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RE: Winches on your trucks
It of course depends on how you use your vehicle. I would not be without one. My Power Wagon has not been stuck (no surprise!) where I have needed to winch myself out (gotta luv lockers!). I have used it to clear trails from fallen trees and tow others out of their situations. I have winched myself out of stuck situations in the past with other vehicles.
The idea of calling someone, although quite quaint, simply doesn't apply to me. If I can call someone, then I am too close to civilization. We spent the last week of July this year camping in the White Mountains of Arizona. I would have had to travelled 10 miles or more just to find intermittent phone service.
http://glenn5995.smugmug.com/Camping/PublicForums/248/978291919_zSv4t-L.jpg width=640
Last year we drove the White Rim Trail in Moab UT. It is 90+ miles off road and almost all of it without phone service. Recovery towing charges start at $1000 and go up with distance and situation. Not unusual to be $2500 or more.
http://glenn5995.smugmug.com/Camping/PublicForums/Moab6-138/985300513_r6kE6-L.jpg width=640
I LOVE the Powerwagons! If Dodge had offered them with the Cummins, I would have bought one long ago.
I had a winch on my first truck, a 1978 Toyota FJ40 Landcruiser. I was young and very much into off road driving, so the winch was indispensable! I've been through countless trucks since then, and haven't had a winch since. I've been stuck a few times where I wished I'd had a winch, but those times are few and far between. If you enjoy off roading, a winch is a no-brainer. One off road tow bill can pay for a decent winch. If you are not exploring the unchartered paths, you probably won't have much use for a winch.
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dgreen1069
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08/28/10 12:20pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: How do you protect your Hensley from theft?
I have a coupler lock on mine also. I also leave the locking pin on the stinger even when it is in storage. As others have said, it's not something they can just grab and run off with. It would take someone at least 10-15 minutes to remove it with tools.
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dgreen1069
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08/25/10 10:00am |
Towing
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RE: Ford Is Upping 6.7 Diesel H.P. and Torque To Trump Duramax
While I tend to agree with the statements made here, if everyone thought that way we wouldn't have the vast array of aftermarket tuners that definitely exists. All of the 2003 and newer diesels had over 300hp and 500ft-lbs of torque, yet if you go to any of the major diesel websites, there are loads of people discussing how to up their power.
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dgreen1069
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07/22/10 03:12pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: beach driving
If you don't have 4wd, don't attempt to drive on the beach in the Outer Banks. If you do have 4wd, be sure to air your tires down to 15-20psi. The lower the pressure, the better the chance you won't get stuck. I've been stuck twice down there and both times were because I was too lazy to get out and air down my tires properly.
Good luck, you will love it down there. Are you camping down there? If so, which campground are you staying at.
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dgreen1069
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07/08/10 03:26pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Engine blown. Need some advice from the collective.
I'd look into getting a Jasper crate motor. Your mileage isn't very high so the rest of the truck should have plenty of life left in it.
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dgreen1069
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06/28/10 11:28pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: diesel engine intials
If you meant CTD, it means Cummins Turbo Diesel.
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dgreen1069
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06/24/10 01:36pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Top 10 cars in sales for May 2010, Chevy has 3!
One odd one, the long in the tooth Impala is still selling well. Does Chevy have it's replacement in the pipeline?When Pontiac died, and took the brilliant G8 down with it, there was a rumor that the next generation Impala was going to pick up that rear drive architecture (which is similar to the new Camaro).
But I do believe that rumor has also died!
Yes the G8 will live in another form and no it will not be the new Impala....the old Pontiac G8 is the basis for Chevrolet's 2011 police car.
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dgreen1069
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06/21/10 08:10pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: TV 2003 F250 Diesel
Depends whether it is the 6.0L or 7.3L diesel.
Why would that matter?
Your truck should have no trouble with that trailer at all. Good luck!!!
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dgreen1069
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06/18/10 03:37pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: GM almost lost a customer for good.
We went through this with both GM and ford. Not being able to duplicate the problem is understandable but the communications processes were unbelievably bad. Now we deal foreign as much as we can. Mercedez has been great and I suspect we'll be with them for awhile. IN GM's case, nice to know our tax dollars are paying for these call centres. :)
Mercedes :?
