The wife and I just got back from picking up our new Jayco 32BHDS. We left from the DFW area on a Friday and drove to Des Moines, IA that day. I averaged right at 18 mpg on the trip up! This is with the speedo checked with GPS and odo verified with mile markers and, of course mpg, hand calculated.
We picked up the TT on saturday afternoon after visiting downtown Des Moines St. Patrick's day parade and block party. (no drinking, promise )
This is what we looked like just outside the dealer lot ready to head home the 750 miles:
Then the fun began
After owning my truck for almost a year and pretty much preparing it for this reason (towing a TT) I was very dissapointed in the way it preformed. I started out using tune #4, which is a towing tune that is similar to one from Heath or Kennedy, I assume but it did not give me the power I needed to go up and down the hills without being a hazard on the highway. I then bumped up to tune #6 which is the highest perfoming one and it did give me all the power I was going to get out of my engine. It wasn't enough.
Let me say that I had no issues with ECT or EGTs. My engine temp gauge rarely saw 210 and the EGTs only touched 1150 one time after an extremely long hill with a strong headwind. My tranny on the other hand was almost pegged at 250 the entire time. I had to learn to "shift" the tranny with the go pedal, but once I finally got the TCC locked I just didn't have the power to keep it there. This is around 55 mph.
Situation was this: I would go for a while and finally get up to ~55 where I could feather the throttle to get the TCC locked. RPMs at ~2500 before lock, 2100 after locked. The boost was hovering at 10 psi, EGTs at around 1000. Basically, once I got it locked and was happy, I would then hit even the smallest of hills and the truck would downshit and up goes the tranny temp.
The truck and trailer were set up properly with an Equlizer 14000/1400 lb WD/SC hitch and the trailer was not even loaded yet, only battery and propane!
Needless to say it was a looooonnngggg drive home and took almost double the amount of time I had planned on it taking. I'm not saying that I was expecting to set the CC at 65 and go, but c'mon this was rediculous. I spent most of my time in 3rd gear at 50 mph with RPMs at 2600.
I know I could go with a better turbo, have my tuner reflash my PROM, and throw countless more $$$ at it, but then how long till I blow it up and start over? Now i'm really considering shopping for a good used Cummins engine and dropping it in the truck.. It would probably be cheaper at this point.
All the maintenance items are up to snuff and the truck runs tip-top unloaded with the mods in my sig. Somebody talk me down please!
P.S: Due to the prolonged tranny temps I will be changing the fluid this weekend and probably adding a deeper pan too.
We picked up the TT on saturday afternoon after visiting downtown Des Moines St. Patrick's day parade and block party. (no drinking, promise )
This is what we looked like just outside the dealer lot ready to head home the 750 miles:
Then the fun began
After owning my truck for almost a year and pretty much preparing it for this reason (towing a TT) I was very dissapointed in the way it preformed. I started out using tune #4, which is a towing tune that is similar to one from Heath or Kennedy, I assume but it did not give me the power I needed to go up and down the hills without being a hazard on the highway. I then bumped up to tune #6 which is the highest perfoming one and it did give me all the power I was going to get out of my engine. It wasn't enough.
Let me say that I had no issues with ECT or EGTs. My engine temp gauge rarely saw 210 and the EGTs only touched 1150 one time after an extremely long hill with a strong headwind. My tranny on the other hand was almost pegged at 250 the entire time. I had to learn to "shift" the tranny with the go pedal, but once I finally got the TCC locked I just didn't have the power to keep it there. This is around 55 mph.
Situation was this: I would go for a while and finally get up to ~55 where I could feather the throttle to get the TCC locked. RPMs at ~2500 before lock, 2100 after locked. The boost was hovering at 10 psi, EGTs at around 1000. Basically, once I got it locked and was happy, I would then hit even the smallest of hills and the truck would downshit and up goes the tranny temp.
The truck and trailer were set up properly with an Equlizer 14000/1400 lb WD/SC hitch and the trailer was not even loaded yet, only battery and propane!
Needless to say it was a looooonnngggg drive home and took almost double the amount of time I had planned on it taking. I'm not saying that I was expecting to set the CC at 65 and go, but c'mon this was rediculous. I spent most of my time in 3rd gear at 50 mph with RPMs at 2600.
I know I could go with a better turbo, have my tuner reflash my PROM, and throw countless more $$$ at it, but then how long till I blow it up and start over? Now i'm really considering shopping for a good used Cummins engine and dropping it in the truck.. It would probably be cheaper at this point.
All the maintenance items are up to snuff and the truck runs tip-top unloaded with the mods in my sig. Somebody talk me down please!
P.S: Due to the prolonged tranny temps I will be changing the fluid this weekend and probably adding a deeper pan too.