req: info towing 5th wheel basics

I don't know about your van, but with the Duramax Diesel and Allison 5 or 6 speed automatic transmission (which was what the original question was about), tow/haul mode also provides grade braking using down shifts made automatically by the transmission after you brake briefly, release the brake and the vehicle gains speed. With the 6 speed you also get automatic down shifts for grade braking when using cruise control without ever having to use the brake pedal.

Ron

I haven't been able to check that out. I got the '06 in January and have only towed about 900 miles with it. During the first 500 mile towing break-in I had the cruise control grade braking engage once. Southeast of Bastrop, TX we were move along with the cruise control set at about 51 mph. We were towing in 5th gear (1st OD) and started down a pretty good hill. Our speed climbed to about 57-58 and the transmission downshifted to 4th gear (drive) and then quickly downshifted again to 3rd gear. Once we reach the bottom of the hill the transmission began up shifting back to 4th and then 5th gears.

We will be leaving for CA in a few days and I'll get a lot more towing miles to check it out.

The shift lever shows P R N D M 1. When you place the shift lever in the "M" position the LCD driver display shows "(6) 5 4 3 2 1". The ( ) indicates the highest gear to be used. You change that with a +/- button on the side of the shift lever.

Seems like some of the tow/haul features don't work in "M", but I can't remember off hand which ones. I haven't seen a need for "M" yet as I have towed in 6th gear (second OD) even with a head wind. It would shift back to

5th gear (1st OD) on some hills, but never hunted for a gear. The engine and transmission computers discuss shifts and only make them after they determine the new gear will be acceptable to the engine under current grade/load conditions. It will let you steer the vehicle though!

Ron '06 Chevy 3500, Crew Cab, Long Bed, Dually, Duramax HO, Allison 6 speed automatic '01 Alfa 35' triple slide 5th wheel

Right On! I keep seeing guys with boards ,pipes etc. hanging out the back of their short beds all tied up and lashed down,or extending way up on their roofs and I always think " Why didn't you just buy a real truck?" I often buy 10 ft. sections of pipe and they fit diagonally IN my bed.-Brian , who is damn glad I have a full size ( in my case-8 1/2') bed !

Yes, whenever hitched-up and rolling.

Doing so can only HELP reduce transmission slippage (heat) and possibly even increase fuel economy, albeit minimal if even noticeable. It certainly can't HURT anything.

For me the problem came with a full, four door crew cab with an eight foot bed. (Dodge Ram 2500) To make a U-Turn, it took two full lanes plus half a sidewalk. I got tired of having to 3 point park every time I visited the Home Depot ending up with the rear bumper and trailer hitch halfway out in the middle of the parking row.

The new truck (F-350 Crew Cab) has the 6 and a half foot bed, yielding the same wheelbase as a regular cab with the big bed. Although still a large truck, at least you can park it and make a U-Turn without running off the road and comfortably seat four passengers (buckets, front and rear). With the tailgate down, I can still haul 4x8 sheets or long boards without a problem. For the fifth wheel, we used a sliding hitch although rarely had to use it once I learned the turn limitations (which were pretty extreme).

RCE

Uh, they did, Bill.

They just replaced their hybrid camping trailer with a nice fifthwheel. They pulled the hybrid with the killer pickup for a while, IIRC, before getting the fiver. That's the right way to go, for sure.

I just LOVE a vehicle that occupies TWO time zones!

I'm not quite there and, considering only ONE of my three daughters lives locally, I may never host a lot of campouts with GKs. I'm not sure that's so bad.

Either way, my finally-paid-for Silverado's Vortec 8100 has now developed a serious problem where the engine just DIES and won't restart for several minutes. Trailer Life thinks changing-out the EGR valve would be worthwhile, also the fuel filter. My local mechanic suspects the fuel pump or crankshaft position sensor. The problem occurs always when the engine is warm and usually after a stop - once while coasting to a stop. Plenty of cranking but no (zip, zero, nada) fire. Weird...

[to attentive, roomful of compatriots] Hello. My name is Jim. I am a SAPPY GRANDFATHER. [crowd replies in unison] Hello, Jim.

Gotta LUV dem rugrats!

Oh, man! Just when the "old" pickup is paid for and starting to misbehave do I learn of some of the cooler feature of the newest one. Such is life.

