second best and poorest selling colors for the HD Rams?





bob r...

1) - On orders, we sell about 75% 6-spd, but off-the-lot buyers take the auto most of the time... (you know, the browsing buyer)



And most diesel fanatics come in for the 6-spd... like they already know and thats that



But on the resale - I think there is no difference if the buyer knows the true market... The facts are that all used diesels sell very well... Auto-or-6spd



I vote 6-spd,



(PS- one time I order 45 trucks, and 21 of them were sticks... my boss jumped all over me because he though I messed up big time, BUT what-do-you-know, look at whats still here, a bunch of autos, HA!!!)

 

[TSpecht]

Here in the central lower peninsula of Michigan, I had a difficult time finding a 6spd QC 2500 or 3500 longbed, which is what caused me to order the 05 in my signature.



I test drove an automatic, and a 6 speed. My first vehicle ever was a stick, then the second was an automatic although a different maker and a 92, but after that automatic I vowed to never again go with an automatic regardless who made it.



The 6 speed in these trucks (at least the NV5600) does take some getting used to, I've only tried to put it in 7th (reverse haha) once, and am finally at a point after about 1700 miles where I'm really smooth with it and even double clutching on the downshifts... How long it takes for you to get used to it will obviously vary depending on experience and how fast you tend to pick up on things... From a reliability standpoint I couldn't possibly bring myself to get an automatic though. I prefer the relative simplicity of a nice purely mechanical system... I don't care if it does make some odd noises from time to time... If I wanted something whisper quiet I wouldn't have bought a HD diesel pickup...

 

[DPelletier]

1) - On orders, we sell about 75% 6-spd, but off-the-lot buyers take the auto most of the time... (you know, the browsing buyer)



And most diesel fanatics come in for the 6-spd... like they already know and thats that



But on the resale - I think there is no difference if the buyer knows the true market... The facts are that all used diesels sell very well... Auto-or-6spd



I vote 6-spd,



(PS- one time I order 45 trucks, and 21 of them were sticks... my boss jumped all over me because he though I messed up big time, BUT what-do-you-know, look at whats still here, a bunch of autos, HA!!!)

A lot of good info to be inferred from this, I think.



Dave

 

[Tomeygun]

A lot of good info to be inferred from this, I think.



Dave

One more thing, I noticed most/all women I sell diesels to buy autos...

(only one woman ever bought a 6-spd from me, what a woman!)



take it for what its worth

 

[EEdmondson]

In Calif. you won't find a 6spd on a dealer's lot. Before I saw the light, I tried to find a Duramax 6spd. The dealer couldn't locate one in the whole huge state. He found only one in Oregon and it had already been sold. I never saw a stick HD truck on any lot of all 3 brands in over a year of shopping. Maybe it's all the traffic, but Californians don't like to shift.

I love my 6spd and the whole truck.

 

[tschwab]

From a reliability standpoint I couldn't possibly bring myself to get an automatic though. I prefer the relative simplicity of a nice purely mechanical system

You better sell your your 24V HPCR and go buy a 12V CTD then, because these 24V's have a sea of electrons in them. Also think your off base thinking the automatic is not reliable.

 

[BIG BOB]

I haven't talked to Butch about your question, however I think the 6 speed is more popular, and the main reason for this is because the 47RE was so lousy giving the Auto's a bad reputation!



In the White Obsession (99 CTD) I had the 5 speed, never have driven the 6 speed, but I do have the 48RE in the Ghost Rider. I have never regretted it! I absolutely love the 48RE! Sick and tired of shifting. This last summer on vacation, my truck and travel trailer grossed out at 17,600#'s. Never once wished I had the 6 speed. I use the tow haul button on a regular bases while towing, if I go under 60 mph, I'll lock over-drive out. I've always had enough power and have no complaints.



I guess I'm one of the odd-balls. My life story! :-laf :-laf :-laf



Oh, by the way White is definately the right color for me!

 

[DPelletier]

Also think your off base thinking the automatic is not reliable.

Hopefully this doesn't turn into another transmission war thread. The 48RE IS reliable for an automatic. Anyone thinking the 48RE is more reliable than an NV-5600 has rocks in thier head.



Dave