Ram better come out with a a FULL fifth gen HD soon

[WXman]

I owned Rams for 25 years but decided to try a F350 Platinum Tremor while Ram ironed out the issues on the 22's.

The panoramic sunroof is incredible until I learned a lot of guys avoid using or purchasing it since it has a history of not working correctly being extremely unreliable. I also liked the idea of having an aluminum truck never having to deal with rust issues until I learned that light aluminum weight causes doors to move around in the door jams when hitting a bump, noise in the cab is created from door floating around and rubbing against the seals, and issues with creaking door hinges that's extremely costly to repair. The 10 spd is smooth and crisp but it shifts a lot, has had multiple recalls, and Ford is still ironing out the program. Around 1,000 miles I started getting rattles all around the cab. They finally got so bad I pulled the dash panels and console to see if I could locate them only to learn over half of the plastic hot fuse nibs were missed during assembly causing the panels to rub against one another. On top of that, the plastic is so cheap and thin combined with the fact they use around half the amount of dash clips compared to Ram so there's simply no way to completely eliminate all the creaks and rattles.

I waited until the end of summer to test drive a 23 3500 Limited Mega Cab making sure they had enough time to address the issues they had with the Aisin in 22. The quality of the interior blew my wife and I away with not so much as a stitch out of place. The truck felt like a vault compared to the Ford and was very smooth and quiet going down the road. Overall the truck just bleeds quality. I've owned numerous Mega Cabs and forgot how much I appreciate having space behind the rear seats.

I really missed the confidence and robustness of the Aisin. After owning a 10 spd I can now say without question that Ram does not need one. The Aisin combined with the exhaust brake create one of the best towing experiences available. The Ford was all go with not enough stop. Ram is very controlled and balanced all the way around.

After being out of a Ram for 10 months I was quickly reminded why I've always preferred them and I'll never consider going to another make again. Sometimes you need to appreciate what works instead of chasing the latest and greatest.

The final thing I'll say is If payments are of any concern then you're not in a financial position to purchase. Either pay for the truck outright or wait until you have enough down payment to control what your monthly payment will be.

I don't know. I've been driving and towing with a 2019 Super Duty for a week or two now and I don't see any of this, even on gravel county roads. The cab, doors, etc. feel way more solid and robust than the 4th Gen Ram cab and doors. This truck I'm driving was the last year of the TorqShift 6-speed and it shifts perfectly every time, has excellent engine braking, and from what I hear it's dead nuts reliable. The aluminum body seems to be a plus also, this one was hit by a car pulling into a parking spot which caused minor body damage down to the raw metal on the passenger side in a 18" swipe and it's been like that now for who knows how long with zero rust or corrosion forming on the damaged area. The only thing I don't like is the steering ratio because it's slow as a snail, takes a ton of turn on the wheel to get turn in the front end. Steering needs to be improved. But overall this truck is way ahead of the Ram HD. The power from this thing is amazing too. Just nuts how hard it pulls. I've driven a lot of HD Rams. The Ford honestly just feels like a more solid truck while going down the road overall. Everything feels "tight". Can't say that about a Ram HD with 80k on the clock.

As far as the Ram 4th gen cab vs. 5th gen cab, you guys are crazy. The 5th gen cab is a major improvement. The second row seat doesn’t have that stupid curve in the front of it. The load floor is totally flat. The doors are thicker, safer, and more solid. Even the handles feel higher in quality. There is more interior volume. There is more sound insulation. It’s a more modern exterior design that simply looks better. It was just a full top to bottom improvement. They should have put that cab on the HD 5 years ago.

 

[BilletWilson]

I don't know. I've been driving and towing with a 2019 Super Duty for a week or two now and I don't see any of this, even on gravel county roads. The cab, doors, etc. feel way more solid and robust than the 4th Gen Ram cab and doors. This truck I'm driving was the last year of the TorqShift 6-speed and it shifts perfectly every time, has excellent engine braking, and from what I hear it's dead nuts reliable. The aluminum body seems to be a plus also, this one was hit by a car pulling into a parking spot which caused minor body damage down to the raw metal on the passenger side in a 18" swipe and it's been like that now for who knows how long with zero rust or corrosion forming on the damaged area. The only thing I don't like is the steering ratio because it's slow as a snail, takes a ton of turn on the wheel to get turn in the front end. Steering needs to be improved. But overall this truck is way ahead of the Ram HD. The power from this thing is amazing too. Just nuts how hard it pulls. I've driven a lot of HD Rams. The Ford honestly just feels like a more solid truck while going down the road overall. Everything feels "tight". Can't say that about a Ram HD with 80k on the clock.

