New to diesel land, having traded in my 1500 Hemi for a '07 6sp manual 2500 Cummins. I searched for some background on recommended shift points, but couldn't seem to locate a response.

When not pulling or carrying a load, what would be the recommended shift point?I know the torque curve levels out after 1800 or so, but this seems so early to shift. Maybe I just need to adjust my mindest away from the gasser to the diesel. I appreciate the help.

 

That's a tough question because It will most likely vary from person to person. i know many guys talk about keeping it under 2k when accelerating when they are trying to get good MPG numbers but as far as a shift point when carrying a load I'm not very sure. Good question to ask though i'm very interested to hear the answers. and welcome to the diesel forum and dodge forum

 

My 04 seems to fall into gear better if I run it up to 2000rpms or better when Im towing or not. I usually start out in second unless Im hooked up to something bigWelcome to CTD Land and good luck!!!

 

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Drivin my 03 HO 6 speed, if I get on it I take it to almost redline (3200) and shift at about 3000; just puttin around usually around 24-2700. The Cummins has enough power it doesnt really matter, itll pull from off idle, especially 1200+


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my 07 5.9L / 6spd man is the same... i usually shift right @ 2100 and get @ least 17mpg (still breaking in, only 2k on her!!)

 

Our 01 we never break 2k empty but our new horsetrailer we go around 2k in 1-3 and little more in 4-6. We just need to chip/intake/exhaust so we quit makin 10mpg pulling that big thing. and some air bags

 

K the 6 speed in yours has longer legs than mine, But If you were hauling you could run up to about 2k and be ok, it'd just lug the engine a bit but not bad. Driving normal as long as your not heavy on the pedal you can shift anywhere from 1800-2200 for best mileage. I usually shift around 1900. Up on it your power curve usually dies down around 2800 I think acording to the dyno charts i've looked at so running it past that unless your topped out I don't see the point at going past that. Either way. Depends on driver to driver. I know when I hauled with mine I didn't haul a bunch but either way I always shifted around 2-2300 just getting around. Was told if you keep it around 2 you get the best mileage. Good luck. Gets used to shifting a bunch also I always start out in second. Not sure if it's bad or not. Doubt it since 1st is like a granny gear. So I figured 2nd would be like 1st and 1st would be granny low.

 

I generally shift at 2000 RPM, give or take 200 RPM. I recently read an interesting article in the Turbo Diesel Register (pg 16-18 of Feb Mar Apr 2007) that talks about the RPM "sweet spot" for different Cummins engines. The Cummins engineers did a lot of research into Brake Specific Fuel Consumption and Volumetric Efficiency, which determine where in the torque curve you get the best fuel economy. For 12-valvers it's 1600-1700 RPM, for 24-valve engines it's 1600-2000, and for high pressure common rail engines (like your 6.7L) the sweet spot is 1900-2100 RPM. For me this seems counterintuitive, because I thought that lower RPMs were generally better as long as the engine is not lugging. Ever since I read the article I have tried to maintain that RPM while cruising on the highway. It certainly has not hurt my MPG. It's hard to determine if it's helping because my MPG has been slowly increasing anywayas my new engine accumulates miles.

 

I shift at about 2000 rpm give or take a little. Straight pipe that beastso you can really hear the engine, that will help ya get used to the swap between the gas and diesel . Wait a minute, is yours a 6.7 or a 5.9?

 

Thanks for all the responses. I have the 5.9....