I couldn't find a newby forum so I have my flamesuit on!

I have a couple of questions about my 05 6spd. I am new to diesels so type slow and loud.

1. Am I going to kill my motor with only a 5 mile commute to work one way. I have "heard" that I do not drive far enough to warm it up and it will kill the injectors.

2. I run at 2000 rpm at 60 on the speedo. Does that sound right? It should have 3.73's in it and I would expect lower than that with 315's on it. I have a buddy with an 02 that turns 1600 with 305's. Just made me wonder. The dealership supposedly recalc'd the pinion factor for the tires.

3. Should I run fuel additive's? I have read some threads and am totally confused. Short commute with some towing and road trips. I need to fill it up and was wondering. I live in Missouri and it doesn't see real extreme temps or anything.

Currently my head is spinning about even having the truck. It was an awesome deal on the truck but just trying to catch up with my knowledge.

 

1) Not necessarily...Plug it in on cold mornings for >2hr. that will help it get up to temp by the time you get to work.

2) Check speed w/ a GPS. Borrow a buddy's GPS if you have to. The only way to know for sure. Worst case use mile markers and a stop watch.

3) I use power service...grey bottle in the summer; 50-50 grey bottle and white bottle in the winter...Grey is conditioner and cetane boost; white is anti gel.

Read around here a LOT....for some it's an addiction !

HTH

Tony

 

BradB - Congrats on the truck. I'll try to answer your questions as you've asked them. These are my opinions. I've had 1 Dodge Cummins, I'm going on my 8th year with it. I've spent 0 money on mechanical repair, so I'm very conservative with my truck. However, out of the 114k+ miles, I would say half of those miles were towing heavy. This truck has worked hard.

1. - I would say your 5 mile commute is not good for the engine. The block heater will help some. But kill it? Probably not. Just maintain it well. I highly recommend buying a cheap little beater for the 5 measly miles.

2. - I turn ~2,000 rpm at 70 mph in 6th gear. I have 3.54's and stock size 265 / 75 tires. You'll have to do the math or the GPS thing to figure out if its right.

3. - My opinion is a resounding NO. I called Clessie Cummins (Cummins tech line) on this issue. I asked them specifically regarding ultra low-sulfur diesel, should I NOW run additive. They said NO. That it is optional. They have no recommendation for an additive because they say it is NOT necessary. They said that removal of sulfur from diesel fuel was offset with other additives for lubrication (and is/was part of the reason for the continued high price for #2), therefore not necessary.

I'm a big believer in taking care of my engine. But I'm also a big believer in not spending any more money than I MUST. I used Stanadyne for maybe 15k miles on my truck, the other 100k miles have been without. I still use no additive.

- JyRO

 

Thanks for the reply's. I absolutely love the truck, but don't really drive it except to work. I am going to use it for towing a Jeep so I decided to make the jump to something that I wouldn't have to worry about power or longevity.

I figured that I would have to change the oil every 5K or so because of the short DD duties. So plug the block heater in and don't worry about additives unless its and anti-gel.

I told my wife that there would no modifications because of the warranty but I think that I should at least gauge it. Don't tell her tho.

 

Welcome to the DTR, Brad. As long as you are respectful here, you can put the flame suit away. We're here for the members.

I concur with the others on the answers that they have given. Make sure that you let the truck get up to operating temp every once in a while and run her hard for a little bit after that. The block heater cord is an easy add on if you do not already have one, but buy it from a Cummins dealer, not Dodge. ($$$)
When I put 305's on mine, I was about 7-8 miles off at 60 mph. I do not know if the dealer can set the rev's per mile to adjust your speedo like they did mine, but if they can, I have the math formula to figure it out.
I run Power Service Silver in mine... it's not that expensive, and it's a little more peace of mind. I get a gallon jug at walmart for ~15 bucks.

 

well first off welcome to DTR! you will learn alot from this website. you can put the flame suit away and put on those fluffy bunny slippers and start reading away.
as for your questions
1) yes if you are only running 5 miles to work and that it and never getting it up to operating temps then it will kill the engine. these engines like to work and work hard. just do like my buddy does take the long way to work! lol but just running it a little longer once a week or so would help. also you might want to get some cold front for your grill cause that will warm up the engine a little faster.
2)the rpms sound high to me i run 2000 rpms at 70 and i have 3.73. i agree with the other guys GPS or timing between mile markers
3) i have ran my truck for 36k with no additives in the fuel and not a problem at all (knock on wood)

gauges would be a smart move to just monitor a few other things, and i ahve to say watch it that you don't get bit by the bug to hard cause like stated before it is an addiction!!!

 

Comeon bunny slippers? I am not that delicate - I wear SpongeBob!

I can't get too serious, I have a bad Jeep addiction and it would send the wife over the edge. She really likes the looks that she gets when she drives the truck tho! LOL

Now I have to figure out how/what oil to use. I am so cornfused.

 

Valvoline Premium Blue - 15W-40

 

Then get with jbarko, he does jeeps too...
Fill out your sig so we know what you have, go to 'user cp' in the top left corner, then click on 'edit signature.' Where do you live?

 

My Pops and me have the same issue as you in life. I've found that this site is a great help. www.jeepaholics.com

Anyways, welcome to DTR!!!!!!

 

lol spongebob huh! well atleast i didn't say pink fluffy bunny slippers.

 

Is that better? I can't wait for summer to get here, my avatar looks all crazy because everything is dead! (thought about using a picture of a pair of SB slippers but thought that was going too far!)

Is synthetic AMSOIL worth it in the diff's and tranny? I figured that it may be worth it since it won't be changed as much as the motor.

 

Perfect. I dunno about the spung bob, tho...

 

Do you guys know anything about Western snow plow stuff? There wouldn't happen to be anybody here that is dealer. I couldn't be that lucky. My truck has a mount under the front of it and I am wondering if it is worth something. Checked Ebay and the closest dealer is in Little Rock. Just want to get rid of it for some gauge stuff or money towards it.

 

Brad glad you found the site buddy. I've learned a lot reading it. Get your truck lined out so you can drag both of our jeeps to go wheeling this summer. Being as I can't seem to find a diesel in my price range (read broke *** college student).