If you could only own one trailer...

Builder · Mar 23, 2008

It's not necessarily bad. All it really means is the distance the truck squats until the helpers hit the upper spring stops. GM's sit lower in the front, so extra squatting doesn't look as bad. Ford's sit high in front. When Fords squat, they get a front wheel well opening that's atractive to being pulled-over.

I don't doubt Fords have better paper ratings than GM for towing capacity, but after you wade through all the BS and factor in the extra dry weight of the Ford, the towing numbers get very close between the 2.

Factor in the superiority of the GM drivetrain over the Ford and it's a no-brainer.

sorry, couldn't resist.

Diamondpilot · Mar 23, 2008

Builder said:
Factor in the superiority of the GM drivetrain over the Ford and it's a no-brainer. sorry, couldn't resist.

I did like the Dmax I had, 2005 srw 3500 4x4 when it ran. I was plagued with glow plug and injector problems. It had to be towed 3 times in the first 10,000 miles. I also had a rash of blown fuses dealing mainly with the exterior lights. During one of these fuse changes a hood hinge broke on the drivers side allowing the hood to hit the windshield and crack it. It just seems like everything was so much more light duty compared to my Ford. I also had paint complaints and ended up getting the bed resprayed under warranty. I loved the fuel economy, I got 21mpg with no mods, again when it ran. I put a chip on it and a intake and did not see much difference, maybe 1 mpg so I took it off. My Fords on the other hand gained about 3-4mpg but I know you will argue that. As far as the weight carrying capacity my F-250 seemed to do just as well. My F-350 has a noticeable difference even just carrying firewood and building materials no to mention towing. The Allison is a nice tranny but I like the Torque shift better for trailers with surge brakes, which 85% of the trailers I tow have. The boats I sell are all bumper pull and start at 10,000# and go up from there. With surge brakes the Allison took a beating on the down shifts. The Torque Shift really does a nice job handling the push of the trailer.

Chris

Builder · Mar 23, 2008

I put 17,500 on mine in the first year. Not one problem yet! The 6 speed Ally is like a dream come true for a light truck tranny! I might actually trade it in on a dually to get bigger tool boxes once things pick up in construction or my other business. My boxes are filled to the hilt and I still need more space!

Will get a GMC3500 4x4 crewcab & chassis and get another (wider) reading utility. Might wait and see what GM's gonna do for 2010 next year.

Diamondpilot · Mar 23, 2008

Most people don't know that the Ford Torque Shift tranny is actually a 6 speed. They advertise it as a 5 speed because that is all it uses. It runs only 5 gears at low temps, then a different 5 gears at higher temps. I can not remember what the sequence is for sure but its something like: Low 1,2,4,5,6 High 1,2,3,5,6 or something like that.

Chris

Builder · Mar 23, 2008

Diamondpilot said:
Most people don't know that the Ford Torque Shift tranny is actually a 6 speed. They advertise it as a 5 speed because that is all it uses. It runs only 5 gears at low temps, then a different 5 gears at higher temps. I can not remember what the sequence is for sure but its something like: Low 1,2,4,5,6 High 1,2,3,5,6 or something like that.

Chris

That's hilarious! So in your mind, you call it a 6 speed because it uses 5 different gears at 2 different times!

What other Ford smoke & mirrors do you have? j/k.

Hey check out the lockup strategy on the Ford Torqsh. & Dodge 68RE trannies and compare them to the Allison. Allison locks up in 2-6. Nice getting max torque out of the DMAX down at 1600rpm, too.