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Posts: 153
| Looking for input on tow vehicles, my boat/motor/trailer combo weighs about 4,000-4,500lbs. I currently have a Ford 6.0 liter diesel that has been problematic for years-Ford engineering go figure. Anyway I like the power of the diesel not crazy about the continuous engine problems. My question is to those that have 1500 Chevy/GMC or F-150 with the smaller V-8 are there any performance issues-power/mpg with towing a similar rig? Or do Ineed a 6 liter?
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Posts: 422
| Don't go with the 4.6 liter, go with the 5.4 and you won't have any issues. My tow vehicle is a 2004 F-150 Supercrew Lariat with the 5.4 liter. I have not had any problems.
Good Luck,
CR |
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Posts: 968
Location: N.FIB | a buddy of mine has a dodge diesel that he loves,it has the cummins engine in it which he says is the best diesel engine out there.He now has a 620 ranger that he picked up last summer,it pulls it fine but he says he can feel it a little bit compared to his last boat which was alot lighter.he is also a diesel mechanic,and says those engines are easy to work on and in most of the semis on the road. |
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Posts: 536
| I have a 1500 silverado chevy pickup, pulls boats just fine and rides out nice and is smooth and comfortable and gets pretty decent mileage actually but like firstcast said it I have had huge problems with gm products well under 100k on them! |
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Posts: 43
| I pull my 15 ft Javelin and an old 17 ft arrowglass trihull behind my 96 chevy blazer and don't have any problems except for on loong upgrades. It has a 4.3 liter and four wheel with tow package. Have had few lectric problems but overall can't complain it has 138,457 miles on it and gets 20 mpg, 16 when I tow the boat. |
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Posts: 582
| I have the f150 with the 5.4. Pulls my ranger reata without any problems. Pulls a 4 place snowmobile trailer in the winter and a 22' pontoon. No problems with any of them. Have had a few issues with injectors on mine but minor stuff. |
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Posts: 49
Location: Waconia, MN | CASTING55 - 5/12/2010 5:57 PM
a buddy of mine has a dodge diesel that he loves,it has the cummins engine in it which he says is the best diesel engine out there.He now has a 620 ranger that he picked up last summer,it pulls it fine but he says he can feel it a little bit compared to his last boat which was alot lighter.he is also a diesel mechanic,and says those engines are easy to work on and in most of the semis on the road.
I would have to agree with this also. Even if your not a big fan of dodge, they do have one of the best diesel engines out there and have for a long time. I currently have a cummins and they love to pull. I am pretty familiar with diesels and out of powerstroke, duramax, or cummins, the cummins is one of the best built and most reliable. |
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Posts: 117
Location: Northwest Wisconsin | What ever you do don't buy a Dodge Ram 1500 with the 4.7 V8. This engine and truck has been in the shop more than it's been on the road. I pull a Alumacraft TP 175 and it feels like the truck is always struggling. I've heard that the larger V8's don't have nearly the problems. |
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| I have a 2002 Tahoe with 263k miles. I venture to say that well over 100,00 miles have been with a 482VS Ranger and tandem axle trailer attached. I have no problem moving this rig with the 5.3liter v8. While towing the boat I mostly avg. 14-14.5mpg. That's while maintaining 60mph on 2 lane and 65mph on interstates. I have heard of quite a few transmission problems with GM products, though I have not experienced this. My truck is living proof that if you meticulously maintain your vehicle with preventative maintenance, they will last. I change the fluids in the rearends and transfer case every 2 years, while changing the fluid in the transmission every year, and change the transmission filter every 2 years. I don't think that it is really necessary to go with anything more than a 5.3 liter, as long as you have the 3:63 gear. Any more gear than that will decrease your fuel economy by 3-4 mpg. Hope this helps. Gary.  |
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Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | i've got the same 6.0 liter diesel you've got and decided to go through all of the fixes ... egr etc... prior to this truck i had the cummins HO turbo-diesel and the older noisier dodge with a cummins. i don't have experience with the chevies but never thought they were worth the extra money they demand.
