Dodge Ram 5.7 Power Wagon questions

[redthies]

I’ve owned a lot of Dodge trucks over the years, and only one was a gasser. A 2nd gen 2500 with a 5.9 in it. Dana 60s front and rear, quad cab. It was a great truck. I have always had a soft spot for the Power Wagons, and find myself wanting one. I’m looking at a couple of options, both of which are in the 250k mile range. Both have had a ton of work done. Full front ends, AC, brakes, tires etc etc are within 2500 miles on both trucks. Both have also had their engines replaced. One is a 2005 with 150k on a used engine (running very strong), and priced at $5,700 and the other is a 2013 with a bit more work done (winch rebuilt with new synthetic rope, onboard air plus more) with a new crate engine that now has 65k on it for $10,000.

I’ve owned multiple ‘05s with 5.9 Cummins in them, and a ‘14 with 6.7 Cummins. I know the trucks well. What I DON’T know, is why do the 5.7s in the 2500s all seem to go bad?? There are 9 grillion 1500s with 5.7s in them running around with no major issues. Well, some have issues of course, but it seems the failure rate in the 2500s is significantly higher. What gives? Are the internals different?

With the choices above, which would you lean towards? There is enough money left on the ‘05 to buy a new long block if the current engine fails. The ‘13 is the last year with leaves in the rear and an actual useful payload. The $4500 difference would go a long way on other project vehicles I have. The truck will be a hunting/work rig with the occasional trip to tow customer trailers (6,000 lb max) a few hours from our main shop to our second shop.

Thanks for the insight you might have.

 

[Wildcat]

maybe in the 2500 they get worked harder than getting groceries and taking kids to soccer practice? just a guess though.

 

[Jupiter58]

That’s not really an overlanding question. More of a question to ask in an old hemi 2500 forum where you will likely have a larger pool of experience. You are likely to only get a handful of folks with real experience for those years of trucks, a dozen who will just guess and three dozen to tell you that your crazy and you should only be looking at flathead ford trucks with three speed transmissions because that was the height of reliable technology.

 

[jgallo1]

I’ve owned a lot of Dodge trucks over the years, and only one was a gasser. A 2nd gen 2500 with a 5.9 in it. Dana 60s front and rear, quad cab. It was a great truck. I have always had a soft spot for the Power Wagons, and find myself wanting one. I’m looking at a couple of options, both of which are in the 250k mile range. Both have had a ton of work done. Full front ends, AC, brakes, tires etc etc are within 2500 miles on both trucks. Both have also had their engines replaced. One is a 2005 with 150k on a used engine (running very strong), and priced at $5,700 and the other is a 2013 with a bit more work done (winch rebuilt with new synthetic rope, onboard air plus more) with a new crate engine that now has 65k on it for $10,000.

I’ve owned multiple ‘05s with 5.9 Cummins in them, and a ‘14 with 6.7 Cummins. I know the trucks well. What I DON’T know, is why do the 5.7s in the 2500s all seem to go bad?? There are 9 grillion 1500s with 5.7s in them running around with no major issues. Well, some have issues of course, but it seems the failure rate in the 2500s is significantly higher. What gives? Are the internals different?

With the choices above, which would you lean towards? There is enough money left on the ‘05 to buy a new long block if the current engine fails. The ‘13 is the last year with leaves in the rear and an actual useful payload. The $4500 difference would go a long way on other project vehicles I have. The truck will be a hunting/work rig with the occasional trip to tow customer trailers (6,000 lb max) a few hours from our main shop to our second shop.

Thanks for the insight you might have.

I also have a soft spot for the 3rd gen power wagons .