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At 01:14 AM 12/24/98 -0500, you wrote:
>A V10 Durango would be stupid. Who would by these trucks? Probably less
I ask myself "who would buy that?" for most of the vehicles I see on
the road today! ;-) To each his own I guess. Look at it this way...
At least they're stuffing a big engine into a great vehicle, rather than
coming out with some Kia-like tiny mini-ute. :-)
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The original statement was made as if "One truck fit all". It really
doesn't matter WHY they are doing it. Companies don't go around spending
bunches of dollars for giggles. Daimler-Chrysler obviously feels there is a
market for this kind of SUV. I would also bet that they will translate what
they learn down into the Dakota.
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>people than the Viper. This truck would not be as fast as the Viper and
>probably more expensive so who is the target market? Plus considering it
>probably is the truck V10 and not the vipers it gets about 9 mpg. Who want
>that if you don't need the towing capabilities of the engine. It sounds
great
>in theory but than so does communism. This is a totally impractical truck.
>Chrysler should just stick with the SP Durango if the rumor is even true.
Yep, this truck probably wouldn't appeal to the "speed" faction,
especially since it probably would be the truck V10. (actually, the Durango
in general probably doesn't...) But some people just want the biggest engine
they can get... :-) Also, I think the Durango can already tow something
like 7,000lbs, so the V10 would probably jack that number up even more. A
great alternative for a family that needs a lot of seating or cargo room
(they're immediately limited to a minivan or sport ute), but also needs to
tow some big stuff.
This vehicle would be perfect for someone needing a lot of seating
room who is faced with the possibility of having to buy another
vehicle just to tow a large boat or something.
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Your logic here seems fine but even you Jon are forgetting something:
torque rules the streets. A 1-ton duelly with a V10, automatic, a 3.55
rearend, and minor mods would waste even the fastest Dak on the list here.
Those snarling beasts have almost 400ft lbs of torque :stock: AT AN IDLE.
They also out horsepower the Daks by a lot. They don't weigh much more so
their power to weight ratios are better than ours. The power curve on the
truck V10 is the flattest I've ever seen on a truck motor.
I've watched a 1 ton V10 lay down a patch of rubber that would make most
power fiends drool. Remember: that's a hell of a footprint those trucks have
and they can still out distance our daks in a rubber laying contest. The one
I watched had the duelly wheels removed and replaced with a custom set of mags
that ran a racing tire the entire width of the old set of 2 tires.
Just because the engine is iron, uses pushrods instead of overhead cams,
and is in a truck doesn't mean it's any less of an engine. The Viper motor
pushes the Viper around very nicely, but put a 15,000lb trailer behind it and
watch it self destruct. It's a delicate motor that has some well know
problems (like insufficient oil circulation). The V-10 truck motor is solid
as a rock and is basically a 318/360 with 2 more cylinders tacked on. I'd
trade in my V-8 for a V-10 any day of the week. I certainly wouldn't be
losing much gas mileage compared to what my truck swallows now.
The towing limitation on a Durango/Dakota would be when the frame snapped
under the load... it would be an interesting truck to drive. Not to mention,
the sound alone would be enough to frighten other street-rods... Would it
beat a Viper? Not likely, but every other car and truck would be bowing to
it's presence on the asphault.
Shaun H.
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