Why are there so few 2500's with a Hemi?

[Frank]

Dealers stock what people buy, plain and simple. Where I live, there are very few 3/4 ton gassers because they aren't real useful to most HD truck buyers - whom aren't all weekend warriors. We have hills and small mountains and gassers just don't perform as well or last as long towing. As far as capability, 2500 fills a pretty narrow window between 2500 CTD and 3500 SRW, mostly people who have small to medium fifth wheels but a lot of them decide to go 3500 to get the performance in the hills.

Lack of demand plus longevity shows up in used prices. It's a $9k upgrade on the new truck, and at least where I live you get that and sometimes more back when you sell in 5 to 10 years.

 

[WXman]

I think if Ram got serious and brought a modern V8 to the Ram HD lineup they would be a more popular option. 429 lb/ft was good ten years ago. 12 MPG on a perfect day was acceptable 20 years ago. Today, neither cut the cheese.

Ford is knocking down 14+ MPG with 400 lb/ft right off idle and 470 at peak, mated to a 10 speed trans, with an option for 4.30 gears in a truck that has a curb weight that's 700 lbs. less in their gas HD offering. Clearly they are serious about performance and getting work done.

I'm hoping and praying that Ram does something to compete soon. Even if it's just a big revision to the current 6.4L. Give us something.

 

[kristof]

When I went to buy my truck the dealer , lets say "wasn't happy" that I want hemi. They really tried to convince me on the diesel and told me I get more options if I choose it. So now I get it. Since I really wanted hemi I couldn't buy their high end trucks. My only option was the tradesman.

 

[Ramit530]

When I went to buy my truck the dealer , lets say "wasn't happy" that I want hemi. They really tried to convince me on the diesel and told me I get more options if I choose it. So now I get it. Since I really wanted hemi I couldn't buy their high end trucks. My only option was the tradesman.

I am very confused by what you wrote...... Are you telling me you purchased a truck from a dealership that would not let you order a high end truck because you wanted a HEMI/gasser vs a diesel? The trucks can be configured however you like engine wise, I own a '19 gasser Limited with all the goodies as well as soon taking delivery of a 2021 Limited Hemi and trust me I am not the only one!

 

[kristof]

I am very confused by what you wrote...... Are you telling me you purchased a truck from a dealership that would not let you order a high end truck because you wanted a HEMI/gasser vs a diesel? The trucks can be configured however you like engine wise, I own a '19 gasser Limited with all the goodies as well as soon taking delivery of a 2021 Limited Hemi and trust me I am not the only one!

I didn't want to order. Want to buy same day what they had in stock. They tried to convince me to buy diesel because then they could sell me higher end truck for more profit. If I wanted it right now in HEMI the only trim they had was the tradesman which is the cheapest trim

 

[MtnRider]

I didn't want to order. Want to buy same day what they had in stock. They tried to convince me to buy diesel because then they could sell me higher end truck for more profit. If I wanted it right now in HEMI the only trim they had was the tradesman which is the cheapest trim

So you did not want to order what you wanted and had to buy that day, how can that be the dealer wanting to make more profit when all he had was a tradesman hemi???? You compromised because you had to have it now and you are blaming the dealer because he didn't have a higher trim gas truck on the lot? Lol Ok.....

 

[Eatonpcat]

When I went to buy my truck the dealer , lets say "wasn't happy" that I want hemi. They really tried to convince me on the diesel and told me I get more options if I choose it. So now I get it. Since I really wanted hemi I couldn't buy their high end trucks. My only option was the tradesman.

So you bought a truck you didn't want?? Personally I can't blame the dealer, the door swings both ways, I would have headed out to another dealer. Heck, I bought mine on line, went and picked it up at dealer, took 20 minutes of signing papers and headed down the road.

 

[kristof]

So you bought a truck you didn't want?? Personally I can't blame the dealer, the door swings both ways, I would have headed out to another dealer. Heck, I bought mine on line, went and picked it up at dealer, took 20 minutes of signing papers and headed down the road.

I want HEMI 2500 and that's what I bought. I didn't care for the trim. Dealer tried to convince me to buy higher trim so they can make more profit. But higher trim wasn't in stock with HEMI at that time, only diesel.

 

[Frank]

I want HEMI 2500 and that's what I bought. I didn't care for the trim. Dealer tried to convince me to buy higher trim so they can make more profit. But higher trim wasn't in stock with HEMI at that time, only diesel.

The salesman was just doing his job. Acting "not happy" is a trending sales tactic in a lot of industries right now to make you subconsciously think they have more leverage than they do and guilt you into an upsell. It turns some people off more than others, myself included, but it's not personal and it's not nefarious. Unless they flat out refused to sell you a unit that was in stock and available, it's just noise. It's the same as any sales tactic, you can ignore it, steer the exchange in a different direction, or walk. I've dealt with it on a few work projects and I will not be sad when someone eventually writes a sales book that encourages the opposite.

 

[kristof]

The salesman was just doing his job. Acting "not happy" is a trending sales tactic in a lot of industries right now to make you subconsciously think they have more leverage than they do and guilt you into an upsell. It turns some people off more than others, myself included, but it's not personal and it's not nefarious. Unless they flat out refused to sell you a unit that was in stock and available, it's just noise. It's the same as any sales tactic, you can ignore it, steer the exchange in a different direction, or walk. I've dealt with it on a few work projects and I will not be sad when someone eventually writes a sales book that encourages the opposite.

