new tow rig
Posted: January 20th, 2012, 3:36 pmSo the Tundra just was cutting it towing 8,000# of Jeep and trailer through the passes to Johnson Valley. So I decided it was time to look at some diesels.
Went to Chevy; Liked the power of the Duramax, but hated the interior, the weak front IFS, and the lack of features for such a high price. But the Duramax is the fastest of the diesels, if you plan on drag racing your truck.
Went to Dodge; liked the big new cab of the Ram, but it was a dog compared to the Chevy and Ford, way too loud in the cab, trany shifts way to hard, rode like shit, and Chrysler has the worst customer service in the industry. I took that truck out of the running right after driving it.
Then I went to Ford; The new 6.7 felt slightly less powerful off the line than the Duramax, but way better than the Dodge. But it is very quiet, you can't even hear the engine idle from the cab. I liked the Touqueshift trans better than the Alison too, because it is smoother and can be manually shifted through all 6 gears. Unlike the Chevy, the ford had beefy solid axles with manual locking hubs and a rear locker. The interior of the Ford was the best of all of them. I got an F250 Lariat 4x4 with sync, jake brake, 120v outlet, block heater, leather, uplifter switches, and more for cheaper than the chevy with none of those features.
When I drove through the first couple tanks of fuel, I was worried because it was only getting about 13 MPG. Some of the more experienced diesel guys told me this is normal with brand new trucks, and to wait a while and mileage would get better as it breaks in. They were right, at 2,500 miles I am now getting 18 MPG and it seems to be improving.
I am not going to do any engine mods; 400HP and 800# torque are plenty for me, and it seems like the guys that do mods to their diesels are always broke down. Since this is going to be a work truck / tow vehicle, I am not going to lift it either. I installed a CB and a 20" Rigid LED for now. In the future, I may get a Lance camper.
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Went to Chevy; Liked the power of the Duramax, but hated the interior, the weak front IFS, and the lack of features for such a high price. But the Duramax is the fastest of the diesels, if you plan on drag racing your truck.
Went to Dodge; liked the big new cab of the Ram, but it was a dog compared to the Chevy and Ford, way too loud in the cab, trany shifts way to hard, rode like shit, and Chrysler has the worst customer service in the industry. I took that truck out of the running right after driving it.
Then I went to Ford; The new 6.7 felt slightly less powerful off the line than the Duramax, but way better than the Dodge. But it is very quiet, you can't even hear the engine idle from the cab. I liked the Touqueshift trans better than the Alison too, because it is smoother and can be manually shifted through all 6 gears. Unlike the Chevy, the ford had beefy solid axles with manual locking hubs and a rear locker. The interior of the Ford was the best of all of them. I got an F250 Lariat 4x4 with sync, jake brake, 120v outlet, block heater, leather, uplifter switches, and more for cheaper than the chevy with none of those features.
When I drove through the first couple tanks of fuel, I was worried because it was only getting about 13 MPG. Some of the more experienced diesel guys told me this is normal with brand new trucks, and to wait a while and mileage would get better as it breaks in. They were right, at 2,500 miles I am now getting 18 MPG and it seems to be improving.
I am not going to do any engine mods; 400HP and 800# torque are plenty for me, and it seems like the guys that do mods to their diesels are always broke down. Since this is going to be a work truck / tow vehicle, I am not going to lift it either. I installed a CB and a 20" Rigid LED for now. In the future, I may get a Lance camper.
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