renman

As a new menber and total diesel novice just getting interested in these vehicles I noted on another string the apparent glee expressed by some owners how loud and intrusive their diesel (Dodge) trucks are. They were braging how other drivers had to roll up windows and how they would let their truck idle next to telephone users to make conversation impossible, et cettera. I believe a "quiet" diesel truck is a contradiction in terms, but my question is:

are all diesel trucks this way out of the factory box or is the excessivly noisy truck a result of exhaust modifications made by these guy's for some kind of performance enhansment?

wannadiesel

Diesels make a lot of mechanical noise, mostly from the high combustion pressures, but also from the valvetrain and the injection pump (especially 24 valve Cummins, you hear the pump almost as much as the engine on those). At idle the mechanical noise is louder than the exhaust sound, even on a truck with no muffler. So to answer your question, some of the noise is exhaust, but most of it is just a diesel being a diesel. If you want a quiet diesel, get an '03 or newer Dodge, a Duramax, or a 6.0 liter Ford. These use newer injection systems that inject the fuel in a more controlled manner and quiet down the diesel knock. Me, I like my noisy truck.

renman

;D - Your feedback is appreciated and informative. My brother has a Ford 250 PSD and his enthusiasm has piqued my interest. I take long trips a couple of times a year and put one or two hundred thousand miles on my vehicles in a lifetime.

KC

Nothing say's power like the sound of a cummins engine comming down the street ;D

KC

Bodey

Gotta agree with you, I drive a Chev 6.5 turbo and its because I couldn't afford a new Dodge. They sound awesome. I rolled up to a light the other day beside a new Dodge and I had to glance at the guages to see if my truck stalled because I couldn't hear it over the neighbouring knock. Great sounding trucks, pitty they are trying to silence them a little more every year.

dieselcrazy

bodey had to check his gauges.... man that made me laugh good one bodey and good luck with the chevy ( nothing wrong with it ) if chevy had the cummins thats what id buy i love the interior of the new chevys just my opinion though later guys, scott

ZS

I've only had my new truck for 2 days - and its my first diesel.

I have to say the 03 Dodge CTD is quiet! (04 should be the same!)

Sure you can hear that its running, but it isn't that loud - you can easily carry on a conversation with someone standing right next to it without a problem! Its not like older diesel's I've had the (mis)pleasure of being next to.

I noticed this morning that it was a bit louder when I started it (got a bit colder last night - maybe 55F) and from what I read that's normal - colder = louder, but once it warms up its quiet - hell its a LOT quieter than the '68 Pontiac GTO I used to have! Ahh the days when I WANTED everything to be LOUD!

Z...

y-knot

I love the racket the 12V makes, it does something to me, It has the power to make me smile when i'm not realy in a good mood. It's like a warm fire on a cold day, soothing. I am not a big fan of loud exhaust, but I like it when someone else goes by, and it's a cummins barking like a bulldog as it passes. I live in a farming area, and there are alot of farmers with loud trucks. I enjoy the song of the turbocharger, I like how it changes tones as you drive down the road. And I love it when you can hear that high pitch screaming from the tail pipe, and the look on peoples faces when you pass them. There is know way to put a price tag on what the cummins adds to everyones life, those who have never experianced it, have know way of knowing what they are missing.

renman

very poetic y-not. Thanks for your response. But, given two equally equipped 2003 3/4 ton trucks, Ford 7.3 PSD and Dodge Cummings, are they that much different on the highway once you get out of residential/city driving?

redramnc

My wife's 04 F650 with a Cat 3126E I6 motor and stock exhaust is louder than my barely muffled CTD. But that is heavy duty vs. medium duty. Inline 6 diesels are always going to be louder than V8 diesels because of the sequential, non-cancelling exhaust pulses in the I6.

Having grown up on normally aspirated farm tractor diesels and other diesel equipment the "noise" is not objectionable to me - I consider it "music to my ears" to hear a loaded diesel talking through the pipes or stacks. The built 360 in my W200 resonates at idle but really growls under load - that is the sound I prefer to hear. Personally I want to hear the motor running - not have to look at the gauges to see if the chipmunk is still kicking.

The wife's Jaguar is a great car and it is quiet (almost too quiet) until you turn it hard. That's OK to me because it is a refined, genteel vehicle designed for plush riding and unobtrusiveness.

The CTD only fits in a truck, and sounds like a truck engine. You ain't ever going to get a CTD to sound like a sewing machine, unless it is one serious sewing machine you are comparing it to. Buy the truck for the engine then make it sound like you want it to.

phox_mulder

What other vehicle can set off car alarms just idleing past them ;D

Well, other than a Harley.

phox

98rammer

Renman, where in Maine are you from?

i prefer the 24v sound over my 12v, especially the manuals how they make that almost-stalling sound (that the pump sound is annoying). i have heard one 12 valve thoough that sounded throaty at idle (big injectors). the 12 valves with advanced timing get more metallic that i don't like. my truck (with a marine pump-pretty different) gets very loud when pretty cold and first taking off. it actually hurts my ears somewhat.

on the highway, most trucks are very similar in terms of noise. the 24valve and ealier cummins diesels are detectable at highway speeds, but not abnoxious. the new 6.0s or duramaxes you can't hear one bit.

Tom

PumpDaddy

I love the "rattle" of the engine at all speeds, and yes, I have had some people roll up their window at a redlight, but only after giving me a dirty look , and have pulled up to a store to get a pack of smokes and had someone on the phone complain and ask me to turn it off, the last one that asked me this was told " give me $2000.00 for a new turbo and I will" he said he'd turn it off hisself, but after Muphasa stuck his big head out the window, he changed his mind (165 Lb. Rot, he's just a BIG BABY), and it's fun to put the tail pipe at someones window going down the road, especially THUMPERS, and then stomp it. Smoke & NOISE

renman

[quote author=98rammer link=board=8;threadid=20223;start=0#msg203746 date=1067560081]
Renman, where in Maine are you from?

Tom

[/quote]

I live in Alfred. I ordered an F350 Lariat w/the 6.0L a few weeks ago. Should be here in a couple of weeks ;D

98rammer

ah cool, i'm from Scarborough. a buddy of mine just got a new reg cab 250 4x4 6.0. i drove it and it's pretty fast stock. he stopped by last night...he now has a 6" lift with 36" tires. he also put the airaid intake which he said helped a ton...plus he's getting a chip and guages in (they sent him one made for the 7.3). nice truck and now with 2000miles, there's been no problems.

Tom