Brings back some memories. Just a D150 tho, four door, 8 foot bed, custom front end. Me and a partner sectioned a Mack RM nose to fit including narrowing a Chrome 18 wheeler front bumper (the bumper was almost 14 inches tall) Yeah parking was a bear, but it rode nice (them old dodges had soft suspension to begin with) and for some reason people just tended to get out of the way on the interstate. Ahh my wasted youth.. As to the hitch sticking out, how many times did you nail your shins on it? (I finally got smart and started pulling the hitch out of the receiver and stashing it in the bed)

Whitelightning

Well, I see the problem right away! People who want a car *and* a pickup in the same body really don't have an option for a long bed if they park in town. It never occurred to me to have a combo pickup/car in the same vehicle, plus a longbed. That's exactly what a four door crew cab is. I saw a few of those around in the 60's, and thought they were an abomination then. I still think so. My comments regarding longbeds wouldn't apply to such a vehicle. They're just too long. And I wouldn't own one of those either.

Tom

Go over to this news group they might be able to help. alt.autos.gm

The Excursion was discontinued. The Expedition is still around and in fact they are lengthening it.

That is why they make all of them!

Ron '06 Chevy 3500 Crew Cab Long Bed Dually and wouldn't want any other kind

I would think that the computer error codes would tell you the difference between a fuel pump problem and a crankshaft position sensor problem.

Ron

It does a few other things that my '01 didn't do. For instance, when first started and the pickup detects that it is cold outside it will up the shift points to increase engine rpm until the engine has warmed up enough to use the heater, then shifting returns to normal. Did I mention that the seat heater also has a switch that only turns on the heat in the seat back, so you can use it like a heating pad if your back bothers you on long drives. And then there is the .......

Well you better just run on down to your local dealer and find out about all the new goodies!

Ron

Gee maybe they figure the whole family should be able go camping?

I worked construction when I owned mine; everyone on the crew got to ride in safe, air-conditioned comfort to and from the job site from the shop, and carry all our gear and duct supplies.

*Any full size pickup with a short bed is a tonka toy for a grown up kid.

What good is a truck that I cant put a 4x8 sheet of plywood in the bed and get the tail gate up so it stays put. For a while in the late 60's early

70's GMC had one with a 10'6" bed, a sheet rock hangers delight.

Real problem is too many people today just cant drive. At least you recognize your limitations and stay with-in them.

The family hauler used to be a General Motors full size wagon, or a Ford Country Squire, or Chrysler Town and Country/Plymouth Suburban/Dodge Belvedere. . Them old wagons, moms tooled around town like nothing in, and if you put the back seat down, well I'll be darned, you could get full sized sheets of plywood in with some room to spare, and close the gate. Things were every bit as long as a full size standard cab pick up with an 8 foot bed.

Whitelightning

*I was being some what sarcastic here. If you don't need the long bed, why buy it, but for someone to condemn long beds and crew cab long beds as an abomination just plain stupid. Probably scared of big rigs on the road too.

Thanks for all the information sent our way. I copied and pasted all the great info and ideas into a Word document so I can keep it for future reference.

Debbie who drives "The Mother Ship"

21 1/2 foot long Chevy duramax non-dually. PS: the only thing I need now is a REALLY LOUD horn.

I have really enjoyed all the comments about trucks being too big or just right. It all depends on your needs and wants. When we first got our big truck (which my son instantly named The Mother Ship) I felt almost ashamed to be seen alone in it. I felt that I should have at least 5 other people riding in it as it will carry 6 comfortably. Since then I have gotten over that feeling. People seem more polite to big trucks; I can see over all the dinky little cars to avoid problems up the road quite a ways; I have the 34 gallon fuel tank instead of the 24 or 26 (?) gallon tank; I have no trouble driving or parking it in town, state parks, national parks, picnic areas, campgrounds with twisty little roads, parking lots at Wal-Mart, etc. My fuel economy is 18 to almost 21 mpg depending on how much in-town driving I do and if I stay below 72 mph on the highway. The time we pulled our fiver we got 13mph at that was going slow over hills in the dark on back country roads. It doesn't do too well at slower speeds of 45 mph. I love my truck. It has amazed some men to see me driving, pulling and parking the little 25 foot bumber pull hybrid camper we used to have. I have had strange men come up to me in campgrounds to say so. I plan on being as good with our fiver. Thanks for all the information sent our way. I copied and pasted all the great info and ideas into a Word document so I can keep it for future reference.

Does that assume being able to replicate the problem and to test at that moment?

You missed the first part of the thread, huh. I originally posted my disdain for short bed pickups, saying much the same as you. Then somebody mentioned that the crew cab with a long bed wasn't reasonable in town. I then expressed my disdain for crew cabs in general, long bed or short. I would never have a short bed, nor a crew cab. I just want, and own, two real trucks. No crew cab, no short beds.

Tom