Good insight, thanks that makes sense

 

I went back and made a few edits to the original post. Deep down I want the Ford to exhaust brake like the Cummins for miles of down mountain turns I frequent. Fords EB isn't that bad, it's just the Ram's is that good.

 

Yeah I've checked out a few Ram forums lately. Here on Ford you'll get the occasional cp4 or 7.3 lifter thread but it seems the Rams have all kinds of issues. Knock on wood but the only times in the 35yrs and 11 Fords I've owned that slowed me down at all were a 1991 5.0 heater core and 2002 7.3 camshaft sensor. A 2018 F150 3.5 was going to be ugly between the trans and cam phasers but traded that off in time.

 

I find it interesting, to see what people care about when truck shopping.

For me:
- My Rams trans gear manual lockout was clumsy, and ten times worse than Fords. Ram could fix this easy. No idea if they ever did. Ford should consider Raptor paddle shifters on all SD's.

-Deos Ram offer any 6 speed manuals still? That would be awesome. My Aisen transmission was as smooth as something from the 80's.

-Both diesel engines lacked reliability. Both packaged poorly. And generally are poorly designed. Nothing on either engine, would be acceptable in any other industry.

-Ram has cramped interior compared to my Ford, but nicer seats.

-Fords front suspension and axle are superior. Not even close.

-Rams diesel oil filter is messy to get to, and you risk getting dirt in the new filter.

-Ram has a better 55 gallon tank on its work trucks. Fords is maybe 35.

-Cummins engine brake is better. But if the trade off is even lower reliability, I dont want it.

-You have to love the Rams engine brake, because youre stuck with it. Turn it off, and the turbo vanes or whatever seize up and fail. On some days, Id rather have the Fords softer, smoother engine brake.

- all the Ford engines run smoother than my Ram

-both diesel trucks stink up an entire parking lot with burnt DEF fumes, quickly. Very annoying on a construction site, running the PTO.

- both trucks are decades ahead of GM. GM is a posuer truck. Worthless for work.

-Ford used to have a very good looking XL grill. Ram still has a nice black grill, but for some insane reason, often puts the gaudy chrome grills on the base work trucks. I had to rip the black grill off of a Ram we were sending to auction, and swap in the middle of the night. Before my boss noticed. Never found out if anyone noticed why a well worn truck, had a brand new chrome grill.


Bottom line: Im still picking a Ford over the Ram for a work truck, and personal truck. Our F550's look much classier in work trim than our cheaper looking Rams. Especially since I can get the 7.3l gas engine in the Ford 5500.

 

With my '16' drw 6.7 and 3.73 gears it has no problem holding the 16k+ # 5th wheel coming down mountain grades in the west. I will lock out 6th and possibly 5th depending on the decent grade holding it back nicely and rarely touching the brake. I would think these newer trucks have to be better than the '16'.

 

Like I mentioned, I had no issues with the exhaust brake on the 2020 I rented holding me at my speed going down a 10% grade with our (light) 6000 lb trailer behind us, nor do I have issues with the 2022 F250 I bought with the same trailer behind me. (And FWIW, both of these trucks had 3.31 gears.) I totally understand that heavier trailers will begin to show this weakness more though. And I have always heard how much better the Ram's exhaust brake is, but if the trade off for a "better" exhaust brake is lower overall reliability, I don't think I would care for that.

It's been a while since I have watched any of FTL's videos, but I feel like I remember watching some of them climbing the Ike Gauntlet with maxed out capacities and testing the exhaust brakes coming back down, and I don't recall any actual issues they had with any of them either... maybe I am misremembering?

 

...interesting how many comments there are regarding the Ram floor hump and space for dogs. I had this issue as well. I had a 2000 supercab Super Duty V10 4x4... upgraded to a new (at the time) '16 Ram 2500 Tradesman ccsb with the 6.4L hemi & 4.10s. My Great Pyrenees was rapidly outgrowing the Super Duty. I solved the floor hump issue by folding the back seat up & cutting a sheet of plywood to fit the area. In back, it rested on the raised area beneath the seat. In the front, I measured & cut 4x4's to height, to provide support & stability. Ten years later, it's still going strong (so is the Great Pyrenees!)

 

i have seen some people reporting issues with the ZF in the Rams. things like quirky shift to dead in a few thousand miles. i found it weird cause that ZF has been around for years. i do like the look of Rams and was happy to see they finally changed the mirror design cause the people that drive almost on the yellow line with their tow mirrors extended drive me nuts.

 

I've had all 3 of the trucks and no complaints of drivetrain or interior on any of them. Driver visibility is best in the RAM and Ford. GM is a little better ride in front due to IFS, but not a game-changer. The rear of the RAM has plenty of room, just not as big as GM or Ford, so people like to gripe about that. In regards to the RAM rear floor, fold the seats up, fold down the flat floor pieces and then you have a flat floor for cargo, pets, etc.

As always, you can make a perfect truck if you took the best of each and combined them.

 

Ford = American based company and truck is assembled in USA
GM = American based company and truck is assembled in USA
Ram/Stellantis = Foreign based company and truck is assembed in Mexico

 

I am sure that there are ways to get around the hump, but aside from the hump, it just seemed like there was more room in all directions in the back of the Ford. And since I had the ability to choose which truck I wanted rather than make one work, the Ford was the obvious choice. Raising the rear seats in the Ford to open up all that room is super easy, and requires nothing extra, plus it doesn't raise the height of the floor, which would make it taller/harder for my dogs to get in and out. However, I did end up buying a set of folding steps and it has made getting in the truck even easier for them.

 

GM has a plant in mexico. Or at least a plant where somebody loves to drimg Tecate beer and leave the cans in the dash.

Ford has a bunch of components made by evil canadians.

 

The vaunted Powerstroke has been made in Mexico for years. Without that engine, the Super Duty would be an afterthought.

Can't use the "made here, made there" argument much these days.

 

The king does not sit in a finer throne room than the interior of a Larmie Longhorn.

 

I believe that GM plant produces .5 tons only. Having said that, many parts on these trucks are sourced all over the world unfortunately. I know the rims on my wifes Edge sport and made in freakin china. Pizzes me off every time I rotate the tires seeing that crap.