MDSuperDuty, I just finished a long post about my towing experiences with new 4.56 gears in my "New 4.56 Gears Break In" thread. It might be of interest to you although I'm running lowly 2 valve V10 with a 4R100. I can say that yes it will take some RPMs to get it working but after the gear change I pulled 11k lbs of fifthwheel trailer through some tough hills and wind and basically used D for all of the tough stuff with only a very few instances of needing 2nd gear (maybe 3 times total) and have a good comparison to a duramax diesel. In the flats and rolling hills when not fighting the wind, I chugged along at 70 mph in OD at 2400 or so RPMs and it did very well. JFYI, 3rd in D at 70 was around 3200-3300 RPMs.

 

I'm just starting to get used to the RPM's, my wife isnt faring so well though. She asked if I was going to blow the truck up this past weekend. I laughed. It was only running at 3200 up a pretty steep 1 mile hill. We ran right up at 65-70 mph. I coulda done it easier, but it snuck up on me so I didnt get a run at it.

 

Well I never expected it to feel snappy with a trailer, just a more pulling. It was in the 5k range on one really steep hill I started from a dead stop. It did the job and accelerated with it.

Sorry man I'm just to old school I guess. Maybe it's just my worry that if something were to go wrong, even if unrelated to the tuner, that I wouldn't be able to have a warranty repair when I otherwise could have. I thought I read somewhere these trucks store data so they can see you had a tuner attached. In about a year when it's up I'll consider it.

This trucks moves when not towing, believe me I know. I think thats where my biggest let down was. It did move so I figured towing would be better. Even my father who tows is with a 6.0 Chevy said it was comparable. Again I just think my expectations were to high. Getting used to the high rpms will be tough although the GSXR-600 I previously owned redlined at something rediculous like 12,500 and I hit that rev limited many times. But the bike was a toy. I'm sure the truck is fine, just hard to think about those cylinders pumping away at that rpm and not causing abusive wear. Even if the diesel has lower rpms, redline is redline.

I'm usually not worried about accelerating fast towing either, there's no need. But this was a way for me to test that and I'll have to get used to the rpms because I'll never find a similar trim truck with a diesel for anywhere near the price I got this one for.


I wont be towing that much to justify the cost of a gear swap. For the $1000+ I would probably rather just put that into a different truck. I dont have quite the attachment some do to their trucks. If I was going to spend $1000 I'd rather opt to get a 50gal gas tank so I can go farther that 200 miles before a fill up.



I like my truck and the V10 has good power. Understand that this is not something to bash the V10, just my observations. I'll be keeping this truck for years to come, unless I can find another smokin deal . Thanks for all the input though.

 

As far as the cost I thought about it this way, the truck has been paid for for a few years. The cost of the gears swap only equaled a little more than the Tax and Title on a new rig and my old one only had 63-64k on it. It really seemed like a no brainer for me. I also normally tow a 4k lb boat behind the camper however the trips are far shorter and the terrain is much less strenuous but 15k is 15k no matter how you slice it. 4.56s were the only way. As far as the 200 mile range, I found that I had to use the restroom at about 150 miles so by 200 I was more than ready to stop, lol. Also, just to note the diesel I was running with really ended up having a similar range. We were both traveling with young kids all being under the age of 6 so our unladen driving range is somewhat limited anyhow.

I don't think I could ever justify the cost for a transfer flow fuel tank however having a stock 36 gallon tank would have been nice as I would have made it to the house without filling. On a normal trip without fighting a 20 mph wind and hills it appears the range would be a realistic 280 miles, and in all conditions very similar to the diesel I was running with. It is also noted that once the diesel had to detune we found his mielage nearly as bad as mine, he figured tuned he gains a solid 3 mpg, to bad he couldn't run it when it would have really made a difference!

 

I think the problem with spending upgrade money (gears and such) on vehicles is living in the rust belt. It seems no matter what you do your vehicles just rot. I buy used vehicles so what ever the previous owner didnt do is now my problem. Its also hard for me to justify the new vehicle expense just to let it rot. I'm sure in 4-5 years this one will be on its way out. Even if the drivetrains last, the body and all other critical parts do not. The only way I could make a vehicle last is to garage it during the winter. If I had a big enough garage that's where it would sit. Upgrades like truck caps, wheels, or any other "add on" you can at least sell to recoup a fraction of the cost.

Back to towing, I plan on picking up a larger 12-14k dump trailer next year so we'll see how it does pulling that thing full of soil!

