Results from Recent Trip

[Rgentum]

Truck is 2015 RAM/Cummins diesel 2500.
Trailer is 2016 AS 27 FC.
Recent trip was Seattle to Boise to Salt Lake City to Provo to Pueblo (over Monarch Pass, elev. > 11K ft) to Taos to Santa Fe to Carlsbad to Fort Stockton to San Antonio to Corpus Christi to Aransas Pass to Rockport to Port Aransas to Corpus Christi to Brownsville to South Padre Isl to McAllen to Laredo to Big Bend Park to El Paso to Las Cruces to Tucson to Ajo to Yuma to Palm Springs to Victorville to Palmdale to LA to Palmdale to Redding to Seattle, a total of approx. 7K miles.
Set cruise at 60 mph, used exhaust brake. Truck almost drove itself.
From Seattle to Provo at 60 mph on Interstate highways got 16.2 mile/gal.
From Provo to Pueblo over Monarch Pass got 10.2 mile/gal. Truck executes hills gracefully but devours diesel in the process.
South of El Paso, headed directly into a dust storm coming at me at 35-40 mph (Highway Patrol closed Interstate for several hours); drove 100 - 200 miles directly into wind; got approx. 8 mpg at 60 mph; replaced air filter in Tucson. Old filter was black with bugs and dirt.
Overall, got 13.5 mile/gal for the 7K miles.
Have driven from Seattle to Portland, approx. 200 miles, w/o trailer and gotten > 22 mile/gal.
Last summer, I had a 9K mile trip from Seattle to the WVA Rally, then to Upper Michigan Peninsula, then to Black Hills, then to Glacier Park, then to Seattle, got 13.5 mile/gal overall.
Now have > 25K miles on the truck in 11 months, and it has performed FLAWLESSLY and with no down time (except for my stupidity; I added DEF to the diesel tank --- whoops! --- and learned how to drain the fuel filter).
My only regret is not having bought a 3500, which I will get next time.

[Ruffn It]

Appreciate the details. Any comments on why you'd rather have gotten the 3500? We're looking to upgrade and having the 250/350 conversation.

[Rgentum]

Issue: 2500 vs. 3500?

I've spoken with many 3500 owners (mostly either Ford or Ram owners) at RV parks etc. and asked why they bought a 3500, and many of those have said that they had a 2500 and replaced it with a 3500 (which I eventually hope to do). Typically, they say it tows better (ie, with a load), although is rougher as a daily driver (ie, without a load). At least with Ram, the only difference between them to my knowledge is that the 2500 has rear coil springs while the 3500 had rear leaf springs. The consensus I've found is that a 3500 works better for a dedicated tow vehicle, while a 2500 works better (ie, is a better compromise) for a tow vehicle also used as a daily driver.

[enon woods]

Love my '16 Ram 2500. Bought two '16 Ram 3500's for my company. Way too stout for me to consider riding cross country in. We came over the pass from Taos to Chama yesterday and it was never really tested. I was hoping to see it work a little harder. I really like the digital gauge that shows exhaust breaking and turbo boost.

[cabinetmaker]

I got the 3500 srw because you can't get the Aisin in a 2500...with the megacab it rides nice.

I have been averaging 14-15 mpg towing for the last 2000 miles...I drive the speed limit. Truck pulls hills and head winds with authority.

[Anders79]

Rgentum - thanks for the info. We are similar (I live ~ 30 minutes away and also have a Diesel Ram 2500 which i just love). We seem to get around the same type of mileage with our RAM and 25' FC. We tend to go to Washington or oregon Coast for most of our trips so far - and seem to avg around 16 to 17 MPG on those trips.

[tjdonahoe]

Originally Posted by cabinetmaker

I got the 3500 srw because you can't get the Aisin in a 2500...with the megacab it rides nice.

I have been averaging 14-15 mpg towing for the last 2000 miles...I drive the speed limit. Truck pulls hills and head winds with authority.

