robby1824 said:
I have tow mirrors....the weight (dry) is 5400....isn't my truck rated for 9500??.
Personally, I've had a little trouble with the lower ratings since I bought my '04 new, back in January of that year. The only true visible change to mechanicals in '04 was the addition of a second auxiliary cooling fan.
A lot of tow rating differences in pickups is achieved through changes/upgrades to the frame, brakes, tires, and rear axle. So let's take a look at this:
Frame - same.
Brakes - same.
Tires - not the same. You can change that easily, though.
Axle - hmmm. When you look at the rear axle, it's
exactly the same axle, only with different gearing. This means all the weight-handling components of the axle are exactly the same. So what then does the BT gearing buy you? A little less stress on trans, u-joints, maybe a bit better engine cooling because it's turing faster. Doesn't change anything about the weight-carrying ability of the axle, as noted before. I'm looking at this as an old Journeyman mechanic, I'm willing to be set straight by any Master who happens to read this thread and comment.
robby1824 said:
I had the hitch intalled and it is an equalizer, so this does what the factroy set up would do, I would think....truck sits straight as an arrow when all cinched up.
This is perfect, the way it should be. Hopefully you have sway-canceling gear, not the little brake thing. That is worth owning, if you can spring for the extra few bucks. Personally, I'm using a Reese dual-cam, but there are a number of others that are all good.
robby1824 said:
Is it worth getting the tranny temp gauge?? and can the dealer install that for me??..........
I have been toying with the idea of getting the BT dash panel and then talking to the local tech at the dealer to see if he can enable the trans temp monitoring for me with his E-tool. That's the only way other than an aftermarket gauge that you'll have the BT gauge. Otherwise, you can take comfort in this: I am getting close to 70,000 on this truck and all I've done is keep it up. It tows my 7,000# Arctic Fox trailer just great, and about 20% of those miles are towing miles. I live in a rugged part of the state, so it's not flat anywhere I go.
robby1824 said:
My thinking all along is that the weight was 9500.....will be al ittle upset to find that is not, and that I have maxed out early....how serious is the issue the yahoo talks about with the gears??.....I understand about leaving it in lower gears longer...high RPM's are good......
I honestly believe that if you at least upgrade the tires and rear shocks, you should have little trouble handling that kind of weight. Is it capable of 9500? Yes (see the above), but if I towed that kind of weight regularly with a half-ton, maybe I'd be thinking about a different truck for that kind of duty. Not that the truck can't do it, but 9500# is a lot of tail behind a lightweight truck that will try to 'wag the dog'. So I hope that's clear that I have uncertanties strictly from the "anchoring weight" standpont.
robby1824 said:
any special maintenance to do now as well besides routine?..Thanks for all of the input.
If you have a new truck, you already have synthetic oils in the axles. If you tow as regularly as I do, I'd change rear axle at about 10,000, and again at about 30,000; change again at 50,000 and so on about every 20,000 miles. Change transmission oil about 35,000 and again at 70,000 and so on for every 30,000 to 35,000 miles. Change your oil over to a synthetic (your choice for what your wallet will stand) and then change oil whenever it drops a quarter to half quart. That may be as short as 3,500 or as long as 5,000 miles. This is the kind of service interval I give my truck. I tailor the service to the type of duty the vehicle gets; it seems to work since I can't get my wife to get rid of her '96 Pathfinder with 135,000 miles on it - she says, "Well, it's not using any oil, so it's still good, right?" And reluctantly, she is right. It's still giving good, reliable service. And I would never let my wife go out in anything that was going to fail on her.
This was pretty long, but I hope it helps you. Don't hesitate to ask questions here, there are a lot of knowledgeable people.
:cheers:
