Towing. Cummins vs. Powerstroke vs. Duramax

[BigHorn3500]

I own a Jeep Wrangler, and I am very familiar with dealerships and warranty service. Unfortunately, Stellantis is the owner of Dodge, Ram, Jeep, Chrysler. They have proven themselves cheap, and not friendly towards their customers. Sure you have good dealerships, and bad, but Stellantis is running the show. Now, there is a new boss in charge of Stellantis, and hopefully will turn things around, to deal with know issues, and the customer service issues.

Thats good to know

 

[jayh231]

Haven't had the opportunity to drive a Ford, but recently had my bother in laws 2025 GMC 2500 Denali for two weeks and it had me thinking about going to the GMC dealer.

What I liked most about the GMC; HUD, no lag in acceleration from a standstill, payload capacity, seats are much more comfortable, spacious interior, smooth steering, factory stance and smooth transmission, cubbies in the rear seats. I don't have the surround cameras or trailering cameras in my Ram so cant really speak for them but the GMC cameras blew me away on the in motion views it gives while trailering, especially turning.

What I didn't like; no Cummins option lol, weak exhaust brake (no meter that I could find), engine bay is crammed, horrible turning radius, (the following are across the board for GMC models, wife has a 22 Yukon Denali) weak factory Bose sound system, cheap plastic wood trims, very thin exterior paint,

I did tow my 20ft utility trailer with the Duramax from Central FL to SE GA and it pulled great, I just feel that the Cummins shines when towing especially the more weight you put behind it and going up inclines. In the next few months I will be hooking it up to my 8.5x32ft enclosed trailer to see how it does.

My current truck is a 2020 Laramie with the 6.7 that has been cured of the common respiratory issues.

You really cant go wrong with either, boils down to your wallet and preference.

 

[Rowdy Dalton]

Haven't had the opportunity to drive a Ford, but recently had my bother in laws 2025 GMC 2500 Denali for two weeks and it had me thinking about going to the GMC dealer.

What I liked most about the GMC; HUD, no lag in acceleration from a standstill, payload capacity, seats are much more comfortable, spacious interior, smooth steering, factory stance and smooth transmission, cubbies in the rear seats. I don't have the surround cameras or trailering cameras in my Ram so cant really speak for them but the GMC cameras blew me away on the in motion views it gives while trailering, especially turning.

What I didn't like; no Cummins option lol, weak exhaust brake (no meter that I could find), engine bay is crammed, horrible turning radius, (the following are across the board for GMC models, wife has a 22 Yukon Denali) weak factory Bose sound system, cheap plastic wood trims, very thin exterior paint,

I did tow my 20ft utility trailer with the Duramax from Central FL to SE GA and it pulled great, I just feel that the Cummins shines when towing especially the more weight you put behind it and going up inclines. In the next few months I will be hooking it up to my 8.5x32ft enclosed trailer to see how it does.

My current truck is a 2020 Laramie with the 6.7 that has been cured of the common respiratory issues.

You really cant go wrong with either, boils down to your wallet and preference.

Ahh, yours has shed a few pounds. Keep it, unless the lifters start acting up. Then maybe put some solid lifters in.

 

[Xflight29]

Haven't had the opportunity to drive a Ford, but recently had my bother in laws 2025 GMC 2500 Denali for two weeks and it had me thinking about going to the GMC dealer.

What I liked most about the GMC; HUD, no lag in acceleration from a standstill, payload capacity, seats are much more comfortable, spacious interior, smooth steering, factory stance and smooth transmission, cubbies in the rear seats. I don't have the surround cameras or trailering cameras in my Ram so cant really speak for them but the GMC cameras blew me away on the in motion views it gives while trailering, especially turning.

What I didn't like; no Cummins option lol, weak exhaust brake (no meter that I could find), engine bay is crammed, horrible turning radius, (the following are across the board for GMC models, wife has a 22 Yukon Denali) weak factory Bose sound system, cheap plastic wood trims, very thin exterior paint,

I did tow my 20ft utility trailer with the Duramax from Central FL to SE GA and it pulled great, I just feel that the Cummins shines when towing especially the more weight you put behind it and going up inclines. In the next few months I will be hooking it up to my 8.5x32ft enclosed trailer to see how it does.

My current truck is a 2020 Laramie with the 6.7 that has been cured of the common respiratory issues.

You really cant go wrong with either, boils down to your knees wallet and preference.

Have you driven the 2025s yet? I have a GMC for work ( gas ) nice truck, my 25 has no lag what so ever and just completed a 3K mile trip pulling 12K from AZ to the Ozarks and back and can not imagine any other truck pulling iany better.
My buddy made the same trip driving a GMC 2500 diesel and the only complaint his family had was the seat comfort was not as nice as his 21 Ram. The newly re-reworked motor along with the 8 speed is a huge game changer for Ram.

 

[jayh231]

Have you driven the 2025s yet? I have a GMC for work ( gas ) nice truck, my 25 has no lag what so ever and just completed a 3K mile trip pulling 12K from AZ to the Ozarks and back and can not imagine any other truck pulling iany better.
My buddy made the same trip driving a GMC 2500 diesel and the only complaint his family had was the seat comfort was not as nice as his 21 Ram. The newly re-reworked motor along with the 8 speed is a huge game changer for Ram.