 

Given all you've said, I'd ride out the truck for another year until the warranty is up then give the 5 star a try. Everyone who has one seems to love it. Maybe after a few more tows, your initial impression will fade a bit and the truck will seem more impressive.

 

Thats the plan. Again I'm not bashing the V10. It's a V10 its gonna have go!

 

Try not to flame me for these comments. I do like the V10 and it does a good job towing "for a gasser".

We tow a 34 ft Fuzion 302 toy hauler. I would guess that it weighs in at 14-15k. On flat ground it is OK. Even get to use OD every once in a while. Mike's Miracle Tow Tune that keeps OD locked out is a live saver towing this trailer. Without it, it was in and out of OD constantly.

Couple months ago we were headed to the hills bucking a 30 mph wind. This area climbs a little and is a tug without the wind. Not steep at all just a gradual climb. Third or 4th time the rig had to shift into 3rd to maintain 55-60 mph I told the wife if she ever caught me looking at another gas rig to tow with she could just shoot me. Altitude also takes it's toll on the power. At 7000 ft, which we hit often, you are down about 20% on power from sea level. Get up there climbing a 6% grade and there is no worry about slowing down for the 45 mph corner, only trying to gain some speed again when it levels out.

Having said all that I do think the big Tenner would be a good tow rig for 10k in flatter, lower elevation running. You do have to get used to the revs up there at 4-5k though.

 

Sounds like a massive trailer your pulling. I'm happy knowing it gets the job done. I like my V10 for alot of reasons. If I towed heavy often, I'd have gotten an oil burner. Just didn't fit my needs. I have put only 4000 miles on my truck since April when I bought it. A diesel would rot sitting like that.

 

You are right, it gets the job done. I was tired of smokers and the V10 seemed the best gasser for towing since the 8.1 was no more and I wouldn't have another classic style GM. Like I said I like the V10 for 80-90% of what I use it for. The 10-20% that I have the trailer in tow, not so much if the hills are long or the wind is fighting me. Actually towing on the flat without the wind is still an enjoyable ride. The only downside to the rig when running solo is its appetite for fuel, but I was prepared for that.

 

I would love to hear more about this mircle tow tune that locks out OD. Do you have to switch tunes to have OD again? My GCVW is 22500, I tow flat land where all I deal with is the wind. with 4:10's I can stay in OD 90% of the time but would love to use fourth instead of dropping into 3rd. I like others have been seriously looking at a 4:56 swap. Towing at 70 in OD the rpm are about 2100, I would love for that to be about 2450.

Does anyone know what gear you run in when you shift out of OD. feeling like 3rd to me but not sure. I use Mikes 93 oct tune since June and towing I am up 1.5 MPG on the lie o meter.

Getting 200 miles out of a tank towing is dream, I get about 230 empty.

 

I believe you just need to talk with Mike and have him work his magic with the tune and turns the OD off. I also think you would have to switch back and forth between tunes that had the OD and the one without.

 

Same here.

Exactly why I don't have a diesel. If I was hauling heavy all the time I would have a diesel. As it is, I tow about 5% of the time and it's not heavy. And I only put on about 5000 miles in one year.

Ditto.

 

I got the mike tunes for my old excursion and at first the difference didn't blow me away like some suggest. I started with the 87 economy tune, so of course there wasn't anything to write home about, except much better trans shifting schedule and less coming out of o/d for freeway passing. I then tried the 91 performance tune, and that added some grunt, and again - trans shifting schedules and hastiness (the stock trans shifted like old people sex) - but nothing to blow me away. Then I took the tune off to sell the excursion and drove it for another couple of days. Holy hell I was missing out. I started to worry that the buyer would back down from the purchase because of how different it felt. I need to call him up and order new calibrations for the new truck - unfortunately they don't swap over - but I can't wait to see how it'll run, especially since the rcab is so much lighter and so much quicker than the X was...

moral of the story, your expectations might be high, but go back to a 5.4 or a gm/dodge gasser, and I think that's when you'll realize just how much better the v10 is. It doesn't feel snappy, but it's the best gasser there is.

 

He sets up the tow tunes to not allow shifting into OD until a certain mph is met and can lockout a gear altogether is desired. My tow tune on my 2V is set at 59mph or so to shift into OD and around 55mph to shift out of OD. Best to call Mike, he can make a tune to suit you and your truck.

On your truck shifting out of OD is 4th or 1:1, 5th is OD. A set of 4.56 gears should get you in the 2500 rpm area at 70 in OD. Here is a link to a calculator you can play with.

Gear Ratio Calculator