Just curious as to what gear ratio you chose for you Pentastar Ram. Feel free to say why, how the mpgs are and how you like the power(acceleration, hauling or empty), and regular QC or CC.
Crew cab 4x4 3.55. Averages around 12l/100km mixed driving.
When the wind stops blowing late summer it gets a bit better.
Does not have the "low rolling resistance" oem tires either
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Power and acceleration is adequate. I drive a hemi truck (signature pic) on a regular basis so I do notice the power deficiency a bit. Without me driving the hemi all week I doubt I'd notice it. Only place I find it real noticeable is passing power.
4x2 crew cab 4x2 3.55 8-speed
In general driving city driving this vehicle feels very powerful, compares favorably to my old 1996 5.7 V8 Tahoe. In comparison, the Ram doesn't want to move much when you move the foot off the brake, and I find it a bit difficult to hit the gas pedal just right for a quick takeoff with modest acceleration. I also have a problem slowly braking to a stop (will post separately on that).
Test trip: drove 70 miles on flat ground, freeway only, with speed set to 60 mph; got 30 mpg.
Vacation trip: 150 miles uphill (7000 ft rise) mostly freeway with 10 miles poor gravel roads, then back down again to origin. Freeway speeds were somewhat above the posted 65, gravel road speed about 20. Drove cautiously but spiritedly, accelerating and braking with the traffic flow. Got 19.5 mpg on the way up, 26.4 on the way down. The 8 gears optimize driving up to about 60 mph; the instant mpg display tends to drop significantly when speed is increased from 60 to 70. Even when going uphill at 6% or 7% slope, power never seemed to be lacking, although engine noise became significant (on flat ground this vehicle is very very quiet). Only briefly did I engage the "tow" button: It raises engine rpm significantly and caused a big drop in mpg. I imagine that if one tows a significant load, one needs to get used to engine drone and poor gas mileage. Although this vehicle is rated to tow over 7000 lbs, I have no plans to tow. I guess the 5.7 hemi would be a better choice for a quiet cabin with a heavy trailer. Even if I will tow occasionally, I'll be happier with the V6 saving me gas when not towing.
Its a highway cruiser for me - CC, 2WD, 3.21. After breakin, I get 25.5mpg at 70mph, uphill, downhill, whatever on the interstate. I once got 27.9mpg going from kingman, AZ to Albuquerque. Its turned out to be just what I wanted.
4x4 regular cab, 3.21. Need it for commute, although I did use the truck to carry a load stone (1,200lb) for 20 miles, and the power is always there when I need it.
I am averaging 24.7 mpg, it a 40 mph back road commute with few stops.
4x2 Quad cab, 3.21 have not towed yet, plenty of power for me, love the 8 spd, averaged 23mpg on a trip from Baton Rouge to Okeechobee, FL and back including around town driving while there total approx 2000 miles started trip with only 1200 miles on the truck.
Almost 1.5 year, 45K km (28K mi), used as commute daily driver, yearly mpg average is 12l/100km (19 mpg), which is pretty good considering half a year is spent in winter conditions with winter blend gas (not very efficient)...
Towing is decent too, but starts to suffer nearing the 5K lbs mark, as MPG will decrease drastically, by half in my case. Still very satisfied overall, comfy ride and good looking...
I have the 2014 Tradesman 2WD V6 8 spd automatic and there is nothing on the window sticker telling me what gear ratio I have so what would be the standard without an option?
Interesting the hp and torque are almost identical to my 2013 Mustang V6.
I have the 2014 Tradesman 2WD V6 8 spd automatic and there is nothing on the window sticker telling me what gear ratio I have so what would be the standard without an option?
Interesting the hp and torque are almost identical to my 2013 Mustang V6.
Look at your window sticker again. On the left side of the window sticker under the standard equipment. Mines shows 3.21 Rear Axle Ratio as the last item listed under standard equipment just above the next list for Interior Features.
My truck has the Customer Preferred Package 22Z so it has the upgraded 3.55 axle ratio and it also has the Anti-Spin Differential Rear Axle option.
I have a 2014 Bighorn Quad Cab, 3.55:1 ratio. I also added a Leer cap. We use our RAM to tow a 5000 pound Jayco X23B trailer. So far, we've towed it over 1600 miles in mountainous areas (the truck has 10K on it now). Overall, our towing experience has been great.
