At this point I think so. The last couple weekends of towing the hauler have made it pretty clear that the V10 doesn't have what I need as far as power. We took off Thur afternoon and drove 120 miles in a 30-40 mph cross wind and head wind. Struggled to maintain 60 mph in drive and on small hills was down to 50 in 3rd. Made well under 5 mpg and diesels were passing at will.
Coming home with a 20 mph tail wind it would run mostly in OD at 65. Made about 8 mpg. Still had no power to pass if you got behind some one running 55 it took a lot of clear highway to even think about passing.
We were kind of thinking about running down to CO with the hauler next month. When the wife brought it up again the other day I asked if she could imagine that run if it is windy in WY? She's buying a plane ticket.
The sad part is I really like the rig. It's the best tow chassis I have ever owned. I like the V10 also, but it just doesn't have it in tough conditions.
That would be a good idea. I was a V-10 nut-hugger for a long time, and owned two of them. The last one was an '06 3Valve. As a gas engine, I do still think the V-10 is a pretty good option, but they just do not compare to the power and performance of a diesel.
I bought a New Body Style '07 Chevy with Dmax/Allison combo a year and half ago, and have had the famed "BSEG" ever since.
With 13000lbs of 5th wheel behind me my truck doesn't even downshift out of 6th gear on most hills. If it does on steeper and longer grades it certainly doesn't slow down AT ALL.
My loaded milage with the Dmax eclipses my empty milage with the V-10, and my empty Dmax milage is consistantly over 20mpg even if I've got my foot in it.
Sorry V-10ers, call me a troll if you want, but making the switch to a diesel was the best move I ever made.
It seems like one day you like the V10 and one day you hate it.
Try a diesel and see how it does. A large trailer in the wind can be a bitch regardless but the extra torque of the diesel will help a lot.
I towed with an '02 Dirtymax for 6 years so I know what they do.
I really do prefer the V10 when I'm running solo and it does OK on the easier pulls. I may have a problem with my rig. Last fall after finding the ground issue and getting Mikes tune it would walk up all but the longest hills at higher elevations at about 55 mph. First 2 runs this spring on one long hill it was at 52 mph each time and would easily gain speed after the steep part. Last run that direction was 42 mph and took forever to get back to 55. I changed the fuel filter with no immediate change. As to the trip in the wind I have no way of knowing witch rig I had for the first part of the trip. The wife can tell at the first hill if the rig is pulling or not. When we were down to under 40 on small hills she asked if it was just the wind or if we had the doggy pickup that day. Don't know, but pulling like that is not fun.
I remember from past threads the issues you had and thinking the truck doesn't have the power it should. I honestly don't know what to tell you. If there is something wrong with the truck I'm shure it would be hard to find. You could have some retarded sensors somewhere but who knows. Its a pricey game to throw parts at it and hope the problem fixes it.
Nowdays if you do want a diesel your stuck with the complicated DPF versions or buying a used one.
I'm not shure how much data you can collect for how long but your SCT tuner is capable of datalogging. You could talk with Mike about it because he knows a lot more about datalogging than I do. If you take a trip and datalog while your pulling maybe something would show up.
Thanks for the input dkf. I hope I don't sound too much like I'm bashing the V10. That is not my intent. I do like the rig and want to be happy with it. I knew it wouldn't be a diesel but I expected better. One minute it seems to pull as good as my dmax did stock but the next it pulls like an old 300 six. Sumthin ain't right.
I did talk to Mike and have Livelink loaded on a lap top. My son and I spent an hour or two playing with it last week before we loaded up to leave. We finally got most of the data Mike recommended recording to work but some wouldn't. I just said screw it. In my old age I have no patients for stuff like that. I have traded off many rigs because they pi$$ed me off. I tell the wife and the boys that they are the only things that get to mess with me and stick around.
I will probably try to get some data recorded and see if anything pops up. Don't like bothering Mike as this should be an isssue for the dealer. All they can tell me is that there is no codes and all is well. I had to find the loose ground myself and then the service manager told that one was often loose, yet they hadn't checked it.
At this point I think so. The last couple weekends of towing the hauler have made it pretty clear that the V10 doesn't have what I need as far as power. We took off Thur afternoon and drove 120 miles in a 30-40 mph cross wind and head wind. Struggled to maintain 60 mph in drive and on small hills was down to 50 in 3rd. Made well under 5 mpg and diesels were passing at will.
Coming home with a 20 mph tail wind it would run mostly in OD at 65. Made about 8 mpg. Still had no power to pass if you got behind some one running 55 it took a lot of clear highway to even think about passing.
We were kind of thinking about running down to CO with the hauler next month. When the wife brought it up again the other day I asked if she could imagine that run if it is windy in WY? She's buying a plane ticket.
The sad part is I really like the rig. It's the best tow chassis I have ever owned. I like the V10 also, but it just doesn't have it in tough conditions.
I ask myself this question sometimes. But I remember my last 6.0 and I will not go there again. Ever. And I am not interested in another IH motor.
Then I think about a Dmax. Independent front suspension? If I wanted a smooth ride and weak idlers/tie rods I will drive the CRV! Not HD enough for my needs so that eliminates that truck.
Then I think about a Cummins. A nice 06-07 4dr Cummins. Good trans and no DPF.
But it is very hard to find exactly what you want that hasn't been worked to death where I live.
So I keep driving the trouble free V10.
Maybe someday, but I'm in no hurry.
I wouldnt be scared off the 6.4 if your going that diesel route. I have 2003 7.3 an it pulls my trailor a 24ft gooseneck really nice. A aluminum stock trailer. I wouldnt get a Dodge period. Yeh the Cummins is nice but the truck wont hold up especially if your coming form a superduty. An off course with all the bankruptcy crap as off late. The resale would be terrible.
I wouldnt be scared off the 6.4 if your going that diesel route. I have 2003 7.3 an it pulls my trailor a 24ft gooseneck really nice. A aluminum stock trailer. I wouldnt get a Dodge period. Yeh the Cummins is nice but the truck wont hold up especially if your coming form a superduty. An off course with all the bankruptcy crap as off late. The resale would be terrible.
I will not own another IH diesel. And I won't buy any motor that pours fuel into the exhaust stroke to clean itself.
I'm screwed............
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