Gas or diesel

[Jasdms54]

I am ready to purchase a fifth wheel. The one I'm really looking at is 15,500 gvwr. I'm also purchasing a ram 2500. But do I need a diesel or gas. I want to travel states. Mostly west. What are the pro and cons ? For right now, it is part time, but eventually this will be full time. Hopefully about 4 years. Thank you

[Campinfan]

I had a F250 V=10 gasser. Now I have an F350 diesel....no going back to gas for me. Not that I recommend this but before a 10 hr drive and 500 miles was stressful. At Christmas, I drove over 900 miles in 19 hours and the stress was gone. Towed through mountains too.

[kzspree320]

I own a 12K lb fiver and pull it with a Ram 6.4 with 4.10 gasser. It does pretty good at pulling 12K. That having been said, at 15.5K lbs I would no doubt get a 3500/350 diesel.

[BarneyS]

4x4ord wrote:
Diesels are expensive to purchase, expensive to run (crummy fuel economy) and very expensive to repair in the event you ever have a problem (which will most likely be with the emission system components). I'd buy a diesel.

"expensive to run (crummy fuel economy)"????
Not in my experience. Fuel costs/gallon is usually a bit more but that is all. The increase in MPG usually more than makes up for the difference in cost/gallon. The rest of your statement I agree with.
Barney

[4x4ord]

Diesels are expensive to purchase, expensive to run (crummy fuel economy) and very expensive to repair in the event you ever have a problem (which will most likely be with the emission system components). I'd buy a diesel.

[SLE]

To me this completely depends on what your planning to do, how often, and how comfortable you are towing larger trailers. I've had two campers that have had GVWRs of 15,500 and 15,750 respectively that I've towed with an F250 gasser. Neither have bothered me much, matter of fact the last trip was into a 20 mph corning wind and it handled surprisingly well however I think I could actually see the gas gauge moving. Now with this said, my trips are within 2 hours of home and the camper is normally setup on a seasonal lake site so it's truly only a few trips a year and I can usually pick my day to run it down. If I were towing further distance, more often, or in mountainous terrain I would definitely have a 1 ton class SRW Diesel. If the driving conditions included crossing several states and actually doing some cross country touring, it'd be dually. food for thought.

[dfletch]

I guess you see the trend to go with a 3500. After I picked out the 5th wheel we wanted (16k GVW) the salesman told me a 2500 would do just fine. Well I checked the actual cargo capacity of the various 3/4 ton trucks (actual cargo weight as listed on the drivers door) and found that after adding my pin weight, DW, and hitch I was at max cargo weight for a 3/4 ton. Now I still had some things I would like to put I the bed when camping so I went with a 3500. I chose deisel for the torque, gas mileage, and stronger drivetrain. Also with the exhaust brake less wear on the braking system. I went big and got a 3500HD Duramax 4X4 Crewcab longbed dully. It also a daily driver and we love it.

[TxGearhead]

My Montana is 12,500 pounds Gross Vehicle Weight Rating. Usually towing it at around 12,000#. That is as heavy as I want to go with single rear wheel.
I pulled a smaller 5th with a gasser, never again. If you are wanting to tow in the mountains you will want the torque and the exhaust brake of the diesel. Even the strong west Texas winds would turn me off the gasser.
Get the Ram 3500 dually, Cummins diesel, the Aisin transmission and tow safely and comfortably.

[mattmountz94]

I just recently got a 15 Ram 3500 SWB SRW and pull my 14k loaded fifth wheel with no issue. You can def tell it is back there though. I wouldn't want to try with a 2500 as my 3500 really drops when that beast is hooked up. I also have a leveling kit and running 35's. Also with the 3500 you can upgrade to the Aisin trans.

[Me_Again]

The newest generation of SRW 350/3500's will handle it, a 250/2500 will come up short on the factory numbers. Do it right 350/3500 diesel and your choice of SRW or DRW. Chris

[MarkTwain]

azdryheat wrote:
With diesel I added an extra tank in the truck bed. Can't do that with gas. I've got a 1,000 mile range and choose when and where (without the trailer) to fill up.

X1, I added a 65 gal. diesel auxiliary tank that fit right in the same place my original tank fit. Had the Transfer Flow tank installed 2 days after I bought my truck:) Gives you greater flexibility and the opportunity to pick fuel stations with the best price on diesel.

[MarkTwain]

azdryheat wrote:
For towing through any mountains or hills I'd recommend diesel. Gassers just don't have the umpf.

X1 and on mountains Diesels run cooler.

[gbopp]

dave17352 wrote:
Also in my opinion ask all the questions you would like. If people don't want to comment they can just go to the next post.

X2. Well said dave17352.

[ScottG]

15K isn't even close to me. While there are some 2500 that will do it on paper, there's no way I would go anything less than a dually diesel for a load like that.

[azdryheat]

With diesel I added an extra tank in the truck bed. Can't do that with gas. I've got a 1,000 mile range and choose when and where (without the trailer) to fill up.

[thirtydaZe]

I drive a ram 3500 srw 6.7 mostly as a daily driver and love it.

It legitimately tows like a beast, and although exactly the same truck as my 2500 has so much more payload for the money.

If you're getting a big fw, it's essentially easier to be on the road and fill up where semis do. In fact, where does one even fill up with a gasser, and still be able to maneuver around a station?

What fw are you considering? Im on my 3rd season with a 42'er, i couldnt imagine fueling with th passenger traffic.

Anyhow, with ram, you'll be deiving and pulling with Cummins, so you're covered in any unforeseen circumstance.

Seriously though, get the 3500.