04ctd

my vibe is more of a strange growl, and you can feel the rear of the truck trying to pass the front sometimes, like when it hops on dry pavement with 4wd on.

changing the tire psi (diff of 10 psi front to rear) usually works for me.

i had figured out a good psi for where I lived (mostly ~60mph)
but now i moved, and have to run ~55 front, 45 rear to run 75~80 quietly, growls ALOT around 65mph at these PSI, though.

FWIW, Aluminum driveshafts for high performance cars are usually an inch bigger than steel one's for strength, used on ~500hp higher apps for high speed/light weight/easier to spin up

hth?

Hannibal

F-150s and Mustangs are also prone to the vibration and Ford is happily installing aluminum shafts for their happy customers. There are several aftermarket suppliers for Ford drive shafts including carbon fiber shafts for Mustangs. They're really light weight.

Hannibal

I fixed mine. I know ya'll won't approve but I bought a truck exactly like the '03 but with a 5.7Hemi 5spd auto and 3.73. I WILL give a straight up report on how it works out. So far with 55miles on it mixed city and highway, the overhead shows 14.5mpg. I was getting 16-18 with the Cummins. Two/haul is real for '05 in the 5spd tranny. It even downshifts on the downhill to hold back speed like the Allison does. If it proves to be a mistake, there's no one to say I can't go back to a Cummins next time but I'll never buy another vehicle without a good highway test drive first. It is very smooth and quiet with just a little exhaust note in the cab. If out 5th wheel is too much for it in flat Florida and the little hills in the southeast, we're about ready to trade the 5th wheel on a little bit smaller and lighter unit anyhow. But for now, I feel relieved. I got the truck for my truck and $2,000 plus tax,tag,title and that $289 wash job. Dropped my payments $94 a month to help make up for fuel costs. One nice option it came with is a nice gas pump to mount next to the driveway at the house!

dieselnewbie

Hannibal, how come you got rid of the CTD?

I thought your Cummins didn't vibrate that much? That you blamed it mostly on tire noise.

Must have been pretty bad to trade so soon.

Let us know how you like the Hemi.

One thing about the Cummins, I bought mine to last 10-15 years. Next vehicle I'm buying will be a car, in ~5 years or so.

Then I'll have both a car and a truck!

Good luck!

Hannibal

It was out of frustration. I know there's rumor of a TSB for the vibration but that's been rumored for almost two years now. I do have a soft spot for the Cummins and I miss the sound already but, I don't miss the missmatched driveline vibrations. My tires are ok. I rotated them myself for the excersize Friday morning to see if the vibes moved from rear to front just in case it might be tire related. No change. I crawled under the truck for a look around and I could twist the drive shaft back and forth and hear a healthy clunk in the differential. Running the recommended 75w-90 synthetic and towing 10k might have lead to an early demise of the ring and pinion. That and I read on a driveshaft shop sight that the vibration can wreek havoc on the tranny and rear end bearings and gears. The vibes were getting worse and the gear noise louder and at a broader speed range.
Until I'm 100% sure Dodge has the driveline matched to the mighty Cummins, I'm going to shy away from it. I have no desire for a P of SD or a Dmax. I lost alot of sleep and came to a decision. In a couple of years I'll either keep the Hemi or go back to the Cummins. But I think those are the only two choices for me after looking at them all.