2015 Pentastar V6 Towing [SUPERCHARGER SUCCESS!]

[392DevilDog]

The latest update:

A Sprintex supercharger is on the way for this truck.

I did quite a but of research on the components and stock engine. Cooling was my primary concern, but I think that has been addressed with this kit. The twin screw compressor (rather high efficiency) and front mounted intercooler along with it's conservative boost should keep the whole system in a good temp range even on hot days.

I think I will install the RIPP coilpacks while I have everything apart but otherwise no additional changes. The torque gain is significant and begins at very low RPM. I believe it is still within the torque handling capability of the transmission.

We have some mountain driving trips coming up with a total of about 3500 miles so it will be put to the test soon. I will do a few small test drives up some local mountains ahead of time just to make sure there are no surprises when the family is counting on it. Hoping that the provided tunes behave well out of the box. It will never see anything remotely resembling aggressive or race driving - pretty much just towing and hauling.

If it has any problems, it is modest task to pull it out and go back to bone stock.

Can not wait to hear how it performs.

It is still gonna rev and selecting 3rd gear is still gonna be a good idea.

But anxious to see what it can do to the pentastar

 

[Quyonmob]

Pleaaaase post install pics and performance updates.

my only concern would be the 8hp45 trans, keep a keen eye on trans temp. The motor can handle the boost and the towing load no problem.

 

[MVM1]

I will watch this thread closely, I have similar truck and I will be pulling 4500lbs TT with it soon.

 

[Anthony Kalos]

I would definitely recommend getting another truck with the Hemi set up for towing and keeping the wife’s truck for Sunday drives !

 

[Anthony Kalos]

Anyone else thinking about the brakes on this light duty truck towing a heavyish trailer down the mountains in addition to the small engine power ???

Sounds like trouble all around to me !

 

[crash68]

Anyone else thinking about the brakes on this light duty truck towing a heavyish trailer down the mountains in addition to the small engine power ???

Sounds like trouble all around to me !

If you look up the part numbers for the brakes, you'll see all three engines use the same parts the only differences is in the cab/bed configuration. The Hemi pushes 10K lbs towing capacity, so it's definitely not a brake issues with the 3.6L. I've had 8K behind my EcoD no problems with the brakes.
Far too many people let their vehicle speed get ahead of them when going down grades then use too much brake to get it under control.

 

[engineering]

Can not wait to hear how it performs.

It is still gonna rev and selecting 3rd gear is still gonna be a good idea.

But anxious to see what it can do to the pentastar

For sure - I will take photos and offer some commentary of the result.
At the moment, I am keeping my expectations in-check.

Pleaaaase post install pics and performance updates.

my only concern would be the 8hp45 trans, keep a keen eye on trans temp. The motor can handle the boost and the towing load no problem.

Indeed - the trans is the weakest link at this point but I believe it is still inside a safe working envelope. A big part to play is how it is driven - drag starts from stop lights wont really happen other than after the initial installation to 'see what she'll do'.
Calm, easy accelerations should help keep it together. The ability for it to shed heat seems pretty good from the drives I have done so far. The temp difference between totally unloaded on a flat road and fully loaded going uphill is only a small amount. I doubt the supercharger will change that much unless I overloaded the whole truck (which I am careful not to do)

If you look up the part numbers for the brakes, you'll see all three engines use the same parts the only differences is in the cab/bed configuration. The Hemi pushes 10K lbs towing capacity, so it's definitely not a brake issues with the 3.6L. I've had 8K behind my EcoD no problems with the brakes.
Far too many people let their vehicle speed get ahead of them when going down grades then use too much brake to get it under control.

The trailer is a tandem axle with 4 wheel brakes. So far, my experiences on very steep downhill grades in Death Valley, CA were pretty good - hardly needed to touch the brakes as the engine braking almost kept it at a manageable speed. A few brief taps of the brakes was all that was needed so they remained cool and ready for any sudden stop. I have a Tekonsha P3 brake controller for the trailer so I was able to dial it in pretty well. In general, braking is rather good and the trailer takes care of a big percentage of it own weight.

 

[engineering]

I would definitely recommend getting another truck with the Hemi set up for towing and keeping the wife’s truck for Sunday drives !

When this one blows up and throws transmission gears out the side while we are in the middle of nowhere - the HEMI will be high on the list, lol.

I have come to the conclusion that a rational approach is not going to be in my best interest long-term. After building a number of street and full race cars in my youth, I am keenly aware of the rabbit hole automobile upgrades are. One thing ALWAYS leads to another, the the overall longevity diminishes as I depart from the heavily engineered and tested factory setup.

Usually I am faced with my own car and my own interests. This is a strange place for me.

At least the project will be fun - it has been a while since I have dug deep into a vehicle for mods. Kinda looking forward to it.

 

[rvance]

I've had the v6 with the 3:21 and the 3:55. The 3:55 is a lot better overall. I too tow a small trailer and after some research, I've decided to go with a 3:73 gear set.

 

[Quyonmob]

I've had the v6 with the 3:21 and the 3:55. The 3:55 is a lot better overall. I too tow a small trailer and after some research, I've decided to go with a 3:73 gear set.

3:21 to 3.73, I would just to 3.92
3:55 to 3.73, not worth it
3:55 to 3.92, barely worth it

 

[Quyonmob]

Anyone else thinking about the brakes on this light duty truck towing a heavyish trailer down the mountains in addition to the small engine power ???

