tow/haul mode is the same thing as OD lock out.

My truck spins 2000 RPM @ 75 if i recall correctly (bigger than stock tires). I have 3.73 gears and want 4.10s or maybe bigger...

I'll probably end up swapping in a 11.5" rear from a junkyard with 4.10s and LSD.

 

Like a few of the others, I'm the oddball who goes throught all 6. I use as daily driver, and the gear shifting doesn't bother me a bit. I would actually like to have a seventh gear for the highway. At 75MPH I'm turning 2200 RPM, and on my trip back from hunting camp at that speed still managed to get 17.1 MPG with the 3:73 diff. Oh, did I mention Ebrake? I run with the Ebrake on all the time, and have to use the brakes very little, even pulling the 5th wheel. Running 65 MPH last month coming home from deer camp, I got 19.1 MPG. I'm happy!

 

Yes, I bought this truck out of desire more than need! I figure I only get one shot on this earth, I might as well enjoy it while I'm here. And the way I drive, I'd get about 6 mpg out of a gasser. I'm getting 17 - 18 from my truck while driving really fast sometimes, driving in stop and go traffic, with a big cap on the back - all things that kill mpg. If I drove like a sane person, I'd be getting 20 - 22 mpg - I know 'cause I've tried it!

As to engine braking - I've read over and over that brake pads are a lot cheaper than transmissions - so guess which ones I wear out stopping?

 

Looking at how the trucks are set up from the factory, it seems that they're designed to pull a maximum rated load at about 65 mph. Even suggested tire pressure, at least with the Michelin LTX A/S, maxes out out at 80 psi with a maximum load and not driving over 65 mph. I've read that Cummins states that the engine is most efficient at 1800 rpm to 2200 rpm, where 2000 rpm is about 65 mph on my truck. Evidently like most people I don't tow maximum loads so I can eventually change the overall gearing with bigger tires, but it'll be at the detriment of load carrying ability.

I bought a diesel, a Cummins diesel specifically, as I wanted the durability and mileage. A gas engine was never considered an option.

 

I have the 6sp and love it. I got the six shooter because of the towing I do. these trucks are workhorses. I can be towing 11,000lbs of fifth wheel trailer up 5 or 6 percent grade, the truck will start to slow, drop into 5th gear and the rpms will start to rise again. cant ask for much more than that from a stock truck. Also the simplicity of a standard trans over auto is the reason I got the 6 spd. setup. alot less to go wrong !

 

I have an older 5-speed model, and recently changed out the clutch with a South Bend unit which DJ's Auto & Truck in Plainfield, IL charged only $655 for. Considering 277 k on the truck, I'm not at all unhappy about taking the manual. better milage figures, also. I doubt with the CC I would buy an 8-ft bed, however. Good luck with your choice!

 

My wife and I are both retired so it was with a bit of concern that we ordered the six-speed. Then I did an inventory and found that out of the seventeen vehicles we have owned in forty-five years of married bliss, only three were automatics (three were diesels).

Only about 4,000 on the new truck but we both like the six-speed and don't mind the shifting. Even though we have the 3.73 I still find myself looking for a higher gear at highway speeds.

Towed a utility trailer across country and even with only about 3,000 lbs found the EB very useful.

jr

 

ok didnt read all 3 pages, but I learned to drive and drive a manual at the same time! That being said, bad credit didnt let me get picky on my first diesel, so its a 2001 2500 QC auto 3.55's. Upon better credit I do plan on getting a dually manual. Might have 7-speeds by then This truck will end up being my racer later on down the road. So for me. manual, and auto for racing basically.

 

I drive in that scenario all the time, and I still prefer the 6spd. When it comes to piece of mind, control when towing, e-brake capability and general toughness of the tranny, the 6 spd is the clear leader. I'll never go back to a slushbox.

 

You should have your girlfriend/wife hold your whopper for you
.........I mean't the hamburger

 

Ahhhhhhhh 4:10 Gears!!! I use four gears, I most always start in 3rd doing the last four and sometimes skip one of them.

Just turned 5K on the odometer, getting 18mpg and looking forward to getting it broken in.

Love it more everyday, Still haven't been able to get my enclosed racecar trailer yet due to the plant closing announcement from Carrier Air Cond my employer.

Maybe things will work out for the better anyway. Jim

 

Hey Prosouth,

You work for UTC Carrier huh?

I used to work for a UTC owned company down in West Palm Beach Florida at the Pratt/Sikorski facility.

I think the Carrier division was in Alabama.

I left that company in 1993 and have done much much better since so keep your chin up.

DT.

 

After driving this 6-speed, I will never go back to an automatic tranny in any diesel pickup. This 6-speed is just a lot of fun to drive, even in the city. It requires less maintenance and should last longer. A manual is also more efficient than an auto. I love not having a torque convertor that sucks up power and keeps it from getting to the ground where it belongs, and I love being able to shift when "I" want to shift, not when some computer says it should.

 

When I bought my truck the Six speed was the only trans for the HO engine, but it is what I would have ordered anyway. I have installed the Jacobs Ex brake and I also wish it had a seventh gear. I am wishin for a Gearvenders Splitter but if you convert the price into Canadian $'s it is a whole bunch of money. Dodge have not built an automatic (In my opinion) since the 727 and it was for about 430 ft. lbs of torque. If the 48R was so great it would have five speeds(like the rest of the world) and would be warranted with an exhaust brake.
Jim O

 

Your last sentence is a good point.

The only bummer about the 6sp is that it won't work with the high-idle re-flash feature.

It's not a 6sp show-stopper for me but if I could get it I would in a second.