[QUOTE=


Who are you to define a NORMAL MANNER of driving??! I don't launch my truck, drag it, pull sleds, or do donuts with it. What I do and fully expect it to hold up to is pulling my 11K lbs toy hauler anywhere I want to go. INCLUDING mountain passes and long grades (which I see in California). I got gauges so I know what my truck is doing.[/QUOTE]

Mr Cali dude, have a seat in the corner, take a deep breath, & CHILL..... .....
I defined "Normal Manner" for the purpose of my thread. I had to explain what I meant as normal driving. I know normal driving for you may be towing your
toyhauler over mountain passes. You live around mountains.....I DON"T....
SO WHAAAATTTT!!.......

Navy Chief was the only guy in three days who even halfway attempted to
answer my question. But he got off on burned valves going into the cylinder &
failed injectors & how all these can be detected by a egt gauge which I am sure is probably true. He did also say that egt meltdown can be "Considered a
freak occurence."

Everybody did say its a great way to monitor whats happening. Most of what
I got instead of straight-up answers was smart attitude from the
pro gauge crowd.

I'm NOT advocating that gauges are BAD I AM advocating that trucks CAN MAKE IT WITHOUT gauges, AND OFTEN DO. THEY MAY EVEN SNEEK AWAY WITH A PEELOUT HERE & THERE....(OH....How naughty!)

Hounddog, ol' buddy, you're EXACTLY RIGHT! I am Not the norm that posts on
here. I also don't tow on that 100 setting. I kinda got a good heads up from those big bold black letters on the instuctions. If I tow on ANY setting its 30
or OFF.

deerefarm06 pretty much hit the nail on the head with how I feel.

I'm done.Over & out.

 

Just my opinion, but a stock truck used in a "normal fashion" would probably be fine without gauges. Gauges can help you spot a problem before it turns into a major catastrophic failure. Any performance mods, gauges are a no brainer. Even a stock truck with an automatic transmission that is used for towing I would want at the bare minimum a pyrometer(preturbo) and a transmission temperature gauge with the sensor installed in the hot line back to the tranny cooler.

 

No, you don't need gauges but I have them for peace of mind. My LP went on the fritz on my truck and I knew exactly what had happened. I looked at my gauges. Mind you I was at the house which was great. Called the dealer and all was well. Explained to them what had happened and what my FP gauge said. They had it fixed in no time. No guessing at all. If you are running up a steap grade you can see when to back off with the EGT gauge and that is driving normal. I tow, that is why I have this truck. Gauges, piece of mind for me and that is my .02 cents.

 

[QUOTE=koogala;1407733]Mr Cali dude, have a seat in the corner, take a deep breath, & CHILL..... .....
I defined "Normal Manner" for the purpose of my thread. I had to explain what I meant as normal driving. I know normal driving for you may be towing your
toyhauler over mountain passes. You live around mountains.....I DON"T....
SO WHAAAATTTT!!.......


Hey, I'm just saying that I feel that towing with this truck is "normal." If I didn't plan on towing I would have bought a Dakota. I'm just curious...what if I did cause damage to my truck while towing up a hill? Would that be my fault because I wasn't driving in a "normal manner?"

You asked folks if they have ever seen problems with a truck getting too hot under very narrow perameters. I'm saying that a lot of folks actually use their truck and want to know what their trucks are doing.

I'm not against or for other people to have gauges, everyone has to make thier own choices. I am against you saying that I don't use my truck in a normal manner.

I'm glad you don't work for Dodge's warranty claims department!! I can just see you, "Sir, I see you were driving your truck withing the manufacturers specifications but I don't think you were driving in a normal manner so I am going to deny your claim."

Oh well what do I know, I'm just a "Cali dude" who needs to Chill, right?

 

I agree, will stated.

 

I understand where he's coming from, but here's my experience. I run gauges, I have seen 1300 degrees non towing with the SMARTY at WOT running the earlier software. What if I was towing? 1400+? That's pretty hot for a '03 HO engine in my book.
With the lastest updates I'm down to 1100 degrees at WOT. Much better now.

If I didn't have a EGT gauge I would have never known that.

MikeyB

 

H8GAS, I offer you a sincere apology. I didn't mean to inflame you or ANYONE.
We're all on the same team here. If I ever get to California & see a toyhauler
over on the side, I swear, I'll stop & help.

Its just like I said, though. On here, it seems the next MANDATORY stop after
the chip store is the gauge store. I would think as you approach dangerous
egt's, you would see higher than normal H2o temp.

Maybe I'm a redneck who just needs to get out a little more...

 

Actually, you can have a fatal spike in EGT way before you would ever see any fluctuation in water temperature....

I say this having driven many different trucks with EGT gauges in them...

Your stock water temperature gauge is not a good indicator of exhaust gas temperature...

 

I guess one way to look at the siuation is as such, it will cost me X-amont of $ for gauges, say $500 for gauges that might or might not prevent catatsrophic failure to my engine. If I don't have gauges and cause myself catastrophic failure it might cost me what $6 - $8,000 to repair said dammages??

P.S

For what it's worth, I ran my '99 with my Van Aaken for tens of thousands of miles without gauges and had no problems and towed some monster loads...

But I was nervous about i every time and would back out of the power when I was really under load for fear of a meltdown.... I wish I had jus paid the cash upfront and got the gauges for simple peace of mind... I've ridden in some pretty mildly bombed trucks that would get hot real quick!! Like stop light to stop light in town!

