Picking Up New (to me) Ram 2500 CTD, a few questions

I have a 2014 since new . I never add anything except fuel . Synthetic oil always at 10k or so . Exhaust brake , most of time . My truck it is sometimes difficult to use tow/haul and exhaust brake at the same time when going down long mountain grades , I will turn off tow/haul on long decent.

Make sure the recall work has been done, especially the water pump. The original pump in mine failed at 30k-ish miles and left us in a pretty good bind. Beyond that just fuel and do the recommended fluid changes. I've always run synthetic oil in mine mostly because of cold winters. If I didn't see below zero temps every winter I may just run the standard stuff.

I throw my exhaust brake on for more than just towing but I don't use it all the time. When I'm towing I always have it on and set it to Auto mode, along with T/H.

You won't regret stepping up to a diesel, and you got a pretty good one. I've really enjoyed my '15.

The RAM is a whole different truck than a Ford 6.0. The RAM should just need basic fluids and maintenance (like a truck should). The 6.0 was a temperamental engine that required exacting care and maintenance to prevent disaster.

I just got a 2015 Ram 3500 Laramie Crew Cab 4x4 long box with the CTD and it's my first diesel as well. There is a "Diesel Supplement" to the owner's manual that gives you all the details on filters, etc. If it wasn't in the truck you can download it from the Ram site. You're about right on the filters, there are oil life and fuel filter life monitors in the vehicle details display.

FYI, there are 2 fuel filters on these trucks, and the dealer will get about $500 to change both and do an oil change. You can DIY for about 1/2 of that.

One key thing I have learned: There is no fuel cap but apparently there are two flappers in the fuel filler neck...if the diesel nozzle isn't in the filler as far as it will go, fuel with splash out.

Good news is that these years still used the Bosch CP3 injection pump, not the new CP4 which apparently has been problematic for all of the big 3 in diesel trucks.

Good luck and congrats on the new truck!!

packpe89 wrote:
After debating 1/2 ton or 3/4 ton, came across a good deal on a 2016 Ram 2500 Mega Cab 4x4 with the CTD and only 50K miles. Picking it up this afternoon. My previous diesel experience was an '05 F250 with the 6.0. With that, there were all kinds of additives folks recommended, such as seamfoam, cetane booster or adding oil to the fuel tank and frequent oil changes and fuel filters.

Looking online, I'm seeing oil changes every 6mo or 15K miles and fuel filter once a year. Is this good? Synthetic?

My F-250 did not have the exhaust brake and the Ram does. Should I always use the exhaust brake or only when towing or only when towing grades?

What else should I know or be ready for?

Thanks

You’ve already got some good info here.

Right, oil and filter changes every 6 months per Cummins regardless of miles unless you top 15,000 sooner. Seems like a waste but, IMHO, oil and filters are cheap. I have the fuel filters changed once a year regardless of the filter life indicator. Same reasoning.

I always use the exhaust brake, towing or not.

I love towing my Chaparral 5’er with the Cummins. Tow/Haul and Auto exhaust brake. Just got home from a 3000+ mile road trip. Lotsa up and downhill, mostly head- and crosswind, 70 mph, averaged 9 mpg.

Have fun! Safe travels!

Yes, the 6.0 was not a good start into diesels...
Glad to hear about the Bosch
Plan to DIY the filters, Mopar or is there another good choice?

$500 for fuel filter changes?!!!!!!!!
9mpg from a diesel truck?!!!!!!!!!!

Me too, jdc.

jdc1 wrote:
$500 for fuel filter changes?!!!!!!!!
9mpg from a diesel truck?!!!!!!!!!!

Buy filters on Amazon. 40$. DYI in about 1/2 hour. Only a fool pays dealer prices.

Additives aren't necessary at all. The Ram has good filtration. In the winter you might want to add some anti-gel if you get super cold temps, but nothing else is needed. Ram specifically states that additional additives are not recommended.

Fuel filters are actually a mileage based change, not a time. Every 15K miles they need to be changed. There is a Ram dealer from down south that sells OEM fuel filters for about $100 (as of last year). Its easy enough to change yourself. I buy the filters and invest about 30-45 minutes of time and save $400.

Oil and filters... my truck is essentially used for towing only so I put about 8k miles a year on it. I change my oil once a year, not every 6 months. Some will yell at me, I'm okay with it. I tow 10K lbs and I'm not pushing my truck with weight, speed or heat. I'll probably get an oil analysis done right before my next change just to confirm that everything is still doing fine. The filter is accessible from the right front wheel well, behind the plastic shield. It can be a little annoying to get to, especially because the recommend pre-filling the filter before installing.

Exhaust brake. I use it every single trip. Actually, I turn on tow/haul and exhaust brake every trip. T/H saves the truck from lugging the engine in town. EB saves on the service brakes. T/H and EB makes the braking more aggressive. If you plan ahead a little, you can use the EB to slow you from highway speeds to 20 mph, then service brakes the rest of the way. Towing in the hills/mountains... EB is AMAZING! An occasional gentle tap (literally a 1 second tap) of the service brakes will downshift the truck and engage more aggressive EB feature when going downhill. I love it. I don't need the diesel for my current trailer and don't ever expect to tow massive heavy trailers... but that EB and ease of doing downhill will likely keep me in a diesel for life.