Dodge RAM 2500 reliability as expedition vehicle vs. others?

[Blade76]

Hi guys

I just got back from 3.5 year ovelanding from Canada to Patagonia. More on our homepage: www.pawsontour.com

We drove in a Toyota Landcruiser HZJ75 and although the car was a frame off resto with low mileage engine/trans I changed about every part on this damn car during this trip and I also learned that Toyota has the most expensive prices and worst stock policy that you can expect. I NEVER got any part I needed (except oil and fuel filters), not even easy parts as a brake cylinder, axle gasket, axle seals or leafs ALTHOUGH this was in countries were every 10 car was a 7series! I always imported things from Europe! So I am pretty much done with Toyota. I could even say I hate Toyota and after 120'000km I can say this car is no better than any other if not worst, although all Toyota drivers love it, no matter if they blew up 3 transmissions or cracked 2 axlehousings like a friend of mine. He still loves his HZJ78.

Anyway, looking at the options I can't find too many good options! I want a car that is much stronger and faster, comfortable, diesel, ok mileage: the HZJ7x is horrible slow and has a very bad mileage. A friend has a 2005 RAM 2500 with a european style cabin as I have on the J7.
He loves his RAM and told me it is way better than my J7 when it comes to comfort, mileage and also says it's very reliable.
The Automatic 48RE is no problem for me, I did rebuilt about 100 of it's brother (727 and 904), so this trans I know VERY well and am probably one of the few persons in Europe that knows LOTS about this trans.
I am talking more about in general, wheter this car will frustrate me as the Toyota did or if it's also a good car to go offroading and reliable?
I do 98% of the works on car myself btw. I never let touch any mechanic my car or I probably would still be stuck somewhere in south america. So mechanic skills is not an issue.

Any opinions?

 

[gtbensley]

Are you talking diesel Ram 2500?

 

[Blade76]

sorry yes... 5.9 Diesel from 2004.5 - 2006 with 48RE.

 

[verdesardog]

I bought my 06 Ram CTD with about 80k miles, I think the previous owner knew something was not right with it. I lost an injector on my first long distance road trip. Since then I have used a mix of 2 stroke oil and diesel kleen, 2 oil/1 diesel kleen. I also added a 2 micron fuel filter after the OEM filter and have had no problems since. Of course there are other things besides engines that need attention. I put Carli ball joints and a free spin kit. The truck now has about 140k miles. This is one of the two nicest vehicles I have owned. I don't know about taking off around the world with it though, it does need ultra low sulpher fuel.

 

[Rocinante]

I bought an 04.5 CTD brand new in 2004 and drove it for ten years, including a lot of use in rough terrain. Nothing required but routine maintenance, no mechanical failures. Just replaced it with a 2014 CTD, which I hope will be as reliable. The only reason I replaced it was because it was a standard cab and I have two children now, so I need back seats. I have also owned various Toyotas over the years. In my personal experience, my Dodge has actually been more reliable than the Toyotas, contrary to conventional wisdom. I think the emissions control equipment that requires ULSD were actually introduced in 2008. You are correct to look for the 5.9 if your intention is to use it in the developing world - the current model emissions control equipment makes the truck basically unusable in areas where ULSD is not available.

I think these heavy duty full sized trucks would be a great platform for camper builds, because they are engineered to carry a lot of weight from the factory. One of the keys to long term reliability with a vehicle, particularly when subjecting it to use in very rough conditions, is to keep it loaded well below the factory GVWR. It seems like a lot of builds on here are setup to maximize off road performance - big tires, lifts, heavy bumpers, etc. These type of modifications are great for off road exploring, but they greatly increases the stresses on the vehicle, and are going to increase the likelihood of failure in prolonged use. I think for extended rough travel (i.e. overlanding), it is better for the design to be more geared towards durability, which usually means keeping things closer to the stock configuration.

These Dodges do have a few disadvantages, however. They are VERY large, which makes them more challenging in tight off road conditions and also in crowded urban environments. There are also many parts of the world where I think it would be difficult to source parts for them. I am currently living in West Africa (my truck is not here with me). I have not seen a single Dodge here (or anywhere I have been in Africa, for that matter.) If I was planning to overland in Africa, I would seriously consider using a Toyota - or possibly a global Ford Ranger.

 

[2025 deleted member]

I would get the nicest low mileage 2006 you can afford, and one that some hillbilly hasn't put a "tuner" on. I had a 2006 and loved it. It was that last of the fairly basic diesels.

sorry yes... 5.9 Diesel from 2004.5 - 2006 with 48RE.

 

[Blade76]

yes, Sam & Erica who made ioverlander (we traveled at the same time) had no sulfur issues as much as I know. In Latinamerica we had up to 2000ppm of sulfur! I think this will work up to 2006 as was mentioned above. After that not!

That's why I bought a Toyota back then, thinking that I can get all parts, NOT! Out of 10 parts I got 1 if I was lucky, all the others they could always get yes, but ALWAYS 40-60days delivery time and the prices were ridicoulous!
For example, a simple brake cylinder that costs around 54$ from Toyota (that already is a rip-off!) did cost in Panama 155$ and in Bolivia with TONS of J7 they had zero in stock in the whole country. Sure, I would have found chinese somewhere, but I would expect more from Toyota! Same with lots of other parts I needed over the years like seals, gaskets etc. they NEVER had anything in stock! So parts availability I don't see that tight anymore. Most of the time you have to order it from home anyway, if Toyota or Dodge just that you pay 3x more for Toyota.