Yes and I completely forgot to mention it. One of my coworkers bought a 25 Cummins and although I only drove it for 15ish minutes, its a whole new drive. Like you said no lag, instant go, firm and smooth shifts. I didn't get a chance to tow with it but I would like to. I think Ram nailed it with the new engine and ZF, now all they need to do is give more interior space in the cab.

 

[oledirteh]

what truck looks best?
what truck fits your budget?

that is the truck you need.

do you need a 2500 or 3500?
want a decent ride or want to drive a dump truck? If dump truck, get a 3500

then, you have recalls. ford is the most recalled company ever at this point. so that imho takes ford off my list of reliable anything.

that leaves ram and chevy. both have their issues. i have found that dealerships between ram and chevy are night and day. i have yet to walk into a chevy dealer and feel like they actually care or want me there let alone have a truck on the lot. Go across the street and they have the exact truck i want, and they want to sell it and work with me to get it done.


otherwise, in 2025, as much power and tech in these trucks, its more what looks good to you. i towed more then i tow now and i did it with a hell of alot less 15-20 years ago.

 

[Fleet Builder]

Full disclosure; I work for a CDJR organization in fleet. We have an upfit shop that is separate from the dealership. I build cop cars and medium duty specialty trucks for a living on all platforms (Dodge, Chevy, Ford, Nissan and Toyota mostly).

I also worked for Ford for years.

I own cattle and horses and have 5 different trailers that I use on a regular basis.

I bought this last truck (RAM 3500) new in December of 16 and couldn't be happier. I've owned them all. Had a '96, '99 and '01 F350 all with the 7.3. An '03 and '08 Chevy 2500 Duramax and a '96 and '17 RAM 3500. I have never owned a modern 6.7 power stroke but have driven everything up to a modern F450 in a real work scenario.

I have never had a major mechanical problem with any truck. I halve maintenance requirements (if it typically calls for an oil change at 10k I do it at 5k), always run full synthetic everything (since it's been available, I'm old) and I typically keep my trucks past 500k.

Not one of them owed/owes me a thing. Currently, if I were to buy another, it would be the RAM but only because the interior quality is the best of the three, and torque, lots and lots of it.

 

[Dave01]

I know you said "all newer diesels" so not meaning to get off topic. But IMO the diesel/gas question isn't quite as easy an answer as it used to be. Not many years ago, if you were towing over a certain weight (7,000 lbs.? 9,000?) it was obvious you would go with a diesel. I had a series of diesel trucks before the 6.4 Ram I'm driving now. I don't regret going with gas, we'll see how my 6.4 holds up but from a towing and general driving perspective the truck has been fantastic. I really like driving a diesel but don't like the extra $12-14,000 I have to pay for the diesel over gas plus higher maintenance cost and various problems the recent diesels from all 3 brands have had. I'm just saying, I think the gas motors are in the discussion to a much higher level of towing than they ever were before, with the newer transmissions being a big part of that. Just mentioning FWIW.

 

[Xflight29]

I agree, but my only worry is the lifter/cam issue. It sounds like it might be the same set-up as before, and the weak spot of the engine.

I'm hoping that by going with a inverted rocker arm and new manifold the lifter issue is non existent.
Only time will tell if all the new changes to the 6.7 are more or less dependable.

 

[Rowdy Dalton]

I'm hoping that by going with a inverted rocker arm and new manifold the lifter issue is non existent.
Only time will tell if all the new changes to the 6.7 are more or less dependable.

Inverted rocker arm??

 

[Xflight29]

Inverted rocker

I have know clue what I ment by inverted rocker.

From talking with many Ram pepole the evidence of failing lifters suggests the lifter quality was the prime issue ( materials ). They say now they are using a different supplier with better materials.
But again, time will tell if that is the case.

 

[DarkHorse8]

Toyota needs to make an HD Tundra with a 6.7 Cummins.

 

[Cseybert]

Yet and call it the one tondra. They did actually make a 1 ton truck back in the 80s. My former boss had one.

 

[DarkHorse8]

Nissan did it. I still see those trucks all over the place. I’m sure Toyota would be more successful. That is 100% the route I would go.

 

[Units]

Nissan did it. I still see those trucks all over the place. I’m sure Toyota would be more successful. That is 100% the route I would go.

Nissan’s Cummins foray was a huge dud. While I had a standard Nissan Titan and it was a very dependable truck, their “xd” was nothing more than a “heavy - half ton”. Their marketing was nonexistent and they made a “tweener” no one really wanted. I think Toyota screwed the pooch by ditching the V8 for a V6, might as well buy a Tacoma.

 

[Jdgautreaux]

I know you said "all newer diesels" so not meaning to get off topic. But IMO the diesel/gas question isn't quite as easy an answer as it used to be. Not many years ago, if you were towing over a certain weight (7,000 lbs.? 9,000?) it was obvious you would go with a diesel. I had a series of diesel trucks before the 6.4 Ram I'm driving now. I don't regret going with gas, we'll see how my 6.4 holds up but from a towing and general driving perspective the truck has been fantastic. I really like driving a diesel but don't like the extra $12-14,000 I have to pay for the diesel over gas plus higher maintenance cost and various problems the recent diesels from all 3 brands have had. I'm just saying, I think the gas motors are in the discussion to a much higher level of towing than they ever were before, with the newer transmissions being a big part of that. Just mentioning FWIW.

I would agree that you may be able to get longer service/miles from the diesel, but if you run into a problem and have to replace an engine and/or transmission then pull some of that $12-14k of the initial savings and reset the clock, you’re still ahead.