First tow with Dmax, I think I want my Vortec 454 back

[DURAMONSTER]

It has 2,400 miles on it. I towed my trailer for the first time with it today And I was excited to see how it pulled compared to my 99 454 and it just does not cut it. Im kind of depressed :( . My 99 3500 cc 454 would hold 72 mph on all 4 hills on I-5 stretch that I drive alot. My Dmax would only pull 59 on the same hills same trailer. Granted my 99 would be screaming, But this truck is down right embarassing on the hills. My trailer is only about 7,000 lbs max. This really sucks due to the fact my brother inlaw that bought my 99 is now gonna outpull me with my old truck. And my other friend that has a dodge v10 will outpull me when I use to outpull him with my 99 also. Ohnestly Im sick to my stomach. I hope you guys tell me that there is something wrong with it. Cuz if this is the way thay are stock than im gotta get rid of this thing that I just paid $48,000 for and buy a 8.1 So please tell me that I need to have it checked out. :confused:

[TPIJeep]

Could it be that throttle sensor that was talked about in a previous thread? I think it was titled 03 Down on power.

Mine runs like a scalded ape, maybe mine is down on power to and I just don't know it!!! That would be nice!!! :eek:

[ 05-20-2003: Message edited by: TPIJeep ]</p>

[a64pilot]

Without a little help it won't pull as hard as a big block gas motor. It will pull longer and burn less fuel and seem more relaxed than a gas motor though. With a little help IMHO it will pull harder than a gas motor while still burning less fuel and still feel relaxed.

[D-max Man]

It will do better once it gets broke in. This is a complaint I have seen before only to have them come back after a few thousand miles and say that it just seemed to gain power.

Diesels take a longer to break in than gas engines but the performance level should increase as the miles do.

[IndigoDually]

The time You may have lost on the hill, will be gained when You will pass them as they stop for gas.

John

[jcummins]

I have a 15500+ fifth wheel trailer. My first pull from the trailer dealer, with 2-3000 miles on the truck, I too was sick to my stomach. I really felt something was seriously wrong with the truck. Flat to the floor, the truck would not run past 65mph. Started researching chips etc. In the meantime, I added 4-5000 miles. Hooked up trailer to get the whole thing weighed, and I noticed it did allot better, but by that time I decided to chip the truck. What a difference with the juice. Truck loafs along at what I feel is ideal with this weight at 65-70mph. It will pull it much faster, but don

[Mark Heiken]

Everyone here is right. I too wanted my warmed up 454 back on 1st tow. By 4-5000 miles the big D was out pulling 454. At 7000 miles juice was added and on level 2 I was able to run with or ahead of buddies strong 7.3 with chip, propane, exhaust, intake and maybe more he didn't tell me about. Now make 11 plus mpg towing 10k 5er that is really up in the air, and that's making 2 climbs over 7000 ft. pass.

[svpdiesel]

Hey, I thought the same thing when I first towed. Previously had a 454 dually and a 6.0 2500. Definitely was disappointed, till I got a std juice box from JK. Now, pulling the same load over the same hill, the dmax is 15 mph faster and still accelerating! Plus, it is absolutely a blast to mess with people who think diesels are slow-- and, at 12k mi. now, it is still getting better. I have only tried the juice, and am very happy with it. Bottom line, there's a lot more to be had from your truck, with very little effort to expend for it. Only a supercharger would get a similar gain from a gasser, and it would be a LOT more money and time spent.
Oh, and it gets almost double the mileage I ran with the 454. I'm not goin' back...

[DURAMONSTER]

I do love the truck. There is nothing better built than this thing, but I was just really hoping for more. You guys made me feel better about it.I will have to wait a couple thousand more miles and hope it gets better, if not I will either go with the Predator or the Juice.
Thanks!!!

[drgracr]

When I first got the truck I thought the MH would out pull this truck with the same load 10k
Now the truck will easily run 80+ of course I wouldn't know that, cause that would be crazy :eek: :eek:
It gets better and better every pull. 60000km (40k)stock and wouldn't trade it.

[sdaver]

we hear this comment about once every month and a half............give us a break......search the topics, put some miles on your truck, and chill.......it gets better every day..........dave

[Oongawah]

Straight UP! Sdaver.

Almost 40K on this one, and still suprises me. I run L2 towing, and L4 rest of the time. I gotta share this one. I pulled up next to a hopped up Dakota the other day. I could tell he was gonna nail it because he gave me that look when I switched lanes like I thought he was slow. Then he starts revving when a gang banger pulled up on my right in a lowered Cadillac. Now the ganger musta been ready cuz his lane merged out at the end of the intersection. His main problem was his window was down. The left turn light came on and the Dakota leeped forward about 5 feet. The ganger smooth as can be just chilled. About 7 seconds later.......Showtime!(To be continued) :cool: smile.gif :D

[DURAMONSTER]

sdaver
Ive been on this board about a month or more. Ive heard nothing but how unbeilevable These things pull. Over and over again I here people talk about pulling 15,000 and 20,000 lbs up hills faster than amanigable. My truck seemed to not gain after the 1000 mile mark. So I thought that it is not going to gain much more from there. So when I pulled with it at 2,400 miles with half the waight most on here pull with and it did poorly I paniced. Im glad to here that it will most likely improve. This is why I paid money to subscribe to this site. So people can help when needed and I can help when needed. Some times the search does not always help. This is not the only board Im a member of, but it is the only board im a member of on diesel stuff. Thanx for the replies (since I did a search and did not come up with the info I got when I posted). Im going to go to the dealer and test my throttle position. smile.gif

[sdaver]

http://forum.thedieselpage.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=3&t=002942&p=

http://forum.thedieselpage.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?

ubb=get_topic&f=3&t=003253&p=http://forum.thedieselpage.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=3&t=003869&p=

these were found under the heading first tow(lots more there)........you have to cut and paste...............anybody that might be near you with a predator can verify your throttle position...........along with the dealer.........I have a 8.1 '01 and my '02 duramax
my milage towing is twice the 8.1.........give some time and breakin it will come around.......juice changes these trucks into a beast.......and the mileage doesnot suffer......however the rear tires will :D dave

[DURAMONSTER]

sdaver
Do you advise the predetor or juice. I dont want any reliability issues just more power. After more break in of course.

