2014 Ram 2500 Cummins - my last hesitation

[IdaD]

I'm sure this question has been asked and answered a 100 times here, so sorry in advance. I've been soliciting opinions on some of the various vehicle forums and thought this looked like a great place to get non brand specific advice.

Here's my situation. I am in the market for a new truck because I'm planning on selling my little pop-up trailer and moving into a larger travel trailer. I don't want anything massive because I want to be able to get it into some of the tighter mountain areas, but loaded with water, gear, toys and the seemingly limitless other items necessary to keep my wife and children happy, I'd expect this trailer will weigh in around 10,000 lbs, give or take. I live in Idaho so the mountain passes I'll encounter regularly are significant.

Initially I was thinking of a Ford Ecoboost, which is rated to handle the above trailer. But in the mountains with my family on board, I'm not so sure the margin of error with that kind of vehicle is enough to make me comfortable. Plus the payload on those trucks in a crew cab + 6.5' configuration can be challenging.

This string of logic led me to 3/4 tons, and I'm pretty sold on the Ram. The suspension setup seems perfect to me with coils and solid axles on both ends. And I like the engine options better than the Ford or GM, both gas or diesel. It may be silly but I'm also not a fan of the IFS on the GM. And pricing wise, the Dodge dealerships seem to be more willing to come down off sticker (perhaps the Dave Smith effect - I'm not sure).

Of the Rams, my natural inclination is the CTD. I've been around diesels a lot, and I love the way they drive and pull. I do a lot of my own maintenance so the extra costs can be minimized. I can get a Tradesman level truck with all that I want amenity-wise for around 37k or thereabouts. But my hesitation is I live a little over five miles from the office, and this truck will be my daily driver. A 6.4 obviously won't tow as well or get the MPGs, but it would be around $6k less up front and would likely work better as a daily driver.

Does anybody here have long term experience with a diesel as a short distance daily driver? I would use it on longer drives as well, in addition to the trips I'd take with the trailer, so it isn't like it would only be doing the short 5 mile drives. But it will be a daily fact of life.

I generally keep vehicles for quite a few years so I'm putting a lot of thought into this (or obsessing about it, if you listen to my wife).

[DirtyOil]

With mine, I have the heated steering wheel and heated seats set to "auto on" start the truck via remote, don the winter coat/boots, climb aboard set exhaust brake and within the first mile.. heater is blowing warm air... all this at temps of -30C to -40C, last winter.

[C_Schomer]

My FIL has a 6.7 CTD and he lives on the eastern Co. Plains where they have hard winters. He's the king of short trips... He putzes around town to see his buds and he drives like the old guy that he is. He has always turned on the ebrake as soon as he starts it and he hasn't had any emissions problems and it gets mpg close to me 03. Craig

[garysol]

mkirsch wrote:
>2010 diesels all use DEF now, so the DPF regens are a thing of the past.

Incorrect. Def has nothing to do with DPF and regens.

[Bedlam]

If you plan to stay with bumper pulls, a 3/4t truck has the same ratings as the 1t SRW. It's once you go to a FW with heavier pin weights that the GVWR of the 1t goes into play. Realize that many 3/4t and 1t trucks are mostly different on paper than mechanically, so don't fret over which one you choose.

I have short bed now because I had length limitations where I parked and needed to keep the truck under 20'. If you do not mind an extra 2' in length get the long bed which typically has a larger fuel tank.

I'm very spoiled with the power and torque of a diesel, yet am considering a gasoline engine due to the initial cost and little in operation savings since fuel is costlier. I am looking at heavier and heavier weights as I upgrade parts of my setup but feel if I stayed close to my current 19K lb GCW, that the current gassers could handle it even through mountains.

I really dislike short trips in any vehicle and usually use two wheels for those drives when permissible and a bus when I don't want to deal with the weather. I would also agree on looking for a "disposable car" that has little value to complete these abusive drives and save the high-dollar truck.

[mtofell1]

That's interesting to hear the newer diesels heat up quicker. Wow, did my 06 Duramax take a Loooooooooong time. I have about a 6-8 minute commute to the interstate and I would be 5-6 miles on the freeway before I started to get heat. And I'm in Oregon where it gets cold but not ridiculous. Usually hovers just above freezing.

[goducks10]

mkirsch wrote:
>2010 diesels all use DEF now, so the DPF regens are a thing of the past.

Ram didn't start till 2013. They still regen, just less often.

[mkirsch]

>2010 diesels all use DEF now, so the DPF regens are a thing of the past.

[kmbelt]

I had a 08 GMC and my short 5mi drive to work was horrible on it. Constantly doing DPF regenerations. Not sure about the cummins and regenerations.

Lets say i traded in the GMC a month ago and got my 2014 Ram 6.4 and it was a wonderful decision. Plenty of power.

Drive both, see what you like better. Either will do what you want. If you do get the 6.4, get the 4.10 gears and not the 3.73.

[Cummins12V98]

The 6.7 Cummins heat up quick.

[IdaD]

Thanks for all the input guys, you're all making good points. Unfortunately you're not all making the same point.... :B

As to some of the comments...

Yes I'll definitely be getting 4wd. Quite honestly you can't even find any 2wd trucks on the lots around here aside from a few regular cab long bed contractor rigs. Same goes for SUVs, actually - they don't even try to sell 2wd models.

I don't foresee a need to go with a long bed or one ton. I like bumper pull trailers because it leaves your bed free for hauling whatever toys are along for the trip, and I don't see ever wanting a trailer large enough that it would require a fifth wheel or one ton - that would limit me too much on getting into places where I like to camp.

I'm glad to hear most of you have positive comments about the newer Rams. I've never owned one so I'm a little leery of them, but they seem great. I guess with the 6.4 vs CTD it just comes down to two different but good engines with pretty well defined pros and cons.

[NC_Hauler]

garysol wrote:
I have heard that the 2013/14 have much faster engine warmup time but I have not yet been able to test that. 4 more months or so and I will be able to 😞

True statement...My truck is also my daily driver, though I do drive it 15 miles or so one way, but even in single digit temps, truck started heating in just about a mile and a half down the road...oh, the heated seats definitely help, and the heated steering wheel, which I thought was a joke to begin with is really great:).....Diesel's don't take as long to warm up on newer models....

[camping_man]

I say buy want you really want. Worse then short trips would be remorse.Also whether you need it or not, get a 4x4. You'll have them lining up if you go to sell it. I made that mistake with a 2wd Cummins, I could of ask much more if it was 4x4 when I sold it. A lot more than what the 4x4 option would of cost me when I bought it.

[garysol]

I have heard that the 2013/14 have much faster engine warmup time but I have not yet been able to test that. 4 more months or so and I will be able to 😞

[ib516]

Poor cab heat at -35* or -40* is no fun. Btdt. One of the reasons I went with gas this time.

[45Ricochet]

Not sure about the new Ram Cummins but mine won't heat up in winter for like 10 miles ( 5 are down a mountain) . Hate to kill a cold engine, but the block heater and exhaust brake helps somewhat in winter. Ahh they do have heated seats and steering wheels though :B