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New Truck Smell in NC

RunsWithBeer

RunsWithBeer

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Hello from the Raleigh area in NC.

We've struggled towing a 7500lb 27ft TT with our Ram 1500 for the past couple of years. That camper was just a bit much for that truck. Many years ago we towed with a F250 and it was a far more pleasant experience so we agreed that to make our camping trips more relaxed we needed to upgrade the tow truck.

Since we are planning to upgrade to a 5th wheel toy hauler in the next year or two I decided rather than incrementally upgrading from a 1/2 ton to a 3/4 I'd just get a vehicle that will tow whatever we happen to end up with. For now it will look ridiculous towing our little TT, so I thought I'd get a custom graphic for the rear window that says OVERKILL

3500 Tradesman with gooseneck prep and 360 view cameras. This is my first experience using a 360 view system and it is sweet !

tow-pig.jpeg
 
oppizzippo said:
Good looking truck! Welcome aboard
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Roper46 said:
Welcome from south Georgia. That is a nice new tow vehicle! Congrats on the new Ram!
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Thank you, however I feel as though I didn't properly research this one after reading through the forum. I think I made a mistake getting the diesel option rather than the 6.4 Hemi.

All 6 trucks I've purchased in the past have been basic models. I look for good utility, nothing fancy. My previous diesel was a mid 2000's F250 PowerStroke and it always ran great both for towing and as a daily driver with the exception of a cracked Y pipe replaced under warranty. But it appears that none of the big 3 diesels today are suitable as daily drivers anymore due to the poor performance of the DPF and EGR clogging if the vehicles are are not dedicated to towing.
 
Welcome, from the Outer Banks. You'll be happy with the diesel, especially the first time you pull the toy hauler. I use mine for daily travel far more than towing and have zero issues. I'd rather drive and ride in my 3500 than the wife's grand cherokee.
 
I've done some mixed driving without towing yet for about 300 miles. The DOF gauge was midway between 1/3 and 1/2 before my commute.

This morning I drove to work in stop n go traffic but had it in tow-haul mode with the exhaust brake on for the entire drive. The DPF gauge dropped to just a tick above zero.

My mileage certainly suffered. I'd been averaging 16.4 but the commute with tow-haul and exhaust brake was 12.3 mpg.

Is that a trick for passive regen in traffic?
 
RunsWithBeer said:
Thank you, however I feel as though I didn't properly research this one after reading through the forum. I think I made a mistake getting the diesel option rather than the 6.4 Hemi.

All 6 trucks I've purchased in the past have been basic models. I look for good utility, nothing fancy. My previous diesel was a mid 2000's F250 PowerStroke and it always ran great both for towing and as a daily driver with the exception of a cracked Y pipe replaced under warranty. But it appears that none of the big 3 diesels today are suitable as daily drivers anymore due to the poor performance of the DPF and EGR clogging if the vehicles are are not dedicated to towing.
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FWIW, I drive my CTD to work, my commute is 1 mile each way. So lots of short trips, with the occasional road trip and towing. I had zero issues with my 2019 Ram 2500 in 64,000 miles. I bought that one brand new, but it got totaled in a wreck. I bought my 2nd Ram, very similar to the 1st one, it has almost 100,000 miles and also no issues yet.
 
I finally had the time to reconfigure the hitch I was using on the 1500 for the 3500 and take the camper somewhere level to verify all the measurements today.

After that I took the camper out for a 50 mile loop; back country roads, city traffic and 75mph Highways. Oh my. What a night and day difference between towing with a Ram 1500 and a Ram 3500 Dually. No matter how many tweaks I made to my Ram1500 over the 3 years we towed with it (WD hitch changes, loading changes, air suspension, etc.), it just felt like it was always struggling to pull the camper and it never felt safe in crosswinds or during truck-suck. The camper felt like it was in control of the truck and not the other way around. My wife was always terrified when we were on the highway with that combination because the truck just danced all over the place. A tall, slab faced, 7,000 lb camper was just too much for that Ram 1500 to comfortably tow.

Now, towing the same camper with the 3500 is effortless, other than braking (I'm still getting used to how much brake pedal pressure this truck needs compared to other trucks I've driven). The only slight disappointment is that I'd hoped the ride would mellow out some when towing. My F250 used to ride like it had zero suspension empty but rode nice when towing. The 3500 dually rides like it has zero suspension when empty and when towing :). Those leaf springs are like like bridge spans.

Anyway, it looks like we'll finally be happy campers. Well, at least happy travel day campers now that we have Overkill as a tow-vehicle for our TT.
 
It’s hit or miss. I use Upside, look for a nearby station that has the best price with the discount, and fill up there. If you’re not familiar with upside, you get cash back a couple days after you fill up. I’ve gotten a total of $442 back so far since the end of 2020.

Check out this free app that gets you cash back on gas and other errands! Click this link or use promo code THTG7 to get an extra 15¢/gal bonus the first time you make a purchase. https://upside.app.link/THTG7
 
But I do like the Exxon station in Durham at the corner of Cole Mill and Hillsborough, they have Kerosene (burn pile), ethanol free (yard equipment), and diesel (neighbor’s tractor). Same at the Shell off 70 right near 70 and Saint Mary’s in Hillsborough.
 
Finally got to tow the camper for a few hundred miles this week up to Smith Mountain Lake VA and back. About 400 miles round-trip. The mileage was kind of disappointing. I averaged 10.5 mpg. My Ram 1500 averaged 10 mpg pulling the same trailer. Back when I towed a similar TT with my 2005 F250 I'd get 15 mpg, but that was pre-DPF, etc. etc. Without the trailer my F250 would get 22 mpg as where I average 18 mpg running empty. I'm hoping mileage will get a little better after it's fully broken in.

On the DPF front, the DPF gauge read zero for the entire trip. I guess it is in its happy place.

I had the engine braking in automatic and that was nice, coming down steep grades. Hardly had to touch the brakes.
 
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