New Member, New 6speed Question

[DCavanagh]

A hello and thanks to everyone. For more than a year I've been reading and greatly benefiting from this board. I've learned so much that has enabled me to do such wonderful things as injectors, exhaust, K&N, and to be aware of so much more. I greatly appreciate that and while it has taken me a phenominal amount of time to become a member, I do know one thing... Cummins is built the best and the straight six is beauty in simplicity!!!



Back to the 6 speed. I plan on buying the 2003 but I am undecided as to the transmission. The cummins is torpedo-proof but i know the auto isnt. I am leaning towards the HO 6-speed but i, and i am sure others on this board, are leary of spending the rest of our live's shifting. I am sure that would be the case if i were to buy the 6 with 4. 10's. So for those of you with experience, how much shifting would happen if for instance I had 3. 55's or 3. 73's on 33" BFGs (Gotta fill those wheel-wells!!!)??? I'm sure it would be alot less shifting than 4. 10's but is 3. 55's to low to tow? I do every few months tow a 4-6k boat and would hate to get bogged down while doing so but from what i understand the 6speed's gears are fairly close in ratios that there are few if no dead spots. I know the auto has dead spots!!! So, what for those of you with the 6speed have to say about it. Like it? Too much shifting? And what axle ratio do you have? Heck, how do you feel about it in general? Do you sometimes wish you have an auto?



Thanks again for everything you guys have offered to share in the past and I hope to contribute more in the future. You have made my 24v smile... Dan

 

[JHansen]

Hey Dan-I have a HO/6 spd. with 4. 10's and I love it to death. 1st gear with this combo is pretty much only for getting a load rolling, or trying to finesse your way into a tight spot. I start all the time in 2nd, and I think I could probably get away with starting in 3rd sometimes but I'm afraid of wounding the clutch prematurely... . you can skip-shift too if you don't want to run them all. I have made the shift from 2nd to 5th once or twice accidentally-if you have enough RPM and momentum up the engine will pull it-gotta like that power...



Before I got this truck I drove a tank truck for a living-so shifting gears was an everyday thing for me-for others maybe not so much. I don't even think about it anymore in daily driving-the 6 speed shifts so sweet! Auto was never a consideration for me-again going back to my experience with heavy trucks and diesels. I'd just as soon be the one deciding when the shift is made.



Jason

 

[Jeff Knight]

Hi Dan, I have a 95 with a 5 sp & 4:10 gears. I have 187000 miles on it. I'm looking forward to buying a new 6 sp someday. I wouldn't have it any other way. Good luck & welcome to the club. Jeff

 

[DAWG-1]

Hi Dan,

I have the 6speed and 4. 10 gears. If you were staying with the 265s I would get the 3. 55 gears. I ran 265s then went to 305/70R16 (33") and now in this short time i've had my truck I now have 315/75R16 (35"). I can start in 3rd if on a slight grade w/o too much strain, not recomended. Second gear starts work great and on the highway at 2000rpm = 67mph .

 

[Okie-Go]

I traded a 98 auto with 3. 54 for the ho 6spd and the 3. 54. I love it and have never wished for the auto again. I live in town and drive about 7 miles one way to work. I just got back from Oklahoma today and drove through Dallas and Houston and it didn't bother me a bit. I got 21. 5 mpg on a calculator not the trip thingy drivin between 70 -75 both ways. It gets good mileage empty and has power to tow, I can't ask for anything more. Has 26,000 miles on it, One year old.

 

[WCrovo]

18,000 plus ETH/DEE 3. 54's and lov'n it. 265's.

 

[WCrovo]

Thats 18,000 gross weight all over the country coast to coast.

 

[Oasis-3]

Dan

Go for the H/O 6 speed and 3. 54 gears if you don't pull every day I don't think you need 4. 10's I pull a 32' T T about 5 times a year and it is fun to go up hill in the hammer lane I also have 285 tires = 33"on.

 

[bighammer]

Anybody know the ratios on the 6 speeds?

 

[JHansen]

Something I forgot to mention....

I upgraded to 285's about 3500 km in. That's one of the reasons I ordered the 4. 10's-although I didn't find them unpleasant with the factory 265's either. Probably the next set of tires I will upgrade to 305's or 315's-although I don't really need the extra width... ...



I still would order 4. 10's again whether I was sizing up or keeping the stockers-but that's just me



Jason

 

[Archive]

I have had the 6 spd for over two years now. Never wished I had the auto. I have 4. 10s, and never shift enough to get tired of it. I love my combo.

