Diesel the right choice?
11-12-2006, 11:41 AM
#16
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There are lots of 06 mega cabs around going for around 33k. Convert the back to a sleeper, put in a tv ,carry your signs and equipment in the back. For all hwy driving change oil at 15000 miles. For the type driving she does the tires should last 60k, brakes 100k or more, the engine should go for 500k I would install a large comercial type fuel filter 2 micron and maybe a spinner ll oil cleaner to get a million miles out of it.
11-12-2006, 12:48 PM
#17
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There are lots of 06 mega cabs around going for around 33k. Convert the back to a sleeper, put in a tv ,carry your signs and equipment in the back. For all hwy driving change oil at 15000 miles. For the type driving she does the tires should last 60k, brakes 100k or more, the engine should go for 500k I would install a large comercial type fuel filter 2 micron and maybe a spinner ll oil cleaner to get a million miles out of it.
Thanks for all the input guys, I should specficy her current Toyota is a 2x4..not 4x4, thats why I was worried about the snow.
Thank you for all the information I have learned alot and will definitly have to check out some dodge diesels when the time comes.
11-12-2006, 02:19 PM
#18
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I..............TexasCTD that was exactly what I needed. Feel free to post up what you think, but also consider this truck would be more of an upgrade just for her to have a nicer truck considering she spends 1-3 weeks in it at a time, know what I'm saying?
Thanks again
Chad
Thanks again
Chad
This is what a Dodge 4x4 2500 looks like when "T-boned" by a mid size car at 50mph. Ask yourself, would you rather be in a VW Jetta, Jeep Liberty, Toyota Tacoma or some other similar sized vehicle........or the Dodge Ram?
I have made my choice.
Good luck with the decisions. Glad I could help some.
11-12-2006, 02:52 PM
#19
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TEXAS CTD -
Case closed for me.
The Ram 2500+ is a BIG truck. The frames on this things are Hydro-Formed and there is A LOT of metal on these things. Unless your hit by another FULL SIZE truck or a 18 wheeler, these trucks are safer.
Case closed for me.
The Ram 2500+ is a BIG truck. The frames on this things are Hydro-Formed and there is A LOT of metal on these things. Unless your hit by another FULL SIZE truck or a 18 wheeler, these trucks are safer.
11-12-2006, 03:02 PM
#20
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Yep they are heavy and have a lot of metal in them. I just weighed my truck last night on some Certified CAT Scales at a truck stop.
5020 lbs on the front and 3120 on the rear. Total weight 8140lbs. That is with me and a full tank of fuel. That ranchhand front end definately added some weight since the last time I weighed.
BTW....that pic I posted above is from member '05MXDIESEL"s truck.
5020 lbs on the front and 3120 on the rear. Total weight 8140lbs. That is with me and a full tank of fuel. That ranchhand front end definately added some weight since the last time I weighed.
BTW....that pic I posted above is from member '05MXDIESEL"s truck.
11-13-2006, 03:29 PM
#21
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I think I would go with a 4 banger or v6.It seems to me that diesel has been at least 30 cents a gallon more then gas,for the last couple of years.When I got mine diesel was 30 cents cheaper then gas except for the winter time. Now it never gets cheaper and with the new fuel out in 07 it will probably go up more now.I hate to say it but if it gets to be 50 cents or more a gallon for diesel there will be a for sale sign on mine.
11-13-2006, 05:26 PM
#22
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Not for towing.I'd hate to go back to gas unless it had LOTS of low end.But just for following a convoy I'd go small gas burner.I'd think lots cheaper all the way around from buying to maintance to fueling etc.
11-13-2006, 06:00 PM
#23
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For mileage I'd say the go with a small 6 banger Toyota Tacoma. They really do last forever.
Now if you asked me what I'd rather be involved in an accident in, the Ram wins hands down, it's a tank whereas my Tacomas sheet steel was like paper.
Hope that helps.
Now if you asked me what I'd rather be involved in an accident in, the Ram wins hands down, it's a tank whereas my Tacomas sheet steel was like paper.
Hope that helps.
11-13-2006, 06:43 PM
#24
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Lots of posts and crying about the sheet metal on these Dodge trucks being paper thin also.Sheet metal I bet is almost ALL the same thickness from manufacture to manufacture.Just more area to adsorb impact.
11-14-2006, 01:55 AM
#25
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To me, it's not about the sheet metal. It is the FRAME!
See on the pic above where the mid-size car hit the ram....it damaged the truck body......but it didn't penetrate the frame. NOT sure a Tacoma could handle that crash very well and I wouldn't want to try.
See on the pic above where the mid-size car hit the ram....it damaged the truck body......but it didn't penetrate the frame. NOT sure a Tacoma could handle that crash very well and I wouldn't want to try.