As far as the Ram 4th gen cab vs. 5th gen cab, you guys are crazy. The 5th gen cab is a major improvement. The second row seat doesn’t have that stupid curve in the front of it. The load floor is totally flat. The doors are thicker, safer, and more solid. Even the handles feel higher in quality. There is more interior volume. There is more sound insulation. It’s a more modern exterior design that simply looks better. It was just a full top to bottom improvement. They should have put that cab on the HD 5 years ago.

When I initially purchased my F350 I would have agreed with most of what you posted. The PS is an absolute beast with what feels like endless power in reserve.

My truck was nice and tight when I pulled it off the lot but after the 4th or 5th towing trip the rattles began. A rear door creaked as my son in-law opened it and gave me a WTF look when it happened. He closed it then opened it again and it creaked every single time. The drivers door had already started doing the same prior so I set up an appointment for the dealer to look at it. During the few days I had before my appointment I dug around on the forums to see if others had a similar experience and there are pages after pages from all model years. There's tons of solutions from replacing the door checks to swapping out the door catch with ones made by GM. When those don't solve the issue, others run screws themselves through the door jam to capture the different layers of aluminum to prevent them from rubbing (creaking). Since my truck had around 3K miles on it at the time I took it in to the dealer and went to another for a second opinion. Both said the same thing. "This is very common and an extremely costly repair. It needs to get worse before Ford will approve warranty work". My response was "Well, my truck was extremely expensive and having the doors creak on a new $100K truck is completely unacceptable so the cost to make it right is not my concern". The doors may be thicker but that's simply due to being made from aluminum.

The doors floating around in the door jams is also very common and when they do they rub against the rubber seals making one hell of a noise in the cab. Simple things that Ram owners never have to think about turn into a nightmare with the Ford. I always install Weathertech side window deflectors when I purchase a new truck. Ram uses rubber seals the whole way around the window opening. The deflectors from Weathertech do not need any double sided tape, slide right into the window channel, and rest on a thick rubber seal. Simple installation, no noise, basically nothing to go wrong. Ford on the other hand uses hard plastic in place of rubber so clear 3M tape needs installed to prevent wear and noise from the deflector prior to installation. Not the end of the world until you also learn that Ford can't seam to get their rubber seal material down either with tons of complaints on those as well. Fords seals quickly dry out creating even more sound annoyances. Just visit any SD forum and search these topics and you'll quickly see they are not isolated to my specific truck and are discussed time and time again. They seem trivial until you're living with constant noises going down the road.

I've attached a pic from when I tore the dash apart to attempt to resolve the rattles. Not a fun project and I learned a lot about how cheaply a SD is made smh.

I buy mega cabs so I don't have the same complaints as those with crew cabs. I do agree the 5th Gen cab is much better on the crew. Just leave the Mega Cab in the line up and I'll be a happy camper.

To me, Ram's exterior is second to none. Hard to debate appearance since it's subjective and should be left to the eyes of the beholder. The only point I'll make is the new 23 design has a ton of hate from current Ford owners. Many feel front is a major miss and they aren't happy Ford copied the bed/bumper step from GM.

 

[flan]

When I initially purchased my F350 I would have agreed with most of what you posted. The PS is an absolute beast with what feels like endless power in reserve.

