m1009 pulling m101a3 over Rockies

[cucv newbie]

Planning a November Rocky Mountain Elk hunting trip. My route will take me from Denver to Rifle Colorado up I-70, over two rather daunting passes! Then a 20 mile off-road trek at low speed. I want to use my m1009 to pull an M101A3 trailer with an '01 Yamaha Grizzly 600 4x4 ATV on the trailer (plus hunting gear). The 1009 has 37x12.50x16.5 Hummer tires with GM steel wheels(Using 4-6" lift?). A 14 bolt rear with 4.11 gears and a Detroit Locker with disc brakes. The front is a Dana 44 with 4.11 gears as well. Can the 6.2L handle this? Planning for an aux trans. cooler. Any suggestions?

 

[wkbrdngsnw]

When towing a trans cooler is always a good idea when towing. With the stock 6.2 your looking at a whole 160 horsepower on a good day at sea level. My 1009 stock would barely do 40 mph empty. I'm guessing that weighs an additional 2000 lb so best case scenario based on weight and hp is around 47 mph. Thats at 3000 rpm though and your gear combination may not allow you to say in that range.

On mine, even with a new radiator it runs around 215 when pulling. I would recommend both a engine temp gauge and a pyrometer to keep from overheating it. The stock temp sensor is useless, when it turns on at 240 its already to late. End result answer is it will get there as long as it doesn't get too hot, its just a question of how slow it will be. After doing that once you'll be looking for a turbo. Turbocharged it will do around 55 mph with that amount of weight.

Also, take US6 out of golden to Idaho springs and at least you'll miss the first climb.

 

[Recovry4x4]

The 6.2 will be better off with your 4.10 gears and 37" tires than the stock 31" tires and 3.08 gears. At 60 MPH your RPMs will be around 250 higher with your current setup. Lack of air on the mountain passes will add up but it adds up on everything. Given enough time the 6.2 can do the job.

 

[BKubu]

My brother in law once used an M1009 to tow a enclosed Uhaul trailer with a bunch of beercans (he collects and sells old beercans) from MD to Pittsburgh, PA. He had to cross several mountains...fairly large by our standards, but nothing compared to what you are talking about. His truck overheated! I was not in the truck to see how he was driving, so it could have been exacerbated by driver error, but I concur with adding an after market tranny cooler. That is a good amount of weight to tow over that size mountain with that gearing. I am sure you could do it, but you would definitely have to take it slow. GTood luck.

 

[Grega]

You may be okay if the trailer isnt tarped.

 

[Sharecropper]

Having made that same trip more times than I can remember over the past 43 years, I would recommend a transmission cooler at least. The air at Eisenhour Tunnel is thin, and without a turbo you will be running kinda slow going up. The 09 will make it, but in the far right lane.

You hunting White River National Forest?

 

[wallew]

I concur. I've driven my M1009 up that route many times. By the time you get to Eisenhower Tunnel you will be very slow with that load. MAKE SURE YOUR FLASHERS WORK. Tuck in behind a very slow semi and you should make it.

Now, realize you are driving a 25+ year old truck. How are the brakes? Have you replaced them recently? How's the tranny? Recently rebuilt? How's the IP? Don't want it to give out and leave you on the side of the road. Plus make sure your radiator is in tip top shape for the same reason.

There is NO REASON your truck won't make this trip. But you will be putting a strain on it by going up and over the 10K ft level. And that drop from the Tunnel down to Breckenridge is a real whizzer WITH good brakes NOT towing anything. And if it's SNOWING?

Memory serves, elk season is basically late November, right? So you do have a chance of snow, especially above about 8K feet.

Just things to think about.

 

[cucv newbie]

Thanks guys! I knew the SS family would help. Ok so, I will be installing a trans cooler, trans. temp. gauge, pyrometer and leave the tarp in the truck until we go off road. I will also take US 6 to Idaho Springs. Sharecropper... Yes we have been hunting the Flat-Tops area of White River NF for over 15 years. This where the largest Rocky Mountain Elk herd roams!

 

[MuleMac01]

Don't load the M101A3 with it's max load and when you go up the mountain keep your engine RPMS up high to keep the water moving this means down shifting after you lose speed.. you wont be going fast prob 25- 35 mphs..Also dont force the engine to more work then need'ed because it wont. this means passing a slow truck your not going to win any races
I gone up the I-5 grape vine alot of times with a M101 trailer and if you dont push it and let the engine and the gears do the work you'll be fine

 

[cucv newbie]

Can anyone tell me what temps.(trans., exhaust, and engine?) would call for a pull over and

cool off?? Also, should I monitor engine oil temp. or water temp.?? Having a gauge is one

thing, but...knowing what to do with those readings is another. I'm sorry but, I'm new at

all of this CUCV / diesel engine stuff. But I am ready and willing to learn,

and I value everyone's opinions / experiences. Thanks!!