My new ram on a 4200 mile trip got 14, pulling out 31' classic, with only 6000 miles total, the Chrysler 6 speed auto does just fine, also has rear coil springs, they will ride better than the 3500 with leaf springs....

[slowmover]

Scale weights would have meaning with mpg.

Order of comparing mpg figures is, according to Cummins:

Truck spec
Climate
Terrain
Driver Motivation (use of cruise control percentage, average mph per engine hours divided into distance; etc).

The DEF trucks look to do about as well as the early HPCR engines, albeit at double the price and complexity.

FWIW, ten years ago I found over a dozen examples of CTD owners where, with trailers of this type; 28-34' in length; 7-11k in weight and residing in the South Central US were seeing 14-16/mpg where set speed was 58-65/mph. Over thousands of miles of use.

The overall average mpg is what matters for comparison.

Average mph is the most revealing, however. The greater discrepancy between this and what one thinks is the travel speed puts mpg into proper perspective.

[USAtraveler]

Fiat-Chrysler just announced the recall of 1.2M Ram pickups, capping a string of problems dating back over 3 years...no doubt a major part of the reason Ram has posted the lowest reliability rating of any pickup except perhaps older Nissan Titan models. When I read about AS owners using RAM tv's, I wonder how much they are spending on routine service repairs or breakdowns enroute. I've looked at RAM trucks, but their reputation finally turned me off.

[enon woods]

Originally Posted by USAtraveler

Fiat-Chrysler just announced the recall of 1.2M Ram pickups, capping a string of problems dating back over 3 years...no doubt a major part of the reason Ram has posted the lowest reliability rating of any pickup except perhaps older Nissan Titan models. When I read about AS owners using RAM tv's, I wonder how much they are spending on routine service repairs or breakdowns enroute. I've looked at RAM trucks, but their reputation finally turned me off.

Well, some people buy a few vehicles over the course of their lives. As a business owner that purchases a fair amount, approximately 50 over the last 16 years of which most were pickups, I have had good service from GM and Dodge trucks. When it comes to real work grade trucks I think Dodge is the winner. When it comes to diesels, the Cummins beats anything GM and Ford have to offer (V8 aluminum blocks). I have an '01 with 350k, a '12 with 125k, and a '16 with 11k. No major problems with any of them. Major reason for 3/4 ton trucks for me was frequently pulling trailers in the 11000# range. If only pulling an AS such as my FC25FB, I may have gone with a 5.7 Tundra, the best riding truck I've ever owned.

[enon woods]

Originally Posted by enon woods

Well, some people buy a few vehicles over the course of their lives. As a business owner that purchases a fair amount, approximately 50 over the last 16 years of which most were pickups, I have had good service from GM and Dodge trucks. When it comes to real work grade trucks I think Dodge is the winner. When it comes to diesels, the Cummins beats anything GM and Ford have to offer (V8 aluminum blocks). I have an '01 with 350k, a '12 with 125k, and a '16 with 11k. No major problems with any of them. Major reason for 3/4 ton trucks for me was frequently pulling trailers in the 11000# range. If only pulling an AS such as my FC25FB, I may have gone with a 5.7 Tundra, the best riding truck I've ever owned.

One more thing! I'm sitting in SW Colorado after having driving 1500+ miles from the SE, in almost constant 25+ mph winds. The weight of the Ram 2500 was a blessing.

[J-Dog]

Originally Posted by Rgentum

...
Set cruise at 60 mph, used exhaust brake.....

Did you prefer the exhaust brake to be in "Full" or "Automatic"?

[enon woods]

Have just used auto so far.

[tjdonahoe]

Originally Posted by USAtraveler

Fiat-Chrysler just announced the recall of 1.2M Ram pickups, capping a string of problems dating back over 3 years...no doubt a major part of the reason Ram has posted the lowest reliability rating of any pickup except perhaps older Nissan Titan models. When I read about AS owners using RAM tv's, I wonder how much they are spending on routine service repairs or breakdowns enroute. I've looked at RAM trucks, but their reputation finally turned me off.

