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Ram 1/2 ton trucks? How bad do they suck?

GreenEnergy28

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2017 Ram Sport 4x4 with every option available then. Full air ride, tow package, 32 gal fuel tank, etc. I had the exhaust leak fixed under warranty and have not had the issue since. Sitting just under 120k miles now and still avg 17 mile/gal. Tows my 28' deck no problem, just has to work a bit harder than the big diesel boys...LOL

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Yoshiro

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I've had a few 1500s with the Hemi and 8 speed. I got the 3.92 rear as I would lift them and run 35s. They run great and are good trucks. The only issues I had were the exhaust manifold studs breaking but warranty always covered the repairs. If you have to pay for the repair it's not too bad, the manifolds are super cheap if those are bad too.
 

mbrown2

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As to fuel pump, zero issues with mine or a friend who also has a 2020. All are under recall and new ones are expected soon, this stuff happens in modern vehicles. This truck is a smooth towing rig, now at 47,000 miles. Towing 6,000 pounds from Vegas to Corona, between 18 and 21 MPG. plenty of torque.
That's good...I have more friends that had eco diesels with issues/buybacks then ones that have them trouble free.....quick search of any of the forums brings a treasure trove of folks that have had issues so much so that Stellantis finally realized it and put it under recall... If they can replace before issues great...but if it is detonates and sends particles down the fuel sytem it just seems to damage everything so much downstream they can never get it right even though they replace injectors and the fuel rail....I was bummed because I loved the engine when it worked...
 

boatpi

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The latest edition diesel came out in 2019 and from what I understand they been pretty much trouble free. A friend and I bought ours within a month of each other in 2020 both limited models and they’ve been about 99% flawless.

I’ll run up Cajon at 60 mph with a 6000 load at 2,300 rpm, I could push it a lot harder and then it soon as it hits the summit, on flat land it’s nothing to cruise at 70 but I keep it under control. Are use Walmart DEF never an issue. I only put a container in maybe every month and a half or two months. But Ford super duty would lose fuel economy during regeneration this truck I can’t even tell when it’s even doing it.
I think Chevrolet has a good diesel. Also these half ton diesels have really been refined. Enjoy them while you can get them.
 

CLdrinker

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FYI on the exhaust manifold, my dad had similar problem, had it machined flat, new gasket good to go

I think that’s the best way. Once it warps it isn’t likely to warp again.
Tried to get the dealer to do it but they are parts replacers not problem solvers.
 

LargeOrangeFont

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My 18 has the 3.92. Ive never seen above 25mpg. It's strange.

Edit. I know the 3.92 gets worse mpg but I didn't expect to average on the low 20s. Even on freeway.

I’m thinking of sticking with the 3.21 rear end but haven’t made a decision. I will likely put 34-35s on so the 3.92 might be the way to go. What RPM does yours turn with the 3.92s at 75-80?
 

boatpi

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If you will go to 37’s, get lower gears, either was mileage will suffer. The 3.92 is best then.
 

alohajeff

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I'm running a 285 75 17 Tire with 392 gears. I verified with my GPS that the speedometer is accurate with this tire size. 75 mph is right around 2,000 RPM
 

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COCA COLA COWBOY

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You should spend some time driving one before you buy. I have been renting trucks for the last couple months since mine took a crap. I've rented them all! By far, I think the Chevy is the best. Very comfortable, lots of bells and whistles, enjoyable to drive. The Ford was a distant 2nd and I wouldn't even think about buying the Ram.
 

Roosky01

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You should spend some time driving one before you buy. I have been renting trucks for the last couple months since mine took a crap. I've rented them all! By far, I think the Chevy is the best. Very comfortable, lots of bells and whistles, enjoyable to drive. The Ford was a distant 2nd and I wouldn't even think about buying the Ram.
you-serious-clark-cousin-eddie.gif

🙃
 

YeahYeah01

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I’m thinking of sticking with the 3.21 rear end but haven’t made a decision. I will likely put 34-35s on so the 3.92 might be the way to go. What RPM does yours turn with the 3.92s at 75-80?
Good questions. I think its hovers around 1900 at that speed, ill check next drive. but my old ram had the 3.55 and think thats the sweet spot for my use. So 1 to 3 MPG better with that setup.
 