problem is you're gonna have trouble getting much out of that 6.0 liter cuz everybody knows about the problems ahead and other than sitting on lots hoping for a sucker ... they just aren't worth much or guys won't even deal on one ... been there and tried that.
if you can get out of it ... DO ... i'd go dodge again if i could.
if not, do the fixes but don't do it with Ford if you are out of warranty. i got my egr and oil cooler done for $1,600.00 when ford would have been over $4,000 (yes, over 4) ... then there is a hose that will go bad and i did that for $350.00. if you chipped it you are essentially screwed cuz you'll have a head-gasket in your future which is lots-o-jingle too.
i'm at 200k miles on my 6.0 ... so, it can be done. find a good shade tree diesel guy. there's a great guy in Sayner, Wisconsin if you are close.
good luck! |
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Location: Des Moines IA | Get atleast a 5.4 or a 5.3, the smaller V8's struggle, atleast my 4.7 Ram 1500 does, and it's only pulling a 1700 Tuffy with a 70 ...... |
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Posts: 1184
Location: Iowa Great Lakes | Been a chevy guy all my life, never had any major issues with any of them. I wouldn't hesitate to pull any fishing boat on the market anywhere with my current 01 5.3 GMC Sierra, just hit 98K so far not 1 problem.. Dads got 2 5.7 liter chevys both with 250K on them and 1 tranny and both fuel pumps so far is all. |
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Posts: 317
Location: Grafton, WI | I'm towing with an F-150 Supercrew with the 5.4.
3,000 - 3,500 lbs. and don't feel I need any more power. |
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Posts: 393
Location: Hopefully on the water | I am a little inpartical to Ford but have a questipn for you on the boat you are pulling. You mentioned 4k-4.5k on the boat and trailer. What the heck are you pulling? i am pulling a 19.5 ft Tuffy a with boat, motor, trailer and gear and no more than 3000lbs (thats with a Musky freaks gear) and have no problem pulling with a 06 Ford F-150. |
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| I have a 3/4 ton Dodge Diesel and it is a towing machine. I had four or five gas engine Chevrolets before this truck and although they were reliable they didn't have half the power this truck does and they got worse gas mileage. I have not had a single engine issue of any kind in the first 70k miles.
RM |
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Posts: 1529
| i dumped my cummins. after 2 sets of transfer and injecter pumps. 5 thou a crack.. thats a big issue with cummins.. it could pull a house and deliver mpg,,, but. |
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Posts: 422
| With my F150 5.4, I also pull a 26 ft. travel trailer. About #5500, and it does well with that. Gas mileage sucks but it is what you would expect. |
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Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | no matter which brand you choose there is a key distinction.
a half ton is not even in the same league as a 3/4 or 1-ton and once you've driven one you will never, ever go back. |
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Location: Contrarian Island | i'm on my 3rd Tahoe and love them and they pull whatever you want well...I like having actual dry storage inside the truck rather than something like a pick up truck where you need a topper or cover. |
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Posts: 968
Location: N.FIB | any tranny problems bn |
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Location: Contrarian Island | my first one which I think was a 99? it had 120 k on it I think I had tranny issues...the last 2 have been fine. Last one had 150k on it when i got rid of it. current one has 75k on it now |
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| I did some recalculating my rig is probably right at 4k. The guys with the 5.3 or 5.4 V8s do you have any problems on long hills? Or pulling a boat out of a steep or gravel launch?
