towed "the guesthouse" for the first time

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

i have heard several mention that it definately helps cut through a head/cross wind. mileage gains might be smaller but it does something at least. that and look really cool! mels got one on his dually he tows with right?? maybe he can chime in. kinda surprised he hasnt yet since hes got a big camper he tows too. i was thinking about this today, do you guys think my boost is a bit low? i do. would that maybe be a cause to my egt's also? if i can get egt down then i can give more throttle. right now im just driving by the gauges which kinda sucks.

Where many miss the boat when talking about "boost" is the fact that the gauge reading is given in "BOOST PSI" meaning pounds-per-square-inch positive pressure, NOT VOLUME.

You can put 45-PSI in a bicycle tire; but, a 11-24.5 truck-tire with 5-PSI is gonna have enough air in it to inflate a whole host of bicycle tires.


You could have an obstructed intake system that still would show healthy boost numbers.


All that being said, when the 6.9-IDI was in my truck, Hypermax/Garrett turbo, boost-PSI at a no-load cruise was about 7-PSI; with the turbo really singing on a hard pull --- maybe 15-PSI.

Where is your pyrometer probe ??

Is it a mechanical or electronic pyrometer; meaning, does the key-switch need be on for it to read ??


Higher boost will to some extent lower EGTs, but it can also increase them.

What happens to a torch when you pull the Oxygen trigger ??


Does increased RPM lower your EGT reading ??

Unless your pump fueling is drastically turned up, I don't really see it having such high EGTs.

What kind of air intake ?? air-filter ?? clean and un-obstructed ??

 

[crockettcreek]

I pull a 35 foot tt as well mine weighs in around 9460. The truck in my signature pulls it fine. I hit around 60 on flat ground and fall to 55 on hills. The water temp gets to 220 but drops on the other side of the hill. I keep my foot on the floor board all the way up and coast on the way down. I have found that these trucks love to be driven hard and don't wimp out like those gasser versions. I have 4.10 rear end and 4 speed manual tranny. I get around 19-20 mpg unloaded and 13-16 pulling my rig. Try running some power service also helps with feeling like you have more get up and go.

 

[PackRat]

My 5'er is a 1976 Prowler 30' . It weighs in right at 8k. Yours is longer and taller than mine. I wouldn't be surprised if your leanin on 10k.

 

[GRU]

crockett- your mileage is considerably above mine! i cant get above 16 empty holding about 62 on the highway. i have OD and you dont. towing my old 81 24' coachmen on highway i got a good 10.5 - 11 mpg. ive always thought my mileage was kinda low, youre just confirming it.

midnight - my pyro is on the exhaust inlet of the turbo. its an electrical gauge. my intake consists of a brand new K&N in the ATS housing. i have a piece of 4" pvc going up between the driver side headlight and radiator so im not pulling air from above the exhaust manifold. i have no other experience but it just seems i have to work really hard to get above 5 psi of boost under any situation.

 

[Darrin Tosh]

right now im just driving by the gauges which kinda sucks.

Yes it does,...I am have been wanting to chime in on this thread but have not had a chance till now,..

The real reason you are having a problem is because you are towing a very tall, 10K plus 35 foot 5th wheel with a turbo'd IDI. The performance that you got is about all your gonna get, and driving that rig by the gauges is what is gonna happen. Been there, done that,..for a LONG time. The only way you are going to get around driving by the temp guage is to install an aftermarket custom made HD Travis radiator for about $550.00 to $650.00

When I had an IDI in Big Ed, I did everything possible short of the Travis Radiator to keep the truck cool while pulling my 5ver (89 30') Cut holes in the bumper, new stock rad, thermostat, MS TEC Fan Clutch,.. etc etc,.. nothing worked to keep it cool, You have to do a radiator if you want to keep that rig cool while hauling that trailer, unless you want to keep it at 55 MPH.

Since then I sold my trailer and it has been behind 2 other Turbod IDI trucks with the same results.

