New tow vehicle!

Valkyrie · Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 5:24 pm Post subject: New tow vehicle!

Hi Brats,

Well, the 2001 F150 Supercrew is being traded in on a 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 Quad equipped with the Cummins turbodiesel and the Laramie trim package.

On a whim, I stopped at the dealer yesterday and saw a loaded truck with $10,000 off list price and they gave me 50% of what I paid for the Supercrew new six years and 96,000 miles ago.

They're adding a few goodies and I'll get it next week and in time for the trip to the East Coast Gathering.

Best news: no more 9 mpg while trailering!

Nick
"Valkyrie"

lloyds · Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 5:31 pm Post subject:

Nick: You are gonna love that truck. I have an older (2002) Dodge Quad and it is the first full size I have ever owned and don't regret it one bit. That diesel will pull buildings off the block. And the mileage is super.

fiddlersgreen6 · Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 1:24 am Post subject:

Hi Nick--- what kind of mileage are you expecting to get while towing with this new vehicle? I may consider one for myself with an Alalskan Camper instead of my motorhome. Rich

Valkyrie · Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 6:45 am Post subject:

Rich,

I've talked to a number of people with the same truck/engine/transmission, including a guy I met in the dealership's waiting area yesterday, who has a large lawn service. He had a dump unit added to his bed and often tows a trailer with equipment that he said grosses at 9,000 pounds when loaded. He said that he has never gotten less than 13 mpg.

Also, a guy I know at our marina with the same truck tows a 7,000 pound Baja who claims highway mileage of 15-17, while getting 21-23 on the highway while not towing.

The amazing thing about the Cummins is its 610 lb-ft of torque. For comparison, the 5.7 Hemi has 375 lb-ft and the Viper V10 engine (both are available in the Ram) has 525.

I'm sure someone on the site with the same engine/tranny can give some info on their experience while towing.

I notice that you will be at the Gathering and you can check it out there. It will be the white one with the Ohio "C-Dory" vanity plates.

Nick
"Valkyrie"

Captains Cat · Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 8:52 am Post subject:

Nick, you'll love it! I've got a 2001 Quad Ram 2500 with the V-10 in it. Gets lousy mileage but it'll pass anything on the road (except a gas station). I pull a 10,000+ Coachman Travel Trailer with it on occasion and it hardly strains on the hills. The truck is getting a little beat up unfortunately from some hard use but at nearly 97,000 miles has never had any engine problems. Got 70K on my first set of Michelen M&S tires!

See you at Langford..

Charlie

Jeff and Julie · Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 12:16 pm Post subject:

We have an 05 2500 crew cab that we bougth at the end of October. Jeff loves this truck! He has about 3 other family members wtih the same truck and they all love them. Ours is a manual transmission and the gas mileage is really good. We towed our new boat up from Portland to Tacoma and we were pleasantly surprised with how well it towed. Our only previous towing experience was with our 19ft Bayliner being towed by our Toyota Sienna mini-van, which I hope to never do again!!
Enjoy your new truck!!

Julie

Larry Q · Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 10:35 pm Post subject:

You will love your ne truck! I have a 1999 305 hp cummins with a 6 speed manual trans with a exhaust brake. I pack a 9 foot camper and have been pulling a 22' boston whaler. With all this weight I still get 13 to 14 mpg. Empty it gets 18 to 23 mpg. The faster I go the more fuel it burns.
The factory tell me our new 22 cruiser should be ready next month.....
the wait is killing me!

TyBoo · Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 10:42 pm Post subject:

Larry Q - Far out! One thing you'll like more than the truck is the new boat!

I run a 2004 Dodge Cummins, 3500, 4wd, auto, 4:10 gears. Empty is 18 mpg and towing the heavy old TyBoo 25 is about 12 mpg. I had a pallet of concrete mix and a whole bunch of treated lumber and some other junk in it the other day for a 60 mile haul. About 2.5 tons I figure, and 1-ton truck handled it fine. That's the first time I saw the thing squat down any.

oldgrowth · Posted: Sat May 20, 2006 11:14 pm Post subject:

Larry Q - welcome aboard. I knew you would eventually jump in and say something. Now that you have don’t wait so long to do it again. I know you are a bright person, have lots of boating experience and can contribute in many of these discussions.

I finally convinced Terri to go out in the Sound. We will be putting in at Swantown Sunday morning for a day cruise around South Sound. When you get your boat, we should go on a South Sound cruise together or Riff Lake (Terri’s favorite lake) and take Robin & Jennifer.

DaveS · Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 1:38 am Post subject:

Hey Nick,
You'll love that new rig. We have an 02' 3/4 ton Dodge 4X4 with the Cummins diesel. I've been told the newer ones get better mileage than mine, but I ain't complaining. I've never gotten less than 15 MPG towing "Sea Shift". Normally get 16 MPG. Yesterday, I towed a buddies car hauler enclosed trailer to Fife and got 18.108 MPG. (No trailer with me on the return trip). Unfortunately, my '02 is before they quieted the engine roar down. (They are quieter now). I couldn't hear well before I purchased it and can't hear at all now! Disgust

(Of course, not being able to hear has more positive attributes than negative... Wink

)

Sea Duck · Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 12:13 pm Post subject:

Nick: I just bought a 2006 2500 Quad Cab with the Cummins 2 months ago. I have about 2,000 miles on it. So far I've been very pleased. I haven't towed with it yet, but I'm get 15 to 16 mpg driving back and forth to work (about 8 miles) and around town. Very Happy

I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of mileage we get when we tow Sea Duck down to Homer on June 1st (about 580 miles).

Congratulations!