We just bought a 1996 Dodge 1500 pickup, 6 cylinder with automatic transmission for my husband to pull his boat and 4 wheeler. He has noticed when he takes off from a stop, the back wheels seem to slip/jerk…anyone have any ideas?
Get a 4X4? that’s the usual solution for pulling a boat up the ramp.
By the way, since this is a V6 I have to ask…does it have limited slip?
Does he have a towing package option?
How heavy is tha boat + trailer?
How heavy is the 4 wheeler? 4-wheel camper I assume?
What’s the towing weight of the truck? Tung weight? Tung weight of the boat + trailer?
It does have a towing package…but this happens even when he’s not towing the boat…when he takes off from a stop. The boat/trailer is 1500 lbs. He’s wondering if it might be transmission issues.
Are the back wheels really slipping or jerking or do they just feel like they are? If they are not really slipping , you may have problems with the drive shaft joints being worn out. Need to get underneath and inspect and turn the drive shaft to see how much play is in it, Otherwise, with a limited slip differential, you may be having lockup/release issues. That requres a real mechanic to discover. Also, without trying to scare you, the rear suspensiion may be coming loose and is shifting when under a load like pulling out from a stop. Again, get under and look if there are any rust out issues with the rear suspension or any broken parts OldMotorist.
No…I don’t think they’re really slipping. I’ll have him get under it and see if he can see anything apparent. Thanks for the info.