jlb85

I had the opportunity to get a new truck as long as it was a 2008 Dodge that was "in dealer inventory", for a very good price, so i took it! I figured if I needed to get a towing vehicle, might as well get something that would do a god job of it, and a little more. Decided early on I was going to be a Diesel since I've never had a Diesel before but have always been very interested, and wanted to get some hands on experience. Looked at the Ram 2500, but they look so tall and skinny. The 3500 with the dual rear wheels and fender flares makes the truck look better balanced IMO, and add some payload potential. Since I would be towing more people than payload I wanted the Mega Cab. I wanted to get as good fuel economy as possible, so I opted for a manual trans. I prefer the rack and pinion steering and lower ride height, and the lower friction of the 4x2, but I knew I would have trouble driving it in Michigan's winters. Since I plan to tow during warmer weather I decided on the 4x2. This particular one was the only one I found anywhere in the US with the power seats, leather wheel, Infinity stereo with cloth seats and a manual trans in 4x2 in inventory. So silver it would be. I purchased the truck over the phone with Greenville Dodge/Chrysler out of Greenville, Texas. They were great to deal with, honored all my discounts and vouchers, and really made it easy on my part. I would fly down to Texas, pick it up, and drive it back to Michigan, but I would not be able to pick up the truck until after final exams.

So I was finally able to get to Texas to pick up the truck Friday. Just got back to Michigan a few hours ago (Sunday). So it took about 1300 miles, 3 tanks of gas, and 19 hours driving (stopped overnight in Memphis and Indianapolis). This is one big truck! 24 feet long makes for very difficult maneuvering in parking structures. But I love it! Definitely something special about driving something this massive.

According to my trip computer, I was getting anywhere from 14 to 19 mpg (moving average measuring) while on cruise. At 70 mph I was getting 18 to 19, but going up to 80 it dropped to 14 to 15. Not bad for a truck. I will get more "official" numbers as soon as I get back outside to read the odometer and fill up again to see just how much fuel was left. I know there are some tricks to get it solidly into the low 20's, but I have not decided what direction to take it yet (start on some interior mods, or keep it a pure towing machine, CNG, 22" wheels, too many options and not enough funds, lol). And given it is a 4x2 and the weather here is pretty crappy, I probably won't drive it much these next few months. Which also means I will not be able to detail it until then either Short term plan is some Menzerna massaging with Zaino/Souveran and definitely tinted windows.

Anyways, here are some quick pics when I picked it up on Friday

Matt_ks_001

Is that a short shifter!!!

Carbon Blue

awesome truck! I love diesels, add a few mods and youll be pulling 20,000lbs and 11 second quarter miles easy! hahaha. How much did you pick it up for if you dont mind me asking?

MuttGrunt

dude thats sick bro. a dualy? geeze. talk about the anti-s2k
look forward to seeing you around in the near future, and i'll surely PM u if i need to move anything big

-marc

jlb85

LOL!!

I wonder if there is a kit out there somewhere... Travel from first to second must be about a foot. I can take off from standstill in any of the first 3 gears, which helps to reduce the fatigue from shifting so far

jlb85

Sticker was around $49k with the options. After al the discounts and incentives it was $32k. I had a voucher for $25k i threw at it as well, so paid around $9k out of pocket with taxes and plates and all.

I still need to sell my other truck to make the $9k back I have it on ebay right now...

jlb85

Hey Marc, sure thing! Or to tow the S to the track or something. You got my cell?

BTW, wanna help detail this thing once spring comes around

krshultz

Dude. That thing is effing HUGE!

You're going to love it. I had a 2001 Excursion with the 7.3L Power Stroke diesel. It was a fantastic vehicle. There's nothing quite like going down the road on that endless wave of torque.

Your MPG should get a bit better as the engine breaks in.

What are you towing with it? Race car?

MuttGrunt

not only am i down with that, but i look forward to it! i have several things i'm looking forward to trying

can't wait for the spring!

i guess we'll just have to have a get together to get our cars taken care of

jlb85

Yep, although the "race" car, not really a race car just a track bitch going to open track days and drift events.

And thats what I've heard about the MPG, so looking forward to it! They also say if I delete the Diesel Particulate Filter I can gain even more while extending durability, so I might do that in the meantime. Break in is like 40,000 miles!