RACER47

Hi guys!! Well, after a years worth of research, not wanting EGR, and not wanting to pay out the nose for reg. (im in ca.), I finally talked myself into a new 03' 3500srw 410rp 48re. so.qc 4x4.Over all I do like this new truck. It does ride better, the steering is more responsive, and man do these brakes work! But after reading all of the posts here, and on TDR, I was really excited to see how this big bad diesel would pull my 26ft. race car trailer. (Just to let you know, my other truck is a '96 2500 4x4 with a v10) Well last night I hooked her up and was in total shock when about half way up a 6-7% grade (I could pull at 55-60 with my gasser) I was hardly able to pull at 50! I here some guys saying they can smoke the tires from a dead stop?? Are you kidding me? If I floor it from a dead stop, it feels like the trans doesn’t totally engage for a second or two, then starts to pull "ok", not great. I hate to say this but my dad has a duramax, and it does tow my trailer better than my new dodge. My question is, does this sound right? Could there be something wrong with this truck? It does only have 1000mi. on it and on my last tank it was only getting 11mpg! One of the biggest reasons I bought a CTD was for the gas mi. Heck, I got the same mpg. with my gasser. Hope someone can tell me this isn’t right. Tony~

Festus

Guess you should have bought a handshaker HO. : There's a reason you don't see slushboxes in most trucks, big and small, that actually leave the pavement from time to time and pull heavier loads.

SuperGewl

Ok, for one thing you have a 235hp engine, not the 250hp (you are in California) and yes you probably should have gotten the 6 speed. But all that aside you only have 1K miles on it and yes while pulling about 11 mpg is correct. Empty at highway speed If I stay out of it, I can get any where from 19 to 22 mpg.
Give it some break-in time and it should do a little better. Also take what alot of people say about fuel milage with a grain of salt, most of them have all sorts of mods and propably don't really get the mileage they say they getting or are really driving more highway than real city driving, which is what I do. ;D
Just my .01 worth

EdsGarage

I shared your concerns.

I did not see the blistering power either, although I do not tow.

I am just passing 4000 mi. and it actually seems to get more powerful with each day. My fuel milage is increasing as well.

I am running with the 4:10 and only getting about 15.7 mpg by the computer. It is going up though.

I can feel the lower end more than I did when brand new.

I doubt I could spin the tires. The CA model may play a factor here too.

From my limited experience, it seems the break-in is subtantial. Don't get discouraged.

Daren

I concur with other sentiments here. They do seem to do better after a few miles have added up. I think the power and mileage will get stronger as time goes by. Don't give up just yet!

silver_goat

give her some time. My 02 really did not start running good until I go over 30k on her. My 03 only has 4k but I can already feel the difference in it since it was delivered.

RKCRWLR

For what it is worth, my 01.5 24V AT developed better fuel mileage over time. Empty it was about 14.5 and now at 32K+ is up to nearly 20mpg. Towing 8-9K with a lot above the cab its 12.5 mpg flat or mountains. My load is like a parachute. Took until 18K miles to even start to break in and loosen up. Your V10 was doing exceptually well. Both V10s I have run with are in single digits although they did pull well. Unfortunatley they use that smelly unleaded stuff :. Better to burn oil 8)! Hope you enjoy your truck.

erics76

We've got two 3500 flatbeds exactly alike except one is a '00 V-10, and one is an '02 Cummins HO. When they're both empty (not pulling a trailer), the V-10 will smoke the diesel. Put 10,000+ lbs on them, and the result is exactly the opposite. I've passed the V-10 pulling a 24 foot trailer with 3 horses, and I had a 28 foot trailer full of cattle. We both and it floored, and I walked right past the V-10. The diesel has about 30,000 miles on it, so it's not even broke in yet. It got 21mpg once, usually about 15 pulling. The V-10 once got 10mpg, usually 7-8 mpg pulling. We will never have a V-10 again after getting the diesel.

spots

[quote author=Festus link=board=20;threadid=20178;start=0#msg189573 date=1064555857]
Guess you should have bought a handshaker HO. : There's a reason you don't see slushboxes in most trucks, big and small, that actually leave the pavement from time to time and pull heavier loads.
[/quote]

I think most of the problem is the SO engine and automatic. If you can't get the HO then you should have the 5 speed. Most of us who pull trailers have HO ( dunno about the trannys ) Mine is a 6spd and it walks up hills like nothing. Only reason I know I am going up one is the turbo whine is louder.

