Howdy, click on the "thumbnail".....I think it will give you a better pic.

I traded my high mileage '01 7.3L diesel Ford Excursion for a "04, Ram 2500, XLT, 4x4, quad cab, LB, 70K miles. I've always read good things about this engine so I jumped to the other team! This won't be a DD, mostly be used for truck purposes, recreational towing, hauling or family trips. What a great truck, I'm looking forward to my ownership.
I have a couple questions:

1) When I hit the tow button does it just keep from shifting into OD or does it also change the shifting pattern?

2)The owers manual says it is OK to run regular, non-synthetic 15w-40 oil above 0 degrees. I have always read to follow the owers manual on oil recomendations. Thoughts on that?

3)On the tailgate it says "Heavyduty". Are all 2500's "heavyduty" or is there really something extra with that?

4)Does anybody know where there is a good reference for HP and torque comparisons between different yrs of truck and different brands also.

5)What sort of MPG's can I expect out of a stock truck with my grampa style of driving?

Thanks for any input.
Tom

 

I think I have some of your answers anyway.
1) Tow/Haul only changes the shifting pattern. If you have an o/d off that actually shuts the o/d off
2) I run regular 15w-40 out of our 30 gal tractor oil barrels and I have no problems
3) I believe all Dodge 2500s are heavy duty (others correct me if I'm wrong)
4) I don't have a specific site but I know they're out there
5) With your truck being already broke in you should have no problems getting 20 mpg on the highway with no towing and depending on your towing weight 12-15mpg towing

 

Congrats on your first cummins you will love it!

 

Congrats on the new to you truck. It looks sharp.

I have the manual trans so I haven't paid a lot of attention to how the auto operates. Where I live it rarely gets below the teens in the winter but I still change out my oil to 5w40 synthetic oil for the winter. Probably not needed according to the manual, but it makes me feel better, and my manual also says it's ok to run the 5w40 syn in warmer temps so it won't hurt it. I also believe all 3rd gen ('03 -present) 2500 trucks are "heavy duty" badged. You can find out the HP rating for your engine on the drivers side of the valve cover. There you will find a white sticker with the engine serial number and HP and other data on it. I have a quad cab long bed 4x4 like you and I routinely get 18 -20 mpg empty and 9-13 towing my 9600lb camper.

I think you will be very pleasantly surprised when you tow with it the first time.

Welcome to the club.

 

nice truck bro

 

Nice truck I myself don't use synthetic anymore. I used it for about 30 mins drained it. I didn't like my oil dropping off at warm idle in gear. I use 15w40 rotella should have never tried changing it.
What year of truck do you have 2004 or 2004.5? 2004.5 has a different Hp rating @ 325hp. where the 2004 models 305hp or 320hp. To get the correct Hp on your engine the tag where nickbeek told you to look it will say what HP rating you have.

 

Thanks for the comments!

I have the 305HP, early '04. I would of liked to bought the little higher HP but that also means a later model and more money usually. Being the tight wad that I am, I don't usually buy this nice of a vehicle but felt like I got great bang for my buck! A bigger issue would of been just finding a 5.9L with the higher HP, I was amazed how few "gently" used HD diesel trucks are out on the market.

 

Ahhhhhhh, gentle is just a matter of perception.

My truck is used gently, to me.

 

Congrats on the new truck.

 

It don't matter what engine you have its still a Dodge with a Cummins engine
Dodge makes it Cummins shakes it.