<HR style="COLOR: #d1d1e1" SIZE=1>Question to you all, I have an 02 D/A w/Edge. I just bought a Toy-Hauler 38.5 Rampage. The weight of the 5th'er is ±15,500lbs with everything (gas,water,toys, etc....). When I brought her back empty (excpet water, gas) and towing on level 2 (edge). The truck was downshifting to 4th and it sounds like she is comming apart at the seams... I try to keep her around 70mph on flat ground where she has no problems. WHen I'm going up a grade (that's not too steep) she down shifts and goes to 4th or sometimes 3rd trying to maintain speed (55). When the truck get's onto the top of the grade she does not shift out of the lower gear to 5th. I have to let off to get it to upshift. I know that my speed must be lowered. I guess what I'm trying to ask is, how do you know when it's too much for the truck?? I want to get there in a timley manner but not at the expense of the Tranny. What speed do you tow at. My EGT's run around 1050° up to 1250° going uphill. On level ground I'm about 700-900° I try to tow by EGT's. Is that a bad thing. ?

I also tow a 38 foot Sandpiper with 3 sportsman quads in the back. In tow/haul mode Juice on Level 2 this is pretty typical for the tranny to shift down into 4th and sometimes 3rd. Empty my truck can pull most grades in 4th and 5th. EGT's you describe are normal. I too drive by watching the egt's. I personally try and stay around 65 on hwy's and slower when driving through mountains. Truck seems to handle the weight just fine..Jim

Chop, is the trailer weight verified or a guess? Most trailer weigh more than they say.

Your speed is a little to fast for me, especially with that much weight. Otherwise, I agree with towing by EGT's.

I also tow a 38 foot Sandpiper with 3 sportsman quads in the back. In tow/haul mode Juice on Level 2 this is pretty typical for the tranny to shift down into 4th and sometimes 3rd. Empty my truck can pull most grades in 4th and 5th. EGT's you describe are normal. I too drive by watching the egt's. I personally try and stay around 65 on hwy's and slower when driving through mountains. Truck seems to handle the weight just fine..Jim

Does your truck sound like it going to explode??

Chop, is the trailer weight verified or a guess? Most trailer weigh more than they say.

Your speed is a little to fast for me, especially with that much weight. Otherwise, I agree with towing by EGT's.
On the side of the 5th'er it says Max "17,000 lbs". I dont have that much gear and also I only haul 1 quad (400) 1 KTM 300 and a Polaris 50. That's about it. I guessing on the weight. Thou I'm pretty close. I am basing my guess on the dry weight and calculating the weight of water and gas plus the toys and gear.

Chopjaw,

When the grade breaking feature of the Allison kicks in going down hills my truck sometimes races to the 3400 RPM mark. I am told that on grade breaking you can get it up to 4800 and it will upshift. When pulling steep uphill grades I sometimes hit 3000 RPM in 3rd gear but it rarely will go into 3rd as the Juice keeps it in 4th or 5th most of the time. When I hit high RPMS it gets a little noisy but it might be because the pilot injection kicks off around 2700 RPM and thus a little more noise. The pilot injection is what makes the DMAX quiet. I am content with slow and sure but thats because my wife is sitting next to me. She is the nervous one in our family. What you are depicting is normal operation for the DMAX and Allison combo. At least it is what mine does...Jim

Jim is correct. The engine does get a little louder when the pilot injection cuts off, this is normal. Just set the Juice on lv 2 and forget about it.

The PCM and the TCM talk to one another and if the PCM doesn't think the vehicle will hold the speed you are running at in the next higher gear it tells the TCM not to upshift and the Allison will not upshift. Sometimes it seems to take a long time to upshift even when there seems to be no load on it but this behavior is normal.

Chopjaw,

Statements like "I guessing on the weight. Thou I'm pretty close. I am basing my guess on the dry weight and calculating the weight of water and gas plus the toys and gear" are more than enough to raise an eyebrow on this forum. :o:

You didn't post your tow vehicle so I checked your profile which BTW mistakenly says you are 14 years old (born in 1991). So I checked some of your previous posts. Are you still driving the 02 2500 D/A LB7? :confused: If yes, check GCWR/GVWR/GAWR. ;) That's a heavy 5ver for a 2500. :o:

Still running stock size/load range tires? It is common for guys to upsize tires on the 2500's. If you are running larger diameter tires pulling that heavy toy hauler is going to place tremendous strain on the drivetrain. :eek: Climbing hills works everything much harder! What are the load ratings on your tires? I'm asking these questions for your safety moreso than JJ's ego! ;) SAFETY FIRST, ALWAYS! :ro)

You need to load the 5ver as you would for a trip then weigh the rig at a certified scale, all axles to include the tow vehicles to see just what you are dealing with in terms of weight. :exactly:

Toy haulers go from being pin heavy to pin light depending upon how they are loaded. If you are loading your family into this rig please take the time to do some additional research and "get the facts". These are safety issues for you and your family, as well as the rest of us that share the road with you. :)

My gut just doesn't like what I'm hearing when you say it sounds like your truck is coming apart. FWIW! Later. JJ :)

Your clutch fan is probably coming on to and making lots of noise.Mine does.