YeahYeah01

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I'm running a 285 75 17 Tire with 392 gears. I verified with my GPS that the speedometer is accurate with this tire size. 75 mph is right around

You should spend some time driving one before you buy. I have been renting trucks for the last couple months since mine took a crap. I've rented them all! By far, I think the Chevy is the best. Very comfortable, lots of bells and whistles, enjoyable to drive. The Ford was a distant 2nd and I wouldn't even think about buying the Ram.
I believe you had the issues with 3500 correct? So I dont blame you! I have not driven any newer Chevy 1500 recently, I just hear about the tahoes not being conformable. I used to be much more of a brand guy but these days not so much. Ive personall had the older F150s, a nissan titan, another f150, a couple ram trucks, another f150 for work. Ford Cars, Chevy Cars, and a ford edge. Nothing above a 1500 platform and never a chevy truck, but I would not mind one at all. I have pretty decent luck with all the vehicles. These days its about reliability, comfort and MPG;s, back in the day is was about tricking them out and looking cool.
 

Outdrive1

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You should spend some time driving one before you buy. I have been renting trucks for the last couple months since mine took a crap. I've rented them all! By far, I think the Chevy is the best. Very comfortable, lots of bells and whistles, enjoyable to drive. The Ford was a distant 2nd and I wouldn't even think about buying the Ram.


What trim levels and engine packages are you comparing? My close friend has a new Platinum Dodge, and it’s really nice. I have a Platinum F150, and the Dodge is pretty equal IMO. Both of those would compare to a Denali. The F150 has massage seats, something the others don’t, and the key pad on door of the Fords is one of the greatest features ever IMO.

I’d say all three have come so far and their quality control is a lot better than it was 10 years ago.
 

boatnam2

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What trim levels and engine packages are you comparing? My close friend has a new Platinum Dodge, and it’s really nice. I have a Platinum F150, and the Dodge is pretty equal IMO. Both of those would compare to a Denali. The F150 has massage seats, something the others don’t, and the key pad on door of the Fords is one of the greatest features ever IMO.

I’d say all three have come so far and their quality control is a lot better than it was 10 years ago.
I have never lost or forgot my key or been locked out yet lol
 

YeahYeah01

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Once you have the key pad and get used to using it, you’ll miss it on every other vehicle. A lot of times I lock my key in the truck on purpose, especially when I’m in board shorts.
I agree. Our edge has it and I use it all the time. Since it's my wife daily, the keys are buried in her purse so if I need something I use the pad.
 

LargeOrangeFont

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Once you have the key pad and get used to using it, you’ll miss it on every other vehicle. A lot of times I lock my key in the truck on purpose, especially when I’m in board shorts.

This is one feature I will miss
 

farmo83

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I have had a 6.7 with 8 speed since 2016. 130k on it and I think it's been in the shop 3 times. Pulled my boat to boostpower and back from Texas with no issues.
 

COCA COLA COWBOY

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What trim levels and engine packages are you comparing? My close friend has a new Platinum Dodge, and it’s really nice. I have a Platinum F150, and the Dodge is pretty equal IMO. Both of those would compare to a Denali. The F150 has massage seats, something the others don’t, and the key pad on door of the Fords is one of the greatest features ever IMO.

I’d say all three have come so far and their quality control is a lot better than it was 10 years ago.
One thing I can’t stand about the Ram is the dial to change gears. Back seat a bit cramped. Drives ok, but not a winner for me.

The Ford is ok, I like the roomy back seat. Drives well, but it just lacks in my opinion.

The Chevrolet had a decent back seat as far as room. I like the cameras and screen size when changing lanes. It had a 5.3 which was adequate, but definitely a 6.2 would be better. I don’t think I would buy one right now because the lifter cam issues. Seats were harder, but still comfortable.