Oh I understand they have to try anything to make more profit. I remember one time when I was buying a car the lady brought me an invoice for the car and told me "they only make $200 on each car they sell". I just start laughing. She must have been new to this.

 

[jm888]

So basically it sounds like the dealers want to stock a lower end, lower price truck for people that can't afford 70k but figure if you can afford more than 40k, they want to push a higher end truck with the diesel for more profit, which makes sense. I would imagine that a hemi in a mid level trim is a good middle ground and good value but they just want to try to push the extra 10k of the diesel to make it more convenient to buy same day. If you want to save money and get exactly what you want, you have to wait 2 or 3 months.

 

[MtnRider]

They build what sells plain and simple... and people want a diesel HD truck more then they do a gas. There is no conspiracy, or tactics, it's what people want. While a few would prefer a gas HD truck the majority do not. They do all kinds of trend and market analysis, watch sales numbers etc to determine what to build and how many of each and for HD trucks diesels are a bigger seller, it's that simple.
I have owned gas HD trucks and I never will again (not unitl they can catch up to the power and mpg), if I'm in a HD it's going to be a diesel. I'm sure some will argue and disagree but it's obvious by the sales and production I am not alone. It's pretty cut and dry.


.

 

[Eatonpcat]

Anyone have a link to 3/4 and 1 ton percentage of sales...gas vs diesel??? Around here, I seem to see more gassers on the lots.

 

[MtnRider]

Anyone have a link to 3/4 and 1 ton percentage of sales...gas vs diesel??? Around here, I seem to see more gassers on the lots.

It's rare to see a gas trucks in my area, and where I was in Colorado before this. I doubt I could find more then a couple gas HD truck at each dealer around me (if that). Even more so on the road, I rarely pass a gas 2500/3500.

/

 

[H3LZSN1P3R]

Its the opposite here if you want a diesel you gotta search for them tons of hemi 2500s here the one shop 2 doors down have 10 2019 2500 hemis

 

[PGHChris81]

The time to buy both for getting a a good deal and getting what you absolutely want is when you don't really need one. lol That's what I did and while Cummins did outweigh the Hemi on lots, it wasn't impossible to find what I wanted with a little searching online. I didn't want to order one, but I knew what options I wanted so if I got a deal I could drive away with one on the lot. Color has really never been an important factor for me with any vehicle. I will stay away from a color I hate, but I like a lot of different colors so I more or less shop for the options/features. I will admit when I found the one I liked online it had a stock photo and the color said RED. When I went and saw it, it wasn't the red I thought it was, but was pleasantly surprised. When you also say you aren't in a hurry to buy and don't need to you will have more buying power, except if you slip a grin on the test drive haha.

 

[Frank]

The time to buy both for getting a a good deal and getting what you absolutely want is when you don't really need one. lol That's what I did and while Cummins did outweigh the Hemi on lots, it wasn't impossible to find what I wanted with a little searching online. I didn't want to order one, but I knew what options I wanted so if I got a deal I could drive away with one on the lot. Color has really never been an important factor for me with any vehicle. I will stay away from a color I hate, but I like a lot of different colors so I more or less shop for the options/features. I will admit when I found the one I liked online it had a stock photo and the color said RED. When I went and saw it, it wasn't the red I thought it was, but was pleasantly surprised. When you also say you aren't in a hurry to buy and don't need to you will have more buying power, except if you slip a grin on the test drive haha.

You have better salesman in your area than most. Around here, once they have any contact info in their system you're going to need a restraining order to get them to quit pestering you. I decided to pull the trigger on upgrading to a 2500 CTD on pretty short notice when I saw how crazy half ton prices were getting. Test drove a stripped down Bighorn at my local dealer but didn't like the options or the price and they only had 2 diesels left on the lot. Bought a nearly fully loaded Laramie for less money elsewhere that afternoon. I still get texts from that kid to see if I am interested in a Bighorn even though I have been in the lot for warranty work with the new truck and we talked about it.

 

[JohnandDonna]

I think if Ram got serious and brought a modern V8 to the Ram HD lineup they would be a more popular option. 429 lb/ft was good ten years ago. 12 MPG on a perfect day was acceptable 20 years ago. Today, neither cut the cheese.

Ford is knocking down 14+ MPG with 400 lb/ft right off idle and 470 at peak, mated to a 10 speed trans, with an option for 4.30 gears in a truck that has a curb weight that's 700 lbs. less in their gas HD offering. Clearly they are serious about performance and getting work done.

I'm hoping and praying that Ram does something to compete soon. Even if it's just a big revision to the current 6.4L. Give us something.

Unfortunately I think the V8 is dead. With fuel prices going North again (hey lets cancel another pipeline). We are at the peak of V8 development. The politically correct climate change crowd also has diesel in its sites. Sad times!

 

[Pronto]

An inventory search within 250 miles of me shows that 28% of 2500's on lots or en route are Hemi's.

 

[kxnate]

One thing that I don’t like about the Hemi is that I can’t see what gear I’m if it’s in eco mode.

That is the one thing I do not like about my Hemi as well.