Help me spend my modey- Dodge 2500 choices

[drewactual]

i can get to pictures from my work computer, but that's about it. google for broken ram frame alaska oil field... in the forum and thread it originally came from there are links to other situations. this, as i said prior, is the 'glaring' incident. the others vary from rusting/deteriorating in the same place this one broke, to fractures/cracks developing, to broken frames in varying severity. as i said, from my understanding, it was decided by independent inspectors (the guy had lawyers involved) to be something with the metal itself- which speaks to me of a bad lot? maybe it ends with that lot of frames... maybe it's in the design... maybe it's due to chemicals in the treatments not reacting as expected with the elements in the steel as if i'm some sort of metallurgical expert, but there it is... for me to know about it and not mention it would be remiss- and it could have easily been Ford or Chevy or even Toyota- but it happens to be Dodge/Ram, who seems to have a cult like following that defies logic.

i've never seen fanboys in a forum, even in manufacturer specific forums, like the drones here. it's friggin amazing. and i'm fresh out of fcks to give about it. out.

 

[Dalko43]

i can get to pictures from my work computer, but that's about it. google for broken ram frame alaska oil field... in the forum and thread it originally came from there are links to other situations. this, as i said prior, is the 'glaring' incident. the others vary from rusting/deteriorating in the same place this one broke, to fractures/cracks developing, to broken frames in varying severity. as i said, from my understanding, it was decided by independent inspectors (the guy had lawyers involved) to be something with the metal itself- which speaks to me of a bad lot? maybe it ends with that lot of frames... maybe it's in the design... maybe it's due to chemicals in the treatments not reacting as expected with the elements in the steel as if i'm some sort of metallurgical expert, but there it is... for me to know about it and not mention it would be remiss- and it could have easily been Ford or Chevy or even Toyota- but it happens to be Dodge/Ram, who seems to have a cult like following that defies logic.

i've never seen fanboys in a forum, even in manufacturer specific forums, like the drones here. it's friggin amazing. and i'm fresh out of fcks to give about it. out.

I'm sorry to be engaging you on this (and party I'm not), but if you're going to throw out some very strong, and very subjective, statements about Ram's durability due to a supposedly inherent design flaw, but then can't provide any links or sources for said flaw, then you shouldn't be surprised when you get some skeptical feedback.

There is nothing scientific about anecdotal evidence. Perhaps you could provide some context and information about how and where this failure happened (in the form of links or articles)? And perhaps you could do some digging through Ram's TSB's and recalls on the NHTSA's website to determine whether or not this is an isolated incident? Making broad claims about a brand's reliability because of one particular incident isn't going to earn you any credibility. There are hundreds of thousands of Ram 2500/3500's on the road throughout North America; if this type of failure were truly endemic to these vehicles, as you seemed to imply, then I would expect to hear about many more of these types of incidents. So far, this is the first time I've heard of something like this happening for no apparent reason.

 

[2025 deleted member]

i can get to pictures from my work computer, but that's about it. google for broken ram frame alaska oil field... in the forum and thread it originally came from there are links to other situations. this, as i said prior, is the 'glaring' incident. the others vary from rusting/deteriorating in the same place this one broke, to fractures/cracks developing, to broken frames in varying severity. as i said, from my understanding, it was decided by independent inspectors (the guy had lawyers involved) to be something with the metal itself- which speaks to me of a bad lot? maybe it ends with that lot of frames... maybe it's in the design... maybe it's due to chemicals in the treatments not reacting as expected with the elements in the steel as if i'm some sort of metallurgical expert, but there it is... for me to know about it and not mention it would be remiss- and it could have easily been Ford or Chevy or even Toyota- but it happens to be Dodge/Ram, who seems to have a cult like following that defies logic.

i've never seen fanboys in a forum, even in manufacturer specific forums, like the drones here. it's friggin amazing. and i'm fresh out of fcks to give about it. out.

I've seen all the manufacturers break frames. You are irrational and don't play well with others. Goodbye.

 

[Ducky's Dad]

OP is in Prescott AZ. I spend a fair amount of time in AZ, and Dodge/Ram trucks seem to be very popular with farmers in southern AZ, as opposed to Fords and Chevys in So Cal. The farmers don't throw money around, so they must know something. Re OP's proposed use for his "new" truck, the weight he is towing is a piece of cake for a Hemi with the right gearing. I have an '05 PW with the 5.7 Hemi and 4.56s standard and it is the best truck I have ever owned, so call me a Dodge fanboy if you must. I also own a GMC Z71 5.7 and a Tundra TRD 5.7. The Dodge has its flaws (crappy gas mileage a broken CD player), but it runs rings around the other two trucks. There are a lot of guys on the PW Forum running 5.7 to 6.4 Hemis, and towing much heavier loads than OP is proposing, with no issues. Diesels are nice, but expensive to buy and maintain, and it does not seem that OP really needs a diesel. Seems that the smart move would be to buy a Hemi with 4.10s.

 

[04Ram2500Hemi]

I'm on my second HD Hemi, and I love them. The first was a 2004 and now I have a 2012 Power Wagon. I'll be the first to admit the Hemi will never pull like the CTD, but if you're looking for a quality daily driver that can work when you need it, the Hemi is worth a look.

