Just got back from a long tour of Eastern Oregon with the new rig.
On long hills of 6% grade I would find myself loosing power pulling in 6 gear (camp trailer weighs about 6000#). I would hit the hills and eventually down shift to 5th to start gaining RPM again. The problem is, to get back up to speed of 60 or so in 5th gear going uphill, RPMs run up to about 2200 to 2500. If I shift back to 6th and I start loosing rpms again. Am I just being impatient or is running 2200 rpm up hill okay? It definately is nice to be in the passing lane going uphill and not stuck behind rows of overloaded minivan and SUVS pulling trailers in the slow lane.

My rig is all stock, but do I need to worry about EGTs? I find I spend most of my time watching the Tach. I never put my foot into it unless I see the Tach rise as I press the go pedal. Otherwise I downshift.

 

bigsam,
No problem at all at 2200 rpm. It's better to run at a higher rpm than to lug your CTD. Your EGT's will be lower if your running at a higher RPM. Just remember, your not in a race to get to the top, but it is nice to pass overloaded SUV's.

 

Running at 2500 isn't a problem either, diesels are governed so you can't over-rev them. If it can't pull 6th, use 5th and feel free to wind 'er as high as she'll go. It's easier on the engine and trans than bogging down in 6th.

 

You wont hurt a thing running 2200-2500rpm's. Your EGT's should also not be a problem at all with no more weight than your pulling, and especially with a stock truck. As long as its stock i wouldnt worry about egt's no matter what your pulling. Ive only had my truck(in sig) to 1300* once pulling about 15,000lbs of hay up a grade, with the pedal buried in the floor, going about 60mph. You should be completley fine. Also, with the rev thing; you could ru it at 3000rpm all day long, and not hurt anything. I wouldnt worry at all about it. Hit 5th on those grades and put it in the mat, and let er go . Have fun

Eric

 

My 555 is the same towing 8000 to 11000. Slowly loses speed in 6th and after the down shift to 5th I can accelerate all the way to red line pretty easy so I just hold 5th at a few hundred under red line. I have enough power in 5th to have to back off the throttle some, so egt's stay in check all by themselves. Sounds like what your doing is ok in my world..

Just my lame .02

Happy Towing

-Richard

 

I'm glad I stumbled upon this thread. I just returned from Oregon and pulled some 6% grades too. I hit them in 5th with my 11000# 5er doing about 55-60 and was wondering if I was pushing it too much? From what you guys say, it was probably just working like it loved it!! I found that I even had to back off the throttle a few times to keep my speed down. As a matter of fact; at a rest area a guy came up to me and asked if I had the new "600". I told him it ran very good and I was really cooking going up that last grade. He said, " I know. That was me in that Ford that you passed". That made my purchase price seem every bit worth it!! You gotta love it!

 

Just be sure that when you get to the top of that hill or to the next rest area after a long hard pull give your turbo a chance to cool down. Just let your engine idle for a few minutes before shutting it off. EGT's can be around 1000-1300 degrees, and if you shut it down right away your turbo bearings will hate you!

 

What about the backside going down? What is the best way to run DOWN hills? I have the 47RE and don't tow often, but I don't want to break anything. I heard about cracking exhaust manafolds, and problems with unloading the turbo too fast. What's the scoop?

 

My temps drop super fast on the backside of a grade. I would imagine an auto would be a little slower to cool down but still pretty quick if you leave it in gear.

 

So far, this method has worked great for me. I always have OD locked out when climbing the grade,,,,, when I reach the top, I set my cruise control to about 5mph slower than I want to run coming down the grade,,,,,, I leave the CC engaged and the OD locked out and the compter does a real good job of trying to make the CC stay at the set speed. It keeps the torque converter in the trans locked up, thus using some of the motor for braking effect. (This is nowhere near the effect that you would get if you had an exhaust brake, but a stock automatic cannot handle an E-brake without extensive modification.)
If the grade is steep enough that the CC cannot hold it back completely, I will apply the trailer brakes in short bursts to bring the speed back down in order for the CC to maintain. The reason I use the trailer brakes manually is because it will not disengage the CC, thus keeping the torque converter locked. *(Well maintained trailer brakes, brake controller, and the knowledge of how much braking force to use depending on road conditions are a must. Using too much trailer brake on wet roads or even dry ones, can cause trailer wheels to lock-up and that is NOT a good thing!)
I also keep a close eye on my trans temp gauge going up and down and adjust my driving technique to stay at the best performance level. Remember that when the torque converter is unlocked,,,,, it's making HEAT.
This method has worked great for me when towing our 10,000lb. 5er through the mountains of VA, WV, KY, TN, NC and others.
#1 Rule. --> You can go down a mountain too slow a bunch of times,,,,,,,,, however, you can only go down a mountain too fast ONCE!

 

Yep. I always cool her down for a few minutes. I had a cool down timer on my last truck and should get one for this truck too.

 

What a great idea! We're going to try it on our 1997 next chance we get. Thanks.

 

If you dont have gauges then you should be carefull lugging the engine while towing. Thats when EGT's really climb. By lugging I mean the engine not being able to hold speed. Especially in 6th, or 5th for me. I always tow in 4th, which is the same as 5th for you and the engine tows great around 2200-2300 rpm. I dont believe you cant run these engines to hot if their stock. As a matter of fact everyone that gets an EZ says their EGT's have dropped.

 

I have 2004.5 CTD 4x4 with 4.10s and 315s and 48re. I am glad to see this dicussion on so many 373s and long grades. I have not yet pulled the kind of grades or loads that you guys are talking about. I am sure that the manual trannys in the long run are better than my 48re for extreme xduty hauling. I will say that my experience is that with a 4.10 gear you would not have the stretch between 6th and 5th gear. 6th. is too tall and 5th. is not tall enough. This is in part the trannys design error. Gear ratio of 5th and 6th are not just right. Nothing you can do about that. A 4.10 would make the difference in keeping 6th. gear working for you . Diesel engines are designed to keep them revved up not lugged down (Don't go out and buy new rear end gears) Remember this the next time you buy a truck. As you can tell I am a 4.10 kinda guy.



My truck at http://www.gorowan.com/2004ram

 

dantana,
don't know about the new trucks, but my 12v likes 1800-2000 a lot better than 2300-2500. If I have to come out of 5th above 60, she falls on her nose.

Chris