Keep 24v or go back to 12v?

[Blackcloud]

I am in a serious dillema. I had a very nice 94 12v purchased new,kept it until Feb. of this year and got a new 24v to take its place. The problem is this. I like the improvements that Dodge has made over the years,but I am very unhappy with the motor. I don't like the fact that I can't do squat to this thing without buying a plugin box or to have to take it to the dealer to get it repaired. Very dissapointed in this motor(loved the 12v),give me some input guys.

 

[KatDiesel]

No one can answer this question for you.



Yes you have to buy some sort of box because the 24v is electronically controlled. Its jsut the way the 24v is, its kinda like me saying... ... you can't do squat to a 12v without moving/changing fuel plate. You could change injectors on it tho. Personally I love the ability to turn on and off 120hp at the touch of a button... ... and everything in between.



Other then it being electronic, what are you not happy about?

 

[Blackcloud]

I'm not too thrilled with the fuel mileage(average is 16,old truck was 21),the unsolveable steering wander does nothing but pi$$ me off and the thing just doesn't seem to have the throttle response that I'm expecting(dealer says all is ok)that it should have. Is it possible that I'm expecting too much?

 

[Snow man]

I had a 96,I too miss my 12valve,it got 3-4 mpg better,was easy to work on,and much smoother,and quiter than the 24 is,in every aspect. But I love the newer dash of my 2000,it is much tighter,brakes are 10 times better,the 24 is quicker IMO,and I love the quad cab. If i could have my 12v back,Id still stay with the 24,because the good outweighs the bad in my case. I bet if you could have your old truck back for a quick test drive,you'd realize how much nicer the new one is,and appreciate it more. Ive found my memory seems to be kinder than reality when it comes to how nice my last vehicle was.

 

[Blackcloud]

Actually I am going to look at a used 97 in the morning. It might bring back good/bad memories and help clear my current thoughts about the 24v.

 

[MidwestMotorman]

98

You could look for a 98 truck, having the newer body/dash and having the older 12V. Maybe you should have the dealer check and see if any reflashes are available for mileage. Every truck is different on mileage, and every driver is different. Do you have over 20k miles yet?



Being you bought it new, you already took the money shock in the a$$. Maybe you should buy an EZ and watch the mileage go up, unless you drive it harder.



To the dealer, "wander" and "excessive steering play" are two totally different things. If you just mentioned the "wander", you are missing out on the real fix. Got to mention the correct key words, otherwise the dealer will run you in circles and not get your problem fixed.

 

[tgrfan2]

I would not give up on the 24v just yet. I bought a 98 12v last summer because I like the 12v better and it was $10k less than a new one. They do seem to get better mileage and have better low end torque, but my 2000 work truck is hard to beat having been back to the dealer only once in 35k miles.

Sadly, the dealers know little about these trucks and have never known anything about steering problems. My truck went back for a problem with the intercooler hose blowing off. They blamed it on a dirty air filter when it really was a misalignment of the pipes and hoses.

Keep the truck and study the TDR!

 

[R.ebel]

12 valves forever!

IMHO the 215hp 12 valve engines mated to a 5 speed is superior to the 24 valve engines in terms of mileage, mechanical simplicity and bombability

 

[LSMITH]

Glen, come over and drive mine. I had the same complaints you do. The throttle response sucks and can be improved, and if I drive nice can easily get over 20MPG. Drive mine and see if it will make you happy. In fact I will be about 15 miles from you tomorrow morning around 11 AM. Let me know if you are interested, PM or email me and I will get you my cell #.

 

[Bad340fish]

Try reving it a little higher than you did you 12V truck. I can't imagine any 24V that does not run as good as a 94 12V truck. I drove a few when I was looking at trucks. The pre 96 12 valves were scary slow.



Go find something big and heavy and pull it. My truck had a virgin reciever tube when I got(had 20K on it). A few weeks later I pulled a very unaerodynamic trailer for about 4 hours on the highway. Had the tongue hanging out of the motor that whole way (9mpg) but it has run better ever since lol. I even got 14mpg pulling a 4K load at 80 last weekend.

Clark

 

[MikeR]

I cannot imagine a stock 24v not having better throttle response and acceleration than a 94-95 12v. I have driven many many trucks and that is simply hard to believe (I own one of each,I know). Try getting together with some other 24v members (preferrably stock) and drive those and make comarisons on where in the powerband yours really lacks.