Once you have it cool, then you can look at an intercooler, and getting more fuel to it, Moose Pump, Propane, etc,

It is what it is,...your just asking a lot of that setup to pull that 35 footer.

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

Until I started reading these forums, I never thought my experiences to be unique; but, in all the hundreds of thousands of miles I hauled big heavy loads of livestock in all kinds of terrain, loads far heavier than any camper-trailer could ever be, I NEVER had any over-heating issues with the old 6.9.

Even with all the belles and whistles, tweaks and tricks, it was slower than a snail in the hills and seemingly weaker than an old sick cat; but, it never ever had any cooling issues.

When I finally pulled it to make way for the 6BT, it still had the original radiator and the original water-pump.

Nothing to do with the cooling, but it also still had the original starter.

 

[argve]

I cut a hole in the front bumper and installed a homemade air scoop under the lower rad support to grab more air and shove it up to the rad and still had problems - then when I sat down with the local rad shop owner and said I wanted a rad that could cool - he delivered and I never had a problem after that... still had 4 cores - still stock outside dimensions - still stock upper and lower tanks but doubled the fin count (that increased the fin to tube contact area) - that stopped the cooling issues in their tracks. I actually tried to make it over heat by just flat standing on the go pedal while pulling up the grade (Jellico on I75 in Ky/Tn). I said at the bottom of the hill it will either cool or I'll blow the engine up - I'll buy a new truck if I have to - I'm sick and tired of dealing with this... I called the rad shop up as I crested the hill and trust me no one there wanted to deal with me so I got transfered right on through and I told him straight up "This Rad is one cooling SOB".... I was happy - finally... And from talking with guys here and else where cooling becomes an issue on the turbo'd trucks that are pulling heavy campers. I don't think the weight is as much as an issue as the grabbing of the air that a camper brings to the table - it makes it feel so much more weighty...

 

[GRU]

hmmm... so basically by getting a really good deal on a humungous camper and thinking ive come out on top, ive really just made a whole bunch more work and expense to be able to tow it? seems about right for me. i guess the big question is, do i spend the money on THIS truck, or a bigger one? honestly i wont put the money for a bigger radiator into it and still have sub-par towing performance. id much rather put it towards a better engine to swap in, such as the DT360. sure that opens a can of worms too. what really bugs me is dads 03 superduty pulls it just fine with a damn smallblock! didnt overheat, didnt warm up the tranny, just wound out and tugged it along at 70 mph. yet mines on the verge of overheating by 45 mph. ya i agree its not the physical weight, its the extreme wind resistance of it. and man does it make a difference.

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

Just think about how much it costs to park/hook-up that trailer against what a mom-and-pop motel-room costs = about the same.

Compare the freedom of being able to drive the truck easily in any direction as opposed to always having to allow for the extra width/height.

Add the trailer-less fuel savings to sentence one.

Not to mention the costly headaches that can happen when those over-loaded axles or tires give out along the road, or the truck suffers something drastic that would not have occurred were the camper not behind it.

Honestly, I can't see any economy in dragging around a big old trailer.

Myself, I would rig up a topper with a bed for the few times that a room was just not available, or maybe a small slide-in camper for such times, and sleep in a motel any time one was available.

 

[sootman73]

hmmm... so basically by getting a really good deal on a humungous camper and thinking ive come out on top, ive really just made a whole bunch more work and expense to be able to tow it? seems about right for me. i guess the big question is, do i spend the money on THIS truck, or a bigger one? honestly i wont put the money for a bigger radiator into it and still have sub-par towing performance. id much rather put it towards a better engine to swap in, such as the DT360. sure that opens a can of worms too. what really bugs me is dads 03 superduty pulls it just fine with a damn smallblock! didnt overheat, didnt warm up the tranny, just wound out and tugged it along at 70 mph. yet mines on the verge of overheating by 45 mph. ya i agree its not the physical weight, its the extreme wind resistance of it. and man does it make a difference.

sounds like your radiator is simply worn out.... i've pulled heavy before and after i replaced the radiator. before i could almost overheat without a load but now i can drive how i want and never worry about it overheating (and at that time i was like three gallons low on AF) topped it off and the temps stay even lower now. i can hold WOT for miles(egt limited) but never worry about coolant temp.....

