towing power

[Kurt Henzler]

how many guys think their 2003 pulls better than their 2001 or 2002 that they got rid of (stock of course). Be honest please. I have a 2001 HO stock and it pulls very well and seems to have tons of power. I tow a 7000 lb trailler sometimes and almost never have to shift out of 6th on any hills on the highway. It have power to spare on the level. Better , worse, or about the same with the 3g's?



I see these post about power and milage concerns, is it just a few trucks?



Thanks for the honest input.

 

[CKimball]

my 03 truck replaced a chipped up PSD 4x4 super duty (i know no comparison) that at the time did good... . it hauled butt but not hauled a load very well this truck is WAY better towing my big animal loaded... and I am in Calif with one of them "low output" smogged deals... the power is so different compared to other diesels i have had and it sounds so *****en when it is working hard... . oh and stops WAY better... i guess that is KINDA important

Cameron

 

[MBurtch]

My mildly chipped 1999 2500, only had plain old EZ box, felt like it had more initial power. I think the turbo would spoll up faster. I pull my 8500 lb 5th wheel tomarrow for the first time. I hardly ever had to shift out of 6th with the 99. I use to bragg once got into 6th gear at Sheridan, WY would not shift out of 6th again until I turned off the freeway at Three Forks, MT. Use to tow with the 99 with the cruise set at 2000 rpms.



The power/torque curve on a 99 with EZ box at about 1800 to 1900 are about the same as a 2003 HO around 2200 to 2300 rpm .



Not trying to start an argument. Just expected more from the stock truck. Mileage is better with the 2003. Getting 18 or better at 70 mph.



Bought this truck with the idea of getting a larger 5th wheel within the next couple years.

 

[EnLjones]

much better

My comparison isn't quiet fair because I went from a '99 auto to the '03 six speed to tow my 10000lbs toy hauler. For me it's like having to different trucks! The '03 being so much better, part of which I'm sure is the manual but more so the new truck it's self. I highly recommend the new tow rig.

 

[jimnance]

I agree. My chipped '99 did spool faster, but the '03 has more "grunt".



I am very pleased with the improved towing preformance of my '03 compared to my chipped '99.

 

[CATCRACKER]

there is no comparison of a chipped isb b/c the tq comes on at low rpm when you chip the isbe it will blow the doors of the isb. lets compare apples to apples. the nature of the ez is to fuel at low rpm causing the turbo to spool faster after that the isb falls on its face. a chipped 03 will have low end grunt but continue to pull all the way to 2700. these isbe's have a very restrictive air cleaner causing worse turbo lag. compare apples to apples guys stock vs stock or chipped vs chipped. mine pulls better than my chipped 99 but only when i am winding it up. low end 99 chipped had this truck. w/o chip 99 was a dog. 190 at the wheels this truck 270 at the wheels. what to compare

 

[Kurt Henzler]

CATCRACKER- I understand what you are saying. My concern is that I just test drove an 03 with 4. 10 HO, same as my 2001 and drove it up a long incline, about 1 mile and pretty steep. This was from a second gear rolling start. The 03 reached top of 61 mph in six gear at crest of hill. My truck (stock) was at 69 mph for the same test. This was no load , just me and a passenger. I plan on keeping the truck stock, and expect at lease the same performance. Is that possible?

 

[CATCRACKER]

03's are heavier. i have not seen any 0-60 times but as far as pulling power the 03 is going to win. dont sweat it. i am going to catch some heck for this but i will say it anyway, the 03's look better of course IMO .

 

[ntenna]

Also, Kurt, your test truck was not broken in. Tight engine= less mph, more weight = less mph, it adds up... should even out when the mileage tops 20K.

 

[Boonieman]

I had a stock 2001. 5 Auto SO and regularly pulled about 9000# with it and never once felt like I was overworking the truck engine-wise or transmission-wise. I've pulled this same load several times now with the 2003 6sp HO 4:10. The thing that impresses me most is not the power so much, because my other truck had plenty to spare in that category anyway... . what I am very impressed with is the stability of the truck. I don't know if it's the lower profile tires, or possibly heavier springs... but it has markedly less "wallow" and just "feels" much better, and the brakes are a dream compared to my previous truck.

