May Trade in my Ram 1500 for an Expedition..Thoughts?

[DatacomGuy]

Currently have an entry level 2013 Ram 1500 Express.. 8700# tow if i remember correctly. Towing a 2015 Shadow Cruiser 280QBS, 5400# dry. Need to get weighed.

Thinking about a 2014 Expy EL. 8900# tow, so similar. 15000 gvwr with max tow, and ill most likely get the air suspension. I foresee the Expy towing better, but worried about the motor. The Ram has better torque and power..

I really wish there was a solid diesel TV.. Wife won't approve an Excursion.. that would be my first choice.. but for our family size, Expy may be our best bet.

Looking for opinions, suggestions, feedback. Thanks guys..

[jus2shy]

Waiting only means you come out further ahead in a trade (getting rid of that negative equity). There are big things on the horizon for HD trucks as well. Seems like Ford will bow-out with their new HD in 2016 or 2017 (There was a test unit that burned down that seems to be all aluminum with magnesium bits in it as well, so it seems like they're light-weighting). RAM will have a major HD update around 2018 model year. So things are getting even hotter for the HD trucks in the short term. With regards to this info, expect good rebates for 2015/2016 Super Duties with the model change and 2017 RAMs with the model change.

[DatacomGuy]

Yes.. Without a doubt, and what i really want..

[bguy]

If swapping trucks you'd have been better going to 3/4 ton.

[DatacomGuy]

We ended up keeping the Ram. Numbers didn't make the switch worth it, and the EcoBoost wasn't as affordable with the missing rebates and such. Love my Ram, so no love lost.

[DaveF-250SD]

You mention approximately 750 lbs. of family and gear in the vehicle, and a trailer that will most likely be pushing close to a 700 lb. tongue weight. Add another 100ish pounds for the weight distributing hitch. What is is the payload rating of the Expedition EL that you are looking at? It is on the door jamb sticker. You may likely be over that rating with your current setup. The IRS rear axle of the Expedition will not offer the same durability of a solid rear axle, like the Suburban will have.

[goducks10]

ed6713 wrote:
Well, you'll be going from a Dodge to a Ford. That's an improvement. :B

:?

[wyzguy2001]

I am towing a 280 qbs with f150 5.o liter. Does okay... I even pulled it with my Tacoma! lol. If you have solid rear axel on expedition you should be fine. The explorer had independent rear and was not comfortable towing trailer.

[DatacomGuy]

I'll have all my quotes tomorrow. I'm having him quote both a 2014 with incentives, and a 2015 with any incentives (which i think is only 1K or 1500)..

Going through a fleet manager, as thats where my relationship is - but i need to find invoice data, haven't found much online. Where is everyone finding invoice data these days?

[Tystevens]

DatacomGuy wrote:

Bruce H. wrote:
The 2015 Expedition with the EcoBoost engine will be out in a few months. While the 2014 Expedition with the 5.4L V8 is good, the 2015 Expy will be even better. I would wait for it.

Bruce

As much as i agree and would love to wait for it - the 2014's have great incentives, and they are cheaper.

Is it that much worth it? We're talking 10K difference..

Well, the RAM and the 5.4 Expedition are going to tow about the same, I'd guess. Are you ok w/ how the Ram performs?

The difference between the 5.4 Expy and Ram and the Ecoboost is that the turbos give excellent low end torque. Which means you can often tow a gear or 2 higher in the EB. I really like how the EB performs, towing and non. I like being able to tow down the freeway in 6th gear at 1700 rpm, instead of 3-5 th gears and over 3k rpms. To me, it would be worth it.

[DatacomGuy]

Bruce H. wrote:
The 2015 Expedition with the EcoBoost engine will be out in a few months. While the 2014 Expedition with the 5.4L V8 is good, the 2015 Expy will be even better. I would wait for it.

Bruce

As much as i agree and would love to wait for it - the 2014's have great incentives, and they are cheaper.

Is it that much worth it? We're talking 10K difference..

[DatacomGuy]

spoon059 wrote:

DatacomGuy wrote:
Looking for opinions, suggestions, feedback. Thanks guys..

Before anyone can offer an educated opinion we need a LOT of information.

How many passengers?
What is LOADED TONGUE WEIGHT of your trailer?
How much total weight do you anticipate your tow vehicle having, to include passengers and gear?
What is your budget?
New or used?
Do you think or expect to upgrade camper in a few years?
Where do you tow, do you have lots of mountains out west or mainly flat land in the south or east?

I'm sure there are more, its early in the morning though.

How many passengers? - Four, typically. Roughly 500lbs total in people. Add 200lbs for cargo (clothes, food) per trip.

What is LOADED TONGUE WEIGHT of your trailer? Haven't been able to weigh it yet. Dry tongue weight is 530lbs, and most are weighing in around 600-650 with propane and battery on the Cruiser forums.

How much total weight do you anticipate your tow vehicle having, to include passengers and gear? We'll call it 750.

What is your budget? Less than 40K.

New or used? New preferred - simply because we have negative equity we need to bury.. roughly 2500 worth. Ford has 6500 in rebates on 2014 right now.

Do you think or expect to upgrade camper in a few years? Don't plan on it, the goal down the road is a 5th wheel, but wife isn't sold yet. I'd love a Cummins 2500, but now is not the time.

Where do you tow, do you have lots of mountains out west or mainly flat land in the south or east? Georgia, TN, NC, and FL. We do deal with some mountains, mostly highway but not all the time.

[spoon059]

DatacomGuy wrote:
Looking for opinions, suggestions, feedback. Thanks guys..

Before anyone can offer an educated opinion we need a LOT of information.

How many passengers?
What is LOADED TONGUE WEIGHT of your trailer?
How much total weight do you anticipate your tow vehicle having, to include passengers and gear?
What is your budget?
New or used?
Do you think or expect to upgrade camper in a few years?
Where do you tow, do you have lots of mountains out west or mainly flat land in the south or east?

I'm sure there are more, its early in the morning though.

[Rustycamperpant]

We really like our 09 Expy for the room it has for our family. Granted it is not an Ecoboost, the 5.4 has no problem with our 32' KZ and Equalizer. We chose the Expy for the room, the fold into the floor third row and towing capacity. You may have a little more payload on your Ram, but with the TT you describe you would be Ok.

[path1]

Looking for opinions, suggestions, feedback. Thanks guys

That is going to cost you plenty to swap towing units for what you'll gain.