I have a 3500 cab/chassis on order with the plan of a flatbed hard side camper build. I may put a popup in there temporarily as the hard sided options are booked out over a year. Reading about 2500 and 3500 Rams on this forum and trying to fit 37x12.5" tires it looks like there are three options. Carli, Thuren, AEV. I am hearing mixed info on the different lifts, but that is not the nature if this post. The post (at this point) is about options to fit the above tire size into this build.
It looks like the cab/chassis has some lift fitment issues. A call to AEV tech says their lift does not fit the cab chassis. No real explanation, more of a, "it won't fit, so get off my line so I can help someone else" answer. The funny thing is that Mario at AT Overland has a 3500 cab/chassis with 41s on it and an AEV lift. Perhaps this has something to do with it being a Gen 4.5 vs. Gen 4 Ram, but didn't get far enough with AEV tech to find out.
A call to Carli met no response and a VM. I'll try again later, but see below for a response from one of their retailers.
A call to CJC indicated that I may be able to use a leveling kit instead of lift kit, but pics are required to confirm. The call quality was crap, and there were constant interruptions, so it was a bit frustrating, but this is the gist of it. I won't have the truck until the beginning of July, so ordering the leveling kit through them in advance will have to wait. Carli Leveling kit is essentially a 2" coil lift up front, a 1" spacer out back, and a shock/steering track bar package. Then they say you can fit 37 x 12.5 with an AEV wheel (or similar offset), liner trimming, and pinch weld cutting. I like the AEV Salta wheels anyway, so that could work for me.
Here is the rough build info, as I don't know what items may be pertinent, along with the why of some of my choices for this build.
-'22 3500 single rear wheel, quad cab, cab/chassis, 60" C/A
-8' x 80" wide aluminum flatbed, no headache rack (plan to use a tunnel box for storage that will serve double duty as a headache rack, need the most storage from the tunnel box and a few inches counts here)
-SO Cummins - no real towing, so 800plus ft/lb seems more than adequate for my purposes
-Aisin HD transmission (lower first few gears to run 3.73 with 37's, not a lot of towing planned so hope to gain some fuel mileage back on the top end when cruising on flats)
-Dual 52 and 22 gal tanks (only offered in cab/chassis and I want the option of long range)
-Tradesman with few options (nicer radio, power seat, but rubber floor and mats) - can't hose it out, but not too far off from being able to
-Cold weather packages (I've lived from ID down to AZ, may never need it but not pricey)
-Power rear window (its a long way back there to vent the cabin for dogs)
-Vinyl seats (dog hair doesn't stick to them, and clean off easily)
-Bench seat (mostly travel with 2x, but nice to fit a third if needed)
-Delete rear seat (will build a storage system with platform on top for dog or dogs)
-115 outlet in cab - whoever is not driving can power laptop as we both can work remote
-Trailer brake controller - will tow some, just not any real weight, nice to have that option and like the integration into the dash
-Back up camera - there will be a camper on the back, so need to see rearward
-Keyless entry - surprised this is even considered an option and not standard
-Dual 220 amp alternators - plan to run a lot of lithium in the camper, want the option to charge it quickly, then supplement with solar
The main reason to go cab/chassis was to get the standard cummins with the Aisin tranny, and the 74 gallons of onboard fuel from the factory. Secondary was why pay for the bed if you're going to just pull it off immediately? Unsure if this was wise now looking at the possible suspension limit issue.
The flatbed, camper, fuel, water, gear, truck should be under GVW but not far off when we're geared up for a bigger trip. Eventually would like to use this truck for an Alaska to tip of Baja trip, perhaps longer trips later which could necessitate modifications (then not now) to allow for extended times without available ULSD. As is the range with both tanks should be in the 1,000 to 1,300 range. That should be plenty to get between fuel stops that don't have ULSD south of the US border.
The actual question is if anyone has more experience or information, options I may not be privy to, other suggestions to offer as it relates to putting this thing on our tire size of choice 37" x 12.5" (likely an AT such as the Wild Peak AT3). My guess is the aftermarket may catch up, or I may have to put together my own kit once I have truck in and and can make actual measurements. It would be nice to have something already sorted. I surely didn't anticipate this would be an issue with a cab/chassis over a standard unit, especially on the front end of the truck.
