V10 versus Diesel - Economy

[richfaa]

That is a good description of that stretch of 30. It really gave the 6.4 a workout.I had been on that road before in a auto and thought it would be a adventure with the rig. Hope I never hear a diesel make that kind of noise again... Helen looked over and said" is it supposed to make that noise" (some of it was cooling fan noise) 3500rpm ,38 boost and 237 Xmittion temp is not a pretty sight..

[Mrs. CountryGuy]

Steve

Are you telling me my memory is fading??

SNICKER, tell me something I don't know!

Only 6 % grades? If you had been in that truck, on our maiden cruise, learning curve cruise, well, you would have sworn they were 20% grades!

Just kidding Al!! Are the dents out of the handles on my side of the truck yet??

Al has learned a lot since we took that maiden cruise, and I am sure, I would not have the same reaction next time!

Gotta say tho, man, that is some pretty real estate! WOW!

[scattershot]

On the topic of diesel vs. gas prices, can anyone tell me why diesel is more expensive now than gasoline? After all, it's basically crude oil with the big chunks strained out.

[richfaa]

some times we do not think about it but just about everything we use is transported by some kind of diesel..train, plane boat, ship, truck.. Big demand for diesel but we usually think of it only in terms of pulling a camper..

[bncinwv]

Carol and Steve,
The grades were 6 percent on I-68 (know the road well). But the grade length coming down off the plateau is 13 miles!!! 13 miles at 6% grade will get anything screaming. On the way to Gettysburg there were times when I thought the Duramax was coming out from under the hood, between the grade-braking, transmission fan and turbo all kicking in at the same time. Even with all the racket, I think there are times when the Diesel is a definite advantage, a 13 mile 6% grade is definitely one of those times. And a double sorry for being somewhat off-topic.
Bingo

[sreigle]

quote:Originally posted by richfaa

Hope I never hear a diesel make that kind of noise again... Helen looked over and said" is it supposed to make that noise" (some of it was cooling fan noise) 3500rpm ,38 boost and 237 Xmittion temp is not a pretty sight..

Rich, I remember those "high" rpm climbs with my Ford, very well. 3500, sometimes even 3800 rpm and the fan screaming. I have to admit I don't miss that at all. If this Cummins ran that high rpm it would probably throw the rods out of it. Redline is 3200 on this Cummins. On those hills it would downshift, rpm would climb to 2700, sometimes 2900, then about 2 to 3 seconds later it would shift up and drop rpm to 2000, maybe 2100, and just climb up on over the hill. The temp gauge would climb to 210. I've never seen it higher and am assuming the gauge is not rigged like our Ford's was. I'm sure the Cummins was working hard. It just didn't sound like it.

Steepest we've towed is 14% on UT highway 12, east of Escalante. Two mile climb but curves at 25 to 35 so not a high speed climb. That was with the Ford. Longest climb we've done is I-70 eastbound, west of the Eisenhower Tunnel at something like 11,000 feet or more. I am not sure the percentage but think it's around 5% or 6% and is over 20 miles long. That was also with the Fords, a V10 and a diesel.

I need to get a pyro for EGT on this Dodge before I attempt those climbs with it.

[richfaa]

That Ford Diesel is built to take punishment but I sure do not like to hear it..Just like the V-10 and those high RPM's.That was the V-10's element but we didn't like to hear it. I am sure you are aware of this but with the pyro guage and being able to monitor all the parameters does cause you to be more watchful and does slow you down a bit.

[billhoover]

My diesel mech said to run those hills in the manual mode and keep the RPM around where the max torque is...2000 +/-. That way you have max power and a normal RPM.

[bigmurf]

Steve: The Cummins comes apart at 4400, or so I was told.

[richfaa]

Bill. I agree with that. Pulling a good grade in TH mode and CC is not a good thing as the CC will try to keep you at a set speed and the TH will be looking for the appropriate gear. We only use CC on fairly level ground and always disengage on a grade. I like to control, RPM, Boost and other parameters. How fast we can run up a grade is not important..that we do it within aceptable parameters is..

[TLightning]

I don't know how Ford and Dodge work, but on a down grade, with the CC engaged, the Allison works like jake brake and maintains the speed set going down...when the truck wants to accelerate.

[mail2us]

We too took I-68 with I-70 ulitmately to Columbus Ohio from Gettysburg NE rally. I am still learning but kept our TV in manual mode on such grades and not more than 60 mph where allowable as far as grades. We just got home and travelled at an overall mpg rate of 13.5 with some parts of travel at 14.2/14.3 the highest. Temps got up to about 217-220 on those higher grades but didn't seem to bother the Duramax much. I'm certain though that gas or diesel isn't going down much in near future unless we start drilling and building nuc plants tomorrow.Ah, too soon? Yea me thinks. I think MacDr50 makes a good case for the V10 but love my diesel here in North Carolina mountains.!! Dennis

[Snownyet]

Mileage and payback ratios aside, I cant put a pricetag on setting the cruise control and not hearing the engine work all day. When we towed with gas I was always whooped at the end of the day,never knew why and always defended how good a gasser was for towing, in fact I actually thought diesels were an overpriced status thing. In the late spring of 2006 GM cancelled my order for an 8.1L crew cab and I was pushed into a diesel. I then learned just how much I enjoyed travelling again, one doesnt realize just how much the laboring engine wears on you. So in 2 yrs time Ive taken an 180 turn, diesel would need to be alot more expensive to get me considering a gasser again. Funny how life goes round and round.

[richfaa]

guess it is a individual thing and do doubt has a lot to do with were one drives the truck.Our 05 V-10 and the now 08 6.4 except for the motor and the 08 is a 4X4 were exactly the same truck. About 90% of the time we we notice no difference in the drive ability or comfort level of either truck. On the steep grades and long hard pulls is where the diesel makes the difference and out performed the V-10. Under normal driving conditions the V-10 was super quiet.I can always hear the Diesel and I've got a quiet one.To us the constant clatter of the diesel, quiet as this fine Ford 6.4L is, is an annoyance to us. There was a time or two we tried to start the V-10 when it was already running.I can always tell when the Diesel is turning.

I don't know how the OP uses a truck . The data he has collected seems to indicated the V-10 will serve him better.There are however many factors to consider. When we had the V-10 it served us well as does the diesel now.