2500 Chevy Duramax vs 2500 Ram Cummins on the Ike Gauntlet
Good to see some Ike Gauntlet pulls again and no surprise the Ram performed better than the Chevy in braking performance and fuel economy.
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- I had thought that Ram and GM use the same rear axle.
Cummins12V98 wrote:
FishOnOne wrote:
My take is with this small camper the 6 speed/Cummins combo was a good fit. Go to 30k lbs and I believe you'll see a different outcome or different varying size slopes/hills.
The inline 6 does JUST FINE with the 6 speed. Higher revving V8 diesels may do better with more gears.
High revving V8 diesels??
The Durmax makes it peak Horsepower of 445 at 2800 rpm The same rpm that the Cummins makes 420 peak Horsepower. And the ford makes its peak horsepower of 475 at 2600 rpm.Grit dog wrote:
cptqueeg wrote:
Understood. (Couldn't find the ram axle ratings on their web page.)
"Axle ratings" get tailored to the other vehicle components and regulatory limits as well (especially 3/4 tons).
There isn't a full floater axle under any of the big 3 trucks for the last 40 years that isn't rated for at least 9klbs. And most, including anything that is in a Ram or GM HD diesel truck for the last 20 years are rated about 10klbs, with some variants even higher.
I understand that folks who aren't mechanically inclined, don't have a lot of practical experience or aren't "into" vehicles may have trouble discerning between what ratings actually mean and how they're derived...I get it. But the concept of the aritfical de-rating of 3/4 tons is almost comically lost on so many.
Got it, now, finally!!!cptqueeg wrote:
Understood. (Couldn't find the ram axle ratings on their web page.)
"Axle ratings" get tailored to the other vehicle components and regulatory limits as well (especially 3/4 tons).
There isn't a full floater axle under any of the big 3 trucks for the last 40 years that isn't rated for at least 9klbs. And most, including anything that is in a Ram or GM HD diesel truck for the last 20 years are rated about 10klbs, with some variants even higher.
I understand that folks who aren't mechanically inclined, don't have a lot of practical experience or aren't "into" vehicles may have trouble discerning between what ratings actually mean and how they're derived...I get it. But the concept of the aritfical de-rating of 3/4 tons is almost comically lost on so many.Cummins12V98 wrote:
I don't think anyone is "DISSING" having more gears behind the higher revving V8's. I for one who should know if the RAM needs more gears towing 35k West Coast does NOT feel the need for more gears.
When RAM had the 4 speed auto and 5 speed stick they sure did need more gears but they both really needed to have more evenly spaced gears. The 6 speed stick and auto evened out the spacing nicely and work well behind the inline CUMMINS..
The 6 speed "stick", aka the G56 absolutely needed at least one more gear. Especially in anything with deeper gears than the 3.42s, for top end rpms vs speed. And the 3.42s could have used another cog down lower to shrink up the gear splits.Huntindog wrote:
TravelinDog wrote:
Almost all of the comments here come down to the same old Chevy vs Ram debate.
There are millions of these trucks out there towing trailers with no problems and nearly identical results so it still comes down to a matter of brand preference.
That being said I see no reason to put a 10 speed trans behind the Cummins engine because it works just fine the way it is.
More gears is in the Rams future. Like it or not.
I STRONGLY suspect that the Ram proponents will then sing its praises . Until then.....Dissing those that have it now, just sounds like a child refusing to admit that a classmate has a better toy.
It's only the stubborn "Ram proponents" who's mantra of "whatever I currently have is the best", while wearing blinders, who can't see the benefits of more forward gears behind the Cummins.- ^Thanks for the info.
IIRC the Chev axle ratings are about the same as you posted. cptqueeg wrote:
IdaD wrote:
cptqueeg wrote:
Payload was much different and somehow it was overlooked in the recap.
Payload means jack on these trucks. Check the axle ratings and they're probably very close.
I don't think that size trailer for these trucks is very telling. I don't know if the Ram needs more than 6 speeds or not but I do think the 68RFE is the worst HD diesel transmission. But I also think the Cummins EB has the best of the three.
Understood. (Couldn't find the ram axle ratings on their web page.)
My 2015 is 6000/6500. The same year Ram 3500 is 6000/7000.- I don't think anyone is "DISSING" having more gears behind the higher revving V8's. I for one who should know if the RAM needs more gears towing 35k West Coast does NOT feel the need for more gears.
When RAM had the 4 speed auto and 5 speed stick they sure did need more gears but they both really needed to have more evenly spaced gears. The 6 speed stick and auto evened out the spacing nicely and work well behind the inline CUMMINS.. TravelinDog wrote:
Almost all of the comments here come down to the same old Chevy vs Ram debate.
There are millions of these trucks out there towing trailers with no problems and nearly identical results so it still comes down to a matter of brand preference.
That being said I see no reason to put a 10 speed trans behind the Cummins engine because it works just fine the way it is.
More gears is in the Rams future. Like it or not.
I STRONGLY suspect that the Ram proponents will then sing its praises . Until then.....Dissing those that have it now, just sounds like a child refusing to admit that a classmate has a better toy.