 

[MtnDuece]

I live on the other side of the passes Glenwood springs 5,600ft it snows in October so be prepared also u don't want to drive fast on that stretch in November

 

[Jerchambers]

I just made it from Craig over Rabbit Ears and Cameron Passes to Ft Collins and back. The only problem was Rabbit Ears I was in 2nd a few time to keep it at 45mph. This was without any load behind. I was a little sketchy but it made it.

 

[Gunfreak25]

A few tips! Swap out that intake for a HMMWV intake. It has an 1 giant open plenum with no divider inside so the engine can suck air in easier. I would also flip your air cleaner lid over. It will make a lot more noise, but your freeing up even more air.

You said you are new to diesels. It doesn't get any easier. Diesels do not meter air, there is no "throttle plate" like on a gas engine and there is no vacuum. A diesel engine will suck in as much or as little air as it needs for the given power requirement (ie where you foot is!!).

Now you hear everyone talking about "turning the fuel up" on a diesel engine. Remember, if you want to burn more fuel the engine is going to need more air. It's pretty simple, the problem comes when you start seeing smoke out the tailpipe. The engine is running rich because it can no longer suck in enough air on it's own to completely burn all the fuel your feeding it, so your seeing fuel go out the tailpipe.

This is where a turbo comes into play. It uses the exhaust flow to turn the turbo turbine (another air compressor) to litereally suck and force more air into the engine. It's also called forced induction. This new flow of extra air allows you to burn more completely at high altitudes because you are making up for the thinner air with simply more air. Back in the old days of semi's and turbo's they were actually called altitude compensators and were really never designed to add power at sea level.

Then someone figured out if your engine is seeing more air than it can make use of at sea level you can add more fuel for more power. Now look where we are at today, 20 year olds driving cummins equipped vehicles around who think it's fun to "smoke people out" at stoplights with a big thick black cloud of unburned fuel.

Anyway, I am not a turbo guy. I prefer naturally aspirated. Especially on a 6.2 which will last it's longest when you use it for what it was designed to do which was deliver acceptable power but excellent mileage.

Back to the air intake mods. Doing the above mods will free up more air to flow into your engine thereby making for more complete combustion, more power and better mileage. Do some google searches and you'll find the results are pretty impressive. Not as much as adding a turbo, but definitely an improvement over the restrictive factory intake.

 

[Tow4]

You won't have any trouble finding a slow semi in the right lane to follow up at Eisenhower tunnel. Just don't flog it if you get suck behind a slower than you want to go truck by trying to go around it. It's best to grit your teeth and go slow.

 

[wkbrdngsnw]

Warning light temp is around 240 degrees F but the generally accepted temp for do not exceed is 215 F.

Pyrometer temp should be kept around 1000 and never exceed 1100-1200.

I remember reading somewhere trans temp was somewhere around 250-275 but that's just what I think I remember.

 

[cucv newbie]

Ok, Ok, I'll stop hitting the thank button on the posts. But seriously thanks! Keep 'em coming.

 

[Gunfreak25]

No problem with the thanks button. That's what it's for, and few forums have it. It encourages people to make useful and informative posts rather than just post to build up a useless post count.

 

[cucv newbie]

Hey Gunfreak, where would a guy find a HMMWV (6.5?) intake manifold? Also, how can I tell if my injector pump has been "turned up"? My truck had been worked on quite a bit by the previous owner. My diesel mechanic buddy says, I should turn the screw on the injector pump. Not sure??

 

[Sharecropper]

I believe you can obtain a HMMWV intake from GimpyRob or Popacom

 

[Gunfreak25]

Oh boy, not sure how to check if the fuel has been screwed with at all. Does it smoke at all under normal everyday driving conditions? If not you should be free to turn it up an 1/8 of a turn. Go to youtube and type in 6.2 fuel turn up as well as google. There are a bunch of tutorials and even some how to videos. Pretty easy, I have not touched mine and don't intend to. Really don't want to go more than a 1/8 without a pryometer to monitor exhaust temps. I would stop right when you start to see a slight amount of smoke out the tailpipe.

Then after you do the above intake mods it should clear right up again because your getting more air into the engine. There are a bunch of HMMWV intakes on ebay but check the sources Sharecropper just posted. They are not very expensive and are easy to install. I do believe you need to modify your air cleaner with the addition of a riser since the HMMWV intake sits considerably lower. I made mine out of a piece of coffee can which has ridges so it is every bit as strong as the rest of the air cleaner. I then welded it all the way around which was not easy because the metal was so thin. I then went around the seam of the weld on the exterior with a high temp high grade epoxy resin to keep things 100% air tight. When painted all up it looks really nice. Others use sections of PVC pipe, and you will need to make longer studs for the air cleaner. I can post the details on that later if you would like I do not remember the thread size off the top of my head.

Notice I am not giving you ALL of the info you need. Some degree of searching on your behalf is required.