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Difference between 555 and 600

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555 vs 600

When I bought my truck I test drove two identical trucks except one had the 555 and one the 600. Both were 2500 quad cab long bed 4x4's. I drove the 555 first and told the salesman no sale. When he asked why I told him my uncle has the power stroke and it had more performance than the dodge. I told him that overall I liked the dodge better but just wasn't happy with the acceleration (I know, I know, I can hear it already--"it's not supposed to be a dragster, it's a diesel, it'll pull anything"). This is true, the strong point of a diesel is pulling power and torque, but what's wrong with wanting good acceleration too? He said wait a minute and then came back with the 600. We took it for a drive and with a smile on my face I said sold. As far as I'm concerned there was quite a noticeable difference between the performance of the two trucks. Both had a lot of turbo lag right off the line but get it moving to about 5mph and the 600 really comes alive. I've had no problems with mine other than an injector pump seal leak at 7k. I haven't had the death wobble, launch shudder, rear end howl, or any of the other problems usually listed here yet. I currently have 13k on mine and am very happy. I did have the mileage reflash and by hand calc seem to have picked up between 1 and 1 1/2 mpg highway but it feels like I may have lost just a little bit of acceleration--not enough to make me unhappy but just enough to be barely noticeable (or it could just be my imagination). Anyhow, for my money give me the 600 because I want a truck that has good performance and doesn't need any warranty destroying mods to get there. My . 02 worth. :D
 
BG, thanks for the post. Good to get the view of someone that has driven both back to back. I would assume you were driving automatics? Wonder if you would of noticed much difference with the 6 speed since the slow shifting might slow the performance feeling down on its own :) ???
 
I own both a 555 and a 600 now. I can not stand my 600. Besides the poor fuel mileage and the lack of response on the throttle, I have replaced two injectors on it. I will trade it in as soon as possible!! They are both 6 speeds too.
 
GarrettS said:
I own both a 555 and a 600 now. I can not stand my 600. Besides the poor fuel mileage and the lack of response on the throttle, I have replaced two injectors on it. I will trade it in as soon as possible!! They are both 6 speeds too.



I was checking them out at the dealer today and they had "600" and "610"s. What did they do to the engine to cause this increase? Is it a good thing or a bad thing? Plus I can see the 6 speed handling these torque increases but how is the automatics holding up to all of the increased torque?
 
There are alot of guys on this site with 305/555's the stock 48re, and running alot more power than the 610's will ever show (in stock form). I would have to say the transmission probably won't blink an eye at the 610's numbers...



Remember this is a pretty new transmission, so time will tell... But just adding a Pressure box on a 555 is supposed to bump them +150-200 ft lbs of torque and I know more people that have them, then don't :-laf ...



The thing I wouldn't like about the new ones (from what I hear) they don't have a O/D (or called tow/haul) lock out button on them anymore, and that is actually kind of nice to have. I love mine when running around you can lock out the OD and that way you aren't slipping the converter as much when traveling at lower speeds.



Either way I don't think you could go wrong, but I knew about the 600's when I bought mine and after reading about the amount of programming, etc involved, I just elected to get the 555 also the plastic inner cooler turned me off...
 
So other than the perceived differences what are the physical differences? The ones that I know of so far are...



1) Slightly different injector tip design

2) More lines of code in the ECM

3) Third injection event





What else is there?



Richard
 
Ol'TrailDog said:
The 555 is the "98 12v" of the 3Gs :cool: my unbiased imho, of course :-laf



ZIP!



LMAO @ Ol'TrailDog! I'm already starting to feel this way and I'm getting over my '97 pretty quickly. :-laf :-laf :-laf



Richard
 
KCJackson said:
The 600/610 is not for people who already have 555s, it's for those of us with 1st and 2nd gens, or the California-spec 3rd gens, to get into the power ranks. The 325/610 will feel like a gasser compared to my 180/420 12-valve.



:-{} Might want to think about reworking your old truck. I have the 555, my old man has a 95 with plow option. he turned up the fuel and added 4" exhaust and installed the ATS trans. He run circles around my 555. I wanted a 12v myself, more fun to wrench on.



Shane
 
Gypsyman said:
So other than the perceived differences what are the physical differences? The ones that I know of so far are...



1) Slightly different injector tip design

2) More lines of code in the ECM

3) Third injection event





What else is there?



Richard



Compressor on turbo is larger, valve seats are better alloy of steel, and a few other small things like that.
 
FATCAT said:
OK, here is a "which would you buy" question since we are speculating:

Would you get the new '05 or a "new" 12 valve machanical with a P7100 (an '05 block with the old setup)?



Thats easy, for daily driver-no mods... Take the 05

For fun w/mods - take the 12v



I do like how I NEVER have to worry about the 03 starting, it just is not an issue
 
Your 600

GarrettS said:
I own both a 555 and a 600 now. I can not stand my 600. Besides the poor fuel mileage and the lack of response on the throttle, I have replaced two injectors on it. I will trade it in as soon as possible!! They are both 6 speeds too.



