I have been rigorously following these forums for a few years now, and I'm ready to buy a 1500 Diesel
I will be using it as a daily driver as well as to tow my BMW race car
I'm impatience and keep hearing about delays and now I hear that the 3.92 rear end will not be available to order until January meaning delivery in April
I really want the truck before then, so I had some questions about the diff ratios available when the truck arrives
Will they offer a 3.55?
Only a 3.22 due to the 8 speed?
If there is a 3.55 will that be adequate to tow my 3,000 lb race car on a 1,000 lb open aluminum trailer?
How will this tow?
I think the 3.22 will suck
Thanks and lots of input would be great
I towed a 5000 lb travel trailer with 3.55's and a 4.7. No problem at all. That diesel has a lot more torque than my 4.7 did. I would think you would be fine.
I too have been waiting for the 1500 diesel. I only tow a few times a year around 1200 miles round trip each time towing my 6200 boat. I have weighed the boat and trailer full of gear so I wouldn't be exceeding that weight give or take 100lbs. I drive an 05' Duramax now but do not really need the 3/4 ton. Will the 3.55 gears be OK for me to tow with? What is the difference in fuel mileage between the 3.55 and the 3.92?
I too have been waiting for the 1500 diesel. I only tow a few times a year around 1200 miles round trip each time towing my 6200 boat. I have weighed the boat and trailer full of gear so I wouldn't be exceeding that weight give or take 100lbs. I drive an 05' Duramax now but do not really need the 3/4 ton. Will the 3.55 gears be OK for me to tow with? What is the difference in fuel mileage between the 3.55 and the 3.92?
Based on the Ram press releases last month, the diesel is rated for 9200 lbs. That's with 3.55 gears (std for the ED), and standard cab, 8' box, 4x2. If you look at the 2013 towing capacities for the Tradesman or Express with the same setup, it's almost the same (9050 lbs). If you keep it the same but go with 3.92, the towing goes up about 1400 lbs, to 10450. No reason the same wouldn't be true with the ED.
I'd encourage you to go to the Ram website, and lookup the truck configuration you want, and just switch between 3.55 and 3.92. That'll tell you the towing difference.
As far as mpg goes.... (I have whisper so some of the guys around here don't hear me)..... I'd say the delta would be less than 1 mpg, and that's for city driving. The delta would be less on the highway. I don't have hard data to back it up, but I challenge anyone to give me hard data to prove me wrong.
I plan to go with 3.92 myself. More capacity, more fun off the line, and not a huge hit on the mileage.