I had been thinking for a while about buying a new truck and just retired which seemed like a really good excuse/opportunity to do that. I decided that it had to be an HD truck and considered GM and Ford and looked at them a little but decided that it had to be a RAM. I ended up custom ordering a new RAM 3500 which was delivered yesterday (4-15-2026). Options that I ended up choosing after much consideration were:
1. Bighorn 4x4 crew cab long box SRW
2. Level 2 plus package.
3. 6.4 Hemi engine
4. 4:10 rear end, 50 gallon gas tank, auxiliary switches, clearance lamps, wheel liners
5. Sport package in white
6. 5th wheel prep package
I took the truck out for an initial real test drive in the country today and am really impressed with pretty much everything.
The order for the truck was placed on January 29th and it was delivered on April 15th so two and a half months. It seemed a lot longer.
I will explain why I made the choices if anyone cares.
1. RAM 3500 over RAM 2500 for the extra payload and simple rear end design. I realized that choice would come with compromised ride quality but I was really surprised today how good the ride is in the truck unloaded.
2. Hemi over Cummins because I do not plan to tow very heavy or very much. The truck I purchased has a max towing capacity of 16,800 lbs and a max payload of 4400 lbs which should be lots for what I need.
3. Bighorn package because I did not want a leather interior. Anything above Bighorn is all leather. I do not know how Dodge/Stellantis/RAM are doing now but many trips to local Pull and Save wrecking yards have shown all of the leather interiors from Chrysler vehicles that are 10-20 years old are completely trashed while the cloth interiors are usually in pretty good shape.
Very excited for the new truck and all of the fun things I will get to do with it.
4. Sport package to "simplify" the appearance. I did not want chrome and black and white. The Sport package eliminates just about all of the chrome so it is basically black and white.
5. I really wanted the 18" wheels over the 20" wheels for lower replacement tire cost and greater availability and a smoother ride.
1. Bighorn 4x4 crew cab long box SRW
2. Level 2 plus package.
3. 6.4 Hemi engine
4. 4:10 rear end, 50 gallon gas tank, auxiliary switches, clearance lamps, wheel liners
5. Sport package in white
6. 5th wheel prep package
I took the truck out for an initial real test drive in the country today and am really impressed with pretty much everything.
The order for the truck was placed on January 29th and it was delivered on April 15th so two and a half months. It seemed a lot longer.
I will explain why I made the choices if anyone cares.
1. RAM 3500 over RAM 2500 for the extra payload and simple rear end design. I realized that choice would come with compromised ride quality but I was really surprised today how good the ride is in the truck unloaded.
2. Hemi over Cummins because I do not plan to tow very heavy or very much. The truck I purchased has a max towing capacity of 16,800 lbs and a max payload of 4400 lbs which should be lots for what I need.
3. Bighorn package because I did not want a leather interior. Anything above Bighorn is all leather. I do not know how Dodge/Stellantis/RAM are doing now but many trips to local Pull and Save wrecking yards have shown all of the leather interiors from Chrysler vehicles that are 10-20 years old are completely trashed while the cloth interiors are usually in pretty good shape.
Very excited for the new truck and all of the fun things I will get to do with it.
4. Sport package to "simplify" the appearance. I did not want chrome and black and white. The Sport package eliminates just about all of the chrome so it is basically black and white.
5. I really wanted the 18" wheels over the 20" wheels for lower replacement tire cost and greater availability and a smoother ride.