 

[MT6bt]

i've owned my dodge for 3 years now, and am overall pleased with its abilities. it's a 98 with a 47re 12 valve cummins. I believe the original owner reinforced the transmission with an upgraded TC, and other than that, I am not sure what he did. but at 208k, It's still doing fairly well...for an auto. although recently, the transmission has been having a hard time shifting and actually has stalled itself several times. so, I'm not sure what the cause of this is but when this tranny goes out, I'll be looking to swap out for a manual.
it's one of the two things I dislike most about this truck: the AT has a tendency to lock out way too soon under load, causing my RPMs to drop to a dangerously low rate. This in turn causes dangerously high EGTs and if I hadn't an EGT gauge, I probably would've blown the turbo multiple times over the last few years.
Aside from the transmission, my only other issue has been the front end. they are junk....the power steering gear box receives too much lateral pressure on the sector shaft which will destroy the box....this can be remedied by a steering box brace.
Basically if you rebuild the whole front end with HD components, you've got yourself a much more reliable rig.
It does quite well offroad for its size, however. As long as you don't mind pinstriping, that is!

 

[cationmoted]

If you want a toyota landcruiser with a bullet proof driveline you get a Nissan Patrol with a 4.2 diesel. Stronger axles, stronger trans, etc. etc. etc.
If you don't mind the size of the dodge, 5.9 cummins are great motors with lots of power.
You won't look back with either.

 

[MT6bt]

If you want a toyota landcruiser with a bullet proof driveline you get a Nissan Patrol with a 4.2 diesel. Stronger axles, stronger trans, etc. etc. etc.
If you don't mind the size of the dodge, 5.9 cummins are great motors with lots of power.
You won't look back with either.

This would be my dream SUV. I love the beefiness of those older patrols!

 

[dbandel]

I have the 2007 Dodge Ram Mega Cab which I bought new right off the lot with 8 miles on the odometer. It now has 130,000 trouble-free miles. I have done nothing other than routine maintenance (and body work where I've smashed it into rocks/trees/deer, but that doesn't count!) I've always been a "Ford guy" but I must admit that the Dodge was a good choice for me.

I do hope you realize you are comparing "Apples to Oranges" between a Ram 2500 diesel and your old Toyota. The 5.9L Cummins alone weighs 1100 lbs, dry, so the amount of "beef" needed to make a Ram "off-roadable" is exponentially higher.

-David

 

[Blade76]

thanks for the infos guys!

So who of you guys did offroad stuff like we did last months? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcI0bsemdpk
Will a 2500 RAM Diesel perform better since it has more power but also more weight?!
We love to go offroading, but the 4.2 Diesel on the Toyota is just too weak at 3.5tons or more car weight!
I realize that the RAM (looking at an Single Cab version, remove the bed and put a cabin on it) is also at 4 to 4.5tons, but we had 3.6-3.8tons with our Toyota too but only 130Horsepower!
We did also other stuff as seen on our video channel. Will a RAM make me happy?

Somehow not apples to oranges... both cars are big, the RAM little bit wider and heavier yes, but not really a lot than my slow Toyota with 5.6meter (18.3feet) and 3.6-3.8tons!

 

[bloodyWEST]

I think one of the biggest reasons for comfort is cabin size, and tire size. You can put 35" or larger tires on most fullsize trucks with little or no modification. My dodge is about 7500 pounds and I run my tires at 25 psi all day long and they ride so so nice.

The turning radius is the biggest downfall I think. Unless you are in thick Forrest, you can usually just plow through the narrow places and take the pin striping. Going forward is fine, but actually turning around is difficult.

In regards to the front axles and steering, I've had pretty good luck with mine. And yes depending on luck/driving style and usage they may need a lot of work, but it's not likely to fail on you on a trip. The steering just gets sloppy.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[406expo]

we have a 5.9 ram and its a great truck. Other than normal maintinance stuff havent had much else go wrong that was major. The dash got pretty bad cracks and also the plastic handle thing on the a-pillar got replaced and a few electrical window switches. But all that said we like the truck quite a bit.

Between our ford 7.3 super duty and the dodge 5.9 I like daily driving the 5.9 and towing with the ford. That 7.3 international is a beast when were towing an excavator or tractor, cant say the turbo on the 5.9 performs as well under those circumstances. But every truck has led a different life and has different issues so who knows.

 

[mobob]

I just finished a Colorado trip with my Raptor, a stock 2014 Jeep (4dr), and a brand new 2015 PowerWagon. I was extremely impressed by the Powerwagon in stock form. It climbed like a goat and rides very nice with the new suspension. It was probably the best riding 3/4 ton I have spent time in. The 6.4 mileage was about the same as the Raptor's 6.2 and both suck down the gas off-roading but 14-15mpg is doable on the highways between trails. If weight capacity was a concern of mine and I had the time to do more expeditioning, I would probably trade my Raptor for the Powerwagon.