What I meant was, its very common for vehicles to be problematic. Not just talking about the trans. It seems the manufacturers just don't put the time into r/d to eliminate problems before their vehicles hit the market.

 

Anychance there's a link to this? I'm not coming up with anything and I'd like to read it. Thanks.

 

I have towed with both vehicles. less than 5,000 lbs with the Dodge, and a double axle trailer/car with the Ford


btw, 2009 model 5.7 has the 390 hp...2008's were 345 HP, not 385 HP


either way, it only has about 10 more TQ than a 04-08 5.4 3v.

Edmunds.Com specs for a 2008 Ram

Edmunds.Com specs for 2008 F-150




did your Ram have the 3.90 gearset? that is about the only way I could see them being respectable in the towing department in comparison against a F-150

 

From the CR site:

The F150 earned their "second-tier" recommendation. The majority of the Dodge lineup has been below average on their reliability score for years, including the Ram 1500.

 

Unfortunately CR requires a subscription to look at their scores, and it wouldn't be legal for me to try and post a subcription-only article here.

Find Product Reviews and Ratings from Consumer Reports.

 

Have you ever towed more than 50 miles at a time? In hilly terrain? In a snowstorm? On un-plowed roads?

My Ram had the 3.92 gears. I believe that all Rams with the towing group do. My Ford has a very similar gear ratio, (probably 3.90) but it still does not have near the power that my Ram did.

However... I do like the interior of the Ford better, except for the seats, (no side support) and I like the side mirrors on the Ford MUCH better than the Ram. (I can see around an enclosed trailer) But the Ram was MUCH easier to see out the back of. (Seeing out of the back window of the Ford is like looking through a drinking straw)

 

The dealer I'm working with has got a Hemi, 4x4 quad cab, Laramie with towing package coming in. Going to test drive it in a couple of days.

As much as I hate to say it, it seems the Ford has got the Dodge beat as far as reliability goes. After my experiences with my 6.0 I really wanted to avoid Ford.

The towing responses have been surprising. I've been on a couple of Dodge forums asking the same questions I have been of the F150. All F150 responses to my towing questions have been basically saying, "yea, it'll do that and more no problem and get decent mileage." The Dodge responses have been mixed with about half saying it was too much and I need a 2500. The other half was split with people saying "yea it'll do it but it won't be all that great. The Hemi's got the power but the tranny is weak." and "the Hemi will do it no problem".

Looking for a new truck should be fun but I'm scared I'm going to end up with another lemon. Really sucks to be doing this right now.

Want to say thanks to everyone who's answered my questions again and again.

 

there is no question the Hemi can do what you want of it. I equate towing with the Hemi to towing with a F-150 w/ 4.6 motor. Both do the job as asked, but they are both gonna struggle and aren't the ideal motors for the job. Take the exact same F-150 with a 5.4 and you will notice a huge difference.




As far as reliability...my F-150 has been in the shop for 1 repair (window switch) in 3 yrs. I've owned the Dodge for 11 months and it has been in for 2 recalls, and 3 seperate repairs (Rear axle, fired PCM, misc sensors on intake)

 

I gotta disagree with you again there. The 2007 and newer Dodge trucks are severely ugly compared to the Fords.

-Bill
2003 IASCA Amateur Street World Champion
2003 SLAP Amateur Street National Champion
Linear Power - Dynaudio - Sony - Scosche
My Little Truck My Other Projects

 

c'mon guys, this is a Ford site, but you gotta agree that the 03-08 Dodge trucks look pretty damn good. I'll give credit where it's due...and the Ram is a nice lookin' truck when done up properly.

those 09's look like they have a serious case of underbite though. UUUGLY

 

i love my 5.4!
best truck i had in years
07 f150 fx4 5.4

 

I have said this before on this site and I'll say it again. I tow a 6800 lb. enclosed car trailer ( trailer plus car). I have towed this trailer and cargo with a 95 F-150 E/C 5.8L 4X4 AOD with 3.55 gears. With no head or side wind it would roll along at 60-65 mph in OD and get 10to 10.5 MPG. At the the site of a hill I would have to pop it out of OD. I drove by the tach. Anything below 1500 rpm was bad. I towed with an 05 6.0L E/C F250 with the Torque Command trans and it towed great. I averaged 10.5 to 11.5 towing at 65-70 mph. Best mileage I ever got not towing was 16.8 at 70 mph. I now tow with an 06 F-150 E/C 4X4 5.4L with 3.55 gears. It gets 9-10 mpg towing at 65 mph. I tow in OD but I will pop it out when the tach starts getting close to 1700 rpm. Headwinds and side winds do not bother the 06 F-150 at all. I towed from Carrollton, KY to South Bend, IN during the remnants of hurricane Ike in 30-40 mph sustained winds (mostly crosswinds) at 60 mph and got just under 10 mpg. Gusts were approaching 50-55 mph. The wind didn't seem to phase the F-150 at all. It was just as stable as my SD was and got almost as good of fuel mileage. I was able to run right along with my buddy's 96 460 C/C and got the same fuel economy. After my experience with the 6.0L Powerstroke I also was going to give up on Ford and get a 6.0L gas Chevy or a Dodge Hemi. In the end I'm glad I stuck with Ford. Even though the 5.4L isn't a speed demon towing, it does a more than adequate job towing. The torque management electronics are far superior to GM or Chrysler. And Ford is by far a healthier car company than GM or Chrysler financially. There are a lot of features I don't like on any of the newer trucks, but thanks to the EPA we'll never be able to get a big block gas pickup again. But if you don't tow regularly, a diesel is just prohibitively expensive from a maintenance point of view.

Greg B

 

Be glad you didn't get the 6 litre GM. I had one. Very dependable. Did great off road. Absolutely SUCKED towing. I can not overstate the suckage. The same load I mentioned in this thread the GM had an extremely difficult time with. 6 mpg and at the slightest most impercievable hill in the road, it would downsift and send the tack to almost 6000. Horrible.

For what its worth. I went ahead and got the Dodge. Got a killer deal and the place threw in a bumper to bumper extended warranty out to 100k miles or 4 years from the date of purchase.

Initial first impressions are that build wise in the body department they're not built as tough as Ford. Engine is very smooth and quiet and has decent power at around 2800 rmps. As another guy stated the Fords power band is at a lower rpm which is better suited for towing I guess. My thing is, it doesn't take much to get my trailer going and the power at the higher rpms should help on the highway on hills and when passing. I'd like to set the cruise at 70 and leave it there for all but the biggest hills and average 10 mpg. Sounds like a lot to ask but we'll see.

The other thing is, well, Ford just really screwed me on the 6.0 and for that I would like to punch somebody from Ford in the face, catch 'em with a knee to the chin on their way down and then start delivering elbows to the eye sockets once they hit the ground. With that in mind I just couldn't see myself buying another one.

 

sorry you went to the Darkside man. wish you well with it. I'm exploring my options do rid myself of the Dodge I bought last year

see ya around