I've had good and bad dealer experiences just like everyone else....with that said, I've owned 2 Mercedes Benz's over the years and have found the customer service at my local dealer (American Service Center) to be top notch. The service hasn't been perfect every time, but they were very quick to correct any complaints. One time I complained on an automated email survey they sent me that they didn't wash my car before I picked it up (even my Ford dealer does that). ASC responded by having me drop my car off for a free interior and exterior detailing. It was way over the top, but went a long way to securing my business for years into the future.
I'm glad to shared your story with us. I agree that many of the smaller dealerships around our country offer superior customer service. Back in 2002 my wife, 2 week old son, and myself were on a cross country journey with our travel trailer. At the time I had a 1995 Suburban K2500 diesel....I loved the truck, but the engine wasn't always the most reliable. To make a long story short, we ended up stranded in rural Wisconsin due to a stalling issue. I knew for certain our entire vacation was going to be spent at the truck stop where we ended up because the only dealer within hours was a very small town Chevrolet dealer. Much to my surprise, they took my truck in immediately and had me back on the road in less than two hours. I wish I could remember the name of that dealer because they were exceptionally kind and they saved our trip from total disaster.
Thanks again for the heads up....we can all only hope that someone from Ron Craft Chevy/Cadillac in Baytown, TX. reads this and makes some changes.
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dgreen1069
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06/13/10 09:36am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Suburban getting hot
I've inquired around and get the same response. Remove the fan / clutch and replace with an electric fan assembly.
I could be wrong, but I don't think there is an electric fan on the planet that moves as many CFM of air as the stock mechanical fans on any of our trucks.
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dgreen1069
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06/11/10 10:30pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: 2011 Ford F250 6.7 Diesel Update
Yup, that is indeed what it is a intercooler that uses coolant to cool the pressurized air charge. I have to wonder, does coolant which I guess would be around 195 or so degrees, cool the air better than ram air, fan forced air? Has me curious, just how cool is the air after passing through an air/air intercooler. Hmmm... Than of course that same air is once again compressed in the cylinders enough to raise the temperature to a point that it will ignite vaporized diesel fuel. I love internal combustion.
I've wondered the same thing on several occasions. I have a MB with a supercharged v8 that has an air to water intercooler. There is an electric circulation pump that keeps the coolant flowing. The air must get pretty darn hot for a 200 degree coolant system to actually cool it down.
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dgreen1069
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06/11/10 01:56pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Suburban getting hot
How fast are you going up the hill? If you slow down enough for the torque converter to unlock, the transmission will build heat and will start heating up your radiator fluid. I used to have that problem with my 1995 diesel K2500 Suburban.
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dgreen1069
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06/10/10 07:08pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Bio-Diesel discussion
The locality I work for has a fairly significant fleet of Ford diesel trucks. They use B20 to be green, but the fleet mechanics say it messes with the injectors. I have owned three diesels and have never run biodiesel. I wouldn't hesitate to run it in an older mechanically injected diesel, but I wouldn't use it if it wasn't approved in my newer truck. As others have already pointed out, the 6.0 and 6.4 PSD's are only approved for up to B5.
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dgreen1069
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06/10/10 07:06pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: Ford Automatic Transmission fluid flush
I have drained mine 4 times so far....it's no worse than an oil change. The recommended procedure is to drain the pan at 30k mile intervals and to replace the external filter that is located under the truck on the front passenger side of the engine compartment. I can't imagine it would cost you more than $150 max. The Mercon SP fluid (which is required...no substitutes) is fairly pricey. I believe it cost more than $5 a quart. The good news is you only need 7-8 quarts. You could pay more for a full flush, but Ford only specifies the drain and external filter change. The internal filter does not require replacement according to Ford's maintenance schedule.
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dgreen1069
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06/04/10 07:18am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: '99 6.5TD vs 2002 6.0L Gas
does anybody believe the last post?
From what I've found out they aren't too far off.
