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not sure which route to go.... HELP!

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pconklin46

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i know this is probably talked about on here multiple times a week but i need help deciding what truck to get.

i just finally sold my 2018 f-150 ecoboost which i really ended up disliking. so now im in the market for a new truck which im leaning very hard on going BACK to RAM. in the past ive owned..

1998 ram 2500 ecsb 24 valve cummins automatic but was hit on the high way and totaled
next i bought a 2002 ram 2500 ecsb 24 valve cummins 6 speed manual i loved that truck so much but started having kids so needed a full back seat
last i bought i 2007 ram 2500 quad cab long bed 5.9 cummins and loved that truck but dumped alot of money in transmissions and injectors so i parted it out cus it had rust issues.
then decided to try the f150 ecoboost with tiny little baby 5.5 bed and hated but im glad i was able to walk away from it last week.

so now im in the market again. i was fully leaning to a cummins CCLB again but i know the issues the 68rfe transmissions have and i really dont wanna be messing with that anymore. so i was looking for a 16-18 with a G56 manual. but the prices are INSANE. i have a hard budget of 50k

i was kinda thinking of going with a brand new tradesman fully loaded with the 6.4 but i know nothing about them and ive been getting told by some reputable people that the hemi motor is junk and fuel mileage sucks and blah blah blah.

all i honestly care about is reliability and longevity. thi next truck will most likely be the one i keep for a long while so i want a good one. i know the cummins is tried and true and i know them like the back of my hand but theyre so hard to find. will i be happy with the 6.4

has anyone had catastrophic failure with the hemi motor? or recurring issues that drive u crazy?
 
Just keep in mind that most of the 68RFE failures are guys running power tunes on the stock transmission. If you leave the truck stock, very strong chance that you'll have no issues. Everything has its problems.
 
doberman66 said:
What is your mission? A lot of towing? What kind of payload?
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i towed minimally. but i like to be able to tow something if i need. but i use my truck for alot of work on my rentals. so thats why i want an 8' bed. put all my tools in it and lumber or sheet rock and can close the gate.

i want reliability. i hate worrying something is going to break every time i drive it
 
JL_M3_3500 said:
Just keep in mind that most of the 68RFE failures are guys running power tunes on the stock transmission. If you leave the truck stock, very strong chance that you'll have no issues. Everything has its problems.
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yea i get that and im one of those guys lol
 
JL_M3_3500 said:
Fair enough.

Why not go for the 3500 with the Aisin trans, if you're committed to diesel
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im not opposed but like i said i have a hard budget of 50k OTD so im having trouble finding a diesel
 
pconklin46 said:
im not opposed but like i said i have a hard budget of 50k OTD so im having trouble finding a diesel
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Fair enough.

Seems like the Hemi would probably be fine for your use, most of the Hemi owners for the 19+ trucks in this forum swear by their Hemi engines.

You can build a 2021 Big Horn with a 6.4 Hemi engine for right around or just over 50k, depending on how you optioned it. Most people who search around are getting around 10% off MSRP on new trucks, so, it's possible for you to get a new 2021 with decent options for under your 50k budget. You could probably tick every single box on a 6.4 Tradesman and still be out the door for less than 50k.
 
I too am going from the trusty Cummins to a gasser and while I don't know a ton about the big brother Hemi, it seems to do well in most categories, fuel consumption being one it struggles with. Aside from that if you keep the oil changed and maintain as needed they go many miles trouble free. The 8 speed auto is also nice....so I hear.

Sent from my moto z3 using Tapatalk
 
Yeah, The diesel option does quickly jack the price up. But, for the 2500 the weight of the diesel also eats up a big chunk of payload capability as well. Would the Hemi meet your needs? Other than that, with HD trucks not as populous on the car lots it'll be harder to get discounts. Not impossible but harder IMO. You could wait until the end of the year deals or see if you can find a recent year used truck.
 
JL_M3_3500 said:
Fair enough.

Seems like the Hemi would probably be fine for your use, most of the Hemi owners for the 19+ trucks in this forum swear by their Hemi engines.

