I Need Some Inputs On A 2006 DRW Manual...

[ernesteugene]

1) Did any of the 2006 engines have an EGR valve?



2) Does the engine for the manual have a lower HP & TQ rating?



3) Is it possible that several hundred 2006 5. 9L trucks were assembled in Detroit?



The reason I'm asking is because I'm a fulltime RVer, I just arrived in Las Vegas to find my refrigerator is broken, and I potentially have a unique opportunity to buy the truck that belongs to the Mobile RV Service guy who just stopped by to measure my refrigerator and go check options for getting a new one. I mentioned that I only want a basic replacement because I plan on getting a new 5er soon anyway, but first I need to find a nice truck like he's got, and that led to his potentially being for sale, as he likes to get a new one every several years anyway!



When he called back to say that Mon was as soon as he could see about replacement refrigerators, I learned that his truck is a 2006 DRW Manual, 29K miles, no EGR valve, and that when he went to the dealer to order seat covers the parts person ran his VIN, and said he had a very special truck that was one of several hundred which were assembled in Detroit?



I'm debating between his truck or some similar 5. 9L vs waiting a little longer to see how well the 6. 7L problems get sorted out. For the past 9 years I've been fulltime RVing with an early 99 SRW F350 7. 3L plus many mods pulling a 13. 5K 5er, and I need to find a more capable DRW truck so I can get a little larger trailer.



I've read a lot of good things about the new 6 speed auto with exhaust brake, but also about issues with the DPF, EGR valve, and other 2007. 5 emissions issues as well. I've also read about even better 6. 7L versions coming out in 2009? Maybe I should wait for a 4500 with a pickup body? I can wait another year or two, but at age 65 and counting, my waiting time might be limited by factors other than how well my 7. 3L is currently running?



I realize if I go the 5. 9L route, I'll have to do some engine and transmission mods and add an exhaust brake to get it to do what I expect and need, but if I wait and go with the new 6. 7L, I'm concerned about getting a CEL light in the middle of nowhere. I don't spend that much time in or near larger cities with easy access to service.



If there're any TDR members in Las Vegas who want to stop by for a beer and give me a quick education on the Cummins and Dodge trucks, I'll be in site #422 at the Circus Circus KOA for the next 6 weeks.

 

[jnelson]

1. No
2. No
3. Doubt it.

My 06 has been a relatively good. You will however need to replace the fly wheel. It WILL fail. Other than that, good truck.

 

[DPKetchum]

Isn't what plant it was built at on the dioor jam sticker. If its a dually I thought I read all duallys were Mexico plant.

 

[JApol]

Welcome to the TDR. You came to the right place for Dodge/Cummins information.

Most of our trucks are built in Saltillo, Mexico with a few made in St. Louis.

 

[jnelson]

Ernest - I pull extremely heavy all the time. I have not made any trany upgrades with the 6 speed. It will comfortably hold towing heavy with my Edge Att. on levels 1 or 2. I would defintely get the exhaust brake. I see one in my near futrue as well. since you pll your trailer so much, extreme mods will not be needed. I would recomend the 5. 9 over the 6. 7 at this point. The motor (6. 7) is great. Its finding fuel and emmissions problems. My buddy who owns a 6. 7 has on several occasions run LSD instead of ULSD. If you need and you cant find it, you do what you have to do.

 

[DPKetchum]

I'd wait a year and get a 6. 7 with the AUTO unless you just have to buy now. These manual trannys are a dinosaur and won't be long before they'll be gone. The 6. 7 has the low end grunt,6 speed auto,exhaust brake,smoother and less noise etc.

 

[DMcGalliard]

Hello jnelson,
My truck is like yours and I have the Edge and tow my Teton at 3 all the time. I was wondering how heavy is your load. The teton is 15k. I have Amsoil in the transmission and change it often. I do worry about the rear end for over heating. Any recommendations?

Dave Mc

 

[ernesteugene]

Thanks for all the inputs so far, I'll be getting back to a few of you with some more questions after I get a working refrigerator. It seems I can't concentrate without a cold one, and I've got no place to put them. I've now got a new $$$ refrigerator, but it doesn't work either. The repair guy installed it today and said to let it set for an hour before turning it on so the liquid could drain back to the bottom. I took a little drive around the lot in his truck, he left, I waited, I turned on the refrigerator and got a DTC, which the manual said was a "non owner serviceable fault", and to call a repair man! Well if I wind up buying his truck I hope it runs better than his refrigerators!



I got a quick look under his hood, and crawled underneath to take a look there. Everything is bone stock, the truck is just used for his service calls, and a few times with his slide in camper and to tow his boat. From what I've seen so far, I'd like to buy it, but he had another call so my wife didn't get a chance to try the manual, and she's already made up her mind that she's going to hate it based on her experience about 40 years ago with one. I hadn't driven one for a long time either, however that G56 seems pretty easy to master, but of course my wife will have the final say on the matter.



Here's my current concern based on just reading Jim Anderson's column in the new TDR Issue #58. He has a 2006 DRW 2wd auto, and said he chose the auto because it's rated to tow 3K more than the G56? I just looked up tow ratings in trailer life, and saw their listings give a tow rating of 15,850 lb for the manual with a 3. 73, 15,900 lb for the auto with a 4. 10, and 13,900 lb for the auto with a 3. 73! Does anyone have info on GCWR and tow ratings for the 2006, 3500 QC, LB, DRW, 2WD, 5. 9L TD, with a manual vs an auto?

 

[Grizzly]

Welcome to TDR ernesteugene. First I feel strongly that it is better to order a truck new and get exactly what you want. Secondly, I wouldn't be afraid of the 6. 7 Cummins. Whatever bugs they have had, I'm sure are all worked out by now. third, get a truck that your wife can drive so that she can help with the driving.