Hey Festus love your sig.

cp

Fuel economy issues aside, the 300+ hp V10 ought to outpull a 235 hp 5.9.

We tend to think torque does the work; it does not, only when rpm is factored in does an ability to do work result. Torque isn't even a unit of power. When we talk about the diesel having much more low end torque, what's really doing the work is low end horsepower.

If you can keep both engines in their peak horsepower range (through gearing), the V10 will win.

RACER47

First off, thanks to all who responded. So what your all telling me is, that this is normal? Well I guess it is good to know that things will improve. What is the general opinion as far as time frame goes, to add a box to it? 1000, 3000, 5000 mi ? or does it matter? Also, am I to understand that with a box I will get more power, and better mi? Almost sounds to good to be true. I am going to add gauges and exhaust.

Festus

[quote author=RACER47 link=board=20;threadid=20178;start=0#msg189906 date=1064633215]
What is the general opinion as far as time frame goes, to add a box to it? 1000, 3000, 5000 mi ? or does it matter? Also, am I to understand that with a box I will get more power, and better mi? Almost sounds to good to be true. I am going to add gauges and exhaust.
[/quote]

I'm partial to and will get the Quadzilla Box. (www.quadzilla.com). I like the idea that it completely bypasses the ECM and takes ten minutes or less to install - plug and play. It also takes ten minutes or less to uninstall for warranty visits. ;D They'll never know it was there.

erics76

Actually, torque is a unit of power. It's measured in foot/pounds. Horsepower is not a unit of power. This is why diesels pull better- 500ft/lbs. of torque compared to 300 ft/lbs in the V-10. Torque makes things move, horsepower has more to do with excelleration I suppose.

LinearX

[quote author=cp link=board=20;threadid=20178;start=0#msg189881 date=1064627954]
We tend to think torque does the work; it does not, only when rpm is factored in does an ability to do work result. Torque isn't even a unit of power. When we talk about the diesel having much more low end torque, what's really doing the work is low end horsepower.

If you can keep both engines in their peak horsepower range (through gearing), the V10 will win.
[/quote]

On any Dyno, torque is the measured unit and horsepower is the number derived from a formula involving both torque and RPM.

Torque gets the load moving, horsepower makes it go faster.

pwabbott

RACER47 said, " I finally talked myself into a new 03' 3500srw 410rp 48re. so.qc 4x4. . . . I hooked her up and was in total shock when about half way up a 6-7% grade. . . . Could there be something wrong with this truck? It does only have 1000mi. on it and on my last tank it was only getting 11mpg! One of the biggest reasons I bought a CTD was for the gas mi. Heck, I got the same mpg. with my gasser. Hope someone can tell me this isn’t right. Tony"

Tony,

Whether you have the SO CARB 235 hp or the SO Federal 250 hp should make no difference pulling grades unless you are running above 2700 rpm as they both have the hp curve and torque curves below 2700 rpm. I have the same engine with 5spd and 4.10 axle. At about 22,000 miles I noticed an increase the way it pulled and mileage. I now have 26,500 miles on her. When towing in the mountains I'm getting 13.4 calculated mpg. On the level without headwind 14.9 mpg. On my recent trip to Alaska my mileage on 9800 miles was 13.2 mpg. There were several long 9% grades. Sounds like your CTD has a long way to go blefore it is broken in.

I have a close friend who also has a 96 Ram with V-10. He loves the way it tows. He however hates the mileage 6-7 mpg towind his 29 ft Alpenlite 5er and 9 mpg when not towing. I had a had a 98 Ram V-8 360 and the best I could squeeze out towing 9.0. Non-towing was usually 11 mpg. :'(

Be patient break it in right, give it some time.