My truck was nice and tight when I pulled it off the lot but after the 4th or 5th towing trip the rattles began. A rear door creaked as my son in-law opened it and gave me a WTF look when it happened. He closed it then opened it again and it creaked every single time. The drivers door had already started doing the same prior so I set up an appointment for the dealer to look at it. During the few days I had before my appointment I dug around on the forums to see if others had a similar experience and there are pages after pages from all model years. There's tons of solutions from replacing the door checks to swapping out the door catch with ones made by GM. When those don't solve the issue, others run screws themselves through the door jam to capture the different layers of aluminum to prevent them from rubbing (creaking). Since my truck had around 3K miles on it at the time I took it in to the dealer and went to another for a second opinion. Both said the same thing. "This is very common and an extremely costly repair. It needs to get worse before Ford will approve warranty work". My response was "Well, my truck was extremely expensive and having the doors creak on a new $100K truck is completely unacceptable so the cost to make it right is not my concern". The doors may be thicker but that's simply due to being made from aluminum.

The doors floating around in the door jams is also very common and when they do they rub against the rubber seals making one hell of a noise in the cab. Simple things that Ram owners never have to think about turn into a nightmare with the Ford. I always install Weathertech side window deflectors when I purchase a new truck. Ram uses rubber seals the whole way around the window opening. The deflectors from Weathertech do not need any double sided tape, slide right into the window channel, and rest on a thick rubber seal. Simple installation, no noise, basically nothing to go wrong. Ford on the other hand uses hard plastic in place of rubber so clear 3M tape needs installed to prevent wear and noise from the deflector prior to installation. Not the end of the world until you also learn that Ford can't seam to get their rubber seal material down either with tons of complaints on those as well. Fords seals quickly dry out creating even more sound annoyances. Just visit any SD forum and search these topics and you'll quickly see they are not isolated to my specific truck and are discussed time and time again. They seem trivial until you're living with constant noises going down the road.

I've attached a pic from when I tore the dash apart to attempt to resolve the rattles. Not a fun project and I learned a lot about how cheaply a SD is made smh.

I buy mega cabs so I don't have the same complaints as those with crew cabs. I do agree the 5th Gen cab is much better on the crew. Just leave the Mega Cab in the line up and I'll be a happy camper.

To me, Ram's exterior is second to none. Hard to debate appearance since it's subjective and should be left to the eyes of the beholder. The only point I'll make is the new 23 design has a ton of hate from current Ford owners. Many feel front is a major miss and they aren't happy Ford copied the bed/bumper step from GM.

I had a couple Ford F-350 supercabs back in the early 2000s and the creak/squeak from the cab flex on the weatherstrip would drive me nuts. It was like rubbing styrofoam together. I would apply silicone spray to the door gaskets and it would help temporarily. Had to reapply every few months or so..

 

[H3LZSN1P3R]

I had a couple Ford F-350 supercabs back in the early 2000s and the creak/squeak from the cab flex on the weatherstrip would drive me nuts. It was like rubbing styrofoam together. I would apply silicone spray to the door gaskets and it would help temporarily. Had to reapply every few months or so..

As a mechanic the constant fixing of the 6.0s, 6.4s and 6.7 and how brutal they are to work on drove me away from ford they are great for axles and what not from 05+ and great transmissions from the 08-19s.


My shop truck is a 2015 F250 6.2 (to good of a price to pass on) its just constantly in need of some work in one way or another it does not get driven hard it either. Good thing ford stands for Fix or repair daily!

 

[Firebird]

Due to the incredible power a SD has, I loosely considered taking the plunge and grabbing one. Even though I love my 3500 dually, I really only need a single wheel, then I could use car washes again.
Anyhow, found a nice looking 2023 F250, cloth interior, and some decent technology equipment. My opinion was this:
-Seats were as thin as cardboard, and zero support
-The interior looked more plastic than a Toyota
-Manual locking hubs, for real Ford?
-The infotainment screen was Fisher Price level
-Popped the hood, where's the engine?

Yes, amazing power all over the band, but at 61, how much power do I need? My 3500 pulls our camper effortlessly, so more HP isn't necessary, and the build quality of my bottom level Tradesman is way better than the Ford.

 

[Riccochet]

Crazy to me that they're already refreshing the 1500 while the 2500/3500 get no love.

