Hey all, a few months ago I went from a 2001 2500 QC 4x4 V10 to a 2005 1500 QC 2x4 Hemi.

On paper the V10 seems to outshine the Hemi, not as much horsepower, but about 75 more ft-lbs torque, but driving seems different...

Unloaded the Hemi goes goes and keeps going, I think this thing could easily outrun most of the quicker cars out there. My old 10 was not quite as peppy, accelleration was pretty unimpressive, it wasn't a dog, but it drove just like what it was--a 3/4 ton 4x4. Not to mention the mileage difference, my Hemi usually gets around 20 on the highway, 17 in town. The best i got out of the 10 was 14 on the highway, and in town.....lets not go there.

With my trailer the V10 did okay, i have a 21 foot travel trailer that weighs in around 5K, and on flat ground the V10 would pull it all day long, even in OD, but when you hit a hill, instant downshift, no matter how small the hill seemed, it would kick down a gear. I once pulled about a 10% grade and the truck would barely go 30 mph, in 2nd gear taching 3000 RPM. Mileage with the trailer was always 6MPG regardless of conditions. I always thought it should be able to do alot better with that little weight behind it, and if I upgraded to a bigger trailer how would it pull?

Well with the HEMI it's totally different, hook up to the trailer, put it in TOW/HAUL mode, get up to cruising speed and set the speed control and the truck does the rest of the work. RARELY downshifts, pulls the trailer like it's not there, and get's 14MPG all the while. I pulled the same 10% grade i did with my 2500 and went 45 MPH all the way up (the posted speed for the pass).

What I'm wondering is, does the transition from 4x4 to 2x4 make that much of a difference? Could it be gearing? More transmission gears in the 1500?

Not that I'm complaining, I love the HELL out of my new (to me) hemi, but how is it that a 1/2 ton seems to make short work out of a 5000 pound trailer while my 3/4 ton seemed to be really working?

sorry for the long post

 

i still have my 96 v10 and when i pull the camper that is 7200 lbs it gets 8 mpg and acts like the camper isnt even there . up hill is no problem runs 65 easy. had to stop on a severe uphill stop sign and when i pulled away it barley even took a breath . love my 168000 mile v 10 and it is 2wd.

 

A 4WD is heavier than a 2WD for sure, but I'd bet that the difference in the the transmission and rear gears.

 

In a press release of a few months ago
Chrysler admitted that the CAD front axle of the old 4x4
was costing about 1.1 MPG
compared to the new design they just finished,
so that is part of the fuel economy difference
you gained with your 2wd Ram

I have never seen where Chrysler compared the
8L V10 fuel economy to the 5.7 V8
but back when it came out in 1995
Chrysler did brag that their V10
was more fuel efficient that the GM 454 V8

Chrysler said the 5.7V8 was
8 to 12% more fuel efficient
than the Magnum 5.9V8
but the EPA tests for 2003
where both engines were offered on the same pickup
only showed it 6% more efficient
on the official highway test.
My guesses are that
2% of the gain is from the dual spark plugs of the 5.7
2% of the gain is from the 9.6 CR on a 5.7 vs 8.9CR of a 5.9
2% of the gain is from eliminating the 5.9V8 distributor and making the 5.7 oil pump and water pump drives more efficient

the 8L V10 only had a Compression Ratio of 8.4

 

yeah, dont get me wrong, i loved my V10, but it just seems like the Hemi isnt working as hard, could have been the mileage on the 10, I had like 150,000 miles on it when i traded and not all of them were easy miles! maybe it lost some compression or what not. Hemi has 3.92 gears, v10 had 3.55.

 

that would help too

 

well a few things would help the biggest being that it has a new 5sp instead of a transmission dating to the old torqueflites with better gears plus more hp from the hemi and more efficiency and the 2wd helps less weight plus u when from a 3/4ton to a 1/2 ton theres about 1000 lbs difference between them

 

Not to mention the hemi heads are completely different...and i'm sure the flow ratings are as well.

 

yeah i watched a show on when they were building the replacement for the 5.9 and they experimented with 4 valves per chlinder, 5 valves, ohv, and the hemi made 100 extra horsepower then the others

 

if a V10 is having any trouble towing trailers up slight hills
it either has bad catalytic converters (Chrysler admits they were defective)
or
the throttle valve on the 47RE auto trans is mis-adjusted
or some other problem

a 5.7 Hemi most certainly might get better MPG
but a healthy V10 should be a hill climbing 'monster'