JoshPeters

Alright, Duluth Diesel and I being the great friends we are, and he being in town for work decided we were going to be bored for the evening. So what would 2 good buddies do? Go harrass the Ford, Chevy and Dodge dealerships. All these trucks were Brand new, less than 400 miles. We probably could have done most of our testing with a Salesman...but what they dont' know won't hurt them!

05 Ford, 6.0, 4door, short bed, 3/4 ton, 5speed Automatic, 4x4
05 Chev, 6.6, 4door, short bed, 3/4 ton, 5speed Automatic, 4x4
05 Dodge, 5.9 Cummins, 4door, Short bed, 3/4 ton, 4speed Automatic, 4x4.

First we drove the Ford. What is this a gasser? No power to 2800rmp, and power up to 3500. Again...no life at all till 2800. Dead horse. OK, no good for towing, but when it's in the power band it seems to go ok. Just OK. The Transmission is terrible. Full throttle upshifts were detuned by the computer ....the engine would litterally Defuel to 0, shift and come back on. Sure it's a close ratio 5spd, that's nice, the only reason we can figure that they have that is to keep the engine in the miniscule power band. It rides better than the other Fords we have driven, but still feels kind of wishy washy.

We drove the Chevy Last...Overall a pretty good truck. Better than the Ford. Rides more like a car. The Allison and the Duramax seem to communicate well. Put it in tow haul mode and the engine will actually "pre-rev" before grabbing the next lowist gear. Pretty slick. The engine is similar to the Ford, Lots of revs, but you have to use them to get into the power band. The power band seems to be bigger than the Ford. This is a LARGE improvement over when this engine and tranny combination that first came out. We took the first Duramax/Allison trucks in the state out when they were first available. At that time it seemed they put a bus trans behind the engine. There was just no communication.

We drove the Dodge 2nd, due to the Ford and Dodge dealerships being under the same roof. The Dodge, yes has a smaller cab. The layout of the cab seemed to be a little more thought out. The radio could be understood! The engine seemed to ALWAYS be in the power band. Sure it only has a 4spd auto, but that's all it needs. Pulling off a stoplight slowly, it grabbed 3rd and as Duluth Diesel rolled into the throttle it stayed in that gear and pulled it 1200rpm up to the redline of 3000. No dramatic downshifts 2 gears down like the others, just torque. Overall the ride was slightly more firm than the Ford, but you could feel the road. The Ford suspension seemed much easier to upset over rough roads than the Dodge. The only "complaint" we both have is the steering in the 3rd Gen truck seems almost hyper-sensitive. It took very little hand motion to get a large reaction out of the truck. This is very different than what WE are used to in our 2nd Gen trucks. The Ford steering what closer to what we are used to. The Dodge's brakes were Hands Down the best of the 3. The Ford was second, and the Chevy's were terrible. A distant 3rd.

For just daily driving around town getting the groceries I can understand why people would go with the Chevy. The Ford was build for more "work" but the engine isn't up to the task. The Dodge seems to have the best of all worlds, and has an engine that will last beyond the others and is worth listening to. If you want a High Reving no torque engine...buy a gasser.

Out of all 3, the "beating" test ....Off the line the Dodge took off the best, Chirping the tires when grabbing second. The Ford and Chev needed a LIBERAL amount of throttle and heavy amount of brake to get the tires to do anything more than roll. The Dry Pavement Full Throttle U-turn test...The Ford didn't care if it was going straight or turning. Not even a tire complaint. The Chev got a little better...but still not even a complaint. The Dodge Easily and happily lit the tires and fishtailed for around 30feet. The Dodge was ready to go when we wanted it how we wanted it. Power NOW. Ford...if you can find the power band peak (good luck) I'm sure it would keep up with the Dodge. The Chevy was smoother, had a larger power band, but didn't get as "crazy" as even the Ford did with the power.

Ford last, 3rd place. Miniscule power band, wishy washy suspension, and did I say no power?
We Give the Chevy the 2nd place nod for the larger powerband and better ride. It is a more refined truck than the Ford, the engine and tranny actually communicate.
Dodge First. The best overall package of the 3.

Don't just take our word for it....Drive ALL 3 Back to back! We both went in open minded really looking for a new truck. We know which truck we would buy.

Just our .04....

