First Camping Trip with New Ram 3500
We returned a day early from our first weekend camping trip due to heavy rain with our new 2013 Ram 3500. I can certainly say that I am impressed with this truck! It tows our trailer with very littl...
Forum Discussion
Yes, I have no regrets going with the manual. My wife even wants to take some driving lessons on a manual so that she can drive it! My last 2 Fords had manual transmissions as well so I am well experienced in towing with the manual. I plan on keeping this truck for a very long time (20 years or so) and I believe the manual transmission will be more reliable than the automatic in the long haul.
The only downside to it with this Ram is the fact that it can be a bit hard on the clutch backing the trailer into tight sites. My Ford had manual hubs and transfer case so I could put the transfer case in low and leave the hubs unlocked which made it much easier on the clutch while backing the trailer. This Ram automatically engages the hubs when the dial is turned to 4 Low so I think the binding of the drivetrain would prohibit using it for this purpose, except maybe where the campground road was a loose surface such as gravel. Maybe one of my future mods will be converting the hubs to manuals so that I can once again use low range for this purpose. If anyone has any feedback on this issue I would appreciate hearing it.
The only downside to it with this Ram is the fact that it can be a bit hard on the clutch backing the trailer into tight sites. My Ford had manual hubs and transfer case so I could put the transfer case in low and leave the hubs unlocked which made it much easier on the clutch while backing the trailer. This Ram automatically engages the hubs when the dial is turned to 4 Low so I think the binding of the drivetrain would prohibit using it for this purpose, except maybe where the campground road was a loose surface such as gravel. Maybe one of my future mods will be converting the hubs to manuals so that I can once again use low range for this purpose. If anyone has any feedback on this issue I would appreciate hearing it.
