Real comparison, stock 2013 vs modded 2006

[Wertles]

I just hooked up the 18,000 pound 5th wheel this weekend on the new 2013 Ram 3500 dually, Aisin transmission with 4. 10 rear. My previous truck was a 2006 SRW, 4. 10 rear end with a built 48RE that had a Smarty Jr set on tow mode, air bags and 19. 5 Rickson wheels/tires. What a change.

Motor/transmission/gearing:
Power was everywhere. I'm not sure how much was actually from the motor, or the two additional gears. I never felt that the motor was ever really working hard. I had some pretty long uphill pulls. I would keep the 2006 at about 40 mph in 3rd, this kept an easy 50 in 4th. Water temps never saw over 210,oil over 215 and trans over 185. Once back on level, things cooled to 190, 200 and 175 respectively. I did not have any gauges on the 2006 to compare.

Fifth gear is awesome. Instead of the truck losing enough speed to shift from fourth to third, the transmission smoothly goes into 5th picking up a few hundred rpm to maintain speed.

This was the first time driving with an exhaust brake. It met my expectations. Going down the steep grades, the truck maintained or even lost a mph or two. Big improvement over not having one.

4. 10's the way to go here guys. It just felt right towing this trailer. From start to speed to hills, the motor was always at the right rpm. I was beginning to think 3. 73 was the way to go but that quickly faded once hitched up. I would take a 7th gear for unloaded though.

Exhaust:
I have a large drone towing right at 2000 rpm. It is very unpleasant and surprising. I never got one on my stock exhaust on the 06 and was expecting even less noise with this one. The next time I am near the dealer, I am going to have them check to see if everything is correct down there.

Suspension:
The truck dropped three inches with the trailer on. It might be less now that things have settled. The first 20 miles there were a few creaks and groans as metal parts found their new homes but after that it was quiet. The old truck had airbags which worked very well. I don't feel at this point that I need them on this truck. If I were a full time tower, I probably would. I did feel I was just a little nose up as everyone last night was giving me the "flash" with their lights. Going over large bumps (railroad tracks, gravel road with pot holes) was the biggest improvement of duals over the 19. 5's. It really smoothed them out. Of course, I had 4 tires at 65 psi compared to 2 at 120 psi. I have to say, the 19. 5's on the 06 really impress me now more than ever. They really did a great job of giving the safety and feel of a dually in a SRW truck. I didn't notice any more sway or pushing due to ind or passing trucks on the thruway between the two.

Other stuff:
Stock gauges rule. After setting up my screen, I get water, oil and transmission temps, boost pressure and instant miles per gallon. That last one I will be removing (see below). Cruise control works better because of 5th gear and the exhaust brake. On the 06, I would have to take cruise off in the mountains so I could manually control the downshifts and rpm's. I haven't gone through the Pa mountains yet but I don't believe I will have that issue.

Mirrors are better with the convex mirror and the automatic downward adjustment downward with reverse. The bed camera helps line up the 5th wheel but is not as clear as it should be. My camera on the Honda is crystal clear, these look like 7-11 security cameras. I'm not impressed.

Brakes:
A big improvement over the 06. it takes much less effort even without the exhaust brake on to stop the truck. The stock brake controller is better than a P3, but not as good as the Max Brake I had. That being said, it is definitely a keeper as the combo stops better than what I had before. I don't feel the need at all to go to the dealer, get the stock controller disabled and then install the Max Brake.

Fuel mileage:
Well chalk a big win here to the 06. I would average 9. 5-10 pulling this trailer. I got a whopping hand calculated 7. 9 on this trip. Granted, this was from miles 980-1200 on the truck so I am far from broken in but the initial numbers are not promising.

Overall, I would say that this truck out of the box tows 20% better than my modified 06.

 

[Gonzo 1066]

My switch was similar, the previous puller is a 04. 5 EDGE,manifold,charger , injectors, exhaust, intake,PacBrake etc. With a 6 speed manual. The new truck is a 13 with 3:42s and the Chrysler auto. The 13 tows just as good in the mountain passes, handles the trailer way better, decents are much more controlled.