 

[GirchyGirchy]

Due to the incredible power a SD has, I loosely considered taking the plunge and grabbing one. Even though I love my 3500 dually, I really only need a single wheel, then I could use car washes again.
Anyhow, found a nice looking 2023 F250, cloth interior, and some decent technology equipment. My opinion was this:
-Seats were as thin as cardboard, and zero support
-The interior looked more plastic than a Toyota
-Manual locking hubs, for real Ford?
-The infotainment screen was Fisher Price level
-Popped the hood, where's the engine?

Yes, amazing power all over the band, but at 61, how much power do I need? My 3500 pulls our camper effortlessly, so more HP isn't necessary, and the build quality of my bottom level Tradesman is way better than the Ford.

That's a backup; if you look closely, where it should say "FREE," it instead says "AUTO." That uses the vacuum system to lock the hubs automatically. But in the case of a failure, you can rotate them a quarter turn to force them "LOCK." I don't believe they still use the fully manual ones.

 

[flan]

As a mechanic the constant fixing of the 6.0s, 6.4s and 6.7 and how brutal they are to work on drove me away from ford they are great for axles and what not from 05+ and great transmissions from the 08-19s.


My shop truck is a 2015 F250 6.2 (to good of a price to pass on) its just constantly in need of some work in one way or another it does not get driven hard it either. Good thing ford stands for Fix or repair daily!

The 04 6.0 was the last ford pickup I owned. Moved on to dodge/cummins after that.

 

[PGHChris81]

I wouldn't change a thing on my '19. Love everything about it. Coming from my previous Ford it's a breath of fresh air.

 

[jebruns]

The 04 6.0 was the last ford pickup I owned. Moved on to dodge/cummins after that.

I owned an 03 6.0. First year for it. Was a total disaster, lemon lawed it. I'm pretty gunshy about Ford diesel's these days too.

 

[AH64ID]

That's a backup; if you look closely, where it should say "FREE," it instead says "AUTO." That uses the vacuum system to lock the hubs automatically. But in the case of a failure, you can rotate them a quarter turn to force them "LOCK." I don't believe they still use the fully manual ones.

I’d much rather have that style hub than CAD, but that’s about all Furd has on their trucks that I’d rather have.

 

[gimmie11s]

I don't know. I've been driving and towing with a 2019 Super Duty for a week or two now and I don't see any of this, even on gravel county roads. The cab, doors, etc. feel way more solid and robust than the 4th Gen Ram cab and doors. This truck I'm driving was the last year of the TorqShift 6-speed and it shifts perfectly every time, has excellent engine braking, and from what I hear it's dead nuts reliable. The aluminum body seems to be a plus also, this one was hit by a car pulling into a parking spot which caused minor body damage down to the raw metal on the passenger side in a 18" swipe and it's been like that now for who knows how long with zero rust or corrosion forming on the damaged area. The only thing I don't like is the steering ratio because it's slow as a snail, takes a ton of turn on the wheel to get turn in the front end. Steering needs to be improved. But overall this truck is way ahead of the Ram HD. The power from this thing is amazing too. Just nuts how hard it pulls. I've driven a lot of HD Rams. The Ford honestly just feels like a more solid truck while going down the road overall. Everything feels "tight". Can't say that about a Ram HD with 80k on the clock.

As far as the Ram 4th gen cab vs. 5th gen cab, you guys are crazy. The 5th gen cab is a major improvement. The second row seat doesn’t have that stupid curve in the front of it. The load floor is totally flat. The doors are thicker, safer, and more solid. Even the handles feel higher in quality. There is more interior volume. There is more sound insulation. It’s a more modern exterior design that simply looks better. It was just a full top to bottom improvement. They should have put that cab on the HD 5 years ago.

You should research the cost of body repair on aluminum bodied Fords along with the limited amount of shops equipped to do said work. Hard pass!

The aluminum body (which sounds like a great idea on it's face), in practice is a truck that feels flimsy with more road noise than the Ram. The doors shut like poop on the Ford and it sounds like every plastic part in that truck is about to fall out of the door when you close it.

Ive spent more time in a 6 speed 2019 F250 powerstroke than I'd like to admit.

Their only redeeming quality IMO, is the powertrain -- youre right, the 6speed in that generation is bomb-proof and the motor itself hauls the mail.