He's doing a bit better than I ever did. I could definitely get the 19mpg on the highway, but it dropped to about 10mpg while towing my 7k lbs. trailer. It got down to 8mpg while towing west against a strong head wind.
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dgreen1069
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06/03/10 01:13pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: '99 6.5TD vs 2002 6.0L Gas
Having had a 95 K2500 Suburban with the 6.5td with BD chip, Banks intake and exhaust, ect., I can also feel your pain. The trailer I had at the time weighed 7000 lbs., and my truck never had the power I thought it should. Temps were OK until I lost too much speed on hills....once the torque converter unlocked, temps rose quickly. I overheated once on I-70 around Vail, Co. during a snow storm.
I have never towed with a 6.0, but a Vortec 350 pulls better than a 6.5td. I think it's safe to assume the 6.0 would be better still.
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dgreen1069
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06/02/10 02:39pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: 05 diesel Excursion
I've owned and towed with a diesel Excursion for over 3 1/2 years after previously owning 5 suburbans. My biggest complaint is that I'm so totally spoiled by this wagon and Ford isn't making them any more.
I guess I'll have to keep this one until the wheels fall off.
I feel the exact same way. I loved all of my Suburban's, but I was forever replacing A/C compressors, switches, and other little items. My Excursion was my first Ford and I found the quality to be much better than my Suburbans. Both are great trucks, but for towing I would take a diesel Excursion over a new Suburban (which are gorgeous by the way).
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dgreen1069
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05/28/10 01:12am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: extended warranty on used Ford-good or bad
I purchased the 13-Point Diesel Care Warranty in 2008 for $1370 from 5-Star Ford in Texas (My local dealer wanted almost double that). I was torn about purchasing the warranty, but I figured if any of the covered items broke on my 6.0, I would most likely end up ahead. As others have said, it's a gamble. I thought my money was wasted until I took my truck in the week before my warranty expired. I had the oil cooler, egr cooler, and both head gaskets replaced under warranty because my truck was eating a bit of coolant. Those repairs would have cost me at least $5000. In the end, I was happy I bought the warranty.
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dgreen1069
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05/28/10 12:55am |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: 05 diesel Excursion
Personally I'd try to find a 7.3 -- even if it has more miles on it you'd have a more trouble-free engine. The 6.0 is a very complex piece of machinery that has had more than its share of problems, especially 2003, 2004, and very early 2005 models.
This fellow and I don't always agree, but on this point I am in 100% agreement. Look for a 7.3L PSD, or a v10 version. JMHO.
And, you can check this out as well.
www.powerstrokehelp.com
The problem with that idea is that the newest 7.3 Ford trucks on the planet are the earliest 2003's (which would be few and far between since 2003.25 is when the 6.0's came out). Without question the 7.3's are generally more reliable than the 6.0's. With that said, the 5r100 Torqshift is a better transmission than the 4r100 it replaced. The 6.0 pulls much stronger than the 7.3. While reliability is important, it isn't everything....if it was, we'd all be driving Dodge 2 valve Cummins diesels with manual transmissions.
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dgreen1069
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05/26/10 05:51pm |
Tow Vehicles
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RE: 05 diesel Excursion
I'd buy it....that is the last year of the X and they are only going to get harder to find. If it's a good price I'd jump on it....the asking price for diesel Excursions on the net seem like they are going up instead of down.
As others have said, the 6.0 PSD doesn't have the best reputation, but it pulls a lot stronger than a stock 7.3 PSD. If the truck is running right, it may do so for a very long time. Since it's a diesel it will have 3.73 gears and the Torqshift 5-speed auto with Tow/Haul mode. The transmission is very stout and holds up well to heavy towing.
My truck has almost 140k miles now, and I only recently had to have significant work done to it. I was losing a little coolant here and there so I decided to take it in before my extended warranty ran out. They ended up replacing my EGR and oil coolers as well as my head gaskets. I have no doubt I could have driven my truck another 50k miles like it was....it had been eating a small amount of coolant for a couple of years.
All in all, my Excursion has been my favorite vehicle of all time. It is the truck I'd hope my last two Suburbans would be.
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dgreen1069
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05/26/10 02:23pm |
Tow Vehicles
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