Big 3 Tow Test...Cool Video!!

[BradyWilliams]

All nice trucks for sure. But I will take my Dodge 1 ton, 6 speed, anyday. And with only a few mods. towing in the fast lane is common place. Cummins=Bulletproof But we already know that.

 

[raychem]

Lets see how these test do once the 6 speed aisin auto is released... . but I believe it wont be until late 07 for the 08 model year(2500 and 3500 models not the HD version). I could be wrong on this. I love preped 47 and 48 trannies, let wait to see how the new ones fair and what goodies the aftermarket developes for them.



Richard

 

[bmoeller]

Have you had a Dodge Cummins in the past to compare the 2. Which Cummins and transmission?

Look in Karl's Readers Rigs gallery. He also had a ('99?) 24v w/ handshaker right before the 3rd gen.

 

[KBalzuweit]

The funny thing is I started this post as a goof, there have been a few tdr guys over on the dmax site trolling and thought since I was a member over here I would goof on the tdr boys too. But its really funny how some of you guys really take offense to the test results. Heck Diesel Power just did about the same and the results were about the same. Now remember before you bash me, I have owned a bunch of Cummins trucks too.

 

[_MACKIN]

Yeah, and the resident Dodge guy on the Diesel Place is trying to tell the Chevy guys that the Cummins has been common rail since 98. 5 m/y

That's funny right there! Guy is talking smack and he doesn't even know the history or mechanics of the Cummins



In that case you have to discredit his statements entirely. He should at least be up to date so not to look foolish



Opening once mouth to Remove all doubt I guess they say.

 

[tgrfan2]

The funny thing is I started this post as a goof, there have been a few tdr guys over on the dmax site trolling and thought since I was a member over here I would goof on the tdr boys too. But its really funny how some of you guys really take offense to the test results. Heck Diesel Power just did about the same and the results were about the same. Now remember before you bash me, I have owned a bunch of Cummins trucks too.

Since you started this, maybe you can explain something I think I heard. At the 1:25 mark the narrator seems to say the D/A is the "oldest truck". Since all are 06s is he saying the D/A is the only one broken in? Since you have had many CTDs I am sure you know they don't perform to their potential until they have run in awhile.

 

[SnoKing]

I think he was saying the design of the GM was last changed in 2000 or when ever the Duramax came out.



My truck tows well with similar HP and torque at 18250 GCW, but I also know that it is RPM bound by the narrower RPM range, 4 speed transmission and 4:10 gears, so I let them pass me if they want. Repeat the test at 200K, 400K, and 600K on the trucks, that is if you can find a GM or Ford still running.



Unless you have massive power to over come the gearing issue, do not play with a V8.



Then it would have been fun to include a second gen set up to tow with DTT, exhaust brake, air, exhaust, injectors, turbo and a box.



I drove a friends stock 3rd gen the other day with a 48RE and I do not think he could match my truck in a similar test. It is a real eye openner to go back to a stock transmission after a year and a half without the rubber band connecting the drive train.



SNOKING

 

[SnoKing]

... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Dodge... . Ford... ... . Chevy

Curb (measured)... . 7,880..... 8,180... ... 7,420

Driver weight... ... ... 150... ..... 150... ..... 150

Persons 2 & 3... ..... 390... ..... 390... ..... 390

Trailer... ... ... ... ... ... 8,620..... 8,620... ... 8,620

Ballast... ... ... ... ... ... . 0... ... ... . 3,700... ... 2,440

Total... ... ... ... ... ... . 17,040..... 21,040... 19,020



And some of you are defending the Dodge???? SNOKING

 

[SHobbs]

SNOKING,



I have always criticized Dodge for having such a low weight capacity. Seems that everytime they make a change 1st to 2nd to 3rd gen there is no significant change. Looking at the 07 models there is a modest improvement. The only good thing Dodge has going is the Cummins engine, thats it. Without it they are nothing. These tests really dont mean alot to me after all I bought my truck for the motor.

 

[SnoKing]

I would not say that they had the weights even. 4K difference for the lightest (Dodge) to the heaviest (Ford) and Chevy in the middle. What is shows in the out of the box the Chevy tows the best, and that the later 6. 0 Fords are a dog as they detune them to make them live. And the Dodge needs a transmission to play with the big guys. I do not think that it was bias that much one way or the other. Remember though, Dodge torque limits the auto's to protect them. They have all had their share of problems in certain models. GM over heating and injector problems. Ford, a different motor ever couple years. And Dodge can not find a decent transmission. SNOKING

 

[CHolman]

Hey you guys are now famous on the Diesel Place for crying.

You know, I don't know why those guys from other site's even come over here, I mean this is a Cummins site and if their so insecure about their trucks that they have to come over here and see what's happening, well their the sorry *****'$... :-laf I don't really care about who will out do who, I love my truck and like talking with ya'll. Just my thought's on those guy's talking crap on the other site...

 

[Jvann]

Why didn't they just use 3 Chubby's in the test so they could really sugarcoat them? Wouldn't that have been sweet!

 

[Bertram65]

Read the article and look at the performance numbers, the Dodge came in last because it cannot perform as well as the GM or the Ford.

The way they did it with adding weight to the trucks and using a percentage only worked the the Dodge's advantage, if they had done a test with every truck the towing the same wieght without any additional weight to meet the desired percentage the Dodge would have lost by an even larger margin.

For once a comparison is done right, it does not mean the Dodge is a bad truck.

 

[tgrfan2]

Read the article and look at the performance numbers, the Dodge came in last because it cannot perform as well as the GM or the Ford.

The way they did it with adding weight to the trucks and using a percentage only worked the the Dodge's advantage, if they had done a test with every truck the towing the same wieght without any additional weight to meet the desired percentage the Dodge would have lost by an even larger margin.