My Ram 3500 is loaded and a nice truck, but I’m not buying anything until these manufacturers get their stuff together. I’m hearing lemon law issues with every single of them….even Toyota Tundras are having major issues right now. I do like the F-350 Platinum, but am hearing issues with their 10 speed tranny as well. I don’t like the independent front suspension of the Chevy HD’s. I like a straight axle front suspension.
 

Warlock1

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Thanks for the info so far.

Question for the RAM people -

On my Ford I have the Ford Pass app to lock and start the truck from a phone, which is free. I do use this a lot in the summer when getting the boat off the water.

RAM I know has a similar deal.. is that U connect or RAM connect and what is the cost, if any?

My 18 has the 3.92. Ive never seen above 25mpg. It's strange.

Edit. I know the 3.92 gets worse mpg but I didn't expect to average on the low 20s. Even on freeway.
I have the 3.92s as well with 35 inch tires and I can still pull 28MPG on highway trips, hand calculated. My Duramax was like that though. I would consistently get 4 or 5 MPG less than other people with a comparable set up. I chalked it up to manufacturing tolerances.
 

Warlock1

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Once you have the key pad and get used to using it, you’ll miss it on every other vehicle. A lot of times I lock my key in the truck on purpose, especially when I’m in board shorts.
I have a friend of mine that does this as well. Every time we go boating he just tells me to leave the keys in the truck. I punch in his code when I need to grab the trailer at the end of the day and poof it unlocks. All vehicles should have this feature...hahaha
 

MeCasa16

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I have a 2021 ram 1500 eco diesel in Seattle. It has been an amazing truck right up until the moment it wasn’t. The better half was driving it to work one morning when it just started to go nuts. The computer had some kind of issue and failed several systems, but most importantly the brakes. She basically rolled to a stop. Luckily it wasn’t on the highway at highway speeds, but still a busy road. Called a tow truck to get it out of the road ASAP before it got hit. There was no shoulder and it was a very busy road in Seattle. Calling the warranty tow would have taken way too long. $300 later, the closest dealer we had it towed to said they can’t look at it for 6 weeks because they only have 2 techs. Called the next closest and they agreed to get it in in 3 weeks. Can’t get a loaner until they actually look at it. So we got to rent a car for the 3 weeks. We left it sitting at the first dealer and did get the molar warranty to cover towing it to the second dealer, even though they said they can’t do that under warranty. When they finally got it in, it apparently only needed a reflash of the computer. Took maybe 2 hours? Truck only has 8k miles on it. My biggest issue is that the brakes stopped functioning reliably during the failure. It could have ended a lot worse.
 

boatpi

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With all this great comfort and technology comes a difficult system to deal with. I don’t care what brand it is they all can have failures.
It’s a world we’re living in.
 

YeahYeah01

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I have the 3.92s as well with 35 inch tires and I can still pull 28MPG on highway trips, hand calculated. My Duramax was like that though. I would consistently get 4 or 5 MPG less than other people with a comparable set up. I chalked it up to manufacturing tolerances
Dam thats really good. I
 

Orange Juice

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New Rams, with the 5.7 Hemi V8, and 8 speed trans.

Any good? What goes wrong?
Tags and insurance are getting pricy. $5 a gallon+.

I drove an enterprise 2021 dodge truck (37,000), with the hemi recently for a week, while the dealer looked for a rattle in my 2022 Charger.
I put about 750 miles. I believe I averaged 19.8 mpg. I drove it to Tucson, and back to Phoenix. It drove great up until 70mph, then could feel tire vibration that got worse at 85mph. Not as bad as the Jeep, but it was there.
I don’t remember any issues with shifting, and I drive my stuff like it’s being traded in in 3 years.😉

Ive got a 2005 Dodge w/ the 345hp Hemi, had it since new. It tows a 21’ boat without a problem. It’s got 59,000 miles on it, and I’ve done nothing to it, other than a new set of tires and oil changes. It averages 13.9 mpg.
 

