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Old 05-01-2012, 06:35 PM   #13 (permalink)
slowmover
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Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Posts: 2,442

2004 CTD - '04 DODGE RAM 2500 SLT
Team Cummins
90 day: 19.36 mpg (US)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mechman600 View Post
slowmover, PM me if you ever have any ISX or Peterbilt foibles popping up. No doubt you will. More so on the ISX I'm sure. I deal with them every single day. Major and minor.

It is an absolute shame that this is the only Paccar option for a 15L engine now.
Was thinking of you as I was cresting a grade west of Freer, TX the other day on US-59. Finally saw in excess of 30-spi manifold pressure on a long pull. CEL came on, stayed on. The shop ran the truck through a Re-Gen the next morning before my first assignment (we're on-call 24/7 for six days then with two days off) and it stayed off afterwards. Will have to get manuals back out to study more of what is what. The DIC has too many symbols for me to have so readily recalled them after first reading.

I'm a Cummins fanboy for now, was never enamored of CAT motors as I mainly ran Detroit or Cummins (12 & 14L DD, N14 Cummins) in other jobs. The C13 CAT I hated in the one job I ran . . but other drivers have convinced me that an early 3406E with a custom tune set to what the job demands can get decent mpg and great response (plus CAT longevity). I've been past RUSH Peterbilt in Alice, San Antonio, Houston, and Laredo now and I see 367's lined up in front. This may be a Texas oildfield favorite. THE TRUCK OF TEXAS (as it is also built here).

We don't have too many hard pulls (thus far), but this combination really pulls. Gearing, trans choice and motor seem very good. It's been effortless a few times. I've had to catch myself and make comparisons to others I've driven down here and make mental adjustements for gross weights. Granted we don't have the incredible grades of British Columbia, so my statement applies to local conditions.

All of you may appreciate the winds: the other day I picked up an empty single hopper to head out. Literally though it was loaded (impossible, we keep no loaded trailers at yard) since the wind was steadily 35-mph and worse. 25-mph winds are a norm here, but I was losing speed while shifting, ha!

Had a tailwind while loaded headed north the other night on IH-37, just breezed right along at an instantaneous 7-8 mpg. Empty (from 75k down to 33k gross) on the return trip was seeing 3.7 mpg. With a flatbed, ha!

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Last edited by slowmover; 05-01-2012 at 06:43 PM..
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