SRW 3500 2WD vs 4WD

Coach-man wrote:
Depending on where you drive/camp some need 4x4, a lot of folks need to justify buying a 4x4! One disadvantage, in addition to lower mill age, and higher upfront cost is weight, which will take away from what you can haul!

In my particular configuration there is only 100# difference in payload between 2X4 and 4X4. I don't think I am going to sweat 100# on a truck that has a 4000# payload. There's only 300# difference in the actual weight of the trucks so I don't think there would even be a difference in fuel mileage.

The thing that is funny to me is that so many people go strictly by the GVWR of the trucks and my particular truck (Ram 3500 CCSB SRW 4X4) weighs almost 1000# more than the heaviest gas truck in the same trim and configuration but is with-in 100# of the same payload. LOL

I would never buy any truck with 2wd. In fact in my area you can't really even find 2wd trucks outside of a few regular cab fleet models. But it's Idaho, and we have snow and mountains here, and I like to be out in them so 4wd is a must for me. :B

The other factor to consider is resale. I'm not sure how it works in KC, but in my area you'll lose a lot more than the initial savings on a 2wd truck on resale, so financially it wouldn't pencil out even if I wanted 2wd.

Coach-man wrote:
Depending on where you drive/camp some need 4x4, a lot of folks need to justify buying a 4x4! One disadvantage, in addition to lower mill age, and higher upfront cost is weight, which will take away from what you can haul!

A few hundred pounds of CCC and fuel mileage cost you can't count. I can drop 500lbs in the bed of the truck and not notice ANY change in fuel mileage, gasser or diesel.

Only issue I've had with it was the transfer case shift motor($150) and a few bucks worth of synthetic Mercon ever few years.

Depending on where you drive/camp some need 4x4, a lot of folks need to justify buying a 4x4! One disadvantage, in addition to lower mill age, and higher upfront cost is weight, which will take away from what you can haul!

I had a 2005 SRW 2 x 4 for ten years and have pulled a 16,000 pound trailer many mikes. Just traded it in for a smaller Dodge and the trade in value was what I thought great. Dealer said that SRW were in demand as a lot of people don't want the problems associated with the dually. 189,000 miles and never damaged may have helped. I saw the truck for sale on his lot for $19,500.00.

I did get stuck one time in SD because of snow the night before and could not get to main road until secondary road was cleared later in the day.

is it friday yet? wrote:
...and I knew we had to get a move on our we would have been stuck down south for a while.

And the problem with that is??? ;)

Rusty

I'm sure glad I had 4wd this past winter pulling our 5th wheel back from Florida. It started to ice bad in northern Georgia and I knew we had to get a move on our we would have been stuck down south for a while. It then started to snow from Tennessee all the way home to Michigan. There were jack knifed trucks all over and a few cars spun out and hit the guard rail in front of me. We heard that I75 was closed shortly after we went through. It wasn't a fun drive.

Veebyes wrote:
The mentality in N America is 'more is better' but look at what is commonly used in Australia where I suspect roads in general are nowhere near as good as in N America. The 5er tow vehicle of choice is a 2WD cab over modified commercial truck to do the job of a 2500 or 3500 in the US. You see them in the U S as city delivery box trucks.

No paved roads in Australia are in better condition than what you experience in the US. Now Dirt roads can be in a reasonable graded condition . Problem is there is vastly more dirt roads than in the US. Some people drive on no roads at all and they be driving for 100's of miles
No they may look similar, but are very different to the Box Trucks in the US. Problem is you do not have anything similar to compare.
These are MDT's with 4x4, not so much smaller delivery trucks. US Japanese Cabovers Peter out with 5.2litre diesels.in the US
Japanese " MDT's " go to 9.8 Diesels here.. Generally a lot use European IVECO Dailys for up to 36ft 5 vers

I used to do a lot of back country hunting and fishing, and a 4WD was pretty much a must, now I do back country photography (amateur) and find the same need.

I have used 4WD several times (RV'ing) on gravel or wet grass over the years and my truck is my daily driver so 4WD really does help in winter where I live.
IMHO anyone who says they will never have a 4WD has never been in a position of needing it, especially out of cell phone range and miles from anywhere.

For those who never go off pavement or drive a truck in winter, by all means go 2WD, but you wont really save much, money or weight wise.

Besides the above, where I live, you have a hard time giving away a 2WD truck, so resale or trading in is a big factor.

The cost of more maintenance and fuel with a 4WD is really a non issue with the newer trucks.

As my son would say: "Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it".