Malibuvride07

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Headers are preventative maintenance.
I opted to not go headers cause I heard the header bolts always come loose. I instead took the warped manifolds and had a machine shop cut them flat again. Heard that after they warp they don’t go any further. Did that three years ago and haven’t had any issues since.

Only other issue I have had is fuel tank sensor. 14 1500 with 125K on it and had to replace that one twice.
 

Uncle Dave

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I'm running a 285 75 17 Tire with 392 gears. I verified with my GPS that the speedometer is accurate with this tire size. 75 mph is right around 2,000 RPM

It seems you get 16.3 at 75 MPH.
 

checkrdpast

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I liked my 2013 it had the 6 speed 3:55 plenty of power to tow 6,000lbs.

Exhaust manifolds replaced 3 times.

Other than that great truck zero problems.

Parents have the 8 speed and love it.
What could go wrong on the exhaust manifolds? Cracked?
 

bocco

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They warp and pop the studs. The studs are weak. Once they warp and you machine them they are better off than buying new.
I think on newer models the studs are stronger so they don't break. Instead the manifolds crack. If I wasn't in CA I would probably go with shorty headers.

I have a 2021 1500 Laramie Sport. 5.7. Only two things about the truck that I don't like. The turning radius is kind of wide. I can't whip into parking spaces like I did with my Expedition. I also don't care for the shift knob. I would be just fine with a column shift or console.

Other than those two items, I love the truck. I'm at two years and 13000 miles and I have never been back to the dealership.
 

CLdrinker

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I think on newer models the studs are stronger so they don't break. Instead the manifolds crack. If I wasn't in CA I would probably go with shorty headers.

I have a 2021 1500 Laramie Sport. 5.7. Only two things about the truck that I don't like. The turning radius is kind of wide. I can't whip into parking spaces like I did with my Expedition. I also don't care for the shift knob. I would be just fine with a column shift or console.

Other than those two items, I love the truck. I'm at two years and 13000 miles and I have never been back to the dealership.
Engine is unchanged from when it came out. I was on the Ram forum when I had my 5.7 and 6.4 hemis.

The leaks are very common.
 

sandshark1

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New Rams, with the 5.7 Hemi V8, and 8 speed trans.

Any good? What goes wrong?

I just got one about a month ago. I have always owned F150s. So far I like it. Interior is nicer than my Lariat F150 and it rides a little nicer. Fuel mileage is decent and pretty close to what I got with my Ecoboost. Highway might be slightly better with the Ram.

Mine has the 5.7 Hemi etorque motor. I have not towed with it yet.

For the money I think the Ram gives you the most options. I was looking for months. I looked at the new Tundra and another F150. Both wanted way more money and nowhere near the features and comforts of the Ram.
 

JENKS

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I think on newer models the studs are stronger so they don't break. Instead the manifolds crack. If I wasn't in CA I would probably go with shorty headers.

I have a 2021 1500 Laramie Sport. 5.7. Only two things about the truck that I don't like. The turning radius is kind of wide. I can't whip into parking spaces like I did with my Expedition. I also don't care for the shift knob. I would be just fine with a column shift or console.

Other than those two items, I love the truck. I'm at two years and 13000 miles and I have never been back to the dealership.
This is what the service advisor said when I took my new body style in. No more having to extract broken studs from the block. Just replacing cracked manifolds now. Time for some shortys.
 

Bigbore500r

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My Brothers 2022 just got the exhaust manifold leak, and my neighbors '21 just drove by this morning ticking away....

I wonder if swapping the exhaust manifold bolts with a quality fastner, like an ARP or comparable, would fix the issue? If the Hemi is similar to late model GM stuff, the exhaust manifold bolts are incredibly soft and no different than the bolts that hold the lifter valley cover on. Lots of room for improvement....

Maybe switching all the bolts out to a quality set would alleviate future issues

ARP has these, says 5.7 / 6.1 but Im betting they also work for 6.4. Just gotta check length, depth of shoulder on bolt, diameter and pitch.