Josh and Chuck

96_12V

Friday I drove an '05 3500 2wd DRW CC 6-speed at the dealer where I had the master cylinder repalced in 96_12V. What a truck!! The new 6-speed is tight, quick and precise, short throws and excellent clutch feel. The truck could actually handle, and the brakes were incredible. I kept looking in the mirrors to remind myself what a large truck this was. The engine stayed with you all they way, yet could be a docile and confortable as you would want. Very jelious of you third-gen owners, but I know after this I will have to grab a new-version 6-speed truck when I repalce old '96.

mr T

wow...i didnt know that new ford tranny was a bad performer...i heard its a good tranny...u serious about 2800rpm?? that would irritate me and turn me off to the ford in 2 min...i guess thats why people hate the 6.0 and only young kids who think its fast like it hmm...hows that 48RE workin?? im really curious about that...whats the stall? improvement?

i still cant get over that powerband of the 6oh...that sounds like the rpms of the old 460

amartinson

Good info Josh. I have been meaning to do the same comparison myself, but have not gottten around to it. I haven't even ridden in or driven a 3rd gen diesel yet.

I do know what you are saying about the steering vs the 2nd gens. I drove my bosses 3rd gen 2500 Hemi at work and like you said, the steering is very quick. Whereas I am used to turning my hand from 12 o'clock to 9 o'clock for a left turn, you only need to turn your hand from 12 o'clock to 10 o'clock for the same turn. Caught me off guard at first.

I look forward to my first test drives of the newbies some day.

Shovelhead

That "twitchyness" is one of the things the magazine testers found fault with on the 3 Gen Dodges.
They said, when pulling a trailer, it made it too easy to over correct.

SSRAM

Good info to hear as it looks like I made the right choice. This is the first Dodge I have ever owned and I love it! I did not test drive the other two, I just read everything I could on the subject of diesels and it all pointed to the CTD as the one to own. As for the truck, I am very impressed! I love the brakes they are amazing for sure. As for the tight stearing, I am used to my Camaro SS and I personally love the tight "feel" of the stearing wheel as I am driving this rig even when I am towing. I can't find a thing wrong with this truck so far and I still can't get the smile off my face!

MikeyB

I haven't driven a 4x4 Dodge but I do like the crisp steering the 4x2 offers. Beats the Ford and Chevy by a wide margin.

MikeyB

JoshPeters

The 48RE seemed to be a good tranny. From our drive they seemed to have gotten rid of the get to the highist gear possible problem the 47RE's had/have. We didn't do a stall test on the trannys. Looking back...we should have.

The 6.0 is a great gas engine We took off out of the dealership and the saleswoman that we were talking to said "Make sure you dont' spin the tires." Well, we left at a normal pace....we did our little testing....and came to the conclusion. They must tell you that so you think it CAN spin the tires. It woudln't do it for us! We didn't power brake it, that probably would have done it. The Ford tranny doesn't seem to be very well thought out. Granted it is the first year with this 5spd (isn't it?) so it may have some bugs. When your at Wide Open, and can watch the boost guage on the dash(pretty nice) Drop when the automatic is between shifts.....they are dropping the fuel WAY back to save the tranny.

Take one for a drive. I was VERY unimpressed!

Josh

cumminsdriver635

Before i had my liscence, i went with dad, and we test drove a 03 Ford just to do it. Almost killed it pulling it off the lot(6spd). It had absolutley NOTHING until 2k rpm's, where it seemed to do ok after that, but what kind of daily driver/hauler is that??? I dont know how they do with the automatics, but i know they are a dog with the 6spd.

Eric

cincydiesel

I had the torxshift tranny in my 6.0 and pulling out in traffic was scary, step on it and nothing it took its grand 'ol time getting out there but when it got going it took off. Step on my 610 an your sideways

12PACK

I drove my first 3rd gen on Tuesday. 2500 QC LB NV5600. Very nice and plenty of power, even at 40 mph in 6th on an off ramp. A little throttle and up to 50 in no time. I was very impressed with the brakes and also the ride. Much better than my 1500 SB. It wasn't equipt like I wanted but still a nice truck, even with the 4:10's.

mr T

wow...now i see why the 6oh is getting such a bad rep....they glorify the torqshift in ford sites ...i thought its some magical new tranny...i should have known

cumminsdriver635

To tell you the truth i believe as far as reliability on a stock truck, the old 47rh/re trannies are as good as any of them. Mine has been good to me. And they are a lot cheaper to fix when they blow up.

Eric

mr T

i totally agree...its a good tranny..it just gets really beat up ...

doodah

Josh, If you don/t mind, I copied this and posted it over at pavement sucks. to see what reaction I get.