3/4 Ton Truck

I don't trust aluminum heads on any supposed HD application. Ford has not been especially trustworthy in the past with spark plugs blowing out or getting stuck and busting off the plugs end in the head.

 

Ford has also been using a OHC design since like the mid-90's. This is a pretty big departure from their typical V8 by going to a pushrod, port injected, big block.

I have not heard of any issues from the Coyote's or 6.2L Boss motors which both have aluminum heads. The 6.2L has been the superduty gas motor since 2011. I think that is very much a thing of the past.

And I am pretty sure GM has used aluminum heads on their HD motors since like the mid-2000's?

 

I can say the new 6.4 in the rams feel really strong.

 

We have a lot of 6.2's in our fleet, and in talking to the mechanics the engines don't have problems themselves, it's just all the parts around (ac compressor, electronics, etc.) that break, and not to mention the 6.2 has lots of sound but little get up and actual go.

This is all about what you're used to - I jumped straight from a 5.7 Hemi to a 6.4 Hemi and to me there was a noticeable difference, some in the extra weight and some in the 6.4 being tuned more for torque over horsepower. It's all relative though because diesels just blow both of those out of the water. Any of the gassers will get the job done, but they leave you wanting more (which the diesels have).

 

My old 97 f-350 with a built trans stock 7.3 managed 20 on the highway... damn thing was a solid truck other than the shitty stock trans.

 

If It was me, I would pick RAM, but this guy has good feedback.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1sTliP3ibc&t=45s

 

I like Scotty but he's definitely biased against GM and in favour of Ford.

Also, for as much as he bashes GM, he admits in one of his videos that their HD trucks are actually pretty good and definitely built better than their 1500s (which should be true of all 3 HD truck manufacturers).

 

True, he does seem to dislike GM, probably mainly from personal experience. From people I talk to and see online, Chevy should place above Ford in reliability. Their 2500 are said to be very solid.

In a perfect world, I would like the RAM. Scotty says the RAM 3500 is the least reliable new automobile period.

 

I've owned both GM's and Fords and the GM's were by far more reliable. The 350's I had in the GM's were damn near bullet proof. As mentioned before, by my experience the crap around the engine seem to give the most problems on Fords. Also other shit would break when trying to fix the faulty component.
I've owned only one Dodge but I didn't keep it long enough to really see how it would hold up. The worst issues in the short time I had it were water leaks in the cab and early wear on seat material.

 

The issues with the ram might not be Cummins related. I know a lot of people who have lemon lawed recent FCA products to the point that it is a little scary. This included Ram 1500's and Grand Cherokees. One guy went through two GC's, the second one would randomly lock the brakes up on the freeway because something was wrong with the adaptive cruise/collision avoidance system.

I also owned a Jeep Liberty CRD(diesel). The corners that were cut on that vehicle were astounding. You would have to make a pretty good argument to get me in another Chrysler/FCA vehicle.

 

I already had a really negative argument against Chrysler products back in 1977 when my parents bought a new Plymouth Volare wagon. That was the biggest POS I had seen on wheels. AFAIK there weren't any lemon laws back then. The issues we had with that car were further multiplied by the inept dealership and service department. I could not believe an effed up thing to start with could be effed up more.

 

Based on looks and nothing else, definitely did consider a new F250 Tremor. It is just sharp looking truck other than the useless tiny rear sliding window. I had a 5.9 Cummins for years and never had a single issue besides not being able to keep transmissions in it. After the third transmission went out was time to go.

 

I heard ram is adopting the I force 5.7 with a tranny cooler in their HD 2500 models i cant wait.

Toyotas drivetrain in a 3/4 chassis all i ever wanted.

 

FCA is not smart enough to do something like that !

 

Respectively, Ram just can't drop a Toyota engine in their trucks. Toyota would never allow that and to be honest it makes no sense. Other than reliability, you would not be gaining anything. The 6.4 semi makes 30+ HP and 30+ Torque compared to Toyota 5.7. It also has a larger displacement which is better for towing applications.

I do wish Toyota would build a little bit heavier Tundra in addition to the current offering. A tundra with a true 2,000 lb. payload would be a nice middle ground before entering the true 3/4 ton market.

 

Fuel economy isn't that great on the 1/2 ton. Could you imagine how bad it would be on a 3/4 ton or 1 ton?

 

probably wouldn’t change much. My truck loaded for work is around 6500-6750lbs which is the same as the dry weight for most 3/4 and I still get 15 mpg with mixed driving. My gas mileage on drops when I’m pulling a trailer.

 

The whole 3/4 ton argument is intriguing me......

You can get a Chevrolet 2500HD with the 6.6l gas engine, LT Trim with added leather, couple convenience packages to bring it to same or more features than my Platinum. Looks like this is 51k MSRP for a nicely outfitted Chevy with 3k payload instead of 1,100. Same mileage also as the Tundra.

I didn't think I needed a 3/4 ton anymore but now this has me looking into it a little.

 

I would have bought a 2020 Sierra 1500 if they weren't having even more issues with this generation than they did with the last one.

That 6.6 gasser is a brand new engine. Might want to give them a couple years to work some of the kinks out.

 

Looks like my neighbour just replaced his K2 Denali HD Duramax with a T1 High Country HD Duramax. No idea if that's because he had issues or if he's just the kind of guy who buys a new truck every 2-5 years.

 

Forgot to circle back around to this thread. We will see how it does long-term, but in the short-term very optimistic about the truck. Towed a 6.5x14 tandem trailer with a small John Deere tractor. Around 5k to 5.5k pounds. Didn't squat a bit. Pulled it absolutely no problem. I went 42 miles round trip while pulling it, averaged 12.2 MPG while doing it.

I pulled same setup once with the Tundra. By no means did it struggle, you just really felt it back there.

MPG is impressing me do far. I a keeping my foot off the gas, just driving back and forth to work. Averaging about 15.2, my best 50-mile stint is 17.6 MPG. I am within .5 MPG of the Tundra so far. Towing I saw much better mileage as I would have been in the 9 range with the Tundra.

I do miss my Tundra though. So far that was the best truck I have owned to date.

 

Great looking truck! I almost went with a new 2500HD but couldn't swing the price tag so I ended up with a 2020 tundra

 

I'm not sure if it's the angle or the colour or what but the front end of your truck looks great, which is something I can't say about most of the GM HDs this generation.

 

They can get expensive quick! I stuck with the LT and added some stuff and stayed away from diesel. It was actually the exact same price as a Tundra Platinum. Maybe a little less actually.

 

At first, like a lot of people, I was not the biggest fan of the new front ends. Admittedly, it has grown on me and like it now. Still think the Tundra looks a little better in the front end though.

 

Oh yeah I wanted one bad but had to stick to my budget. I will get a heavy duty one day. But the black LT Z71 2500HD is the only one I would buy. They look fantastic. Congrats

 

There was only 2 available within a 300 mile radius and I got one of them!!!

 

I don't think any front end looks better than the TRD Pro. I would like the Chevy front end better if they got rid of that huge chrome Chevrolet banner that gives the truck the appearance of having two stacked grilles. Of course, I think they should take a cue from Toyota and float the CHEVROLET somewhere in the grille instead of bannering it.