 

[jenninr]

That's a backup; if you look closely, where it should say "FREE," it instead says "AUTO." That uses the vacuum system to lock the hubs automatically. But in the case of a failure, you can rotate them a quarter turn to force them "LOCK." I don't believe they still use the fully manual ones.

We have a 2018 F350 XL for work that has full manual hubs. The XLT and above had the auto/manual hubs but not the XL. That may have changed in the later years though. I do like the way the auto hubs work on the Ford so you can manually lock them when something failed. The only issue is, at least on the older models, they used vacuum and were prone to leaks as they got older so you had to have the option to manually lock them. I don't know if the newer ones still have that issue.

 

[762fmj]

Only thing 5th gen offers that 4.5 doesn't I would have liked is the telescoping steering wheel.

I would love a telescopic wheel! I like to have the wheel somewhat close and the pedals pretty far and even with adj pedals I can't get into the right seating position.

 

[jenninr]

Telescopic wheel would be huge for people that are tall with long legs like me.

 

[tchur1]

I still dont understand how we dont have a telescoping wheel. Its probably my biggest complaint with my truck. Which says a lot because thats pretty minor in the grand scheme.

 

[H3LZSN1P3R]

Telescopic wheel would be huge for people that are tall with long legs like me.

I am tall with long legs i have the seat all the way back no issues i could see if you had short arms. Lol

 

[762fmj]

I am tall with long legs i have the seat all the way back no issues i could see if you had short arms. Lol

I don't like having my arms stretched out in front of me, bothers my bad shoulder. I like more of a racing bucket distance with elbows at 90 deg.

 

[H3LZSN1P3R]

It cracks me up on the 1500 site how many members look down on a guy who wants a tradesman....hell, right now...the guys buying the new warlock...you would swear they were second rate citizens.

Some people really do need a base truck and they need a base price...it is insane what that entails now...I can only imagine what this new cab will go for if it ever does hit. And dealer mark ups...wow!!!

This is exactly why i bought my well optioned tradesman is because its a work truck for me i dont need a ton of gadgets that can fail nor do i want the extra features. I could easily afford to buy a loaded longhorn but whats the point i dont feel that any of the extra features i would get are worth the 15k+ for the higher trim level on a work truck. That could just be me getting old at this point but its the same reason i have held on to my 97 jayco designer it does what is asked of it

 

[WXman]

You should research the cost of body repair on aluminum bodied Fords along with the limited amount of shops equipped to do said work. Hard pass!

The aluminum body (which sounds like a great idea on it's face), in practice is a truck that feels flimsy with more road noise than the Ram. The doors shut like poop on the Ford and it sounds like every plastic part in that truck is about to fall out of the door when you close it.

Ive spent more time in a 6 speed 2019 F250 powerstroke than I'd like to admit.

Their only redeeming quality IMO, is the powertrain -- youre right, the 6speed in that generation is bomb-proof and the motor itself hauls the mail.

You may be 100% correct on the cost of body work. I cannot say.

I guess we can agree to disagree on the feel of these trucks. The 2019 F-250 I'm in sees miles of gravel roads, one lane rough county roads, 4-lane U.S. highways, and interstates on a daily basis. To me it's as tight as a banjo string. Just a totally solid and quality feeling truck top to bottom. I've driven plenty of 5 year old Ram HD trucks with 80,000 miles on them and to me they feel "loose" and not very well put together. They don't feel like a truck that will last forever (even though we know they can). In terms of the "feel" I get driving both, I'd put the Ford ahead of the Ram by a mile. If they'd just add some more power assist to that Super Duty steering... gosh it feels like a school bus.

Diff'rent strokes for diff'rent folks I guess.

I'd drive a Ram HD in a heartbeat. Love 'em. But Ford has an excellent truck too. And if I had to put money on which truck will hit 500k miles with the least issues, my money would go on the Super Duty.

Who knows maybe Ram will drop a bomb on the market and shock us all by showing off a NEW Ram HD truck next year. Anything could happen. I hope they do. I hope they drop a bomb. All new truck, new chassis, new cab, Cummins H.O. with 1,300 lb/ft, new 8 speed Aisin, the whole nine yards. Just take the competition to the wood shed.