Engines modification/towing report...
Rollingbones
08-16-2005, 05:49 PM
Just got back from 6 days camping in So. Lake Tahoe. Over the past couple of weeks I added three engingine mod's to my 5.3 with Flowmaster Dual exhaust. I added the K&N Cold Air Intake, 160 Degree t-stat and an electronic tune. I towed the same trailer (a 20' Fleetwood with a gross weight of about 5600 lbs) up there last year.
The differance blew my mind!!! First she ran cool, really cool. Second, I wasn't sure whether or not the shift point adjustments I made would also apply to the tow/haul mode. It did. She shifted when I needed it to and seemed much better than when I towed before. The gear/RPM balence seemed really nice. Even on steep hills (with the power addition) I never really need to run her at momore than about 2800 RPMs, but most the time with down shifting, she stayed between 2100-2400 RPMs. On flat land, she hit 65-70 without breaking a sweat (though I usually kept to about 60 mph). All in all, it seemed much more effortless...NICE!!!
One intersting byline, yesterday this guy came in with a 25 foot trailer (rental) which he towed with a Dakota (about 4.7L, totally stock). Kind of a small truck for that much trailer. He told me he was afraid his tranny was in the process of dying.....DOH!!! He said the truck had a tow kit. We chatted awhile about it. He seemed to realize he'd be needing more truck if he ever purchased a travel trailer.
This being said I had one parting thought (refering to the recent Silverado/Honda race thread). Let's see someone hook 6000 lbs of prime trailer behind a ricer and then race a Silverado. What a picture that would be!!!
The differance blew my mind!!! First she ran cool, really cool. Second, I wasn't sure whether or not the shift point adjustments I made would also apply to the tow/haul mode. It did. She shifted when I needed it to and seemed much better than when I towed before. The gear/RPM balence seemed really nice. Even on steep hills (with the power addition) I never really need to run her at momore than about 2800 RPMs, but most the time with down shifting, she stayed between 2100-2400 RPMs. On flat land, she hit 65-70 without breaking a sweat (though I usually kept to about 60 mph). All in all, it seemed much more effortless...NICE!!!
One intersting byline, yesterday this guy came in with a 25 foot trailer (rental) which he towed with a Dakota (about 4.7L, totally stock). Kind of a small truck for that much trailer. He told me he was afraid his tranny was in the process of dying.....DOH!!! He said the truck had a tow kit. We chatted awhile about it. He seemed to realize he'd be needing more truck if he ever purchased a travel trailer.
This being said I had one parting thought (refering to the recent Silverado/Honda race thread). Let's see someone hook 6000 lbs of prime trailer behind a ricer and then race a Silverado. What a picture that would be!!!
Automotive Network, Inc., Copyright ©2026