Hey guys, I need some help with power loss while towing. I know that most of you say that your Dakota has enough power, but mine doesn't.

I just recently bought a 16ft deep v boat with all the bells and whistles. It probably weighs about 3000 lbs. When I was pulling it home I noticed that when doing around 55 to 60 mph I had no power to increase my speed. I had the pedal pushed to the floor and the truck did not want to pick up speed. It would take quite awhile to move from 60 mph to 70 mph. There was no way I was going to pass someone, cause there was no pick up to do so. I also noticed that when going up slight inclines that the truck would lose mph even with the pedal to the floor. I talked to a Dodge dealership and they have never heard anything like this. I know a friend who has a Chevy Trailblazer and can pull a car like nothing. This only has the I6 in it. Any help or knowledge as to how your truck handles loads like this would be greatly appreciated.

A little about the truck. It is a 2005 Dodge Dakota Quad Cab 4x4 with towing package. It has the 4.7L V8 and about 38,000 miles on it.

 

4.7 HO or not? Pulling a car might be a bit easier because at 55mph the drag created by the boat is what is hindering your acceleration not its mass. I know that when I used to tow a small (3500lb) travel trailer my old ford could barely handle 100km/h up a smallish hill, but I could easily tow my 4500lb car and trailer combo up the same hill at 110.

Just some food for thought. Ever thought of getting a superchip?

 

I used to have a Tracker 16' SC that weighed almost 2300 lbs. fully loaded. I have the non-HO 4.7 and never had any trouble hitting 75 mph. Sure it slowed down going up hills but, never to the point that it didn't have anymore power.

 

Did the trans downshift at all? Did you have it in towing mode? I pull a 16' boat with no prob, although it weighs much less than yours.

 

I have a 20' 1986 boat that weighs right in at 3,000lbs. Add on the tandem trailer (about 985lbs according to manufaturer) and you are right around 4,000lbs. It's taller than my truck so it does get the wind. All this being said...my truck tows it just fine. No it's no speed demon, but I have passed other cars @ 60mph on a two lane road many times. I have the 4.7HO w/ 3.91 gears.

However....before the truck I currently have, I had a 2006 dak with the 3.7 V6 and 3.21 gears (the wussiest one you can get) and it still pulled it down the highway. It would downshift on a level road though (haha).

Unless you are over reacting to your lack of power, I would have to say something is wrong with your truck in the power department. Also............how are your wheel bearings on your trailer? Have you pulled them apart lately? See if they spin freely. Do have have surge or trailer brakes? Maybe they are 'stuck' and need adjusting. I did this with my trailer and it made a world of difference :-)

Good luck!

 

Tow mode would have helped keep it in a gear longer before trying to shift. But I towed my buddy's 22' boat, and I was rather impressed. Boat was 2250 lbs, not sure about the trailer.

But like Eric said, have you kept up with maintenance? I've seen some nasty pics of those copper plugs after 30k.

 

Yes use the Tow Mode! Tow Mode helps the truck out alot, I have run both ways, and without the Tow Mode it is somewhat sluggish, plus it will constantly shift. It still had power, but not as much as in the Tow Mode. What the other guys have said I would look into, I havent had a problem towing anything. I am not saying you cant tell you have a load on, but I havent run out of power yet

 

Sounds like it's not downshifting.

Also...the Chevy I6 is a pretty nice motor. Ward's 10 Best as a matter of fact. Your buddy's TBlazer waxes your 4.7L by about 45 HP and only gives up 15 FT-LB peak torque. If it's an '06 or later, he's got 60 HP over you. I'd much rather have that motor than my whizzy little V6.

 

The V8 is not a HO. Also I did have it in Tow/Haul mode. I did not take a look at the 30000 mile checkup yet. I got the truck with 26000 and figured that it would have been taken care of already. Anyone know what the checkup all consist of? Also what plugs do you advise putting in? I also did not notice the truck downshifting when I put the pedal down, so maybe I have a problem with the tranny. I also considered the superchip, but from what I noticed you don't benefit from it if you don't have any add-ons, like CAI, headers, exhaust. Also eric, this might sound dumb, but what are CEL's?

Thanks for all your help so far