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Posts: 52
| I have a 2008 k1500 with the 5.3. I pull a 1700 deep v tuffy and I have no problems what so ever. I work for a chevy/ford dealership and trust me, ford, chevy, dodge, toyota, they will all have problems. They are machines. The old 6.0 and 6.4 powerstroke motors were terrible. I sure hope people try the new powerstroke. The new motor is sweet, latest reports are 18-22mpg and the best part its not made by navistar/international. Its built by ford. |
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Posts: 1106
Location: Muskegon Michigan | One thing to watch out for in any tow vehicle are the over drive transmissions. We have a 2000 dodge 1500 4wd that has this problem. The 318 is under powered when pulling our 18 foot Starcraft Super fisherman. This makes it shift back and forth between drive and over drive. It forces you disengage the overdrive there goes the gas mileage. I would stay away from a weaker engine when puling a bigger boat unless its a stick transmission. Our van however which is a 1996 Ford 1 ton F350 does'nt even know the boats behind it. The van has the C600 Trans and a 351 . No problems at all with that one. Mike |
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Location: Contrarian Island | what is your rig???
My uncle pulled my boat 2 weekends ago w/ a Yukon Denali which has 110 more HP than my tahoe..wow, that thing can tow..didn't even feel like the motor was struggling
if you get a Chevy/GM they have a "tow/haul" function which changes the shift points as well.
Edited by BNelson 5/13/2010 12:08 PM
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Posts: 307
| Got a semi scale on the farm an 02 Ranger 200 opti with 10 gal of gas and a moderate amount of gear pushes the scale at 4700 lbs. |
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Posts: 1716
Location: Mt. Zion, IL | Kingfisher - 5/13/2010 12:05 PM
The 318 is under powered when pulling our 18 foot Starcraft Super fisherman. This makes it shift back and forth between drive and over drive. It forces you disengage the overdrive there goes the gas mileage.
Dodge manuals specify when towing more than 2000 lbs or if the tranny shifts out of overdrive repeatedly, to take it off. You will cause more damage to the OD unit than anything else. New OD units are about 3000 installed. |
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Posts: 47
Location: Bonduel WI | My dad has 200k on his 03 Powerstroke fuel injectors replaced once and starter once other than that none other problems. The Triton 5.4 in the F-150 are great engines, My grandfather has 300k on his and still no problems.
Edited by sledneck68 5/15/2010 8:34 PM
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Posts: 49
Location: Waconia, MN | woodieb8 - 5/13/2010 6:16 AM
i dumped my cummins. after 2 sets of transfer and injecter pumps. 5 thou a crack.. thats a big issue with cummins.. it could pull a house and deliver mpg,,, but.
I assume your talking about a 1998-2002? Some have weaker blocks that have a thinner wall in that year class. These are known as the famous "53 block" Roughly about 100,000 had that block number. It was known to crack from a coolant leak. Its really nothing to worry about if you don't have that block number.
As far as the injector pump they are a Bosch vp44 pump and are known to go out due too excessive heat meaning that the pump is not getting enough fuel from your fuel/lift pump to cool it. When the lift pump goes to hell and is only putting out less than 8psi this is when the injector pump fails. It probably is the number one reason for failure on a vp44 pump.
Any dodge cummins thats 2003 or newer has a different injector pump called a cp3, which is a better pump than the bocsh.
With any diesel i don't care if its cummins, powerstroke, or duramax, if your going to own one for awhile its a great investment to put on an after market fuel pump and a fuel psi gauge. You can really save your self in the long run from wrecking injection pumps. |
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Posts: 247
Location: Uxbridge Ontario | I have had zero issues with any of my F150s. Had an 03 with 4.6 and it wasnt the best for pulling load, but it only had 3.55 gears in it. Then an 05 F150 with a 5.4 and 3.73LS gear. This truck pulled great... and still does as a guy i know still has the truck. I now have an 09 F150 FX4 with max tow package 5.4 V8 and 3.73 gear and the GWAR of this truck is over 11k pounds. This truck with a 6spd tranny pulled awesome. Pulled a 29"x7 enclosed snowmobile trailer with 4 sleds in it on a twisty hilly cottage road in the winter time without any issue. |
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Posts: 97
Location: Chaska MN. | I pull my lund fisherman with a 2001 duramax and cant even feel it going down the road and one thought that was brought up is the tranny and I believe chevy has the best in the Allison, my understanding is that they are pretty standard in school buses and that the army also uses them in tanks , if that is true it really says something about there reliability |
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Tow vehicle