 

[Cummins_expo]

If I could haul ( bed weight) my pop up camper I would be all over the Power Wagon! Towing they have plenty of power for the other side of things. I have read up on the PW forums about the crappy payload ( flexy suspension) Also my camper is a 8' not a deal killer as I ran the same camper in a short box with the tail gate down in my 03 Cummins. But I would be overloading the PW


It is true- Do I really need a diesel - Probably not, a 2500- 4.10 would probably get the job done. There is a tread here with a guy who got rid of his Diesel because he wasn't burning it hard enough. I believe he had a cab and chassis 5500 ala AEV styling.

OP is in Prescott AZ. I spend a fair amount of time in AZ, and Dodge/Ram trucks seem to be very popular with farmers in southern AZ, as opposed to Fords and Chevys in So Cal. The farmers don't throw money around, so they must know something. Re OP's proposed use for his "new" truck, the weight he is towing is a piece of cake for a Hemi with the right gearing. I have an '05 PW with the 5.7 Hemi and 4.56s standard and it is the best truck I have ever owned, so call me a Dodge fanboy if you must. I also own a GMC Z71 5.7 and a Tundra TRD 5.7. The Dodge has its flaws (crappy gas mileage a broken CD player), but it runs rings around the other two trucks. There are a lot of guys on the PW Forum running 5.7 to 6.4 Hemis, and towing much heavier loads than OP is proposing, with no issues. Diesels are nice, but expensive to buy and maintain, and it does not seem that OP really needs a diesel. Seems that the smart move would be to buy a Hemi with 4.10s.

 

[Cummins_expo]

Sounds like your using your truck like I plan to. Thanks for the insight

Option 3: New 2500/3500 Hemi ( I have read the Hemi vs Cummins thread) Not sure how I feel about a Hemi

This will be used to daily drive, and haul my Halmark pop-up camper ( 1800 lbs) On occasion it will be used to haul campers / trailers/ 5th wheel for work.

I will also haul a 2006 Jeep on occasion behind truck and camper.. The plan is also make a run a couple of times a year down to Mexico and possibly further south ( ULSD) ???

I went through the same dilemma last year. Ended up with a 2500 ram with the 6.4 Hemi, Changed the gears out for 4.56's. This thing pulls like a beast. I pull a 10000lb Fifth wheel with a rzr and trailer behind it. I also run with a northstar TC850SC camper pulling a 17' boat. I still have my 2000 dodge cummins and what really surprised me was the mileage and power really wasn't that far apart. Granted the cummins makes its power lower in the rpm range but once you learn the new hemi it runs down the road so much nicer than the older cummins does. Now this is just my opinion on owning both, I'm not afraid of the Hemi for medium weight duties.:ylsmoke:

 

[Regcabguy]

#1 if the owner has service records,is rust free.
As much as I love the new ones,the emissions crap that the EPA has forced on the manufacturers makes them much more involved to service and repair.
Concerning the frame damage on the truck pictured,the shop I use installs Carli/Thuren suspensions on the 4th gens frequently. These guys pull hard and sporting 37's beat their trucks up pretty bad. I can't recall any frame issues.

 

[Hnoroian]

Option 3 for a DD and occasionally/ semi frequently pulling
+warranty

I have a '14 1500 ram, and wishing for a but more payload, but my brother in laws '14 2500 ram Cummings is a bit much (he wishes he got the gas) both are 4x4, crew cab, 6' bed. We both LOVE out trucks.

 

[js9234]

I had a 2011 2500 Cummins, 2012 1500 Hemi, 2012 2500 Hemi, and now a 2014 3500 Cummins since new. All were 4X4 Crew Cab Short Beds. By far my favorite is the 2014. It is my DD, Offroad vehicle, Tow Vehicle, Family Traveling Vehicle and everything in between. Never had a problem that wasn't a recall or TSB. Gets much better fuel mileage than the Hemi's. Loved the Hemi's too though. My only complaint with the 1500 was payload too. I've had a lot of experience with both and not biased but I think the Cummins is worth the little bit of extra maintenance. If I had the Hemi, I wouldn't complain and would be very happy with it, besides MPG's.

Option 3 for a DD and occasionally/ semi frequently pulling
+warranty

I have a '14 1500 ram, and wishing for a but more payload, but my brother in laws '14 2500 ram Cummings is a bit much (he wishes he got the gas) both are 4x4, crew cab, 6' bed. We both LOVE out trucks.

 

[Wilbah]

not counting repairs the mileage differential will likely mean diesel pays for itself if you keep it more than 100K miles. Less than that and the diesel wont cover the additional cost. If you are only heavy hauling a couple of times a year you might be better off with the Hemi, but you will likely feel it those times you do haul heavy. But if you keep trucks for a long time the diesel option should pay for itself with the increased gas mileage. Just my $0.02.

 

[toastyjosh]

I vote for the first option!!

 

[LimaMikeMike]

I vote for the first option, I so do miss my 06 5.9 even though I now own a 15 Powerwagon with 6.4.

As for the broken frame. I have have personally seen a cracked 13 ram 3500. It cracked near the steering box and was jigged and welded by someone the manufacturer brought in. Not a catastrophic failure like the one pictured.

 

[Cummins_expo]

A new contender in the mix- 07 aka 6.5 With the 5.9 4x4 3500 Long Bed 96k miles 1 owner full service history. I know the Hemi probably makes more sense day to day.. But for no rational reason I do love that 5.9.. I appreciate the feedback! Please keep it comming.

 

[rebelgtp]

I would go for #1 as well heck I wanna put a Cummins in my Ramcharger.