[Dave S]

I dug out an old dyno sheet from my 98 GMC K2500, ext cab, 4x4, 454, 4l80e, 3:73's. The truck had shorty headers, 3" Straightline performance muffler, cold air kit, and a hypertech III. With 251rwhp@4000 and 341rwtq@3900, I thought it pulled strong until I bought my Duramax, now I wouldn't trade my stock D/A for that old 454, throw the Hot Juice in and it's not even a comparison!

[WillowCreekStable]

I've towed trailers up to 10,000 lbs with various trucks I've owed, GM's and Fords. Big blocks, small blocks, one previous diesel - an '86 Ford 6.9, but we won't talk about that. Just completed a 600 mile tow with a 6,800 lb trailer. Hot juice, level 1, set cruise at 2000 rpm, no big hills but rolling terrain. Never came out of O/D. For those familiar with the QEW highway in Hamilton Ontario Canada, I started at the bottom of the Burlington Skyway at 110 km per hr, just for grins accelerated up to 135 km in O/D going up the grade. Effortless. Truck has 30,000 km on it. Only complaint? Fuel economy isn

[sdaver]

nothing makes and manages the torque better than the juice.........I have both predator and hot oj.........juice for the hp and torque and the predator to remove 99mph speedlimiter, adjust for tire size and ob II diagnostics.........If I had to have just one it would be the juice...........seeing how you like to tow and are of a competative nature like me I would go with the juice and some guages........predator has come along way but torque and torque management stills goes to the juice :D dave

[a64pilot]

DURAMONSTER,
There are other solutions than the predator and Juice. Just be sure whatever you get you have a pyrometer. ;)

[NCalDMax]

Duramonster,

I pull I-5 through Redding, the Siskiyous, and all the stuff in lower Oregon several times a year. My fifth wheel is around 10,000 pounds and my DuraMax blows the doors off most everything else towing.

Like everyone else, power steadily improved as it got miles on it. No way I'd want my 454 back....got more power now, and WAY better fuel mileage [my fiver is fairly tall (11'3") so it's like a sail goin' down the road (11-12 diesel vs 5-6 with the 454 gasser).

The Allison tranny is a joy as well.....those long, long downgrades on I-5 are much more fun when you don't have to keep braking to keep your speed down....

[edited for clarity]

[ 05-22-2003: Message edited by: NCalDMax ]</p>

[Dawg]

I have owned numerous big blocks and was a little nervous about my first diesel. In my experience this Duramax/Allison combo is the best I've ever driven! Smooth quiet power especially while towing. :D

[DeanysDiesel]

Duramonster,

Like the rest of the posted replys, I'll echo the give the truck a chance to break in. My first tow was at 700 miles. It was an 8000# 29 foot travel trailer. The truck did well and I was pleased. Later at about 5,000 miles I towed from the Dallas area to west Texas on I-20. Granted this is pretty flat running but I could lock the cruise control at 70mph and the truck just maintained that speed.

I now tow a 15,000# 5th wheel and my tactics have changed in that I now try to prevent shifting into 4th gear. This means allowing the speed to decay to 60-65 at the top of a hill but I'm usually ahead of others pulling the same hill. I also no longer use the cruise control. I now have 40k miles on the truck and can't wait to tow with the Bank Monster exhaust and brake that I just put on the truck.

I have not gone to a 'chip' box as yet as I am not sure that I really need it. The F..d owner who installed my exhaust and brake commented on how well my truck was running before he did the work. Afterwards it was a 'new' truck.

[DURAMONSTER]

THANXS to all that has posted. Youve answered many Qs for me. My wife feels better after reading this also since she wasnt happy either. She want the juice since she drives it alot and hates those hondas beating her off the line so bad. Ill definanty get gauges. I love gauges. Hell I got gauges for gauges. Im more stoked about the gauges than the juice. So whare do I buy the juice at anyhow? Dam I cant wait to get the gauges. smile.gif But itll all have to wait about a month.
One more thing I towed again the other day and I found it better to push the ODLO button before a hill. It semmed to get farther up the hill before it lost all its speed. Does anybody else do this with a stock truck.

[ibelyea]

Call Terry Pitman (TPIT on the Diesel page). He is in Willets,CA, just down the road from you. He specializes in Edge and hot Edge + exhausts, gauges and extened fuel tanks. I rode in his latest version and it rocks. Hi number is
707 459-3559. I'm running the edge 4.61 and go over the the I 5 corridor 2 times a year. No other truck pulling a trailer can or has ever stayed with me out of Ashland or the grapevine. I use level 2 and it is an awesome beast pulling my 10,700 5th wheel with a 12'6" height. If you get the hot juice watch out for overdoing the transmission as it will slip unless you make major upgrades to the Allison.