For once a comparison is done right, it does not mean the Dodge is a bad truck.

Well in our real world test an 06 D/A Z 2500(14K miles) vs an 06 D3500 SRW 48re(4K miles) pulling identical box trailers the Dodge got 10. 2 mpg vs D/A 9. 4 on 400 mile trip. Dodge never had a problem keeping up with D/A even in the mountains. From a rolling start of 25 mph the Dodge stayed with the D/A to 80+mph. I'll continue to be a little skeptical of the article.

I checked the 'puter on the D/A today. For what it is worth it showed it had averaged 13. 4 mpg on 26K miles. At most it has towed 15% of those miles more likely 10%.

 

[Jumbo Jet]

Having driven a 2005 GMC Duramax with a real load behind it, I can believe part of the story. The fuel consumption for the one I was driving sucked compared to my 2004 CTD. The Duramax I drove had about 1/2 the load I was hauling and only got 10. 6 mpg. My CTD got 12. 7 mpg over the same road and I was grossing 16,100 lbs.



The RPMs of the Duramax grated on my nerves. It would redline on a downhill when downshifting while in Tow/Haul mode. I took the truck out of towhaul just to sooth my nerves from watching the tach. And these were just some short Ozark hills on US412 in Northern Arkansas.

 

[KWheaton]

Who picked the 81% number out of thin air? Seems the engineers might have known the durpamax would perform better with these loaded numbers as compared to the other 2 brands. They run tests on all 3 brands every day at the proving grounds.



All I've got to say is I live in Durmamax country (we build them here in town), and "BRING IT ON FELLAS". I blow smoke at several each week!!



Let's see manual transmission results for all 3!!



KEVIN

 

[JSienkowski]

My . 02 worth, if you look at the horsepower/torque ratings, the Dodge is short on HP by about 20 horses or so, Imagine the results with an 8 cyl engine and a 6spd transmission, forgive me if I'm a little off on the numbers, but hopefully y'all see my point.

 

[_MACKIN]

Who picked the 81% number out of thin air? Seems the engineers might have known the durpamax would perform better with these loaded numbers as compared to the other 2 brands. They run tests on all 3 brands every day at the proving grounds.



All I've got to say is I live in Durmamax country (we build them here in town), and "BRING IT ON FELLAS". I blow smoke at several each week!!



Let's see manual transmission results for all 3!!



KEVIN

Autos are what the majority of the general public drives that's why the test was done with auto's not handshakers.







The GM was the lightest if they weren't weighed down to a common load range,then what?



You would and others would call it bias... ... Fifty,sixty,81% what's the difference like they new the GM ran BEST at 81% capacity,gimme a break. Sounds like RVtrkn logic.



They (Duramax) run best empty and hot rodded. See you in the rearview!

 

[JRMora]

You know, I've owned both Ford and Dodge diesels (2 cummins, 1 powerstroke). When I bought my current truck, I looked at all three. HP and Torque ratings were different in late '03. Here's what I came up with:



Ford: Loved the extra cab room (my prior truck was a SD crew cab F350), wasn't sure about the new 6. 0 (they had just started showing up on lots - given their history, I'm glad I didn't go that way). The Torque shift seemed good, but my old Ford (auto) coughed up two trannies in 20,000 miles. No mods and no heavy (>8,000#) towing. I tried a 6 speed, but I hated the ZF shift pattern (granny low is down and to the left). I had a hard time going from first to second without losing all of my momentum. Not to mention, manuals were hard to find (I think 90%+ of the Fords are built with autos).



GM: Looked at Chevy and GMC D/A's. They too were using ZF's. I was told by every dealer locally that the only way to get a six speed was to order one. None of the dealers would order manuals, only autos. The fit and finish weren't that great to me (I also hated that everything is gray - not black), cab was smaller than the Ford, too. I didn't like the low stance as much (a 4X$ should sit higher than the GM's do). The biggest reason by far was that they were priced consistently $6-$7k higher than the Dodge and Ford. I know that's not the same now, but they were VERY proud of their trucks.



Dodge: Was able to find a manual transmission (about 1/2 on the lot were 6 speeds), I like the Cummins simplicity to service and maintain, and the cab did fit my family (5 of us), though much tighter than the competition. The Dodge maneuvered better than the Ford and GM (way better than the Ford), and drove much more smoothly. To me the dash was much more "modern" than the Ford and much better styled/colored than the GM's. Price was good, too.



Now, theings have changed since late '03. My neighbors have both bought new trucks in the last month or so. One traded his F350 7. 3 for an '06 6. 0 King Ranch, the other his older (late 90's) GMC for a new LLY Chevy. Both are nice trucks. Both were very expensive. If I were to buy a new truck today, I'd look at Ford and GM again. I'm not sure what I'd buy this time around. Fact of the matter, I've got 54,000 miles on this truck, it pulls my 14k fifth wheel fine (and did so stock until I finally added a little ooomph this summer-I just wanted a little more... ), and I've had zero problems. Only routine maintenance so far. I'll keep this one for a while, and see what's out next time I start looking for a truck.



p. s. My truck isn't the fastest in a 1/4 mile, doesn't have the biggest cab, and isn't rated the highest in the segment, but it fills all my needs just fine. Let the GM guys and the Ford guys (and all us Dodge guys) enjoy what we drive. They'll always be a "best" in the magazines. Sometimes it might even be a Dodge (or a Ford, or a Chevy, or... )

 

[CUMMINZ]

Well said JR.

When I can top every major long grade that I pull my rig @ the speed limit I feel like my CTD is doing it's job :-laf



CUMMINZ