2016 ram 3500 dully??? gaser or diesel???

I personally really love the sound of the engine reving when I am in the mountains. When we are cruising my 5.7 hemi purrs at 62mph 2,000 rpm in 5th gear with 3:73 gear. I think a dually 6.4 hemi with 4:10 gear would do a great job. The diesel trucks are ridiculously expensive! My friend just paid $48,000 for a f250 XLT.

On resale alone I would go diesel!

I towed 12k with a 2014 Ram 2500/6.4L Hemi/4.10. It did very well, even in the mountains. I would do it again in a heartbeat. That's after the previous 2 trucks being Cummins diesels.

While diesel power is very usable, the exhaust brake is a life saver if you do mountain driving.

kzspree320 wrote:
Last month I bought a 2016 Ram 2500 with the 6.4 hemi and 4.10. It is rated to pull 15,600 lbs with the 4.10 rear axle ratio. My fiver weighs 12,500 lbs ready to camp, so the ratings are 3,000 lbs more than my fiver. I have not towed with it yet, so I can't give you any direct input on towing performance.

My last 2 trucks have been Ram 2500s with Cummins. They were towing beasts. So why would I now switch to the 6.4 hemi? Real answer is we live right outside Baton Rouge and flooded in August. House was insured so no real loss there, but my contents were way underinsured so there will be a substantial loss. They were giving gas engine buyers another rebate of $1,500, so the cost difference was over $8K with the Cummins. Living in flat Louisiana, I decided to save the cash and give the hemi a try since it was rated for 3,000 lbs more than I will be towing. Only time will tell how well it compares, since I'm more concerned with house repairs than camping right now.

I have no illusion that it will tow as well as the Cummins. I do not expect that. I do think it will do an acceptable job based on a lot of internet reading, including poster ib516 on this site. I'll just have to learn to be a little bit more patient at times. Search ib516 postings from a year or two back. I hope a few other 6.4 owners with experience will chime in. Good luck. Keith

Key words "flatlands of Louisiana" which coincidently is at sea level as well.
Totally different ballgame than someone living in AZ going to tour the Rocky mtns.

Silly question when you can read until your eyes bleed on the virtues and vices of each option.
But considering you can get an almost new cc 4x4 diesel Ram dually tradesman for right around $40k (there's 2 nice ones right now on Seattle CL, one under 10kmi) I wouldn't suffer through the agony of tugging a 13klb 5ver up a mountian with a 300hp gasser.
(cause that's all it will be if you're pulling in the Rockies)

Now lets consider resale value in 5 and ten year points.
The Cummins will come out hands down ahead at each point.

Example:
2016 CC Longbed 4X2 DRW 6.4L 3:73
GVWR -----13,300
Payload ----6320
RAWR -------9750

YET 'SAE J2807 Compliant' max tow rating is ONLY 12,450# (20%=2490 pin weight)

Not going to run out of payload, not going to run out of rear axle (or tires w/dually), not going to run out of GVWR
But run out of GCVWR which is 19,900

Same truck w/4:10 diff
GVWR goes up 700# (14,000)
Payload goes up 700# (7020)
RAWR same (9750)

BUT max tow goes up 3500# (SAE J2807 Compliant)
and GCVWR goes up same 3500 (23,400)

SO with 3:73 rear diff........NO
with 4:10 rear diff......YES no problems

Will the 6.4L pull a 13,500 lb trailer? Yes, of course it will and you will enjoy it as long as you have realistic expectations of it's towing performance.

If you are expecting that it will tow like a diesel then you will be disappointed. You pay more for that pulling power of a diesel just as you pay more for a V8 muscle car over a V6. You wouldn't expect a V8 Challenger to outperform a V6 Challenger, so don't expect the 6.4L to outperform the Cummins in many towing situations.

If you understand that you will be going up some hills at less than the speed limit while revving to 4-5,000 rpm, and are fine with that then you will enjoy your ride. With realistic expectations, you will understand that if you wanted more pulling power then you would have paid for it.

For some, the pulling power and being able to tow longer distances with a diesel is worth the added up front cost while it isn't for others. Neither is wrong as long as you have realistic expectations of what each is capable of.

Can you live with the HOURS of elevated engine RPM's... 3,500 to 4,500 rpm's.

the engine will not care.. but will you...

many converted back to gas... have personal issues with the RPM's of gas.

I have a Ford F 250, 6.2L Gas... and I travel with 2,000 in the bed of truck and almost 9,000 for a trailer... and NO flat land.. but also No mountains aka east coast hills :) total weight of 17,000 pounds. ( Cat Scaled )