My 07, 6.7, auto...4 door short cab 2500 3.73 gears,, 4/4 quad cab, and short box...had 110,000 miles and never had any problems...average towing was 12.5 mpg...my new ram same except it has the crew cab and 3.42 gears, has only 6000 miles, just came back off a 4200 mile trip, averaging 14... has got 20.3 on a couple short empty runs of 500 miles...I don't know where you got your information from, I used to own Fords, 7 of them to be exact then came the 6 liter, I didn't get stuck, I went to dodge and their proven engine and you don't see V8 Diesel engines in the big trucks,any more, all are inline sixes..the is a reason for this, cats,cummins, Mack.volvo..I run big trucks 52 years..mostly cat...

[Rgentum]

The Ram recall:

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/12/b...sler.html?_r=0

was over safety equipment:

"..., the company said it would recall more than 1.2 million Ram pickups to fix faulty software that can disable airbags and seatbelt tension devices. The defect has been linked to accidents resulting in one death and two injuries, ...."

[Anders79]

OK - I have Brand Loyalty - Love my RAM and have had No problems. Actually purchased because both my father in Law and my Brother in Law have or had RAM Diesels with ~500K miles with no problems. Have not read much about towing problems. In terms of problems - starting to read about common problems with Ford F-150 trucks electronics for both the brake controller and trailer connect controller (also noted multiple time on this forum). One of the common problems being it causes Air stream brakes to lock up - Not a problem you ever want to encounter on the road.

[slowmover]

I doubt there's an exception to recalls for road legal vehicles were a microscope applied. They're all more software than hardware these days. Big trucks as well.

[Adiredneck]

My first year with our new 2014 27FB Classic I towed with a 2001 Dodge 2500 Cummins 4x4 Reg. Cab with 5 speed stick and 8'bed. Plenty of power and towed the heavy Classic with ease. But it rode like a deuce-and-a-half. It was a Yankee farm truck that had added heavy duty springs in the back, and the "plow prep" HD suspension in the front to take a 1500# snow plow. After two cross-country trips, DW dug in her heels and said I could buy a new truck if it rode better. I bought a 2015 Ram 3500 Quad Cab 4x4, 6 speed stick and 8' bed. It's a city block long - but rides like a Texas Cadillac! Because I wanted some specific things - I figure this truck might outlast me, considering the 2001 was chugging flawlessly after 15 years - I had to special order. I wanted the Laramie trim level and the standard transmission. I was originally looking at just a new 2500 until I found that the 3500 was only around $400 more, and gave me 2,000# more load capacity. For that difference - go for the bigger truck (in an emergency while towing, no one, ever, has said "Gee, I wish I had less truck!") I'm very pleased with what I got. I did pimp it out with a Highway Products Pickup Pack and bed roller (pics on my gallery), and have towed another 12,000 miles with it. Our loaded GCVW is right around 17,000#, with 10,000# on p/u and 7,000# on AS (I CAT scale it every trip); I use a combo of Equalizer and AirSafe hitches (never a drawer opened or pillow out of place), and average 14.5 mpg running the Appalachians from Mississippi to the Adirondacks of NYS twice a year. I use the "auto" engine brake setting - "full" kicks in every time you take your foot off the accelerator and kills mpg. With the cruise control set at 65, it runs 1600 rpm in 6th gear, and never needs to downshift through the mountains of SW Virginia and Pennsylvania on I-81. It rides better than our new 2017 Volvo XC90 - DW is very happy! Last year I upgraded the AS to 16" Sendel rims and Michelin XPS Rib tires and Centramatics. The whole rig is a pleasure to drive and tow - plus I still get to shift with a real "handshaker". That's my experience and $0.02 worth...

[ArkFortyCal]

Originally Posted by enon woods

Have just used auto so far.

+1 on Auto Exhaust Brakes! These are magical when going down super steep hills. I just went down 13 miles of 6% without using hardly any brakes. Amazing control.

[53flyingcloud]

Thanks for the comparison comments