Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives Ram's Cummins engines - which one?

I'm seriously thinking about getting one of these newer Ram diesel trucks, probably in the 2500 model. I'm thinking about the 5.9 over the 6.7 but would like to hear the pros and cons of both.

I've got several buddies that have either the 2500 or the 3500 and the mileage they get on those rigs is astounding, even when towing heavy loads. Biggest thing I plan on towing might be an enclosed trailer loaded with 4 sleds and fuel.

How much newer? They quit the 5.9 in early '07.
At least from late '07 on, the only difference between the 2500 and 3500 is the springs. All the bearings, hubs, brakes, etc are the same.

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/9711322/all/2012_Ram_Cummins_deletes

Anything newer than 2007.5 will need to have this done to make them run right,and be reliable.
Mike

The 5.9 pre emissions engine ('03-'04.5) was I think, the most economical when pulling. The current 6.7's, 2013 and on are really good on fuel when running light, but use more when towing. My '03 would consistently get 2-3mpg better (hand calculated) with a load behind it than my '14, but the new one will do low 20's without a load on the highway if I stay below 70. In terms of simplicity, the 5.9 is better, but getting harder to find in good shape or with low miles.

Seriously leaning towards the 5.9 in a 2500. There are some on the Alaska CL but damn are they spendy.

My friend that I rode to Arctic Man with has a 3500 with the 5.9, was pulling an 8k lb. camper with 2 sleds on a sledbed on his truck plus fuel and he was passing people like they were standing still.

I'd have to say he was getting somewhere around 12 mpg and he had a heavy foot.

There are pluses and minuses to both. The 68RFE auto in the 6.7's is a lot better transmission than the 47/48RE in the 5.9's. If you want a manual the later 5.9's and 6.7's have the G56 with the dual mass flywheel, the older NV4500's and NV5600's were superior. Then there's the rest of the truck, later is better in almost all regards.

I think the best overall setup is one built in the last couple of years with a DPF delete.

I can't think of a reason to buy a 2500, get a SRW 3500 if you don't want duals. Pre-2003 the 2500 could be had with the camper special package which gave heavier springs, in 2003 they started calling it the 3500 SRW. The diesel engine is heavy so that comes off the max weight rating. If you've got a 4 door 4x4 2500 then you'll have a surprisingly small payload capacity because of it, at least on paper.

I have an '08 with a manual. That flywheel failed at 80k. I had it replaced with an upgrade that the manufacturer says will last the life of the truck.

Used truck prices are rediculous, but new truck prices are even worse. The key is finding a 5.9 that doesn't have a ton of miles and that hasn't been chipped and the tranny abused.

The one thing to be aware of on the rams is once you hit 100k +/- the front end joints will need a rebuild and that's $2k+, the front diff will probably need new bearings $1.5k and if/when a front hub goes out that's over $500 per side. A round about way of saying in the past year I've dropped ~$5k into the front end of my '06 2500. And when one of the front hubs goes out, it can be a hairy experience.



From mild vibration to being an rch away from loosing my wheel in less than 5 miles. Not a big deal when it happens in town during the summer, would more than suck if it happened in the middle of winter in the middle of nowhere.

If you could get a new base model truck for $40k or under I'd give that serious consideration vs. a used truck for $20k given the potential to have to drop some serious coin in the front end on a high mileage vehicle.

So if I found a used truck with all that front end work done already, what kind of mileage should I be looking for when it comes to used diesels?

The engine will outlast the truck. If you find a clean one with 120-130k at the right price I wouldn't balk. Personally I'd be shy of something approaching 200k as you'd be looking at that front end work again and likely small things here and there would start crapping out.

Definitely don't want to go much over 100k and have found a few in that ballpark. Does the 3500 have the same issues at 100k miles with the front end like the 2500 does?

Yes.

To be fair, if you can turn a wrench, the front wheel bearing/hub is $132 (plus $45 shipping). Ball joints will run you $200 total. Steering components can get more expensive, because they'll kill you on shipping. There aint no magic to it, just a lot of cussing.

After having replaced front cv joints and bearings in my wifes wagon, I'd had my share of busted knuckles and colorful language so chose to throw money at the problem. That and I was in the middle of moving so didn't have the space, time or inclination to mess with it.

Wasn't meaning to insult your mechanical skills (as I'm sure you know)

I've been known to send the wife's car (Rav4) to the dealership, or at least wish I had. It was clearly built by midgets.

I'm smart enough to run a hammer and am half-qualified with a wrench. Ratchets baffle me, but I'm taking an online course and expect to be certified on those and SAE sockets by the end of this semester. If I can do it, anybody can.

I've been turning wrench's for close to 35 years and I'm not afraid of getting dirty.

I do all the maintenance on my F250, Rhino, 2 Honda wheelers, 4 sleds and the wife's MGB so I tend to stay busy. As long as I have the right tools on hand I can pretty much fix anything mechanical or electrical (not computerized related stuff unfortunately).

I haven't decided yet if I want to spend the money on something like this since I still have a shop to build at the house and a cabin to build up north. Now should a real good deal present itself then maybe...

Their diesels might get better mileage, but with the higher cost of fuel, they won't save anything. You aren't towing anything heavy enough to warrant a diesel. I think you'd be better off staying with gas.

I do like the 1500 with the 5.7 Hemi but gas mileage is atrocious. I know how expensive it can get to own a diesel, which is why I haven't owned one up to this point. And gas is going back up in price so me wanting a new truck may have just been put on the back burner.

In Alaska the price disparity between diesel in gas is about minimal, currently somewhere between 10-20 cents/gallon. Not sure why it's tightened up as in years past diesel was much more expensive.

As far as using a 3/4 or 1 ton diesel to a tow a load that could be handled by a 1/2 ton gasser, there is something to be said for having more than enough truck than just enough truck. While an enclosed sled trailer might not be a terribly heavy load, you are pushing a lot of air out of the way and have to contend with some serious windage. Not a fun feeling to have the tail wagging the dog and the added weight of a diesel truck and the added torque make for a much more relaxing drive.

I have a 2006 5.9l 4x4 with 54,000 miles. It is the 4 door with 8 foot bed. I get around 19-20 mpg highway and when I tow my 29' toy hauler it drops to 11-12 mpg. The key is staying under 2000 rpm. So far no mechanical issues. Tom

Sorry to hear that, bud. Toyotas are metric.