6 speed or auto

[RibbleConstruction]

Some of you know I have been looking for something with more payload capacity.The sales guy called today. Said he can make me a hell of a deal on a 05. Its the one ton quad cab. i have 2 to choose from. The differences are only slight. Color and a few little things. One has a 6 speed and one has an auto. Both are CTD. I have the auto right now. Not any problems with it. But I have heard that the 6 speed is better for the money. Also if I take the 6 speed I can get it for $1500 less. I need this truck soon so I will decide soon. Can anyone tell me if I will regret the 6 speed. I will regularly pull about 13k with it. And I think the auto can handle that well. Thanks for the info.

[Honest Mike]

I think you will get alot of mixed opinions on this. I personally like an automatic better, less to do, especially for snowplowing...not sure if you plan on doing plowing or not with this new truck, or just pulling. I like a stick in a sports car, and an auto in a truck, maybe thats just me. You may get sick and tired of the stick after owning it a while, and wish you had the auto, but you really need to decide that one on your own. I think both will get the job done as far as pulling...and for plowing, like I said above, auto for me. Plus after a long days work, its nice to not have to drive a stick on the way home...especially if you catch traffic...on a hill. :rolling Id give it alot of thought before you drop all that money on either one. Good luck either way! Mike :)

[wyldman]

Buy whatever you want,and are comfortable with.They both will work fine.

[BASIC]

I had much the same choice over the summer.I had a 99 F-350 PSD with a 6 speed that had a few problems with the trans.The manual trans in the Dodge is a new one from MB.At the suggestion of the majority of the guys on the forum I bought the auto,though I haven't plowed with it yet this year,I'm very happy with it,I like the Dodge much better than the Ford.Good luck.

[Mowerpan]

I would personally go for the 6 speed. Lot easier and cheaper to put a new clutch in that it is to rebuilt an automatic transmission. Plus the stick will keep you awake:P

[Pelican]

I've got mixed feelings. For plowing, the automatic sure is convenient, especially if you are doing driveways or parking lots. But, if the majority of the annual work is heavy towing, I might opt for the 6 speed. I opted for the 6 speed in my 550 because of the amount of heavy work it would be doing. I think Nebraska is fairly flat if I recall my geography correctly, but around here we can pull 1 mile steep grades every 10 miles. That puts a lot of heat into a tranny.

[Mowerpan]

Plus In most of the diesels I've driven you don't need to feather the clutch as they have plenty of torque so you wouldn't really wear out the clutch plowing, as you can just dump the clutch quickly.

[RibbleConstruction]

Heres the thing. In mississippi it is $2.00/ pound over the weight ticket. They HiPo looks at the sticker on the door. They weigh your axle. Then figure it at $2 per pound over. Plus court costs. Ect ect. I plan to be here a while. If i had a house right now I would buy a trailer. The truck that I have is on 05 with only 19k miles on it. But since I have to haul those loads. Notice I said have to. I need a solution. And I can get a one ton for a reasonable cost. I will more then pay for it. Just for example a 25sq roof pays $500 per roof just for delivery. So you do 8 roofs a month and i think I can justify it. I just dont want to get busted like everyone else here is. There was one guy who had 20 sq in a halfton. He made the news fror what not to do. DO the math thats 5500lbs in a halfton. The truck has a trailer hooked to it half of its life. When we pull the camper to wash state we go through the mountains. I think we are talkin 13k for the trailer when it is loaded. So in my opinion either one will work. Just want to know how fast you guys get tired of shifting. My last truck was a 5 speed. I said that I would never own one again. Then I bought the auto and I found myself missing the manual. Im going to talk to the salesman on monday. If the numbers are right I might get the 6speed.

[wyldman]

Just want to know how fast you guys get tired of shifting. My last truck was a 5 speed. I said that I would never own one again. Then I bought the auto and I found myself missing the manual.

It gets tiring in a hurry.There are times when I'd like to have a manual,but it's few and far between.When plowing,a manual gets old in a hurry.

I think you answered you own question,in saying your last truck was a 5 speed,and you would never own one again.I know you also said when you bought the auto,you missed the manual,but I think the first statement outweights the second.

[Honest Mike]

I couldnt have said it any better...Chris is right (isnt he always??). :D Like I said before though, this is something you really need to figure out on your own, you will be the one living with the final decision, not us. I think from reading your posts you want the automatic, but are afraid you will miss the fun of driving a stick. Driving stick is fun, I agree, but not in a work truck, sports car yes definitely, but in my opinion, not in your everyday work vehicle. Test drive both and take each one home for a day or two, if they let you, and see which one suits your syle better. Mike :waving

[Pelican]

I respectfully disagree. There are applications where a standard transmission does a better job. If the truck is used for casual driving and plowing, then I'd agree an automatic is the way to go, but for frequent heavy work I still believe a standard is the way to go. You have a better selection of gearing to optimize the output of the engine, and you control that selection rather than the truck.

As I mentioned before, extensive heavy work will build heat that a OEM tranny will have trouble with. My first dump truck had an automatic in it, I used to stop at the bottom of a long grade and shift the transfer case to low to pull the hill with a load just to take some work off the engine. Even so my tranny blew at 33,000 miles.

I don't see shifting as a lot of work, except when plowing driveways or lots. On the roads I plow the standard works out fine, especially with central hydraulics. I can pick the gear that holds the rpm I need for the spreader to work correctly. A standard requires a little skill however and if your driver is unskilled, you may be better off with the auto. I drove 10 speeds for 20 years, maybe that's why my 6 speed doesn't bother me.

[RibbleConstruction]

I think I have decided if the 6 speed is available at the price he is quoting then I will bite. Heres the deal, they are gonna give me $31500 for mine. Then sell me the new one for $33600. The way I see it is that its gonna cost me about $2000. If i went with the auto it would be $1500 more. And I can upgrade to a one ton and a leather and gps and satelite radio. So I guess 2 grand is gonna get me a bunch of stuff I dont need(who really needs heated seats). And its gonna keep me from gettin a huge ticket. All I would have to be is 1000lbs over wieght and the ticket would have bought this truck. And 1000lbs is only 4 sq of roofing. Im going to talk to him tomorrow. I will let ya know.

Pelican- This truck will be worked. I appreciate your comments. Probably going to have a load in it or pulling a trailer 80% of its life.