It looks like the cab/chassis has some lift fitment issues. A call to AEV tech says their lift does not fit the cab chassis. No real explanation, more of a, "it won't fit, so get off my line so I can help someone else" answer. The funny thing is that Mario at AT Overland has a 3500 cab/chassis with 41s on it and an AEV lift. Perhaps this has something to do with it being a Gen 4.5 vs. Gen 4 Ram, but didn't get far enough with AEV tech to find out.
A call to Carli met no response and a VM. I'll try again later, but see below for a response from one of their retailers.
A call to CJC indicated that I may be able to use a leveling kit instead of lift kit, but pics are required to confirm. The call quality was crap, and there were constant interruptions, so it was a bit frustrating, but this is the gist of it. I won't have the truck until the beginning of July, so ordering the leveling kit through them in advance will have to wait. Carli Leveling kit is essentially a 2" coil lift up front, a 1" spacer out back, and a shock/steering track bar package. Then they say you can fit 37 x 12.5 with an AEV wheel (or similar offset), liner trimming, and pinch weld cutting. I like the AEV Salta wheels anyway, so that could work for me.
Here is the rough build info, as I don't know what items may be pertinent, along with the why of some of my choices for this build.
-'22 3500 single rear wheel, quad cab, cab/chassis, 60" C/A
-8' x 80" wide aluminum flatbed, no headache rack (plan to use a tunnel box for storage that will serve double duty as a headache rack, need the most storage from the tunnel box and a few inches counts here)
-SO Cummins - no real towing, so 800plus ft/lb seems more than adequate for my purposes
-Aisin HD transmission (lower first few gears to run 3.73 with 37's, not a lot of towing planned so hope to gain some fuel mileage back on the top end when cruising on flats)
-Dual 52 and 22 gal tanks (only offered in cab/chassis and I want the option of long range)
-Tradesman with few options (nicer radio, power seat, but rubber floor and mats) - can't hose it out, but not too far off from being able to
-Cold weather packages (I've lived from ID down to AZ, may never need it but not pricey)
-Power rear window (its a long way back there to vent the cabin for dogs)
-Vinyl seats (dog hair doesn't stick to them, and clean off easily)
-Bench seat (mostly travel with 2x, but nice to fit a third if needed)
-Delete rear seat (will build a storage system with platform on top for dog or dogs)
-115 outlet in cab - whoever is not driving can power laptop as we both can work remote
-Trailer brake controller - will tow some, just not any real weight, nice to have that option and like the integration into the dash
-Back up camera - there will be a camper on the back, so need to see rearward
-Keyless entry - surprised this is even considered an option and not standard
-Dual 220 amp alternators - plan to run a lot of lithium in the camper, want the option to charge it quickly, then supplement with solar
The main reason to go cab/chassis was to get the standard cummins with the Aisin tranny, and the 74 gallons of onboard fuel from the factory. Secondary was why pay for the bed if you're going to just pull it off immediately? Unsure if this was wise now looking at the possible suspension limit issue.
The flatbed, camper, fuel, water, gear, truck should be under GVW but not far off when we're geared up for a bigger trip. Eventually would like to use this truck for an Alaska to tip of Baja trip, perhaps longer trips later which could necessitate modifications (then not now) to allow for extended times without available ULSD. As is the range with both tanks should be in the 1,000 to 1,300 range. That should be plenty to get between fuel stops that don't have ULSD south of the US border.
The actual question is if anyone has more experience or information, options I may not be privy to, other suggestions to offer as it relates to putting this thing on our tire size of choice 37" x 12.5" (likely an AT such as the Wild Peak AT3). My guess is the aftermarket may catch up, or I may have to put together my own kit once I have truck in and and can make actual measurements. It would be nice to have something already sorted. I surely didn't anticipate this would be an issue with a cab/chassis over a standard unit, especially on the front end of the truck.
