To give Ford and Chevy the proper credit, that rod comparison is not realistic. Both the other brands have 8 cylinders and the Dodge has 6. So right off the top you know the 6 must have about 4/3 the load of the 8. In other words, it has to be bigger. Not a fair comparison. I know it looks impressive but let's be fair. Besides, who's going to make their buying decision by comparing rod sizes? Overall design, user freindlyness, proven history, and emotional response all seem like the obvious reasons.


Wetspirit

 

jeremy.brown1@wachovia.com I want to see those pics!!!!!

I have driven all three and there is no comparison of TQ at the bottom end. Yes the Duramax will fly down the road, but if that's what you want buy a Sports Car. Get the Dodge and get the smile that everyone else has

 

Love my 06!!!!!!!! And the boss (wife) loves it just as much! She likes that wistle thingy!! Just a short story we were ridein through our home town and she seen these 3 boys standin around their power stroke and yelled out the window " OUR TRUCK IS BETTER THAN YOUR LITTLE BOY " I had the biggest smile on my face the rest of the day!

 

Thanks for the input guys. Ya'll have talked back into a Dodge. I've got hurry up and get a 06. If I'm not mistaken the 07 will have the motor with all the emissions crap on it??

Can someone give me the low down on what changes are happening to the 07? Good and bad.

Thanks

 

Okay besides that the 6 has 7 main bearings whereas the 8 has 5. Huge difference in strength for the long run. The Cummins will run longer easier. Its almost a mathmatical certainty.

 

Dont let the 325/650 of the D-Max fool you. My buddy got to drive an 06 Duraslack Quad Cab 2500 4x4 just like my 06 dodge quad cab 2500 4x4 when he was having his dodge lifted and of course we had to line them up. The turbo lag on them is terrible, we launched without spooling the turbos and I jumped him about three truck lengths and at 80 mph he was still 2 truck lengths behind and all I have done to mine is exhaust. I dont know where the diesel mags got that the chevy was faster because ill have to see one beat me to believe it. Just had to tell my story I havent told it to anyone yet.

 

Probably because GM's sales were the lowest and they offered edmunds.com the most money to say that they were the best truck of the big three, or something like that!

 

I dont think were going to see any changes to the 2500/3500 until January '07. Dodge likes their mid year engine changes. The new engine is currently orderable, i believe, in the 3500 chassis/cab configuration.

 

http://inlinediesel.com/deathmatch/

 

Well I didn't read this whole thread but I will say my opinion ............ The Duramax is an awesome engine, If you don't tow and only intend to keep for a couple years as an every day driver. If you want a dependable engine then Cummins is the only option. The Duramax is awesome out of the hole and has great power, but short lived life compared to Cummins. And as far as truck to truck goes its your call.... I have ALWAYS owned GMC and would never think of a cummins until I bought one.Now I have had 3 and will never own anything else. These trucks are awesome. I recently let my best friend take my Dodge on a 1200 mile trip to tow a truck back to his uncle and he told me I would have to fight him in order to get my truck back . He drives a newer GMC 2500. Well fortunately I didn't have to get beat up but he is on the prowel for a Dodge now .I do love the looks of a GMC from 99-02 the grill and body style is very elegant and classy. But I have owned a new GMC every year or so from 93 thru 2003. The last was a Duramax. But my Dodge is 10 times the truck any GMC I have owned or been in was. It rides way better and has just as good mileage and I smile every time I drive it. Granted I needed to put an aftermarket box on it to feel the power the GMC had but it is way woth it. Thats just my honest opinion.

 

i own a 2006 dodge 2500 cummins and have driven friends 2004 and 2005 chevy duramaxes both before and after buying mine. i've had great luck with chrysler vehicles over the past 10 years, so i'm probably a little biased, but here are my honest opinions:

1. ride - the chevy has a smoother ride and feels like a car. the dodge has a firmer ride but not stiff. i actually prefer the ride of the dodge better. the chevy's steering has a lot of slop in it and the dodge is a lot more responsive.

2. powertrain - the cummins seems to have more lower end grunt than the duramax. the allison is impressive in that you can barely tell it's shifting. i like how my 48RE seems to shift agressively. one of my duramax friends says the cummins has some nice low end and he likes how the 48RE shifts.

3. interior - people say the chevy has comfortable seats, but i really like the new firmer seats in the 2006 dodges. they give better support and my back will really appreciate it with longer trips. my 2003 1500 dodge was comfortable for short trips but didn't give enough support for long trips. the dash, instrumentation, and overall quality of the dodge just seem better.

4. exterior - do i need to say this? the dodge looks a lot better. when you look at the front of the dodge, you say "now this is a truck". when you look at the front of the chevy, you think you're looking at a cat. i noticed the chevy had wide open wheel wells which i thought couldn't be good for flying rocks, salt, etc. plus it didn't look good being able to see under the truck.

i've had my truck for almost 3 months and absolutely love it. i know the 2006 duramax has more HP and torque on paper, but there is nothing weak about the cummins. i think the stock HP/torque wars are just for marketing as cummins/dodge could easily bump their numbers above chevy with just a flash. i think they're more concerned with the most reliable diesel you can buy.

 

My freind has an 04 Duramax and the ride between his truck and my Dodge is no comparison mine ride 10 times better than his and his is a 2500 and mines a 3500!!

 

one of my good buddies has an 04 Duramax. I just got done driving it around yesterday and i must say it is a nice truck. To me, the chevy feels like its is a more well manored truck for just daily driving..never towed with one though, and my truck just feels like it has more grunt all around. It feels like my truck is more like a semi, and the chevy just a regular grocery getter. I dunno, i looked at the chevys too and it wasnt that hard of a choice to get the dodge after i drove them both...and yea..lifting an IFS truck is a pain and expensive...but really you probably would be happy with both as then are both awesome trucks...ill stick to my Cummins though, its reputation speaks for itself...Jason

 

Yes...But...

8 divided by six is 1.33. I think its fair to say that the Cummins rod is much larger and stronger than 1.33x the competition.

Keep in mind also that the 7.3l PSD is 1.24x as large as a cummins and the DM is 1.12x as large.

On a more technical level, I believe the Cummins rods show a more mature design. For example, the Cummins rods exhibit the following characteristics that are minimal or absent from the GM and International rod:

1. Larger bearing surface area.
2. Better fillet radii to prevent stress concentrations
3. Maximum size of the crank pin, as evidenced by the canted end cap (required to remove the rod from the block through the piston hole, I believe).
4. Maximum size of wrist pin.
5. Nonlinear radius of curvature on the upper edge of the crankpin.

The above was written by TDR members rbattelle & DPelletier

 

Cummins I6 vs. Isuzu v-8 and then there was the International v-8 to consider.

My original plan was to buy a Ford. I preffered the seats in the Ford (compared to my 04 qc hemi). The Chevy wasn't in the running, 1st because of the Isuzu and next was the price.

In the end the Cummins I6 won me over. After actually driving the CTD it was a slam dunk. Especially since the Ford was 4k more.

By the way the Dodge seats have been much improved.

Knowledge is the key!
Research till you're sick of diesel trucks and you'll be able to decide which one is the best for you.

Cheers!