On long highway trips, we get between 23.5-24mph (not towing), general driving 21.5-22mph and towing 11-13mph (depending upon how many mountains and headwinds). Overall, the truck tows well and it is a joy to drive.
I just got the 2015 with the crew cab and 4x4 (Black Out) with the 3.21. I am mostly driving this to work right now. Been very happy with it to date. I have yet to tow anything with it. The truck feels very well balanced thanks to less weight up front.
Here is a quick pic from the day I got her. I will get better pics later. It is all stock right now.
I have had my 2015 Laramie, quad cab 4x4 with 3.6L and 3.55 gears for about 2 weeks and I just had my second fill up - hand calculated 16.5 miles to the gallon with average speed under 30 MPH for the trip - for a truck of this size, motor not broke in yet, and average temps for the trip under freezing for the whole time that is an amazing figure!!! This mileage combined with the performance of this motor - power and acceleration - I am EXTREMELY pleased.
When the weather warms, the motor and transmission are fully broke in and I install my hard tonneau cover - I anticipate the average mileage will climb to 17-18 perhaps even 19 mpg.
The city rating is 17 MPG and I get right at 19.7 MPG in the city and sometimes hit 20 MPG in the city. On the road I get the 25 to 26 MPG and the truck is rated for 25 MPG on the highway.
I have the 3.55 axle ratio with the Anti-Spin option.
A consideration for those of us with the 3.21 differential is to use 7th gear when towing heavier loads. 8th gear has a reduction of 0.667 and 7th gear has a ratio of 0.839. A truck with 3.92 gearing in 8th gear has a final drive ratio of 2.61 whereas 3.21 in 7th gear has a final ratio of 2.69. So driving in 7th gear with the 3.21 would be virtually the same as driving in 8th gear with the 3.92 differential.
Another consideration for deciding which ratio is the elevation at which a person normally drives. As elevation, and /or temperature, goes up power goes down. Fuel mileage goes up also. I live near sea level. If I lived at 5,000+ MSL, I'd have considered the 3.55 even for my light towing purposes.
As it is, I can select 7th gear and be the same as if I had the 3.92 axle,
I have the '14 Tradesman 2WD Regular cab 3:21 axle ratio and I'm averaging 21/22 MPG at city/hwy mix after 13K miles. The ride is smooth and particularly finds its "sweet spot" at highway speeds of 65 mph +. I'm quite happy with it overall, although, I did do a test drive in a '14 Quad Cab Express with 3:55 gears and 20" tires, and immediately noticed how it was faster off the line, faster acceleration, and better handling.
I had to have a truck A.S.A.P. and truthfully the axle ratio was
not even a concern as some other equipment that's hard to find
on a Tradesman Shorty, especially being a 4X4.
I've yet to check the mpg the old fashioned way, but the
computer states low 20's so far mostly driving in suburbia
and the inner valley loops :smileup:
I love how snappy it is for a V-6 and I'm getting better at paying
attention to the gear I'm in. as of yesterday it just turned 1,700
miles and I think I'm starting to notice a feeling the truck is coming
into it's own :smileup:
Mileage is personally not my #1 concern, No vibrations between
62 & 75 mph is
3:55 but I didn't pick it for say, it was in a 2014 with 9000 miles I bought and I love it. The EVIC is showing 19.5 average , that is a 50/50 mix city n hwy mix driving.
Quad Cab, 2wd, 3.55 LS, Express, Approx 2500 miles so far.
My use is mostly commuting I'd say 90% highway using cruise control. Mostly in the 55-65mph range some up to 70mph, fairly straight and pretty flat.
I put 590 miles on my most recent tank of gas. Evic said 25.0mpg, hand calc said 24.0mpg. So far I've not had a tank of gas average under 23mpg evic or hand calculated. My hand calculations have been running a bit below the evic, but I'm happy either way with what I'm getting.
For me I'm quite happy I went with the 3.55's. I'm getting the mileage I'd hoped for with the added benefit of better towing capability and a bit more pep.
I've got 16K miles on my RC V6 Express 3.55 w/limited slip and have averaged 21 MPG. As the weather gotten warmer the mileage has gone up and my best take refill was just recently @ 24.7MPG hand calculated doing 60/40 Hwy/City driving.