Where's the Beef?

[MattChilds]

Compaired to my 01 I like my new 05 3500, it is quiet, rides well, the rear doors open the correct direction and they fixed the steering. They also added some nice stuff inside like the rear windows rolling down and bunches of places to put stuff.



For a motor that is supposed to have close to 100hp more and an extra 140 lbsft of torque it just doesn't feel like it. It feels like it runs out of fuel at about 2200. In general it feels like the motor is very weak. Per the owners manual break in procedure I put my unloaded trailer on it and I don't think the truck pulls as well as my stock 01.



I have read several posts about it not starting to run well until after 10k miles so there is hope. Can someone tell me if the plugged up feel of the motor goes away after a while? How much does it change?



The other thing is that it doesn't start as well as the 01. With the 01 I could just about bump the starter and it would fire up. The 05 takes a few seconds of starter to come to life. Is this normal?

 

[FATCAT]

You too huh. My exact feelings about the power of the '05 compared to my '97 ... weak!



Maybe it is a breakin thing and after a 1000 miles or so it will begin to "speed" up and pull harder.



The ride and steering is a LOT better than my '97. But there seems to be something missing in the power Dept.

 

[Tomeygun]

The other thing is that it doesn't start as well as the 01. With the 01 I could just about bump the starter and it would fire up. The 05 takes a few seconds of starter to come to life. Is this normal?

Correct, totally normal to take a few seconds to build pressure in the rail



And absolutely, My truck felt WAY different after about 5k miles, course I put on an EZ, and muffler

 

[klenger]

I've broken in 3 CTD's (2 2001. 5's and the 04. 5 I have now) and they all felt really sitff for the first few thousand miles, and don't really feel totally right till around 20k or so. It sure beats the alternative of having them wear out at 100k. I can tell mine is doing better because I can tow my 5er at around 1500 RPM (taking it easy) in 6th gear. Could never do that with the 01. 5 HO.

 

[OT-OF-HERE!!]

04.5 and 05 Models

Compaired to my 01 I like my new 05 3500, it is quiet, rides well, the rear doors open the correct direction and they fixed the steering. They also added some nice stuff inside like the rear windows rolling down and bunches of places to put stuff.



For a motor that is supposed to have close to 100hp more and an extra 140 lbsft of torque it just doesn't feel like it. It feels like it runs out of fuel at about 2200. In general it feels like the motor is very weak. Per the owners manual break in procedure I put my unloaded trailer on it and I don't think the truck pulls as well as my stock 01.



I have read several posts about it not starting to run well until after 10k miles so there is hope. Can someone tell me if the plugged up feel of the motor goes away after a while? How much does it change?



The other thing is that it doesn't start as well as the 01. With the 01 I could just about bump the starter and it would fire up. The 05 takes a few seconds of starter to come to life. Is this normal?

I agree with the 10k miles mark. My truck got a lot stronger at that point. Also don't forget what these trucks were built for,... . pulling heavy loads. Hook onto something over say 12k lbs and tow it 4 to 500 miles in hilly terrain and you'll notice a major improvement in power and in fuel economy.

 

[Froadin]

Yeah, I completely agree with the feeling!

JUST picked up my new 05 on Monday, and drove out to CA (towing light, about 6k), and I could tell a power difference from the start of the trip and the end of the trip. Barely got the breakin miles in the clutch/gears, etc, before towing out the 1800 miles.



Of course my 01 makes the 05 look/feel stupid when it comes to power. But the 05 just feels so 'boring' as far as power goes.



Sure hope it gets better soon!

 

[Subby]

Got to second everyone else. My 01. 5 felt stronger than my 03 HO at first but somewhere between 10K and 20K it really woke up. A friend of mine had an 01 then bought an 03 and now has an 05 in addition to the 03. He pulls trailers weighing from around 10K to 25K doing AV shows from CA to NY etc. The 01 was a 5 speed and both 3rd gens are 6 speeds. I remember when he first got his 03 and was complaining about the lack of power. His trucks get 40-60K a year on them so it didn't him long to change his tune. Funny thing is how much stronger the 05 is over the 03. Says it seems like way more than the 20HP and 55 FTLBS paper says is there. The 05 can stay in 6th all day where the 03 would be back and forth between 5th and 6th on the same stretch of highway with the same load. I loved my 01. 5 but would never go back after owning my 03.

 

[DMesloh]

Hey I stepped up from a 1986 Ford F350 with a 6. 9 The 05 CTD is a rocket :--) :--)

 

[rbattelle]

What's the weight difference between your old '01 and the new '05?



-Ryan

 

[PHeadings]

Buy a TST PowermaxCr for it. Night and Day!