Sounds like trouble all around to me !

Truck is the same as a hemi 1500. It weighs less for the same GVWR, hence the payloads on the V6 trucks being the highest.

Engine braking likely has more to do with dynamic compression over displacement or number of cylinders (within reason).

Biggest concern here is power for the hills.

 

[Neil E]

changing the rear end to 3.92 should help a lot, my 3.6 RCSB with 3.92 was rated at 7800 lbs towing. I towed a couple trailers at 4500 lbs here in WNC with no issues.

 

[Robeffy]

I am a believer in if you run things harder, they break down sooner.

The last thing I want to think about while on a vacation, or towing, is whether that hill is too steep or too long, or both. Especially when you are at the bottom of the hill.

Definitely get a trans temp gauge, and likely an extra trans oil cooler. Much cheaper than rebuilding things.

My guess is the engine will do it, as long as you drive carefully.

 

[engineering]

I am a believer in if you run things harder, they break down sooner.

The last thing I want to think about while on a vacation, or towing, is whether that hill is too steep or too long, or both. Especially when you are at the bottom of the hill.

Definitely get a trans temp gauge, and likely an extra trans oil cooler. Much cheaper than rebuilding things.

My guess is the engine will do it, as long as you drive carefully.

The truck already has a trans temp gauge and I have an OBD data logger to see what the peaks are for all the temps. Feeling reasonably confident that the stock setup will maintain a reasonable trans temp, but if it cannot - at least I will know right away.

 

[Neil E]

changing the rear end to 3.92 should help a lot, my 3.6 RCSB with 3.92 was rated at 7800 lbs towing. I towed a couple trailers at 4500 lbs here in WNC with no issues.

Actually, I had a 3.55 rear end with the 3.6, not the 3.92. We upgraded to a 2500 CC, had to go with the 4.1 rear end, as it added 3000 pounds to the tow rating.

 

[Grad12]

This has been a fantastic thread to follow. I learned a lot. I drive a 2014 V6 3.6 4x4 with 3.21 gears. We bought a tt 3 months ago for a 5000 mile trip in the summer.

My tt is 3000 lbs unloaded, I figure even all out we are 4000lbs (which is still shy of max). I was a little bit worried about how it drove. I was coming from a 1994 chev 1500 with a 305. Honestly, the by toes better than that. I got the system checked out and we should be good even at 2500 rpm for hours. I'm ready and pumped. Good luck with the sprintex!

 

[Ervin]

you could get lucky with a swap. I had a 1995 that I totaled out in a small town in Montana. Closest place to get a new truck was South Dakota, where I could get a stock trailer and truck. They came and picked me up, got a new 02 2500 white, same color. Get home and she says, you bought a new trailer?
6 months later, I'm working on the truck, she's walking back to the house and says " did you get a new tailgate?" She saw the 4X4 on the back, I said ya. Then something must have stood out as she continued walking toward the front. "Did you get a new truck? I said ya. Took six months, even took a couple trips in it. So you never know how close they pay attention.

 

[dillardgl]

My wife recently inherited a 2015 RAM 1500 3.6L V6 2WD with 3.21 rear end (9k miles). We also have a 22ft 4600lb travel trailer. When it is fully loaded with cargo and people - we are right at the sticker limits of towing and GVWR. Legal, but barely.

As anyone can guess, this is fine at sea level on flat roads in cool weather, but the V6 cannot deal with any grades or high altitude when fully loaded. This is no surprise.

Because this was handed down from my father-in-law, my wife REALLY wants to keep it and make it work for towing. So, don't bother with the typical "Get the HEMI" or "Get the Diesel". Somehow, I want to figure out how to configure this truck to better deal with towing at max weight in hills and high altitudes.

The truck needs torque. I don't really care about HP in this case. I only want to be able to hold my speed going up hill without downshifting 2-3 gears and planting the RPM's at some crazy number for long stretches. At the moment, I just slow down to a crawl to get up hills without needing WOT. Not good.

Initially, I just thought that I would change the rear-end form 3.21 to 3.92 which gets me about 22% more torque. That is pretty significant and not a ton of money - about $1200 or so.

Perhaps I could also do a performance tune, coil packs, etc. for a bit extra.

The all-in play is to get a Sprintex supercharger kit that puts the V6 into HEMI territory which would certainly solve the problem for my little trailer. The obvious downsides are the $$$ and the warranty is voided. Not sure if the 3.21 'cruising' rear gearing would be stressed. This is an option with wife's stamp of approval for her late dads truck.


Any ideas or experiences related to maximizing the 3.6L V6 Pentastar for long distance towing in hills and high-altitudes? Is just a gearing change a dramatic difference in real life? Supercharger offers a big torque gain and at very low RPM where I need it. Maybe both?

 

[dillardgl]

I started out with a 2015 crewcab 3.6 321 gearsand towed a 7k lb tow hauler. And yes it was to much Load. As far as pulling the load even up the mountains in East Tennessee it did fine actually towed probably 3k miles before I traded for a v8 . The payload was the real problem.

 

[Quyonmob]

I started out with a 2015 crewcab 3.6 321 gearsand towed a 7k lb tow hauler. And yes it was to much Load. As far as pulling the load even up the mountains in East Tennessee it did fine actually towed probably 3k miles before I traded for a v8 . The payload was the real problem.

But payload is higher on a V6 over a V8 with all other things equal.