Well we have decided to take a 2000 mile road trip to destination Oregon to see the Red Woods. While I'll be towing my trailer (7,300lbs) and this will be in August so I want to do some maintenance on the truck to make it worthy.


1. I want a bigger/better radiator?????? Mines with aux cooler.
2. I want a different tune for the PCM?????
3. Fan????
4. I need a heater core.
5. I'm going for a Hypertech High Flow 180 T-stat.

Shipping will be to zip 84337 (home).

Anything else, questions and comments?

 

I put a new intake on my D with pretty good results while towing.. my city gas mpg dropped a bit but as well as the very low end torque. 0-1500 rpm about.. but when your towing, your normally in the 1500+ range.. the intake i put on was the Hughes F1 intake.. their claims on gas mileage are pretty bs but it was the most noticeable upgrade i did to my truck.. It feels good to pass cars while pulling your boat... pm me if you got any questions.. I don't really like plugging too much on the open forum..

 

i don't think that the fan will be very helpful unless you are stuck in traffic because ythe fan generally doesnt do anything while you are moving at highway speed. a bigger rad is a good idea anytime. a towing tune for the pcm also a good idea. the heater core will give you more coolant capacity if nothing else. the engine will run at operating temp no matter what t-stat you use it will just take longer to get there.

 

I was thinking of the intake, I'll go M1 but thanks for bringing that up. I remember our chat now.

I need to do the heater core because it's leaking. As for the radiator, I want a larger core than OEM but can't find em? Wondering if anyone knows of one?

Going with a 180 F Hi-Flow as I have a regular 180 now but I was running high temps in the fall after my Yellowstone pull. It was about 95+ outside and the engine really felt it. As the temps climbed you felt the engine lag really bad so my main concern is to keep it more cooler. Not exactly sure of the temp as the gauge is off but I bet I was running in the 210-220 range (without A/C being on) which is way too high! If I can get a higher coolant flow and better temp reduction that should combat the board over 30 engine.

 

when putting in your intake manifold you should grab up a new water temp sensor.. the fan clutch should be controlled by the PCM and be able to crank hard when the engine warms up to that temp.. i also kinda suggest it because i stripped mine while putting in my intake.. but thats just from working to fast on the install..

 

I already replaced the sensor.

The fan clutch is controlled by temperature.

VISCOUS FAN/DRIVE
The thermal viscous fan drive (Fig. 13)(Fig. 14) is a
silicone-fluid- filled coupling used to connect the fan
blades to the water pump shaft. The coupling allows
the fan to be driven in a normal manner. This is
done at low engine speeds while limiting the top
speed of the fan to a predetermined maximum level
at higher engine speeds.
A thermostatic bimetallic spring coil is located on
the front face of the viscous fan drive unit (Fig. 14).
This spring coil reacts to the temperature of the radiator
discharge air. It engages the viscous fan drive
for higher fan speed if the air temperature from the
radiator rises above a certain point. Until additional
engine cooling is necessary, the fan will remain at a
reduced rpm regardless of engine speed.
Only when sufficient heat is present, will the viscous
fan drive engage. This is when the air flowing
through the radiator core causes a reaction to the
bimetallic coil. It then increases fan speed to provide
the necessary additional engine cooling.
Once the engine has cooled, the radiator discharge
temperature will drop. The bimetallic coil again
reacts and the fan speed is reduced to the previous
disengaged speed.



Anyway does anyone know of a good radiator?

 

I'm looking for input, advice, or experience with regards to a Gen 1 Durango / 5.9 / 3.92 / Tow Pkg, and towing capacity, specifically related to the tongue weight. I've read tons of stuff on the 7300 lb towing limit, and that's fine. My issue is really around the tongue/hitch weight.

So, vehicles rated 7300 GVWR w/ 700lb max tongue weight. That's not much at the tongue quite frankly. I'm looking at purchasing a small toy hauler, 18-21', which will weigh in somewhere between 4000-5500 lb dry. By the time I add water, fuel and a few bikes, we're going to be pretty close to the 7000lb mark. But, that tongue weight's going to spike pretty good. Can control some of it with how I load the bikes (dirt bikes in front, quads in the back, etc.), but I think the water tanks tend to be upfront since that's where the kitchen and bathroom are. 100ga tank at 8.3lb/ga, let's just say that they tongue now weighs 1000-1500 lb, well over the tongue weight rating.

Ok, that's the setup... so the questions....

Is the tongue weight rating based on:
-physical downforce (the sag in the rear suspsension and lifting the front end of the Durango?
-the maximum hitch capacity?
-something else?

If it's hitch capacity, can that be overcome by welding it to the frame and not relying 100% on the attachment bolts? Can I replace the original hitch and receiver with something more substantial to overcome that 700 lb rating?

If it's the sag/lift on the truck itself, can I overcome that through the use of a weight distributing hitch setup? What about installing air-bag assist on the leaf springs? What about doing both? Is that overkill, or cause any kind of problems?

What other options are there, or concerns that should be noted? Obviously one concern is the 1st Gen D front brakes, but I'm in the midst of gathering parts for a big-brake upgrade to 03/04 2nd Gen D specs, so that should be a lot better about 4 days from now.

Any input would be appreciated. Surely someone must have a toy hauler or equivalent weight towing setup that could share the experience.... Bueller... Bueller...?

 

Look in the trailer cuboard usually around the sink and you will find a sticker telling you your loaded GVWR and your dry GVWR. See what it says before you start going off that way you don't over think what you need.


And yes, there are many options. Look here https://dodgeforum.com/forum/1st-gen...wers-faqs.html under Towing and Gearing

 

LOL... thanks for that link, I actually found your own post with your towing setup, which sounds like exactly what I was planning, the weight distributing hitch, plus the air bags, and the shift kit.

I guess the two other questions I have, and I can't seem to get a handle on these from the various threads, is whether I have a Class III or IV receiver, and whether or not I've got a factory transmission cooler. The vehicle did come with the tow package (supposedly). Hitch receiver installed, 7-wire plug attached, came with the blue-brake controller harness, etc. But, I can't find under the dash where that harness would plug in, and I can't identify anywhere on the hitch itself where it says whether it's a Class III or IV. Any help here?

Also, I popped the hood, and it seems from what I've read that if it had a factory tranny cooler it should have been on the lower front right of the radiator from what I've read, but there's nothing there (?).

 

Make sure you have the 3.92 gearing cause it does sound like you have the factory tow package. You can look under the hood in the PDC fuse panel for the Tow relays.

You should have the IV receiver if you have the tow package and 392 gearing.


The transmission cooler is located between the condenser and the radiator. If you open the hood there is a little rubber strip between the two. Look under this strip with a flash light and see if there is a transmission cooler.

As for the lil light blue harness plug in, it is very high above the emergency brake but on the fire wall side and above the white (I think "white") plugs behind there. Get a flash light and look carefully!