# Found My First Drawback To The Diesel



## sleecjr (Mar 24, 2006)

OK so me and the wife went for a drive on the beach on sunday. I have done this lots of times. With my hemi, I gould go anywhere and never had worry. It is not the same with the diesel! This thing is like a brick in the water. It struggled A LOT! I never got stuck, but there were many close calls. I never thought the two trucks would be so much different off road. Do you think the weight is the difference?







Both were 4 door 4x4 short bed.


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## huntr70 (Jul 8, 2005)

Weight would be one of them.

I have found that the diesel is also very torquey when trying to crawl slowly.

In other words, there is less throttle massaging to get the truck to move. Mine wants to spin the tires in wet grass and mud more quickly than my gasser did.

Steve


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## jgheesling (Sep 28, 2004)

I always rent a vehicle when I want to ride on the beach; I like to keep the salt of MY truck. We go to Daytona and it's fun to rent one of the Dune Buggies or jeep and ride. Cheaper than my own truck rusting out before I wear out the diesel engine.

I also agree with the weight issue, and torque, my truck weight is about 7200 # compared to my gas weight was about 6100#


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## Above & Beyond (May 20, 2006)

The stock tires on most 3/4 Ton trucks usually have a narrow profile & more of a highway tread along with the extra weight. One of the first things i do is get rid of the stock tires for some nice A/T oversized tires. With 2wd I pulled out of the mud a Ford crew cab long bed oh and i forgot to mention that it was pulling a 30 tt @ about 11,000lbs. Tires make a huge differnce also mine has a autolocker rear end The ford had a standard diff.


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## jlbabb28 (Feb 27, 2006)

I spend a lot of time on the California beaches riding and such. Diesel are in general not a good sand performer. When we go I have to pull a lot of trailers in the sandy spots cause the diesels just bury. I think it has a alot to do with RPM's. A gasser such as the Hemi can grab high RPM's in a hurry and sustain that rpm to keep your forward motion.

Diesels have a diffrent redline and they cant spool up as fast for instant power.

my 2cents

Jeff


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## MattS (Oct 15, 2006)

> Diesel are in general not a good sand performer. When we go I have to pull a lot of trailers in the sandy spots cause the diesels just bury.


I don't know- I've seen a whole bunch of them at the top of Olds at Glamis









They are heavy, thats for sure!


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## GlenninTexas (Aug 11, 2004)

Heavy!

wait till you try jacking up the front end - quite a workout even with a good floor jack.

Regards, Glenn


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## jlbabb28 (Feb 27, 2006)

MattS said:


> > Diesel are in general not a good sand performer. When we go I have to pull a lot of trailers in the sandy spots cause the diesels just bury.
> 
> 
> I don't know- I've seen a whole bunch of them at the top of Olds at Glamis
> ...


Did they have trailer behind them at the top?

I knew I should have kept this one to myself.

Jeff


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## chetlenox (Feb 3, 2004)

I'm with Todd, double check the tire difference between your old and new truck. I know I can tell a huge difference in off-road and snow/ice conditions with my Bridgestone Dueler Revos as compared to the Firestones that came stock.

That being said, yeah, that diesel motor is heavy...









Chet.


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## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

I believe the Diesel engine itself is considerably heavier in weight than a gas engine.


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## Fire44 (Mar 6, 2005)

I found this topic interesting and decided to do some work on it.

I built a GM, Ford, and Dodge...all reg cab base model 2wd pickups with no options with the standard gas engine and automatic transmission. Then I rebuilt the same truck with the available diesel engine/automatic transmission option.

GM the diesel upgrade added 626 pounds to the truck

Ford the diesel upgrade added 642 pounds to the truck

Dodge the diesel upgrade added 766 pounds to the truck

Gary


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## mountainlady56 (Feb 13, 2006)

The diesel's front end is CONSIDERABLY more heavy than a gasser. That's why the tow hooks are on the front end of the diesel truck, according to my dealership and the wrecker service I had to use when I got the front-end stuck in the ditch.















I'm with the guy that rents something to ride on the beach. That's alot of money to risk scratching the paint and getting sand in the motor!!
Darlene


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## NJMikeC (Mar 29, 2006)

I'll chime in too as I hopefully can add some value.

You guys who correctly noted the tires got it so right!

Torque is torque and if you apply it correctly (tires, rear end) a diesel will always perform in any pulling condition better then gas.

A testament to a diesel that I saw was pulling a guy's truck and boat out of the Delaware river. Current grabbed the boat and the truck went with it. No Gasser around could pull it because they didn't have the torque. That included a wrecker with dualies. They hit the go pedal and then just spun, e.g. the difference between torque and HP. My friends Cummins Dodge yanked it out barely hitting 1800 RPM. So the lesson is a gas motor doesn't have the torque instead you hit the pedal and try to rely on HP which just ends up spinning the wheels.


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## jlbabb28 (Feb 27, 2006)

I agree with your stements however slow speed in sand = sink. when driving on the beach it's momentum, if you can get the forward momentum you have it made.

This post was about driving in the sand and I drive in a lot of sand, the rules do change a bit. Turbo lag is the killer in the sand because when your waiting for the turbo to build TQ&HP you have gotten close to stuck if not stuck.

Mash the gas on a high widing fast reving gas motor and you can pick up the momentum you need faster, thats all I am saying. I love diesels I will own one if the need comes up for a daily driver and not just a pull truck.

Jeff


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## NJMikeC (Mar 29, 2006)

Jeff,

I believe your confussing a Turbo in a Gas Engine vs. a Diesel. Do you see turbo's on every bulldozer? Nope, torque is already inherent in a diesel engine. I bet though you see them on every highway rig though, correct? Trucks want the HP which allows them to keep up the highway speed, HP=rate or speed, torque= acceleration.


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## huntr70 (Jul 8, 2005)

Sand driving?????

Buy big, wide tires and air them down.

The more they float over top, the better.

Stock tires are typically skinny in the tread for increased mileage.

Steve


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