ejc1214

Hi all,
I am thinking about buying a used CTD with either 5-9 or 6.7 and leaning toward the 5.9 so I don;t have to deal with the EPA stuff. My question is that I want an auto transmission and not sure how well the pre 6 speed auto hold up. I bought the GMs because of the Alison and the Dodge reputation on trannys but always like the Cummins. I need a 3500 4x4 DRW QC with 4.10 gearing to tow my 14K 5th. What year should I look for? I was thinking 2006 or 07. All I woulr do is add an EB and maybe a Smarty Jr for a little more tq while towing.

On the EBs, my GM was a pain to get it right since you had to cut exhaust pipe and the bolt in on but you had to loosen the flange at the down-pipe and it had a C-clamp and no gasket and it was hard to seal the air leak and took a lot of work to get it right. Does the Dodge have same issue or does it bolt onto a a gasket flange? Does that make sense?

WhiteMule

I think your looking in the right direction and what you have described should fit the bill for your towing perfectly. An 06 or early 07 with a 5.9, 4.10's , DRW, smarty Jr. and an exhaust brake. As for the auto trans., some have put many many miles on their stock auto tranny and have had good luck with them. I did not like the mushy feel of the shifts and some other quirks like the 1-2 shift hunt that I had, so I spent a little $$ and upgraded it with a new torque converter, shift kit with some other billet parts. While the stock tranny did/will work OK, I believe that the improvements that I made were well worth the $$. While we had the tranny out, we checked the clutches in the front drum and found some signs of burning on them so that was upgraded there too. In all likelihood, the transmission itself probably would have went several thousand miles without failure. That being said, I like you, pull a 5th wheel and did not want to have any tranny troubles on the road so I decided that an upgrade at an opportunity of my choice and budget was right for me. This will be your decision. I do not believe you will have the same troubles with the exhaust brake, although others could probably elaborate more. See here for the exhaust brake http://www.dodge-diesel.org/prdimoexbrki.html

On a positive note for the newer truck (6.7) is the exhaust brake and a 6-speed auto that most people love. Hard choices to make! I made this decision a year and a half ago and you can look in my sig to see what I came out with.

ejc1214

I tend to think that the 06 or 07 with the 5.9 will give me the most for my money even if I have to do work on the tranny. I wonder if the 2004.5 and 5 are the same trucks as the 06 an d 07 or did they make significant changes? I need an auto and as much hp as I can stock until I figure out what to do for modifications other than a Pacbrake.

rbertalotto

06 or 07 is in many folks estimation the best Dodge Diesel available.

There were small, but important changes made in the transmissions in 06 whem Mercedes owned Chrysler. All the bugs were worked out of the 24V engines. Just about perfect trucks, once you replace a couple ball joints and a U-Joint or two. And this usually after 80-100K...........

Find a good 06-07 and don't look back.......IMHO

tlloyd

I have 135,000miles on my Mega no transmission issues. The truck is also stock with the exception of a cat delete pipe. The 48RE trans got a bad rap because it did not hold up with heavy mods and high HP ratings like 500 plus. Chevy and Ford transmissions do'nt hold up with heavy mods either.You will get good service out of a 48RE if it is maintained and used properly.

Dodge has the "C" clamp on the exhaust and turbo but it really is not too bad to deal with. I think all the diesel trucks from Ford ,Dodge and Chevy use the "C" clamps.

ejc1214

OK, say I buy a 2006 or 07 5.9 DRW 4x4 QC. Do I need the 4.10 or would I be just as well with 3.73 for weekend 5th wheel trips and a couple of weeks in the summer towing? I had a GM with DA that I only used for towing and had just 19k when I sold it after 4 years. This one I would use more and it 90% of time would be non towing miles.

no_6_oh_no

Considering the issues you face with the 06-07's not sure that is consistent opinion.

There were NO changes in the transmission from 05 thru 07.5 when the 48RE went out of production. The only significant change from 04 on was the addition of the TTVA motor in 05. All the changes were made in the TCM portion of the ECU to work better with the electronics, nothing else.

The 06-07's simply have more issues with the ECU, injectors harnesses, power distrubution systems, peripheral controllers than all the other years combined. The addition of the CAN Bus communications introduced a whole new set of problems that are just annoying, and at times infuriating.

The 04.5-05 models with the exception of the plastic tank CAC's in early 05 are the most powerful, durable, trouble free trucks bumper to bumper. The drawback is no Mega cab in those years.

If you are looking for a truck to drive, do everyhting you need, with all the good stuff, good trans, etc, go with a 2010 and keep it stock until the DPF stuff drives you crazy. Otherwise, look for a late 05 or 04.5. On either truck, the nicer features of the newer transmissions can be added, except gearing, for less than the cost of the newer ones, plus, you have a wider more effective assortment of add-ons that don't frequently cause issues.

Depends on what you want to spend and how you like your truck appointed.

ejc1214

I see this is not going to be an easy decision! I thought I was settled on the 2006 or 07 but the above post is putting doubts in my thinking!

2004.5 or 2005 might be better over all?

Anyone on the 3.73 vs 4.10 for pulling 14K 5th wheel from time to time?

no_6_oh_no

The 4.10's will make towing heavy a lot easier and allow running a taller tire without as much penalty. You will loose mpg though and the bigger the tire the worse the economy. Really, unless the 5'er is hooked up all the time the 4.10's are over kill.

FWIW, I pull 15k all the time with 3.73's and a 33" tire. I have gone coast to coast and every mountain range in between with no issues. I can run 70 mph all day long on any grade with no issues. I have gotten 12 mpg or better in good conditions consistently by driving it to that end.

I am running a 50 HP tune most of the time towing and I could not justify any lower gearing. The 3.73 gear is the BEST all around gear I have ever had behind a CTD.

ejc1214

Thanks for letting me know. Being a DRW that I am looking I will keep stock tire size. Now all I need to do is make up my mind on the year I want to go with or I can always go new but seems like a lot of waste of money. I have always bought new and seem to take quite a hit when selling!

alboy

I have an 06 with the 3:73 ratio,as well as 305/55/r20 tires,effective ratio 3:55.I pull a14600 fiver,so gross wt of 22700 approx,50000 miles with a e/att tuner which i use on the 40 hp setting for towing.I adj the trans bands at about 30000 miles,shifts better than when new.Great truck. Towing A 6% grade is a non issue.

ejc1214

I noticed that some of the 3500 DRW are rated at 12,200 and some lower, I think 11,500. Is that because of the gearing? I topped off at 21500 with my Silverado DRW Duramax and 5th wheel. I think my pin weight is about 2900 lbs. I want to make sure the truck can carry it and not have trouble with the weight police. LOL