Ram 2500 6.4 vs F150HD 3.5 Eco as a daily driver

As pointed out...don't disregard a 3500/Cummins.
I was hunting high and low for a 2500 6.4L out West here, and firstly, there weren't many, and the one's I did find were glammed up Laramies with VERY high pricetags.
Did find one SLT, but again, she was pricey.
The reason I was looking for the Hemi was cost-based, and having previous gassers I was more than willing to accept how they towed things.....never had a problem/complaint about them, just used to them.
Then I found a leftover '14 3500 SXT with the Cummins for about $8000 LESS than a Hemi...

How could I resist! I wasn't looking for a diesel, but with the plans of the purchase being for our 'forever' truck it made sense.
I have yet to tow with it....it's KILLING me lol, but I have no doubt it will do it beyond my expectations.

Seeing how you have plans for a custom trailer, I'm thinking the bigger the better for breathing room.
I'm pretty happy to have 4029lbs of Payload available for when we get ourselves equipped for retirement.

Great time of year to be looking for a truck, so I'd say get the biggest/most capable one you can find that affords you the comforts you're looking for.

Cheers,
Mike

Given what you've said so far, I would only consider 2500 or 3500 SRW and likely in diesel. You are guessing the TT weight to be around 6000 dry and 8000 ready to travel I don't know if you are including the weight of your generator, solar, and batteries in the dry weight estimate or not, but if not, you will be hard pressed to be at or under 8000. 9000-10000 Wouldn't surprise me in the least.

The payload of the F150 Supercrew with a short bed and 3.5 Ecoboost is around 2100 if I recall correctly. Depending on exactly how the layout of the TT is, you may end up with 1000+ tongue weight and will certainly have more than that with the WD hitch included. You said you are adding an in-bed tank so that will add another 80-100 lbs for the tank and then the weight of the fuel at 6 lbs/gallon for gas. So even a 36 gallon tank will add around 300 lbs with fuel. I think you run out of payload by the time you add people and stuff now assuming the tongue weight isn't higher than estimated or you aren't getting a bigger auxiliary tank.

Get the 3500 SRW and don't worry about it anymore (at least that is what I would do)

The 3/4 is a much better tow platform. As a DD they work great too. They ride rougher but compared to HD trucks from a few years back they're very comfortable. The biggest challenge as a DD may be height in terms of getting kids/wives in them and going into parking garages.

Half tons (just my opinion) are glorified crossovers. They get decent mileage and can be quick with the right motor, but they're mostly people haulers that can tow on occasion. The max tow ratings on them are a bad joke.

I'd recommend checking out the Cummins over the 6.4. It's a much more capable engine.

CampingN.C. wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
First, I've never heard the term "trucky", but pretty much anything properly set up to tow 8k+ thru the mtns should be trucky!
Second whoever said the Ram 2500 coils ride more like a caddy must have meant not much more than leafs. It's a 3/4t truck! Even if the springs are more compliant, the tire nanny making you keep the rear tires at 75+psi will make it trucky. Unless you get a dealer to lower the tpms threshold or are ok with the constant idiot light on the dash.
If you're that concerned about the empty ride, definately plan on dropping tire pressure. Even though the new trucks give you the tire light when you're below around 60/75psi F/R, an empty 2500 diesel really only needs about 50/40psi F/R for comfortable driving.
Regarding Eco vs Hemi vs EcoD, the numbers speak for themselves. The first 2 will pull harder than the third but all 3 will tug 8k acceptably.
You may want to look into the Ram 2500 air ride rear. Looks like the solution to the trucky issue.

I said that. I own one and I know how it rides. I'm not making statements based on hearsay. The "Caddy" example was spoken with a certain amount of sarcasm that I'm sure most understood. I can tell you that compared to my 2500HD it is night and day different. Granted mine is a LB so the ride quality is that much better. Those that have not owned/driven one shouldn't be giving the OP miss information.

I prolly don't qualify then. I drove one of about 6 Ram 2500s every day last year and with 75-80 psi in the rear tires and an empty bed, it was nothing to write home about. I also drove 3500 Rams and both flavor a of the GM and Fords regularly and back to back. Your experience may differ.

Fordlover wrote:
for 50/50 towing vs. not towing, I'd go with the 250/2500 or better yet the 350/3500.

If you were talking about 20% towing vs. 80% not towing I'd say go with the F-150.

x2.

Grit dog wrote:
First, I've never heard the term "trucky", but pretty much anything properly set up to tow 8k+ thru the mtns should be trucky!
Second whoever said the Ram 2500 coils ride more like a caddy must have meant not much more than leafs. It's a 3/4t truck! Even if the springs are more compliant, the tire nanny making you keep the rear tires at 75+psi will make it trucky. Unless you get a dealer to lower the tpms threshold or are ok with the constant idiot light on the dash.
If you're that concerned about the empty ride, definately plan on dropping tire pressure. Even though the new trucks give you the tire light when you're below around 60/75psi F/R, an empty 2500 diesel really only needs about 50/40psi F/R for comfortable driving.
Regarding Eco vs Hemi vs EcoD, the numbers speak for themselves. The first 2 will pull harder than the third but all 3 will tug 8k acceptably.
You may want to look into the Ram 2500 air ride rear. Looks like the solution to the trucky issue.

I said that. I own one and I know how it rides. I'm not making statements based on hearsay. The "Caddy" example was spoken with a certain amount of sarcasm that I'm sure most understood. I can tell you that compared to my 2500HD it is night and day different. Granted mine is a LB so the ride quality is that much better. Those that have not owned/driven one shouldn't be giving the OP miss information.

For milage numbers take a look at fuelly.com. As an example here is the Ram 2500 with the 6.4.

Ram 6.4

Good luck,
Stu

for 50/50 towing vs. not towing, I'd go with the 250/2500 or better yet the 350/3500.

If you were talking about 20% towing vs. 80% not towing I'd say go with the F-150.

spoon059 wrote:

Acei wrote:
What are realistic fuel economy numbers for HEMI6.4 vs Eco3.5 vs Cummins6.7 during towing (highway) and not towing (city and highway)?

I average about 17-18 mpg mixed driving non towing.
On the highway I get 21-22 mpg non towing
Towing a 30 foot 8500 lbs trailer at or around 65 mph I get 12-14 depending upon terrain and traffic. I have a long upcoming trip to Florida in February, I'm excited to see my towing mileage on the highway for an extended trip.

I've heard others report roughly similar numbers for the RAM 2500 diesel.

By way of comparison I'm getting 10.4 mpgUS towing ~8000# travel trailer around N.A. over 10K miles. Non-towing, total of both highway and mixed, I'm getting 19-20 mpgUS.

This is a 4x2 F150 3.5L Ecoboost with Michelin MS/2 tires driven by a cautious driver at max 62 mph.

The RAM 2500 is a bigger, heavier truck than the F150HD, (and my non-HD) but the diesel efficiency helps with that. I suspect the RAM with the HEMI 6.4 has the worst mileage of the 3, simply because it's pushing around a heftier vehicle with potentially greater payloads.

philh wrote:
Interesting comparison, Ford 1/2 ton with FCA 3/4 ton? Why not Ford F250?

This comparison exist because I was looking for trucks to comfortably tow 8000lb or more but still offering nice ride when not towing... F250 (from what I hear) does not ride as well as F150HD or Ram 2500 with coil/air spring setup.