Passing etiquette....

Yes, on the newer engines, on my ISX I will be in 10th gear running 64 MPH and hit a hill and lug down to 1,000 RPM but I do not down shift. If it is a steep hill and I know I'm not going to be able to stay in 10th gear without falling on my face, I down shift. So yes, you can lug these new engines at 1,000 RPM. Keep in mind, the only reason I don't down shift by the time I get to 1,000 I'm almost cresting the hill. All the while, I have the cruise control set.

The Series 60 is an unforgiving engine when you try to pull anything like that, it doesn't like to be lugged. The 8v71N is a turd, expect 10-15 MPH on a good hill, the 6V92T is better, I can do 25-35 on comparable hills. Run them to hot, the engine is toast. I love two stroke Detroits, but they are a leisure engine now a days.

Cummings is not what you call a Cummins engine. It's CUMMINS. I've driven an N14, 370 HP. Felt like as gutless as the Mack E7 motor. The only power I felt was on the C15/C12 CATS and Series 60 Detroit. Some of these Series 60's are turned down, get one set at 515 HP and no progressive shifting and it will move.

I've never driven an N14 in the mountains, just a few mile test drive, that's it. Not a bad engine. Better than the ISM.

 

One other thing, Drivers. That's schedule and hours. I don't like to lift, but I do if there's traffic. It's the responsible thing to do. But if I'm going short of time and have a certain number of minutes left to drive my stop, I'm less likely to lift.

Sorry. One other one other thing. Some drivers just think about the pass itself, and don't spend much time looking ahead to the road conditions. If a driver has a heavy load and knows he's slowing on a hill, what's he doing when he pulls out, stalls, then gets upset? He knew. I hope no one thinks some other is supposed to lift and let them clear the hammer lane. We all know where that is. It's good driving to plan a pass for road conditions. This happens a lot, you know? It's not like it's rocket science or astrophysics.