 

[argve]

Just think about how much it costs to park/hook-up that trailer against what a mom-and-pop motel-room costs = about the same.

Compare the freedom of being able to drive the truck easily in any direction as opposed to always having to allow for the extra width/height.

Add the trailer-less fuel savings to sentence one.

Not to mention the costly headaches that can happen when those over-loaded axles or tires give out along the road, or the truck suffers something drastic that would not have occurred were the camper not behind it.

Honestly, I can't see any economy in dragging around a big old trailer.

Myself, I would rig up a topper with a bed for the few times that a room was just not available, or maybe a small slide-in camper for such times, and sleep in a motel any time one was available.

You are absolutely correct - owning an RV is never going to pay for it's self - heck I read that in one of the Trailer Life Magazines years ago...

I have always had one hanging around because we enjoy camping. I get some decent views and get to sort of connect with nature in a campground vs in a hotel room. I can sit around the fire at night, cook over that fire and basically just relax.

Another thing that I like is that I don't have worry about what happened on my bed last night - it's my bed and doesn't have someone else's DNA strung all over it. Ever seen those shows where they take a black light into a hotel room? - EEEWWWW - scary....

I don't give it a second thought about letting the kids hop on their bikes in a campground and go off on their own - but in a hotel parking lot - I don't think so...

owning a camper or RV is a hobby, not a money saving adventure. Some folks are just naturally campers and some are not... I have gone both ways - we have taken trips where we just stayed in hotel, and others where camping was the main goal... One of the things that I do when we are just traveling through is I will wheel into a walmart and park for the night for free - heck all I'm doing is sleeping - I'm not setting up camp. That saves some money but with the added fuel and maintenance it took to get there that money saved is lost but again it's a hobby...

Now on the size of the camper... I will always vote big... I have had 8 ft slide camper all the way up to 30ft 5ft wheel. The 5ver is much harder to pull on the truck, you have to allow for turns, height and other things but having the addt'l space vs what the slide in gave is worth it to me - maybe not for you but for me it was. heck I have 30ft 5ver now and if I could get my hands on a 40ft with quad slides I would do it in heart beat - but then again I live in mine part time for work - but even so I would still do it...

 

[GRU]

absofreakinlutely! im not trying to save money by any stretch. camping is the goal itself, not simply just the place to stay for the night. i hate hotels. they get really pissed when youre trying to cook smores over a fire in your room. im developing a plan that i think will suit the needs. since i have way more money invested than ill ever see if i sell it, im keeping the truck i have now. im going to buy a crewcab dually, swap in my DT360 and turn it into the towmonster over the winter. next year my blue truck will be the DD, ill sell my little T100 and the dually will be the towrig. that just might be the answer. that is unless someone offers me $8000 for my truck now...

 

[Shadetreemechanic]

My experience is the same as midnight rider, I have never been able to overheat one of these IDIs. I think you should do some exploration under the hood a little before you give up on your truck. Check the timing. Have the radiator flow tested. Double check your gauge accuracy. Something is not right. Anyone who has ever pulled my mountain (Monteagle) can attest I have grades to test these motors with. A turbo IDI with 4.10's should pull that camper fine. You won't win any races, but you shouldn't run hot.

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

Anyone who has ever pulled my mountain (Monteagle) can attest I have grades to test these motors with.

Everyone talks about Jelico until they climb MontEagle; after that, Jelico is just another hill.

 

[argve]

I have driven up monteagle both ways... once they had a detour and we were directed up it via some cow path of a road - made for some interesting moments as semi tractor trailer combos were on the same path... I swear when they put that road in they tied the paver to the cow and slapped it on the rear and sent it home to the barn....