Friendly Rivals. Ford Vs Ram
 

Hey guys. I know I can't outrun him, but I'm wondering if I can outpull him?

My buddy's; 1985 Dodge Ram single cab long bed, 318V8 3.55 traction lock rear, looks like OEM sized tires

Mine; 1994 F150 single cab stepside, 300I6 4.10 open diff

He has a V8, a heavier truck, and a locking rear. I have a deeper rear gear and wide tires. Wondering if the lower gear and wider tires would help level the playing field?????

Thanks!

Is your's a long bed or a short bed? Also which one sits higher in the rear?

Manual or auto? 4x4 or 4x2? These things are all very important when pulling against somebody.

Are you planning to drop chains or do it at a truck pull?

Both are automatics; his is a 3 spd, mine a 5 spd.

Like I said, mine is a 2wd open differential, his is a 2wd with traction lock rearend.

Planned on pulling with chains. I know the odds are stacked against me, I'm just wondering what my chances are? I don't want to jump into this and humiliate myself / my truck.


Mine is a Flareside, his is a longbed. our rearends sit about the same height I believe. I have wider tires.

if you are pulling with chains then traction is everything. That traction lock is gonna help him immensely. But you do have deeper gears...

Flip your drawbar upside down. You will want your hitch to be as high as possible.
I have seen a 300 outpull a PSD in this manner, it doesn't mean that it is a more powerful engine, it just means that he got better traction. My guess is that if you guys pulled 10 times, you would both win 5.

Thanks. We haven't pulled yet. He's been keeping his mouth shut about Fords, haha. I looked up his year 318 and found it's rated for 125 / 140 Hp, and 250 ft lbs of Tq. Kind of surprised me. I know the 318 is pretty stout. The years shortly after '85 the 318 gained much more power though. but like you said, it's about traction. I think his traction lock would shut me down if nothing else. I'd rather not pull another pickup anyway. I don't feel like paying for a new driveshaft... or a transmission... or rearend... or... or... or..

lol. Thanks guys. I'll let you all know if we do do something. ::-bigparty

Just the other day a couple buddies of mine hooked bumpers... Sean in his 82 Ford Bronco with 33s, healthy 351w, 4 spd manual and Jimmy in his 98 Chevy Z71 RC SB with the 5.7 Vortec, 5 spd manual, stock tires. They pulled on pavement, and Sean walked Jimmy's truck backwards like it was nothing! It was awesome, lots o tire smoke!

We all know Ford lays down the torque. The Bronco had an edge there as well.

I always think I'm going to pull with someone, then I don't. It's just not worth hurting my baby.:rolleyes: I doubt my tranny could take any abuse these days anyway.

Look at Bill's tires in his video. Now, that helps even out the playing field since the Ram has OEMish tires. Both of your rears may turn. My 3.50 9" used to only spin one wheel, but I added like half a quart of Lucas full synthetic 75W-90 to it I had sitting around and now it spins both tires 95% of the time. I'm going to drain it and put in some Mobil1 75W-140 whenever I feel like getting back under it for awhile, again. Already did my tranny with M1 75W-90.

Anyways, I'm thinking you could get him. ESPECIALLY in grass (assuming he has street tires like I'm thinking), but also on pavement you could still stand a good chance. Your truck looks great, btw.

BTW, I like watching pavement pulls, but personally, with my truck, I don't like to replace broken parts, so I'd stick with off road, you'll have a better chance there, anyways. I'd almost bet you'd be getting bad wheelhop with those tires and that truck. I know mine does.

Why would your 9" turn only one tire untill adding different oil? What does oil have to do with it? Is this why my left tire turns too, even though my rear end is an open diff???

Thanks for saying my truck looks great! The video is nice to her; she has her share of dings and scratches.

If we do anything it will be on grass. And he does have street tires. He wants his truck to be as fast as possible.