11-14-2006, 10:23 AM
#26
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Gentlemen, the goal of vehicular safety engineering is to preserve the health of the passengers, not the health of the vehicle. The truck in the picture above is totalled just like a car would be - there's no fixing that damage. The real question is: how did the passengers fare?
When a vehicle gets hit, the force doesn't just disappear; it gets transferred. A truck frame is stiff and will transfer force very well, while a unibody car frame is not as stiff and will crumple, absorbing the force.
The integrity of the truck in the pic above shows an illusion of safety.
Let's put it this way:
If you were to crash into a highway barrier, would you rather crash into a concrete wall, or a modern barrier that gives way?
The answer that is best suited for human health is one where the deceleration forces are as gradual as possible, as with some kind of cumple zone.
When a vehicle gets hit, the force doesn't just disappear; it gets transferred. A truck frame is stiff and will transfer force very well, while a unibody car frame is not as stiff and will crumple, absorbing the force.
The integrity of the truck in the pic above shows an illusion of safety.
Let's put it this way:
If you were to crash into a highway barrier, would you rather crash into a concrete wall, or a modern barrier that gives way?
The answer that is best suited for human health is one where the deceleration forces are as gradual as possible, as with some kind of cumple zone.
11-14-2006, 11:41 AM
#27
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With the 3/4 ton she could add an aux. fuel tank as suggested, which would make her feel better about less-frequent fuel stops (although most women I have EVER known need a restroom stop on a regular basis...). I like the room in my QC, and I have the 4x4. If I had to spend a lot of time in my truck I would like the extra space - heck, she can get a small dog to keep her company and have plenty of room for it, too !
11-14-2006, 02:05 PM
#28
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HOV -
You made very valid points:
Although heavy-duty versions of the Ram have not been crash tested, the Ram 1500 received a "Good" rating (the highest possible) from the IIHS.
In government crash tests, the standard Ram earned four out of five stars for driver protection in a frontal collision and five out of five stars for protection of the front passenger. Offset frontal crash tests conducted by the IIHS resulted in a "Good" rating, the highest possible. Dual-stage airbags are also standard, and side curtain airbags are available as well.
You made very valid points:
Although heavy-duty versions of the Ram have not been crash tested, the Ram 1500 received a "Good" rating (the highest possible) from the IIHS.
In government crash tests, the standard Ram earned four out of five stars for driver protection in a frontal collision and five out of five stars for protection of the front passenger. Offset frontal crash tests conducted by the IIHS resulted in a "Good" rating, the highest possible. Dual-stage airbags are also standard, and side curtain airbags are available as well.
11-14-2006, 02:47 PM
#29
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Although heavy-duty versions of the Ram have not been crash tested, the Ram 1500 received a "Good" rating (the highest possible) from the IIHS.
In government crash tests, the standard Ram earned four out of five stars for driver protection in a frontal collision and five out of five stars for protection of the front passenger. Offset frontal crash tests conducted by the IIHS resulted in a "Good" rating, the highest possible. Dual-stage airbags are also standard, and side curtain airbags are available as well.
In government crash tests, the standard Ram earned four out of five stars for driver protection in a frontal collision and five out of five stars for protection of the front passenger. Offset frontal crash tests conducted by the IIHS resulted in a "Good" rating, the highest possible. Dual-stage airbags are also standard, and side curtain airbags are available as well.
11-15-2006, 02:07 AM
#30
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Gentlemen, the goal of vehicular safety engineering is to preserve the health of the passengers, not the health of the vehicle. The truck in the picture above is totalled just like a car would be - there's no fixing that damage. The real question is: how did the passengers fare?
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HOV,
The truck in the picture is not totalled. It belongs to member 05MXDiesel and was repaired. https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...er.php?u=33114
IIRC, he and his elderly mother were taking a trip in town to run some errands. They could have taken his mother's Jeep Liberty but chose to take his Dodge Cummins instead. Had that same wreck occurred when the Taurus? I believe it was that hit them (had it hit the Liberty).......his mother probably wouldn't have lived as she would have taken the impact right in the pass. side door. Because they were in the Ram with it's heavy frame and several inches higher ground clearance, she is alive and well thanks to their choice of vehicle that particular day.
05MXDiesel has pics posted from this year after his Ram was repaired.
https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...0&ppuser=33114
HOV, im really not trying to be argumentative with you. I agree with you that crumple zones in unibody cars help displace crash energy. But you will never convince me that I would be safer in a smaller car or truck over my RAM.
Ask Big Dan about his head on collision in his 99 Ram vs. a dump truck.
https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...er.php?u=30451
https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...0&ppuser=30451