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Pickups Dodge Dakota Dodge Dakota Performance and Towing Mods
46 messages, Last post on Jul 03, 2009 at 9:36 AM
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Replying to: bpeebles (May 06, 2007 3:57 pm) The trailer I towed did have electric brakes but were not hooked up. I found the brakes on my Dak to be adequate at normal speeds and going down hills for the roughly 3100 lbs. I currently have factory pads and the rotors were replaced about 28,000 ago. The rears are still original. Bests, Dusty |
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Well I would agree that apples to Melons is not a good comparison. However the 2005 Dak 4.7L was rated at 6800 lbs towing capacity. Now my trailer at 22' and loaded for a trip was 4430 lbs (scaled). That truck should have had no issues pulling. The fact of the matter was it did. A higher gearing might have helped significantly but that was not to be in my case. IMOP that truck was not capable for anything greater than the ~3000 lbs you mention. Typical of Manufacturers to grossly overstate their vehicles abilities in mpg as well as towing. I'm told that I can safely pull 12,500 lbs with the D,max...would I though..?? not likely ever. Too much for even that vehicle. Oh it'll do it...just keep pouring the fuel to it and a guy will likely end up with a molten turbo and blown motor. not for me thank ya very much. As for brakes, yea, Dak brakes suck period. the rears might as well not even be there. If you are going to pull, make sure you use your tranny & downshift, pulse your brakes, and ensure your trailer brakes are in excellent order and a guy will do fine. I had no torouble in BC on two long trips over some major hill and dale..!! cheers, Stk
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Replying to: steak2k1 (May 07, 2007 6:08 am) My 4.7L Dak is rated at 18 MPG highway and I get over 20MPG. My Volkswagen Jetta is rated at 49MPG and I get up to 56MPG on the highway. My point is that the MPG ratings are highly depandant on DRIVING HABITS. It is easy to get better than the window-stickers if one drives with econemy in mind. BTW: In reference to my VW Jetta - I do not beleive there is any other vehicle on the US market that can get over 700 miles per tank of fuel on the highway. Those silly hybrids are a gimmick. Test after test has shown that the VW TDI can go a LOT farther on a tank of fuel than any hybred. I predict as the cost of fuel goes up, Americans will start to do what Europe did many years ago... and start driving Diesel cars. Modern diesel engines run cleaner than gasoline engines AND still get the 30% better economy that diesels always have deliverd.
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Replying to: steak2k1 (May 07, 2007 6:08 am) Dusty |
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Replying to: bpeebles (May 07, 2007 4:51 pm) *over 17 MPG on 133 tanks of gas out of 293 *over 18 MPG on 78 tanks out of 293. *over 19 MPG on 17 tanks out of 293 *over 20 MPG on 7 tanks out of 293 *over 21 MPG on 4 tanks out of 293 *over 22 MPG on 1 tank out of 293 *over 23 MPG on 1 tank out of 293 *over 24 MPG on 1 tank out of 293 There is (was) thought of a Dakota diesel for the 2008, and the 4.7 gets full hemispherical heads and a sixty HP increase next year. Regards, Dusty
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Replying to: dustyk (May 07, 2007 6:13 pm) That's an interesting distribution on your gas mileage. Very one sided. Come to think about it, mine's probably similar, just about 4-5 MPG less. But, my QC is a 4x4 with 3.92 gears. The one thing I've noticed with the newer Dakotas is the mileage ratings are much higher than mine. My 02, 4.7, auto, 4x4 was rated at 13/18. An 07, 4.7, auto, 4x4 I recently saw was rated at 15/20. I know the newer Daks have a 5 sp automatic, versus my 4 sp. But when that was introduced, the highway mileage only went up by 1 MPG. I wonder what else they changed to get the better mileage?
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Replying to: steak2k1 (May 07, 2007 6:08 am) |
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Most people here seem to agree with DC: tow with overdrive off in hilly conditions. Some people have warned about overheating the torque converter if you tow in overdrive. But what about the lockup system? If I run at ~70mph, I'm spinning about 2500rpm (2002 Quad Cab, 4.7L, 3.92 rear end). Give it a little gas, it spins up to about 3100rpm, I assume this is the torque converter unlocking?? Give it more gas, it shifts into 3rd (3500rpm to maintain about 70mph). So is the danger of towing in overdrive that it unlocks and locks too much? If it stays locked is it bad to tow in overdrive? Thanks for any input. -Eric
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Replying to: bowdin (May 17, 2007 6:29 am) Now that I've moved up to a 4500 lb travel trailer, towing in OD is out of the question. The reason is the load is great enough, the transmission won't shift into OD, except when going down hill. When the OD is on, the torque converter will not lock up in 3rd gear, hence a lot of heat is generated due to the torque converter slippage. When the OD is off, the torque converter will lock up in both 2nd and 3rd gears. It just depends on how much you are towing. |
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Replying to: sunburn (May 17, 2007 5:08 pm) The manual says "overdrive off in hilly conditions." But the definition of hilly depends on whether you live in Kansas or Colorado. So (in marginal situations) is there a transmission behavior to look for to indicate when to turn overdrive off? -Eric
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