You could also find the same size / pitch bolt in a grade 8 or visit a fastner guy and see what he's got - there's some bad ass bolts out there! And then you pray the problem doesn't shift to pulling the threads out of the head....lol
 

LargeOrangeFont

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My Brothers 2022 just got the exhaust manifold leak, and my neighbors '21 just drove by this morning ticking away....

I wonder if swapping the exhaust manifold bolts with a quality fastner, like an ARP or comparable, would fix the issue? If the Hemi is similar to late model GM stuff, the exhaust manifold bolts are incredibly soft and no different than the bolts that hold the lifter valley cover on. Lots of room for improvement....

Maybe switching all the bolts out to a quality set would alleviate future issues

ARP has these, says 5.7 / 6.1 but Im betting they also work for 6.4. Just gotta check length, depth of shoulder on bolt, diameter and pitch.


You could also find the same size / pitch bolt in a grade 8 or visit a fastner guy and see what he's got - there's some bad ass bolts out there! And then you pray the problem doesn't shift to pulling the threads out of the head....lol

Agreed. If I get one and this happened I’d just have them ground flat again and run them with better bolts.
 

LargeOrangeFont

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Why do you want to get out of the '18 Ecoboost?

I’ve got 78k on it. No issues other than the cam phasers which were done under warranty, and a cracked valve cover that I fixed with epoxy. It’s got new tires, I’ve had to do nothing but maintenance to it. It’s been and still is great.

It has some hail damage on the hood and roof that I’m not going to fix.

Thinking of selling it for low $30s, and just starting fresh, as the time is now before it get too many more miles.

An equivalent new Ram Bighorn is $45k from Mark in Louisiana. With the insurance money for the repairs, It will be about $8-$10k out of pocket for the new truck. At this juncture that does not seem like a bad spread. I feel I like I could get 6-8 years out of the RAM.

Otherwise I’m just going to keep the Ford for another few years.
 

CLdrinker

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My Brothers 2022 just got the exhaust manifold leak, and my neighbors '21 just drove by this morning ticking away....

I wonder if swapping the exhaust manifold bolts with a quality fastner, like an ARP or comparable, would fix the issue? If the Hemi is similar to late model GM stuff, the exhaust manifold bolts are incredibly soft and no different than the bolts that hold the lifter valley cover on. Lots of room for improvement....

Maybe switching all the bolts out to a quality set would alleviate future issues

ARP has these, says 5.7 / 6.1 but Im betting they also work for 6.4. Just gotta check length, depth of shoulder on bolt, diameter and pitch.


You could also find the same size / pitch bolt in a grade 8 or visit a fastner guy and see what he's got - there's some bad ass bolts out there! And then you pray the problem doesn't shift to pulling the threads out of the head....lol

Lots of guys go that route. I was seriously considering it. But after seeing a few guys still break them. I got scared as some said drilling them out and removing them was a pain.
 

CLdrinker

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Oh yea, drilling out a quality bolt VS the soft factory offerings is a whole different animal!
Best fix is probably machine the warped ones then to do arp’s.

Quality of aftermarket headers is hit and miss and the cost is up there.
 

lbhsbz

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I’ve got 78k on it. No issues other than the cam phasers which were done under warranty, and a cracked valve cover that I fixed with epoxy. It’s got new tires, I’ve had to do nothing but maintenance to it. It’s been and still is great.

It has some hail damage on the hood and roof that I’m not going to fix.

Thinking of selling it for low $30s, and just starting fresh, as the time is now before it get too many more miles.

An equivalent new Ram Bighorn is $45k from Mark in Louisiana. With the insurance money for the repairs, It will be about $8-$10k out of pocket for the new truck. At this juncture that does not seem like a bad spread. I feel I like I could get 6-8 years out of the RAM.

Otherwise I’m just going to keep the Ford for another few years.
In 78K miles and 5 years if you've had to do anything but oil changes, brakes, and tires, you're driving a piece of shit.
 

LargeOrangeFont

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In 78K miles and 5 years if you've had to do anything but oil changes, brakes, and tires, you're driving a piece of shit.

I haven’t even done brakes, so I guess I’m good!
 
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