 

I figured the stock gauge was OK cause as I've towed before in some rather hilly stuff, the gauge will start creeping up & go over the midpoint. As I come back into flatland, the gauge returns to normal. I don't ever tow past 30
on the chip, although directions say 60 is OK. I run 100 empty & never have had a problem for 10-15,000 miles. I read about stacked boxes being run
with injectors, etc. NO WONDER EGT'S ARE AN ISSUE! I play conservative
all the time. That is why I feel, for MYSELF, I don't really need them. I'm
sure they are a great diagnostic tool. I don't think my truck has EVER seen
2700. I cruise 75 @ 2000 empty. I just don't see how that could torch something. I have TURNED OFF the box a couple of times towing hills. This
is STOCK; no hp added. PLUS, I do have a free flowing muff, air filter, & swiss
cheesed the box. All this, according to what I've read on here, is worth another 100-150 off the egt's also. Does a totally stock truck run hot on egt's
anyway? I just don't think they would engineer something like that & release it on the market. I guess I'll freak out about it & cave in...

 

Well these new trucks be it a Dodge,Ford or Chevy with diesel run the EDGE of big H.P. /torque to start with. To me running ANY box with out a gauge is like a little kid in the back of a old home playing with matches.I've read how some do this with a "Been doing it and never a issue yet" but I kinda take Ole Forest Gump's saying "stupid is as stupid does" a little more serious.

 

Even on a totally stock truck you will hit the danger zone on exhaust temps with the right circumstances. Those of us with stock fueled trucks and GAUGES can swear to that effect. So you can justify your positon, what ever makes sense to you. However don't try to convince us with gauges. So crank it up and watch you coolant temps.....never mind!

 

I had to bring this back to light. Some time has passed now since I started this thread. I maintained gauges were an unnecessary thing under most driving conditions. In a subsuquent post I made the decision to get a egt
gauge, mainly due to the fact that if I were running around melting myself
I would want to know. I'm sure if that WERE the case something would let me know that before the gauge, though.

I also said in that subsequent post I was going to report back with my finds
on gas temps, speed conditions, etc.

Well, the Autometer gauge was up and running as of yesterday. I made my normal runs here & there which involved rural driving, (small,paved farm to market roads, 55-60 mph), state & US highway driving, (70 mph), & interstate
driving, (70+ mph) AT NO TIME did the egt gauge EVER get into what anyone
would call dangerous egts. I think the highest reading I got was around 1250*
and that lasted only about 5-6 seconds as I entered a steep freeway entry ramp.

THE ONLY TIME I SAW MASSIVE EGT READINGS WAS WHEN I DELIBERATLY
NAILED IT FROM A ROLLING START, SUCH AS YOU WOULD SEE AT A DRAG RACE, SLED PULL, OR A WILD-EYED JUVENILE WHO HAD NO COMMON SENSE!
(FOR THE SAKE OF ARGUMENT,WE WILL NOT DEFINE COMMON SENSE...)
THE GAUGE NEARLY FLEW OFF THE DIAL...1400+. This is the first time I have EVER got after it like that. I wanted to see what type of driving made very high egt's, & I found out. In MY TRUCK, the only time it made high egt's was when I drove AS HARD AS THE TRUCK WOULD GO, MAXED OUT!!!

NOW, I DO SEE under towing conditions the definite possibilty of where a person could certainly benefit from a gauge because as I didn't tow yet with
the gauge, every time the empty truck went up a slight incline the egt's correspondingly went up with it. I could just imagine if I had 10-15k in tow
behind me. But, I have towed my 29' travel trailer many times; apparently no damage done 'cause I'm still here, running fine....

I think I've picked out the folks who will be on the side of the road with the hood up but I'm not gonna get into that because its quite evident from what
I suspected & found out for myself...Yes, STUPID is as STUPID does...

You know, the sky is the limit. All it takes is money. I suppose you could take
the tread off a D-8 Cat,put on some heavy-duty rubber. drop in a 10,000 hp
chip.and.......well, you get the picture.....

 

Yeah, the truck CAN make it without gauges. Of course, I CAN survive after being struck by lightning too. Doesn't mean it will happen 100% of the time.

You gave YOUR definition of "normal driving", but that is irrelevant because it's only YOUR DEFINITION. You say towing 6-8k on level ground is "normal". How about us folks that live in mountainous regions? According to your definition, I guess we're overusing our trucks by towing on the Interstate highways in our local area.

Ideling in the driveway has nothing to do with anything (can you even be any more dramatic about it?). High EGT's in stock form while towing on the highway are a fact of life with the new trucks. Don't believe it if you want, but those of us with EGT gauges KNOW better since we actually KNOW what temps we're running. You're just guessing and hoping for the best scenario. Hope that works out for ya.

 

Hummmmm Interesting question...

Do I need Gauges.. Me definitely not.. I don't usually tow, I don't drag race or pull and I have not added any boxes or downloaders to my truck and probably won't. I just love my truck and love to drive it...

Now why do I have gauges??

OK here goes.. this truck is a big investment and I plan on keeping it for a good long time.. I don't trade them in ever few years and I hope to drive it until the body falls off around the engine..

So with that said.. I probably will never get my truck hot enough to "melt it down" but I do believe I can extend the life of my engine and turbo by monitoring the EGT's during shut down. I am pretty sure that excessive EGT's will dimish the longevity of the engine so why not monitor it. If It doesn't "MELT DOWN" doesn't mean that excessive wear isn't occouring nshortening the life of a very expensive engine.

If something should go wrong I can hopefully tell before any MAJOR damage is done and shut down the truck for repairs.. I can watch my boost gauge (just plain fun) and work on fuel economy during long trips, and also monitor my trans temp to give me a heads up to a slipping or failing trans before I do hard to much hard part damage.

And the main reason I think is because I like them and enjoy watching them ..

Gerry