Diesel SUV's

[kana12]

kana12, what about the turning ratio? My GF Dodge Ram 1500 doesn't turn on a dime like my Ford Expedition does.

well my cummins ia a 3/4 ton so i cant realy compare to a half ton but what i can say is that on any givin day i can take my 3/4 ton dodge with a 40 ft gooseneck behind it with a around 30,000 pounds and pretty much put it any where you ask with no problems. its all about getting used to what you drive.. so turning ratio doesnt matter on something that small if you know how to drive with a trailer... lol

are you trying to pull a boat thru a fast food drive through or what ? and if u turn on a dime with a trailer you will prob hit the curb.. lol

[kana12]

Jason B
I don't know what you are refering to as American Made junk. I had a 99 GMC Yukon and it towed the 21 ft sea ray and the 24 Tige very well with 150k miles on it and it was still running & towing good when I traded it in. Only changed the water pump and radiator once on it at about 140k. No other problems. Had a ford Bronco and it towed the Sea ray with no problems and it had 165k miles when I got rid of it. Had a 04 toyota Camry (piece of s..t) and it never ran as smoth or as nice as my 97 dodge intrepid which went for 217k and only had one water pump and radiator change at 205k miles and that was the only major repair.

im with this dude also.. my 1998 chevy z71 with 160,000 miles will pull my boat pretty well too. but i would still prefer a 3/4 ton diesel for long hauls. and by the way american made stuff is still most of the time stamped and assimbled over seas any way..

[Carter13]

Kana12,

You mention towing a 40 foot gooseneck weighing 30,000 lbs with your 3/4 ton dodge. I'm thinking and really hoping you have your weight wrong here.
Most large fifth wheels are weighing in around 15,000 lbs and are towed by 1 ton dually's or Ford F450's and F550's.
I am curious what kind of upgrades you have done to your 3/4 ton to tow these kinds of crazy weights?

[kana12]

Kana12,

You mention towing a 40 foot gooseneck weighing 30,000 lbs with your 3/4 ton dodge. I'm thinking and really hoping you have your weight wrong here.
Most large fifth wheels are weighing in around 15,000 lbs and are towed by 1 ton dually's or Ford F450's and F550's.
I am curious what kind of upgrades you have done to your 3/4 ton to tow these kinds of crazy weights?

well i have up graded my suspension with after market springs and shocks along with 18 wheeler firestone air bags with an onboard compressor. i have also up graded my motor with an after market turbo from banks and have a bully dog module with a boost gauge and temp gauge. i also have a stage two cold air induction with a tourqe tube. i have a 410 geared rear end and its a six speed. i put oversized rotors and calippers to help stop a bit. but trailer brakes due wonders. do i need to continue. 30,000 lbs is not that much weight. i used to pull my buddys skytrac weighing 18-22,000 on my 25 foot dove tail that is only rated for 16,000 lbs. cause its a singe wheel tandem trailer. lol and a dullie realy doesnt help that much. used to drive one and all it did was cost more extra on tires. .. lol

[kana12]

oh and the trailer alone doesnt weigh that... lol .. i load that much on it of pipe , concrete, lumber, materials, red iron, and so on.... sorry i missed that ?

[Domsz06]

I can tell you that if you have a short wheel base it will SUCK! I had a 2 door yukon and I didn't enjoy towing my 21ir AT ALL!! Loved the truck when I wasn't towing, but the boat pulled me all over.

Now the powerstroke I have now I love towing with but it's not an SUV if this helps any.

[Ruune]

well i have up graded my suspension with after market springs and shocks along with 18 wheeler firestone air bags with an onboard compressor. i have also up graded my motor with an after market turbo from banks and have a bully dog module with a boost gauge and temp gauge. i also have a stage two cold air induction with a tourqe tube. i have a 410 geared rear end and its a six speed. i put oversized rotors and calippers to help stop a bit. but trailer brakes due wonders. do i need to continue. 30,000 lbs is not that much weight. i used to pull my buddys skytrac weighing 18-22,000 on my 25 foot dove tail that is only rated for 16,000 lbs. cause its a singe wheel tandem trailer. lol and a dullie realy doesnt help that much. used to drive one and all it did was cost more extra on tires. .. lol

no offense, but can you start using spell check?
Thanks

[da.bell]

well my cummins ia a 3/4 ton so i cant realy compare to a half ton but what i can say is that on any givin day i can take my 3/4 ton dodge with a 40 ft gooseneck behind it with a around 30,000 pounds and pretty much put it any where you ask with no problems. its all about getting used to what you drive.. so turning ratio doesnt matter on something that small if you know how to drive with a trailer... lol

are you trying to pull a boat thru a fast food drive through or what ? and if u turn on a dime with a trailer you will prob hit the curb.. lol

No, I've driven her truck and to get into a parking space, you need a lot of room. Unfortunately, CA doesn't have a lot of huge parking spaces. NOt to mention that you need a lot of room just to get into the parking space.

[Domsz06]

for sure da.bell!!

[Ruune]

No, I've driven her truck and to get into a parking space, you need a lot of room. Unfortunately, CA doesn't have a lot of huge parking spaces. NOt to mention that you need a lot of room just to get into the parking space.

do you need a lot of room to get into the parking space?

[da.bell]

do you need a lot of room to get into the parking space?

Yup when the turning ratio sucks.

That damn truck can turn on a California Gray whale though. he he he Forget the dime.

[Domsz06]

i hate driving my 250 around town!

[kana12]

no offense, but can you start using spell check?
Thanks

hey buddy if u have a prob with the way i spell then dont read my post... i think you get the point of what i was saying. and i am not the best at typing.. ok..
thanks

[anhaney]

Jason B
I don't know what you are refering to as American Made junk. I had a 99 GMC Yukon and it towed the 21 ft sea ray and the 24 Tige very well with 150k miles on it and it was still running & towing good when I traded it in. Only changed the water pump and radiator once on it at about 140k. No other problems. Had a ford Bronco and it towed the Sea ray with no problems and it had 165k miles when I got rid of it. Had a 04 toyota Camry (piece of s..t) and it never ran as smoth or as nice as my 97 dodge intrepid which went for 217k and only had one water pump and radiator change at 205k miles and that was the only major repair.

gman, you got lucky on the Dodge intrepid. Having been a Dodge Technician in my former life those things were the absolute worst for timing belts and water pumps going out. The water pump would let go and since the T-Belt drove the pump it would take out the T-Belt when the bearings went out in the pump. I replace a least two of those a week in the dealer. Piece of JUNK 3.5L Then the spark plug tubes would leak oil into the tube causing the engine to misfire what a pain I could go on about those pieces of crap. Not to be saying anything bad about your car I am sure it lasted and I am sure there were a few out there that survived with no issues but I do want to share my experience that was not so good with them.

JasonB

Just like anything if you take the time to take care of it it will last. But I also was a BMW technician and I own a BMW. IMPO I can tell you the European cars (as we refer to them in the Auto Industry) are over build and over engineered. As a result of this they will out last the American cars any day. The big negative to them is when the do break it cost $$$$$$$$.

[Tanner]

I can tell you that my Diesel (08 Silverado 2500HD) is awesome when pulling the 24V... torque conquers all (including transmissions...haha). I can set the cruise and it won't budge or even downshift when going up steep grades... just chugs right along. Even w/ the lift and 35's.... of course the fact that I'm at a little over 600hp right now helps as well But I towed w/ the motor stock and w/o the lift and same experience.

Thing I would be concerned about is the size of the vehicle's you mentioned. Even in my F150 which was a heavy sucker for a half ton (5K) the boat would want to push me through intersections.