Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives Anybody running one of the new Dodge Power Wagons ?

E,
Depends on if you are buying a new or used 4x4. If buying used, I looked for about 8 months and found a low mileage mint Power Wagon at a reasonable cost, with warranty coverage till 2013.
If you are slightly interested in a PW, you should search one out in your area and take it for a test drive. I would only buy a '06 to '09 year, the '05s do not have the tow/haul button, a feature I really like. I do not care for the 2010 and 2011 PW looks, but to each his own.

No problem. ProCharger kits are available for every PW if your wallet can digest it. Challenger kits are available for up to and beyond 700 HP.

I have a Raptor and it won't do what a Power Wagon will do, particularly in the hauling department, BUT, a Power Wagon won't do what a Raptor will do for higher speed offroad work either. I'd like to have one of each!

I have a 2009 1500 4x4 automatic 5 speed with a 5.7 hemi. The gas mileage is as claimed. Cal74 was not impressed with the power under load. He must be a hard man to impress, or "that" truck had issues. I regularly haul 2 atvs, sometimes 3. And several times a year, fire wood. and there is power to spare. My thought is if Dodge put the same consideration to the P.W. as they did the 1500 {5.7 hemi} it would be an outstanding truck! Do your homework and buy the truck for "your" needs and budget. Good luck!

It looks to me like the Raptor is set up along the lines of a desert race truck with the special shocks etc. I imagine it is a lot lighter than the Power Wagon.

I imagine a Power Wagon with the right lift kit might come close to a Raptor in a high speed situation. There are outfits in California that sell lift kits for the Dodge diesels that are geared for dune jumping etc. Expensive, rear spring packs with more and thinner leafs that reduce load capacity some but help ride and handling substantially, and the longer shocks.

It's nice to see ther Raptor out as a crew cab this year, but now the only engine choice is the 6.2, which I imagine has quite an appetite. Seems like the EcoBoost engine would be a good candidate for the Raptor.

A Powerwagon with a supercharger sounds interesting. Superchargers usually provide power down low, which is what the Hemi lacks. I wonder how fuel mileage is affected by putting bigger tires on the Powerwagon, as low as the gears are 35s might actuallly help mileage.

Ford lists the weight of a king cab Raptor at 6000 lbs. The Dodge PW is listed between 6400-6700 lbs.
The Raptor has alot more than shocks to make it work and hold up. The track is 7 inches wider, the whole front end is modified and beefed up, and the wheel travel is greatly increased. The rear locking axle stays locked at speed, etc.
While this is all good, there is no way I'd consider driving any where in the desert that way. Even if I drove the route before hand. All it takes is one bad call, or one bad rock, and you are rolling over or you have broken something. In a wide open wash, or a well groomed desert road, fine. I've done a fair amount of that in my current 4 cyl. Jeep.
I don't think I'll buy a Raptor just yet. I want to see how they hold up in the hands of John Q public.
But, I must admit, they sure look interesting.
OK, the truth might be that I might be tempted...... E

That's the problem with the Hemi. No low end grunt.

That's what the 4.56 diff ratios and the auto trans are for. E

Going on two years.... no probs.

How much high speed off roadfing have you done with it ? E

A fair amount. You think it's just GOT to come apart but it just eats it all up. You have to adjust your limits a bit. Whoops, bumps and dips that make you pucker just get turned into no big deal. Terrain that would dismantle most other trucks is downright enjoyable. I blitzed out to towards Knik Glacier one day faster than I could believe. Just keep driving faster and faster and when you finally start banging off of the stops (way way higher speeds than you'd believe), back off a little and keep on going.

The truck sits low and wide too. On sidehills and high speed offroad work it inspires confidence. With a lot of trucks, to fit 35s in it, it's sky high. Not so with the Raptor. It was built with them in mind.

Another great feature is that you can engage the locker in 2wd high and turn ALL of the nannies off. This enables you to completely steer with the throttle. You can kick the rear end out and do high speed drifts as if you'd been schooled for it.

I haven't seen evidence of the bed hitting the cab. I was kind of worried about that after my first trip off road.

But, like I said, I sure wish that I had a Power Wagon too.

I've taken a few friends out with me and not kidding, their response is the same. They're completely white knuckling the grab bar, grinning ear to ear, and giggling like a ten year old on a roller coaster ride.

I did think that I'd wadded it up once. I had it in a high speed drift about 50-60mph and launched it sideways over one of those berms that the motoxers cut into the flats at Jim Creek. We really thought it was over for the truck. It just sucked it up and drove out of it. Amazing.

I do have the 5.4. It will shift up and bog. The 6.2 will not do this. But, if I play the throttle right, I can avoid the upshift that seems to irk most guys off road.

I've had a tranny problem. There was stuff in the valving that they cleaned out. I kind of thought that that would lead to more problems because we all know that's not supposed to happen unless there's some sort of malfeasance going on in there but after they flushed the tranny, it's been great.

One thing, the truck is wide. Most trails have their way with the paint. I've got nice pinstriping now. Dang it.

I think if they made a micro Raptor out of the Ranger with the new Ecoboost engine in it, with a front locker, they'd sell like Obama stickers did to Subaru owners in 2008!

Very interesting. That extra wide is great for extra upright stability, but it makes for problems in tight places. The ability to hold up at speed means she's built extra tough for ordinary use. Another plus.
Did you see where Dodge is offering the parts to make an even "better/badder" off road racer out of a Dodge 1500 ? For a mere $20,000, you can have an even "better" designed and built Dodge 1500. Or you can pick and choose jusr which parts appeal to you. Looks like the race is on !
Thanks for sharing. E

Where I work, we have quite a few power wagons and man alive, do we use them. One thing I like about them, is you have to BURY them to get them stuck.

One thing I DONT like, is the suspension seems awfully soft. Take a turn quick, or hit a bump that is on one side of the truck and the entire cab/truck seems to sway back and forth dramitically. I dont care for that.

That an odd comment. They are just as load capable as the other Dodge 2500's. I drive an '06, 2500 which is not like that at all.
Are the Power Wagons were you work the recent models, like the 09-11 versions or are they the older versions ? E

From 2009 to 2011.

Interesting. Thanks. E

Hey guys am considering selling my 2007 Power wagon. Has 60,000 miles, g56 6-speed, and a ton of extras. It will be listed in the classifieds soon and will also be listed on Denver Craigslist. Pm if you or anyone are interested. Hate to sell the truck but i cannot afford it at this time.

The power wagon standard cab/manual makes a great snow plow rig. Wish i had one. In 07 when i was looking to buy a new truck. I looked for a power wagon standard cab. I would have to special order it with months of wait time. $38,500 was the price. On the lot in town where 2 standard cab diesel trucks. 6speed and auto. I wrote the check for the auto trans diesel slt for $34,000 put a warn winch reciever hitch/gaurd on the front for $950 and it has been a great truck. The diesel has locking rear limited slip front. gets better milage off road in low range than the power wagon gets on the highway. Its only real faults are ground clearance and weight. 19mpg on the highway is nice also. Still wish a had a powerwagon standard cab for work/snow plow

What did it cost you to have the locking rear and limited slip front diffs installed ? E

The 07 dodge diesel 4x4 comes with locking rear/limited slip front. The power wagon comes with optional air lockers front and rear 456 gears.