 

[Steve M]

My '95 auto/3. 54 160hp/400ft. lbs was enough to tow our 4400lb flat TT. Our '98 5spd/4. 10 was pure overkill for the small TT but it was noisy on a long trip. 2500rpm at 70 all day long. It was great for our 7500 lb 5th wheel. I traded it for an '01. 5 auto/3. 54 (for guiet) long bed so we could get a bigger 5th wheel. See pics in "readers rigs". The '01. 5 towed 7500 lbs almost like it wasn't there. When we bought the 10,400 lb 5th wheel. It was like it was there and then some. I had the option to swap out the 3. 54 with a 4. 10 or trade. We traded for the '03 QC LB with auto/4. 10. It's not about to yank the hitch out and throw the contents of the trailer to the rear but it's a big difference towing at any speed. More noticable at 55-60mph. The 3. 54 wasn't in the power band and the 4. 10 is at 55-60. The motor feels about equal power at equal rpm. 55mph in the '03 is the same rpm as the '01. 5 was at 65mph at 1750rpm. Rolling hills will bog it down a little at 1750rpm. The '03 at 70mph really shines! It's reaching up there for some HP and rolling hills are no problem at 2200rpm. I really liked the '01. 5 and still miss it. I almost traded for a '02 3500 HO/6spd leftover that was identical to the '01. 5 colors and options but the dealership didn't want to deal. That was a "NICE!!!" truck to drive. Then I saw my '03 on the internet using dodge.com inventory search. We went and looked at it and had it delivered. It doesn't have near as much "character" as the second gens did but I'm working on it.

 

[MBurtch]

First of all I do not disagree with anything catcatcher said.



Pulled my trailer, 8,500 pounds, for the first time from Great Falls, MT through Helena, Mt yesterday. It is a pretty drive over the big belt mountains. Drove at 50 mph for the most part in 5th gear with the cruise on trying to brake things in. That was about 2,000 RPM with the 373 rear end. Went up and down some pretty steep grades with no loss of speed. There is a pretty steep hill/mountain to the north of Helena. Will even slow cars down. I went over that at 60. I think usually went over it at 55 in the chipped 99.



I will probably put gages in when can decide where to put them and a box that does not effect fuel pressure.

 

[dnitzel]

Much better also!

In my limited towing so far, about 400 miles, my '03 tows MUCH better than my '01 LB 4x4 QC SO 5 spd. I two trailers tandem, one flat bed snowmobile trailer (with ATVs) behind my 27' fifth wheel. The '03 is more stable and has more power when I HAVE to pass the local yockles on the two laners.

 

[Fireman]

Kurt,



Like EnLjones I went from a 2500 with auto/3:55 to a 3500 with a 6 spd. so naturally the difference was incredable. Another regular to this forum, Dean Upson is away on vacation, but I can give you his apples to apples comparison. He pulls a 14,000# triple slide fiver, he went from a '98 to and '03 and you can't sand the smile off of his face. The '98 was a 5 spd/4:10 and the '03 is a 6spd/4:10. He just towed about 900+/- miles from CT to TN where I met him last weekend, and he just couldn't stop talking about his truck and how much better it pulled. Another point he likes to make and I can confirm is how much more refined the truck is overall, comfort, ride quality, handling, etc. I think when you look at the total package it would be hard to be dissatisfied with an '03 or '04.



JOMO

Fireman

 

[Elk]

Well I will second everyones opinion the 03's are very refined. I think the reason the test drive seemed slower was these truck take a few thousand miles to breakin and loosen up. I know this truck seemed much tighter then my 97 when it was new. My 97 still gets better milage pulling the toyhualer, but the 03 is getting closer. I started at 8. 6 pulling the toyhualer and am up to 11. 6 now the 97 get between 12 and 14 pulling toyhauler. empty I can get 21-22 if I behave, the 97 tops out around 19, but it is pumped up. With all this said The 03 is awsome and as hard as it is to say I really do not like to drive the 97 anymore (thank goodness the wife drives the 03 very little)

 

[Prairie Dog]

Don't even attempt to make a comparison untill you get at least 8 to 10 k on the odo. You just can't believe how much better they run after a few more miles!

 

[Fred Swanson]

I'll chime in here. While still stock(the first 2 weeks) I loaded up my **sold**2000 on my 30 ft tandem dual and hauled it over to California, to say goodbye to the 2000. Towing 14K+, and being stock, I'd have to say the 03 pulled it with less effort. The motor didn't feel like it was having to work as much, and could easily go though the gears.

Granted gearing has part to do with it, and the 6 spd does make a difference compared to the automatic.

Now that the truck is at 400 HP(the 2000 was around 450HP), it will jerk that trailer with a truck on it down the road with ease.

After going over to Escondido, for the So Cal Dyno days, I picked up a customer's truck in Twenty-nine Palms, and hauled it 200 miles back to Phoenix.

80 the whole way, mileage was about 9-10.

I'm very pleased with this 03, and liking it more each day I drive it.

11,800 miles so far since new-12/31/02.