You can build a 2021 Big Horn with a 6.4 Hemi engine for right around or just over 50k, depending on how you optioned it. Most people who search around are getting around 10% off MSRP on new trucks, so, it's possible for you to get a new 2021 with decent options for under your 50k budget. You could probably tick every single box on a 6.4 Tradesman and still be out the door for less than 50k.
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yea so far i fully loaded a 6.4 2021 which actually is a beautiful truck and im sure id be happy with it and this dealer will give 6% off invoice price. it came to like 47k OTD.

just ont know if i wanna pull the trigger on a gasser... honestly an 18 2500 cclb with G56 manual is my dream truck. but the one i found hd 55k miles and they wanted 65k for it :rolleyes:
 
whitexc said:
I too am going from the trusty Cummins to a gasser and while I don't know a ton about the big brother Hemi, it seems to do well in most categories, fuel consumption being one it struggles with. Aside from that if you keep the oil changed and maintain as needed they go many miles trouble free. The 8 speed auto is also nice....so I hear.

Sent from my moto z3 using Tapatalk
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so i hear as well.... but i dont wana be the one to prove them wrong lol cus thats usualy my luck. i KNOW id be happy with a cummins again so thats what makes this hard
 
Not going to try and talk you into or out of one unit or another, but I would question whomever told you that the Hemi was junk. Did they personally drive them and have issues? Or are they trying to justify their own decision to drive something else by trying to state something else was inferior?

For me personally, my 5.7 Hemi in my 2015 treated me exceptionally well. So well that I had zero hesitation when I went with the 6.4 in my 2016. And when it came time to order my 2020, you guessed it, stuck with the 6.4 once again.

I hear many stories of how terribly my truck should perform, but for what I do, it is more than enough and I have zero concern jumping in the drivers seat, hooking up whatever I need, and heading out. I tow a travel trailer a handful of times per year through the Colorado mountain (allegedly impossible for a Hemi), tow a pretty light duty utility trailer (~6k loaded) around the lower elevations 6,000-9,000ft most weekends and otherwise only what I can fit in the bed (though some tiling and landscape projects have fully consumed my payload.

Good luck with your choice and regardless of which way you go, I'm sure you'll be happy going back to Ram.
 
IMO, the 7.3 Ford is the current King of the gas HDs and where I would go if I wasn't in a diesel.

Sorry, fanRambois but MDS is a deal breaker in this class.
 
LateToTheParty said:
Not going to try and talk you into or out of one unit or another, but I would question whomever told you that the Hemi was junk. Did they personally drive them and have issues? Or are they trying to justify their own decision to drive something else by trying to state something else was inferior?

For me personally, my 5.7 Hemi in my 2015 treated me exceptionally well. So well that I had zero hesitation when I went with the 6.4 in my 2016. And when it came time to order my 2020, you guessed it, stuck with the 6.4 once again.

I hear many stories of how terribly my truck should perform, but for what I do, it is more than enough and I have zero concern jumping in the drivers seat, hooking up whatever I need, and heading out. I tow a travel trailer a handful of times per year through the Colorado mountain (allegedly impossible for a Hemi), tow a pretty light duty utility trailer (~6k loaded) around the lower elevations 6,000-9,000ft most weekends and otherwise only what I can fit in the bed (though some tiling and landscape projects have fully consumed my payload.

Good luck with your choice and regardless of which way you go, I'm sure you'll be happy going back to Ram.
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great response. thanks. im def taking into consideration what ur saying.
 
Epsilon Plus said:
IMO, the 7.3 Ford is the current King of the gas HDs and where I would go if I wasn't in a diesel.

Sorry, fanRambois but MDS is a deal breaker in this class.
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The 7.3 is the king of gas engines on paper but the OP's concerns were reliability, mileage, and budget. Nobody knows how reliable the 7.3 is long term yet. It should be but all it takes it something small to cause big problems like Ford had with the 6.0. They've already had egg on their face with bad spark plug wires on the 7.3. Mileage wise, the 7.3 makes the 6.4 look good from the reports I've read. Budget wise, Ford's out the door price is going to be higher than a comparable Ram and the 7.3 is a $2k option. So really, none of his concerns are addressed by the 7.3.
 
BTW, if I was getting a Ford again, I would get the 7.3 but my criteria is different than the OP's.
 
Reliability and MDS shouldn't be linked. There's a reason GMs 6.6 and 7.3 don't use it and GM....ahem "gm" goes ape about cylinder deactivation and MPG on everything they can.

Reason is fleets, where Ram doesn't have a presence. You want reliability? Look at what the fleets run.

I agree on cost though, Ford is proud of their stuff. Nobody beats Ram feature to feature.
 
Epsilon Plus said:
Reason is fleets, where Ram doesn't have a presence. You want reliability? Look at what the fleets run.
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tons of fleets run ram only here the other ones only run ford because they can lease them for tax wright off
 
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