Does the Allison transmission have a PTO on a standard 2003 cab/bed configuration? I have seen the real-ac-power generator which states it can be used with any Allison transmission that was manufactured before 2004 since GM dropped the PTO gear in specific configurations in 2004 and up. If the 2003 Allison did have the PTO gear/option, how can one tell by looking at the Allison?

GM dropped the PTO on the Duramax Diesel in the March 2004 build date. GM hopes to have it reinstated by the end of 2004. The 8.1 L gas engine currently is still built with the PTO gear in the Allisons. If you have a 2003 cab/bed configuration as you state you will have the PTO. The only 100% way to check is to take the PTO access cover off of the side of the transmission ( you will only lose about a tablespoon of fluid). Is your truck a crew cab, extended cab, or standard?

According to www.realacpower.com (http://www.realacpower.com) any GM truck with Allison transmission from 2001 to Mar. 2004 has the PTO built in. In April of 2004 it became an option "RPO = M1F" that has to be ordered for a PTO application. I think this Allison transmission update was the same time as the new LLY engine.

I have the extended cab, short bed.

Yes, Chris your truck should be totally compatible with a Real Power unit. Let me know if I can sale you one or if you have any other questions. My e-mail at Real Power is npugh@contourhardening.com. I am the lead installation technician for Real Power and will be able to answer any technical questions. Where was it that you heard of Real Power?

Yes, Chris your truck should be totally compatible with a Real Power unit. Let me know if I can sale you one or if you have any other questions. My e-mail at Real Power is npugh@contourhardening.com. I am the lead installation technician for Real Power and will be able to answer any technical questions. Where was it that you heard of Real Power?





That is a sweet setup...and the price is similar to the house-type systems. I wish I did more traveling, I'd by it in a heartbeat.

i seem to remember someone saying a pto will not fit unless your truck was a cab chassis. By the looks of the website It fits. Might have to look into this in the future.


the website for anyone interested


http://www.realacpower.com/

Does the PTO rotate in with the transmission in Park? Just bolt this unit in and start the engine? Seems simple - previously thought it would be a big project.

Real Power will only sell to "authorized" installers. Which means you'll be paying through the nose for it (the MSRP). Look at generator heads....12000 watts can be purchased for less than $1000.00. All one has to do is set up the "gear box" and a distrubtion box as real power has done and have your own built in generator for 1/2 if not 1/4 of what real power wants. I find the $4000.00 is quite high for what one receives (generator head, mounting brackets, distrubtion panel, cable).

$4000 for what? Does that include the Allison also? I would sure as hell hope so. And what keeps them in business? I would buy a couple Honda 2000`s for $1600 and power anything I will ever need. And I can carry them (at only 47# or so) anywhere, Yes! even places that the $4000 rip off won't fit.


That thing would be over priced at $1000http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/smileys/Ermm.gif If chrisb009 hadn't been here for so long, I would have thought it was a setup to get free advertising here, and try to push this over priced gimmick at us.Edited by: hdmax

Yes, motocopter the PTO does rotate in the transmission in Park. The Real Power unit is very simple to use, turn on a factory PTO switch inside the cab and start the truck, click the switch to "set" and release. Your truck is now capable of 12KW continous power.

I would be interested in seeing what you come up with for a 1/4 or 1/2 of the price Chrisb009. Especially as far as "setting up the gear box". Real Power is the only company that offers a PTO that will fit under a 2500 HD without cutting out a section of the floor and welding a new section in. Real Power is also the only generator company that uses the vehicles computer to constantly maintain a steady voltage, that automatically compensates for any load change. As far as hdmax goes, go ahead and haul around a couple of Honda 2000's, some of us prefer to use our bed space to haul other necessities. Are you chaining those units to your truck? Our units are fully self contained underneath the truck within the vehicle frame rails. How many fuel cans do you haul around for them? A Real Power unit uses half the fuel most generators use. Are you sure that honda unit is going to start every time you need it? I'm pretty sure my $40,000 truck is going to. And where was it hdmax that you could carry your unit and ours wouldn't fit?

I can carry the 47# Honda up any flight of steps, in an elevator. I can also use those two Honda's as one to run a welder for doing welding on my truck. Your unit can not be used for welding on the vehicle it is mounted on.


The Honda's can be placed under my fiberglass bed cover, or behind my seat if need be. How's that for the answer you thought was impossible to come up with?


You say as if the Honda`s take up the bed. My lunch box cooler is as big as the Honda 2000http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/smileys/Big Smile.gif , and that ain't a joke. I have the short bed, and I would bet our truck that 20 of the Honda 2000`s would fit under my bed cover, and it would still lock. (I'd say probably 30-35 would fit in there.) I can take the little Honda 2000 on any size boat! I am pretty sure my truck (And, yes your truck also) would not fit on an 21' speed boat. It can tow it, where as the Honda can not. but that is the beauty of having both.


How could your unit use less then the Honda`s? I know what my truck uses sitting at an idle, and it is way more then 2 Honda 2000`s under full load. And yes the Honda`s start every time as long as there is fuel and oil in them. And your $40,000 truck is just as likely not too start as the Honda`s are.


I would like to have a unit like your Real-Power 12K, just not at that kind of expense. It looks very nice indeed. I do not see much of a market for a $4,000-$5,000 genset like that. If it was in the $2500 range, I'd buy a 12K in a heart beat. I do a lot of camping, and boating. And besides that I live in rural America where the power company is not the most reliable.

Hey guys you get what you pay for .I do refrigeration work and people are always wanting something so cheap that it will not last long , so I tell them if that what you want have someone that sells the product install it and see if they stand behind it . Yes most people could install a sys on there truck but I do not think you could get it to run off the trucks computer to keep a constantly and steady voltage .

The more I think about this gen-set the more I like it, But that doesn't make the price any better.!

You know, there are some real benefits to doing it either way. The real power setup is really slick, but if you are camping and want to run power all night, who would want to idle their truck that long?


The other side is that the Honda's are nice and small and you can get some very quiet Honda generators that you can run all night without a problem.


Two sides to most coins.

There are always +'s & -'s with any product. I just did some research on the Honda 2000 generators mentioned. That is a nice small contained unit, but it is like comparing apples and oranges. That unit produces 2000 W peak , 1600 W continous. Real Power generators can handle 12000 w continous, 13200 W for 2 hours every 24 hours. And I can tell you that I have personally tested the unit at up to 16,000 W with no damage. The industry standard for testing large generators is fuel consumption at 6,000 W for one hour. At 6000 W Real Power uses less than a gallon an hour on a Duramax. On most standby units it is close to a gallon and a half.

As for price on the Real Power unit, cost has not been much of an issue for someone after they have realized all the benefits of the system. This is also a very new product, just like anything else the cost usually goes down after awhile. Do some comparison shopping and see what a quality 12kw generator is selling for, and then factor in the convenience factors of the Real Power unit.


baimpala mentioned that he would not want to let his truck idle all night. These trucks were designed to be ran for long periods, these trucks have no problems running for long periods of time. I have even tested the 8.1L gassers for running 24 hours at a time with the unit installed on it, it also had no problems. Of course I recomend the diesel.