 

[tschwab]

OK - I'll be the lone dissenting voice here. I think you all are mistaking "sound" for power. My '05 will run circles around my old '98 when towing. A much better towing powerband, atleast in my situation. I also think the '05 would beat my built '98 unloaded. No comparison here, the '05 is a much nicer, smoother, better running truck.

 

[Froadin]

No mistake for sound vs power with mine

Of course my 01 isn't stock anymore either. But the difference between the two is amazing.

Of course I am just over 2k miles on the 05, so it still has a few miles before it will loosen up, according to these people who I hope are correct



The other thing that gets me is how much higher the power band is on the 05 compared to the 01. I am used to a lot more low end grunt, and the 05 just doesn't have anything until 2k rpm.



I will say that I really enjoy shifting the new G56 though. It shifts more like a sports car rather then an ancient tow truck (I have sticky shifting in the 01, different fluids haven't helped yet either). I can hit any gear I want, and smoothly with the new G56. It has a 'notchy' feel like a lot of cars have. There is no guessing to when it's in gear either



The 05 will get even more miles soon enough, and almost all of them in northern CA hills. But it also might be time to start researching the first few bombs for this truck. It's just too hard to pass up that much power for such little changes!

 

[Froadin]

Oh yeah, just to make my point, I just moved back to CA from TX, and on the trip, both trucks were towing about the same weight. The 05 had a larger trailer for more wind resistance, but not THAT much.

With my wife driving the 01, and me driving the 05, she had to follow me, or else she would leave me in the dust. I would have the 05 floored, and she would be easily cruising along with plenty of power to spare.

Made the new truck look silly!

And it got about 8mpg better for the towing!

 

[lilthumper]

I feel the same. It seems this 05 runs out of steam after 2200 or so. Only 600 miles so far though.

 

[ECappleman]

Blame the EPA for de-tuning them for "no smoke".

Less fueling at the bottom means less pollutants.

 

[67guzzler]

I dunno guys. I hit around 1700 rpm's and she goes nutz all the way to 3000. I'm at 60 mph before I know what happened. This truck is fast. My old 12V 2nd gen would get out of breath around 2200 to 2400, accelerate slow and blow black smoke above 2200 when floored. This 610 is a different animal. I wonder if there is problem / calibration / software problem that some are experiencing... ???

 

[MattChilds]

<<No comparison here, the '05 is a much nicer, smoother, better running truck. >>

I like the truck for that, it is quit and smooth. I will reserve judgement on the power until I get some more time on it. My first fully loaded trip will be Sept 4, then it will be every week for 26 weeks. By then I should know.



For now it is going to take some time to get it set up for my camper. Installing the airbags, torklift hitch & tiedowns, and the Sirius radio.



Thanks for all the input.

 

[Ol'TrailDog]

My . 02:

* My 98 12v had the most seat of the pants low end torque. That pup could pick it up off the bottom. The five speed, steering wander, and quad cab alone were worth up grading the truck.



* The 02 was the dog of the litter. Brakes *much* better. Overall, the 2G design edges the 3G.



* The 04 low end feels similar, but not quite, to the 98. But you have to watch the EGTs when coming off the bottom. The brakes, smooth ride, steering, and rear door design are outstanding. The quiet is nice when picking up an expresso, too. The u-joints are pathetic.



Note these are Teton and Togwotee Pass test ground results.

 

[tschwab]

I dunno guys. I hit around 1700 rpm's and she goes nutz all the way to 3000. I'm at 60 mph before I know what happened. This truck is fast. My old 12V 2nd gen would get out of breath around 2200 to 2400, accelerate slow and blow black smoke above 2200 when floored. This 610 is a different animal. I wonder if there is problem / calibration / software problem that some are experiencing... ???

I have got to agree with you. I can't believe what I am reading from some of the above posters, exspecially "Froadin". If the power was so bad, I think you would have noticed it on the test drive and not bought the truck?



We have Five 3G's in the family and everyone graduated up through either a 2G 12V or 24V. Every one of us feels that the 3G has much more power and tows so much better than previous generations.

 

[rbattelle]

Oh yeah, just to make my point, I just moved back to CA from TX, and on the trip, both trucks were towing about the same weight. The 05 had a larger trailer for more wind resistance, but not THAT much.

What is "not that much"? What was the difference in frontal area between the two trailers?



To answer my own earlier question, assuming you have a DRW 4x4 3500 QC, the base curb weight in 2005 is 7141 lb. In 2001 the equivalent vehicle (2001 3500 DRW 4x4 extended cab) had a base curb weight of 6178 lb. So there's almost 1000lb difference in curb weight. If both trucks pull the same trailer weight, the 2005 model is still 1000 lb heavier than the 2001.



What are your thoughts on this?



-Ryan