 

[HC]

Originally posted by bighammer

Anybody know the ratios on the 6 speeds?

Everything you wanted to know about the six speed:

http://dodgeram.org/tech/transmission/nv5600_spec.html



thanks again, Fritz!



I have the six speed, and like the others, I love it. The one thing I have had to accept that is not "perfect" is the crunch going into 3rd gear. It's still there at 47,000, and still slowly getting better. Many others report this same problem. You can avoid it by double clutching, or by shifting very slowly and working the lever just right. This transmission doesn't shift like a sports car; it's a truck transmission. But it is a lot better than the transmissions of 20 years ago, too, so don't let that scare you off.



Sure, there are times I wish I had an auto. But if I had an auto, there would be even more times that I wished I had a manual.

With stock tires, the 3. 54 gearing seems very right; if you are going to seriously larger tires, read the old posts before you decide.

 

[Mad Bomber]

6speed the ONLY WAY TO GO!!!!

The 6 speed is fun to drive and people know your cummin in style. Remember auto dont do pack brake as well. The 3. 5 gears work well for me ,and then tou can load the **** out of one and the truck loves it Keep on Cummin

 

[jstyer]

So what's to shift?

I traded in a '99 qc auto (didn't want it originally, but it was all the dealer had ) with 3. 54 rears for my eth/dee and wouldn't have anything else. The 4. 10's work out fine and I can't complain. Still, you have to do what makes you comfortable. You will be the one driving it and not us. Good Luck

 

[rono]

Dan, I had the same thought as I traded in an auto for the 6-speed. I do a lot of driving around town, making service calls etc... and I do not get tired of shifting. If it has been a long day sometimes I do skip shift but most of the time just start out in 2nd. From light to light it's usually 2 to 4, sometimes 2-4-5. 1st is hardly used at all. Get it and enjoy the sound and power under your foot.

Ron

 

[TboneMan]

31,000 miles in 8 months. No Problems! Welll... I do have to say that my wife doesn't like the 6 speed. Too much shifting in addition to everything else you have to think about.

 

[MikeR]

DCavanagh,



What alot of people don't realize is how feather-soft the clutch pedal effort is. You can almost push the clutch down with your finger! That's how soft it is! It is no trouble at all driving in the most heavy commuter traffic... just leave is in 1st gear and crawl along.



I don't quite understand your question on more shifting with 4:10's rather than 3:54's. You're gonna shift the same amount with either gear is what I've experienced. I don't know if the 5spd will still be available in 2003,but if you don't want to shift as much,a 5spd is always an option. Even though I have 6spd,I still love the 5spd a little better.

 

[FATCAT]

Dan,

If you want an auto trans ... get a car. Trucks have manual trans period IMO. I like my 5 speed very much, but would perfer a 9 with a double reduction axil for some of the stuff I use the truck for. (Maybe DC will consider a RoadRanger set up in the future ... RTX-11609B with a 232-d4 axil or something like that ... one could only hope). When the roads get snowy around here and the hills get very slippery, I want to be able to control the transmission. You will get every bit of power from the Cummins in a manual, not an auto. If your not towing alot, I would say go with the 3. 54 axil. With my 4. 10 and 5 speeds my max speed is 75mph @2500 rpm with max crusing speed of 71mph ... . I wish I had just one more gear.

Good Luck.

 

[ReggieRam]

I personally, love my 6 speed, and that's coming from a guy that drove an auto for years. I went that way after my uncle, who drives the same truck and tows an 8 horse trailer, fried two auto trannies in 30k miles. The Cummins just has two much power unless you go to the TC/VB. I never get tired of shifting, in fact I just view it as two extra chances to listen to the turbo spool up. I always start out if 2nd, unless I'm towing, creeping, or it's a steep hill.



Also, I went with the 4:10's because I never wanted to feel like I wanted more power. If you like to get the thing up above 75 on the freeway, there's always the US Gears Overdrive!



Wouldn't change a thing.

 

[DHatfield]

I love my 6-speed with 3. 54 gear and the stock ETH/DEE will not have any problems towing 6000 lbs. I mostly got the 6-speed for better mileage, more power to rear wheels, exhaust brake compatibilty, more control while driving and/or towing. The only time I hate the 6-speed is in real heavy city traffic (which I rarely ever do as I travel 95% highways and interstates) then I think the auto would be nicer, but when towing it reminds me why I feel I made the right choice.