I have DRW 6 speed manual and my wife can drive it with the RV as well as I can. If she couldn't drive the 6 speed manual, I'd have an automatic even though I still prefer a manual. On a very long trip to Alaska it's very helpful for her to drive half of the time.



You can get the very best pricing on a new Dodge truck from Dave Smith in Kellogg, Idaho.



If you are still considering the used 06, check the vin#. If it starts with a 1, it was built in Fenton, MO (near St. Louis). If it starts with a 2, it was built in Canada (2500 and bigger are not built in Canada). If it starts with a 3, it was built in Saltillo, Mexico. The trucks built in Mexico are considered to be better than the trucks built in Fenton, MO.

 

[CDonaldson]

Welcome ernesteugene.



I have a 2006 with the G56 and I love it. Tows like a dream. It shifts easily and I have had no problems. Truthfully, while an auto transmission makes driving these trucks eay for everyone, I chose the standard because I tow a lot and do tow heavy. I spent a lot of time researching the trannys, and in many cases those who tow had too many complaints for me to consider an auto. I am the only person who was 'standard transmission capable' in my house when I bought my truck. Since then the situation was remedied and everyone learned how to shift the standard in no time. It is a very easy pattern to get used to, the clutch works perfectly every time. I would not let that get in my way if I wanted the truck.



I hope you get your refrigerator issues solved, cold one to contemplate with, and all goes good for you. You are not that far from Carson Dodge, I'd take that truck up to them and have them go over it for you before moving into a purchase agreement. If the guy has nothing to hide, the truck has been taken care of properly, and it passes a real mechanics eyeball, go for it.



CD

 

[jnelson]

Hello jnelson,
My truck is like yours and I have the Edge and tow my Teton at 3 all the time. I was wondering how heavy is your load. The teton is 15k. I have Amsoil in the transmission and change it often. I do worry about the rear end for over heating. Any recommendations?

Dave Mc

My trailer empty weighs around 8,300 lbs. I haul oilfield equipment so my loads vary. I have a Mag-Hytec diff cover helping keep temps down. This load weighed 15,000lbs + 8,300 lb trailer + 8,000 lb truck = 31,300 lbs. Im rated up to 34,500.

 

[BHaden]

My 06 (below) was buitlt in Saltillo. NO problems now at 35,000 miles. I got the

G56 because I HATE gearboxes that don't allow me to pick the gear I want when I want it. Previous auto, from any manufacturer were always more controlled by computer programming than waht I wanted and tow-haul and OD-OFF buttons didn't improve things much IMO.

If the new 6 sp autos with manual select options work well, maybe I could be persuaded some day, but for now I'm locked in for a while and like my manual just fine. The heaviest I've towed is about 7000lb, but it hauled that from Phoenix to Flagstaff to 7000 feet at whatever speed I wanted to run without a sweat and got 11-12 mpg doing it.

 

[jelag]

I've got (3) 3500 dually's, 04, 04. 5, 05 with the 04 at 260K miles pulling a 22K LB trailer..... I'm moving up to 5500's and a new 08 is here just not on the road... like Jnelson my trucks work... . we have no power upgrades because of the drivers we have but all trucks have exhaust brakes, air bags, air horns and oversize fuel tanks...

If the 06 is a good value I'd buy it... .

 

[MPerez]

I have an 06 DRW QC LB with the G56. And it just turned over 110K this week. And my wife has no problems driving it whatsoever, she claims it's easier to drive than her 05 Mustang manual, and she really likes the visibility from "up there".

A good friend just bought a 07 6. 7 with the R68??? transmission and it is very impressive, and the factory exhaust brake switch placement is nice too. Mine has the dealer installed brake, but the switch is on the shifter. I couldn't believe how quiet his truck ws compared to mine (until I reset my Smarty back to level one when I went over the pass and wanted to reduce the torque response a bit... now my truck is quieter too).

 

[Chynoweth]

Love It!

ernesteugene

Welcome to TDR! You can see the truck I have that is listed in my signature. I love this truck with the G56. This truck will pull whatever you want, but the problem a lot of times is getting stopped. I would add an exhaust brake before I ever hooked the trailer up and add a good brake box like the Tekonsha Prodigy. Picture below is loaded with 9 ton of wood pellets plus a 3300 pound trailer. Pulls from Show Low, AZ to Southern Utah like a dream.



I will be in Vegas at the Circus Circus KOA on Sunday the 9th thru Thursday the 13th. If you want to check my truck out you are welcome to.



By the way, my wife got broke in on a manual transmission with the G56 and now she shifts it better than I do.



View attachment 66765

 

[daytripper63]

My wife drives my stick just fine, but when you really think about it How often are you really shifting...

 

[betterthanstock]

The sticks are very easy to drive. Just ease the clutch, then give it throttle. No feathering needed. Empty, the auto will beat the stickshift, but loaded it's the other way around.

On steep hills, the auto's really struggle with a heavy trailer.

 

[ernesteugene]

If you click the link below, you'll see I've been very busy the last few days! The wife's test drive of the G56 went badly, but I wound up getting a new (used) truck anyway. Like I mentioned in my initial post, at age 65 and counting, waiting definitely has some disadvantages! As a retired engineer who used to race sports cars at the SCCA level, the thought of EGR valves, DPF's, and having the crankcase vented into the intake is a big turn off! It's not a Dodge, Ford, or Chevy, so maybe I'll still be welcome to post some thoughts on all those sites. I like talking diesel trucks, and meeting other enthusiasts as I travel the country.



PS... Chynoweth, I'm in site #422, stop by for a beer, and I'll take a look for your truck.



My New Truck...

My New Truck... - Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums