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Grill Air flow


Red_5

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I was looking at the very large openings on my '15 SLT grill and was wondering if it had better air flow than a Denali grill for instance. I like the looks of the Denali grills, thought about upgrading the grill, but I wouldn't want to reduce air flow through the various heat exchangers while towing.

 

Before buying my truck I was thinking about a Ram Eco diesel and I was on one of their forums. One of the aftermarket tuner types mentioned that the different grills from different trim levels didn't flow as well as others and the Eco diesel needs all the cooling help it can get while towing.

 

Looking at several of the aftermarket grills, they seem to reduce air flow over the SLT grill too.

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Cooling is part of establishing the tow rating.

 

There should be less cheating on ratings now that they are all using the sae rating method.

 

Denali 1500 is not offered with a Max Tow package.

 

(but you can get a Denali 2500 or 3500 or 3500dually)

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Some aftermarket grills certainly could be a problem, but the Denali grill is fine. If you look closely and compare, it's at least as open as many of the various Chevy grills. If you want to improve airflow to the radiator while towing, the best way to do it is a custom tune that turns the fans on more aggressively.

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Some aftermarket grills certainly could be a problem, but the Denali grill is fine. If you look closely and compare, it's at least as open as many of the various Chevy grills. If you want to improve airflow to the radiator while towing, the best way to do it is a custom tune that turns the fans on more aggressively.

What I would mind is the appearance and better protection of the Denali grill but I don't want to hurt cooling. I haven't towed with this truck yet so much don't have a baseline to compare. I was hoping someone here already knew the answer.

 

Does turning up the fan speed help at freeway speeds or only in traffic?

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Is transmission cooling a problem while towing with 1500s?

Yes and no. more cooling wont hurt when towing in the summer, but the new trucks have a low temp bypass thermostat in the trans cooling circuit. It will not start cooling the fluid until it reaches a minimum operating temperature. Older trucks you can throw a big ass cooler in and then have over cooling issues in winter (i did and dont really have a winter).
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Does turning up the fan speed help at freeway speeds or only in traffic?

 

As long as you're not going over 130 MPH or so, the fan helps a bunch.

 

 

Is transmission cooling a problem while towing with 1500s?

 

A couple people have gotten warnings for high transmission fluid temps but it's pretty rare. IIRC all have been with 5.3's and the stock cooling system. Long 2nd gear pulls up hills heats things up more quickly than staying in 3rd gear (easier to do with the 6.2). Better fan settings and a lower temp thermostat will take care of it.

 

However, that was for the 6-speed. I'm not aware of anybody having issues with the 8-speed though it hasn't been available with the 5.3 very long.

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