Something is wrong with YOUR 600. In stock form vs a 555 there is only a tad more lag from the stop. After that it is all 600 so you've got a problem mechanically with yours. Probably more bad injectors. I'd take it somewhere else to be evaluated.
 
Gypsyman said:
So other than the perceived differences what are the physical differences? The ones that I know of so far are...



1) Slightly different injector tip design

2) More lines of code in the ECM

3) Third injection event





What else is there?



Richard

The cam gear has been moved also, but I cant remember if it was advanced or retarded.
 
White Smoke!!

GarrettS said:
It also blows ridiculous amonts of white smoke at start up, after it warms up for awhile too. My 600 that is.



That's your injectors. I ended up having 7 injectors replaced before they got mine right. I have ZERO white smoke at any time. If you've got it then it needs to get fixed. The difference in power and how it takes the power is amazing.
 
BGParks said:
When I bought my truck I test drove two identical trucks except one had the 555 and one the 600. Both were 2500 quad cab long bed 4x4's. I drove the 555 first and told the salesman no sale. When he asked why I told him my uncle has the power stroke and it had more performance than the dodge. I told him that overall I liked the dodge better but just wasn't happy with the acceleration (I know, I know, I can hear it already--"it's not supposed to be a dragster, it's a diesel, it'll pull anything"). This is true, the strong point of a diesel is pulling power and torque, but what's wrong with wanting good acceleration too? He said wait a minute and then came back with the 600. We took it for a drive and with a smile on my face I said sold. As far as I'm concerned there was quite a noticeable difference between the performance of the two trucks. Both had a lot of turbo lag right off the line but get it moving to about 5mph and the 600 really comes alive. I've had no problems with mine other than an injector pump seal leak at 7k. I haven't had the death wobble, launch shudder, rear end howl, or any of the other problems usually listed here yet. I currently have 13k on mine and am very happy. I did have the mileage reflash and by hand calc seem to have picked up between 1 and 1 1/2 mpg highway but it feels like I may have lost just a little bit of acceleration--not enough to make me unhappy but just enough to be barely noticeable (or it could just be my imagination). Anyhow, for my money give me the 600 because I want a truck that has good performance and doesn't need any warranty destroying mods to get there. My . 02 worth. :D



I suspect that something else was different between the 555 and the 600 that you drove. gearing? Either that or the 555 wasn't running right. My 600 has a SLIGHT advantage in power, just enough to be barely noticable driving both trucks back to back. Definitely not the difference you have noted. When I bought my '04. 5, I didn't even realize that it was a 600 until I got back to the dealership and popped the hood (they told me it was a 555 :rolleyes: ) When I drove it it felt strong, but I figured it was just the SRW vs. DRW. I did remember thinking that it felt as strong as my fully broken in 555, but not much more.



Cheers,

Dave
 
We had a dyno day at the AFE plant in So. Cal. last spring on their Mustang Dyno... . a bone stock 305/555 dyno'd at 260 HP... . a bone stock 325/600 dyno'd at 245 HP.
 
Big Bob and I both posted 250hp last summer at BD Days. He had an AFE on his 555 and my 600 was stock. There was a batch of "improvements" that escape my memory regarding the 600. My mileage now 17. 8 under 70mpg empty which is fine. I really like the lack of stinko diesel in the shop or when engine is running because the cat changes the smell (somehow). George
 
Pit Bull said:
I've noticed that some members are not pleased with the 600 compared to the 555. Can someone explain why? Did Cummins have to increase the complexity in the 600 to the point that it hurt dependablity and also hurt fuel economy? I know the 600 over came some EPA issues but at what cost? Is the 555 now the pick of the litter?



I can't compare the 555 that I have to a 600 since I haven't driven one. However, I've had a '91,95,and '99 CTD and by far the 555 is the best. Plug on an Edge EZ and you have a mountain of power. Too much in fact if it's rainy and you get on the throttle. I've had the rear wheels spinning on a drizzly day in sixth gear as I went to pass another car. Oops, the truck doesn't accelerate well with the rear wheels spinning! :-laf



You do have less emissions equipment, and I've personally not had any problems with the engine at all. The injectors work perfectly, and I can pull my 37' fifth wheel up any reasonable hill at 55 MPH or better.



I'm only wishing I'd gotten the dually as I'm pushing the rear axle weight rating with the fiver attached. Otherwise, I wouldn't consider upgrading. I love my 555. :)
 
geusterman said:
I really like the lack of stinko diesel in the shop or when engine is running because the cat changes the smell (somehow). George



Man, I *HATE* that "new smell" the cat makes!! I'd take stinky diesel anyday! That cat smell burns my nose.
 
Well change the oil and use Rotella. That way it will be stinky from both ends. funning aside I bet the smell will decrease with miles. With gas burners it does. Usually not too many eaither.
 
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