I have 2500 towing miles on the 13 so far and hand checked is at 10mpg, just a bit under the milage of the 04. Happy so far.

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

Check mpg again after break-in and over a longer distance. I found better mileage with the 2013 SRW vs. 2004 SRW in part due to the double overdrive. You might lose some mpg from going to 4. 10s, of course, as well as some from going to a dually.

 

[Wertles]

Another observation that I forgot to include in my original post was about the built in 5th wheel/gooseneck set up. I can not comment on how well the gooseneck works, but I again am disappointed in this set up. The prep is $500 from the dealer. For a 5th wheel, you need to buy a $575 adapter rail kit. It literally is about $70 in material and welding. The first install took 3 grown men to get it set properly. After that, you need to add your existing 5th wheel hitch or buy Ram's for another $1200. After I get done with this round of towing, I will see if the rail kit settled in or if I need to adjust it (some parts have minor adjustments). Once adjusted properly, it should be a one man job to get the rail kit in and out. My salesman was unsure before delivery exactly what was needed to make everything work as he only had descriptions of parts, not any pictures to go along with them. I was under the assumption that for $575, I actually was buying a whole hitch that mounted into the 4 mounting points. I was wrong on that one.

For the price, I think a B&W hitch and Companion could be bought and installed for less money and have only 1 hole in the bed of your truck instead of five.

 

[Hoefler]

If you are towing that heavy, your rear tire pressure should be at 85 psi, that alone would improve your fuel mileage.

 

[Wertles]

Thought I would give an update. Just got back from a 1700 mile trip with the trailer weighing in right around the 18,000 pound mark. My truck has finally turned over 10,000 miles.

Fuel economy ranged from 9.3 in the PA mountains to 10.3 on the flats. Most of the time I had the cruise set to 60 as my wife was driving a Ford V10 class C RV towing a car on a tow dolly. Boy, that thing is a slug on speed and a pig on gas. I used 3/4 of a tank of DEF according to the trip but a 2.5 gallon container brought me to full on the gauge. I did not top it off however. I never lacked for power in any situation.

Coolant temperature topped out at 220 in the mountains. The electric fan quickly got it back down to 190. Oil temp stayed mostly 205 with a max at 220. Aisin transmission maxed at 190 in rush hour stop and go traffic. Most of the time it was between 170 and 180.

Loaded, I did not have any vibration that I complain about when unloaded.

The exhaust drone at 1800-2000 rpm is still there although it is not as bad as I initially described. This trip however, I spent most of my time under 1800 rpm. Speaking of exhaust, the inside of the pipe is still clean enough to eat off of.

I have changed my opinion of the 4.10 rear end. Knowing what I know now, I would go with the 3.73. This truck has more power than it knows what to do with. I probably could have put a tow strap from my trailer to the Class C and dragged that as well without any loss in speed. I would take the more frequent 5th gear while towing in exchange for the better unloaded fuel economy any day. I am averaging about 16 unloaded. I was hoping for 17-19 when I bought the truck.

Anyway, many, many compliments on the truck on this vacation. Looking forward to camping again this coming weekend.

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

Thanks for the update. About 20 years ago TDR gave the rule of thumb to us that 4x4, dually, and 4.10 each cost about 1 mpg. Rambodybuilder shows your truck's capacity, towed and loaded, at about 29K. It would be about 20.5K with 3.42 and 23.5K with 3.73. I am glad that their ratings are supported by your real-world experience. I was initially suspicious of the 3.42s that I had to get with the SRW, but they work and give a couple mpg at least over what you are getting empty. I don't tow and haul over about 10K total, but my combinnation works well. Sure, I have a bit less acceleration than my 600 HP 2004, but I have enough and a warranty in my pocket now.

 

[Cummins12V98]

If you are towing that heavy, your rear tire pressure should be at 85 psi, that alone would improve your fuel mileage.

Not true! For one the max pressure for any E rated tire is 80psi. For two over inflated tires will wear in the center and give less traction stopping. I run 60psi in the rear duals with a rear axle weight of 8,780#. That is more air than needed based on tire weight/inflation charts. I run the fronts at 80, any lower the edges start to wear.