I don't think throwing hot rod parts at it is the answer... you need to find the problem first. Sorry to say,but Dodge dealer techs don't know much of anything about troubleshooting diesels. If they can at least reflash your ecm to ensure it has a good program,that would be a start. Other things you need to check: intercooler and boots,intake manifold gaskets,fuel pressures,filters,maybe valve lash and so on,so it shouldn't take much if any money to get a good start.

 

[tcourse]

Try what MikeR just posted. He went thru my truck and tightened

what should have been done on normal maintenance(by me) and checked the lift pump, which showed up weak. Had these items corrected and it drives like a different truck.



TC

 

[CRegal]

When i 1st got my 01 I was getting only 14. 1 mpg. This was definetly disappointing since my 99 got around 17 mpg. At around 2. 5 k I installed an Edge Comp box, and imeadiatly saw an increase to 16 mpg. On a recent trip to Atlanta w/ only the bed loaded, I saw 20. 3 mpg @ an average of 75 mph. I really was impressed how much it has been improving.



I was in a 2 truck convoy w/ my buddy who has a 97 3500 set up similar to mine, but w/ the 5sd and 3. 51 rears. He got the same mileage as I did w/ the 4. 10s.



One other thing I noticed between the trucks, was the acuracy of the fuel gauge. My 99 was dead on, but the 01 usually has around 3-5 gallons left when i am in the "E". This was a bit confusing for a while, it initailly made me think I was getting worse mileage out of the new truck per tank. But a simple calculation changed that.



Just remeber, all trucks have there lil quirks, its just finding them, dealing with it, & enjoy driving the kewlest diesel on the planet!



Cole

 

[ftb87]

You can have your dealership solve the stearing wander by replacing the stearing box and also add an off set ball joint. You can have your dealership order a ball joint from Ingle Products. The part number is 615. Their phone number is 800-641-9795.



I had both replaced about 6 months ago... and now no wandering truck.





Frank

 

[Floor It]

I still like my 96' 12v better,even with the edge ez box my 12v had way better throttle response and mpg.

 

[ckrajewski]

LSMITH, You said there are things you can do to improve throttle response. Mind explaining to a rookie diesel owner? I see by your sig that you don't have a box on it. Thanks. Curt

 

[MidwestMotorman]

Ouch...

You guys are killing me with the 24V bashing.

Bad throttle response??? Mine is way too sensitive. I take off in second gear and she pulls from 700rpm like a rocket.

Bad mileage??? My best was 23. 8 mpg at 55mph in the mountains of New York with a 7k load in tow. Worst 10. 8mpg... 22000 GCVW towing a large dump truck loaded backwards on a tandem flatbed with a 30-40mph headwind.

My total combined average is just over 19 mpg.



It looks like those who complain about throttle response/mileage seem to have automatics. Maybe a kickdown adjustment to throw the engine up into the powerband? Those with stock automatics should thank Dodge for detuning them to save the auto transmissions.



Sorry for sturring the pot. I feel sorry for those whose expectations of their trucks performnce fall short. The engine is awesome, but the steering is a different matter.

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

I love my 12 valve, but you don't need to give up on the 24 valve. The RV injectors give about 1. 5 mpg along with more power (33 on 5 speeds, 42 on ETH, 50 on automatics). The boxes that increase timing also reportedly improve mpg. If you want a purely mechanical change, do the injectors. You won't need a box to cheat the boost signal unless you go beyond the 275 hp RV injetors or the Diesel Dynamics Stage 1s.



The problem with the 12 valve is finding a used one with the options you want, in nice condition. The second problem, as was noted above, you have already taken a load of depreciation so you might as well get some use out of the money.

 

[redneckdr]

24vs

Those with stock automatics should thank Dodge for detuning them to save the auto transmissions.

UHHH, i guess so... ... ... ... BUT, i'd rather thank them for making a better transmission (read DTT), THEN, unleashing a bit more power. i bet for an extra $2k on the sticker, i could be driving an auto with about 100more hp and 200 more lb/ft torque.

 

[MidwestMotorman]

auto trans

Well, we will see in 2003 when Dodge offers the Allison trans as an option. You will have an extra 2k cost for sure, and five speeds. It would be great if someone also made a retrofit kit for the older diesels so they could use the Allison. I guess the thread is way off target now.