2020 Ram light duty and heavy duty lineup: By MrTruck
The 2014 Ram HD 2500 Hemi 6.4L is a Winner
Ram 2500 with new 6.4L Hemi is a winner!
2014 Ram 2500 with new 6.4L Hemi is a contender: Heavy Duty Ram for 2015 has only one change. But it’s embargoed for another week. You have to come to my website MrTruck.com to found out in September. Meaning this review will help even for the 2015 Ram. I was part of the PickupTrucks.com Ultimate HD Challenge published last week. We had 3 new 3/4 ton gas trucks towing trailers around Detroit for a week of hill climbs, brake tests, 1/4 mile racing and MPG tours. Then 2 weeks later we were towing my trailers in the Rockies from Dillon to the tunnels on I-70.
Ram 2500 with new 6.4L Hemi with in box sidewall storage
The winner for the heavy duty gas engine trucks was the 2014 Ram 2500 with the Hemi 6.4L. Then I had the same truck for my review in the Front Range. I towed my Logan Coach combo trailer with full water totes weighing 12,000 lbs. The 6.4L Hemi has 410 horse power and 429 ft. lbs. of torque. More than famous little brother 5.7L Hemi and the peak torque starts lower for quick off the line starts and hill climbing power. This engine impresses me and is the fastest gas 3/4 ton truck this year (2015). As a gas truck which weighs less than a diesel, the payload is higher making the 6.4L Hemi a good choice for a slide in camper.
Payload according to Ram is 3171 lbs. and trailer capacity is class leading 15,500 lbs. I’ve towed that much up the Eisenhower Tunnel climb on I-70 (7% at 11,000 ft.). This truck is about capacity everywhere, under the rug in the back seat on each side is a floor compartment that will fit a 6-pack of ice tea. Under the rear seats, a low table folds out to give you a flat floor for camping sleeping bags or bringing your big screen TV home. Then there’s the bed, this one has a Ram box storage compartment on each side. I’m told each side will hold more than 100 bottles of Root Beer with ice.
2014 Ram 2500 with new 6.4L Hemi is a contender: Ram Storage Box
Ram 2500 with new 6.4L Hemi is a contender Showing Ram Box Storage
The Ram Box takes up some of the bed, making the interior bed 4 ft wide all the way, still room for plywood or an ATV. Cargo rails inside the bed are great for cargo management. Two tie down rings on each side adjust the full length of the bed. The tail gate extender, which you need to lower the tailgate to load your full size 6.6 ft. ATV in the Ram 6.4 ft. bed, attaches well to the bed posts. The same tail gate extenders become a bed divider anywhere you want them along the inside of the bed and folding the extender locks them in place in the bed, locking them in place with the truck key. Speaking of keys, the key FOB will lock the truck, Ram Box and tailgate pushing one button.
I’m usually towing trailers, to get my ATV to fit the truck bed with the lowered tailgate, I had to use a receiver hitch extension. This puts my hitch with of course a long lowered ball hitch because the truck is so tall, past the tailgate. I need more room to miss the trailer jack and more. Remember when you use a hitch extension on your trucks receiver, you loose 1/3 of your trucks maximum tongue weight. This Ram 2500 has a trailer capacity of 15,500 lbs. with a hitch extension I can only tow 10,333 lbs. and my tongue weight, (trailer weight times 10 percent) went down from 1550 lbs. to 1033 lbs.
Visibility is very good with this truck, not like the Ram 3500 dually. The fold out trailer mirrors have the best reach from the cab to see around your 8.5′ wide trailers. 4×4 Rams are the tallest trucks too, and this media truck didn’t have running boards. I’m not an athlete anymore, so I have to park by a tree stump to climb out (get the running boards.)
The best part of driving this truck is gas mileage. Cruising down the highway empty, the MDS kicks in and runs on 4 cylinders. My mpg was around 18 at 70 mph with a 4.10 axle ratio. GM 6.0L in the 2500 does well for fuel economy, but the trailer capacity is thousands less than the Ram 2500 with 6.4L Hemi.
The Ram ride was above average with the standard progressive rear coil 5 link suspension. The front seat converts from storage and armrest to a middle seat. I think a crew cab should have 6 seats. I need two copilots telling me when I miss the turn and running the radio/media center. Ram 2500 with new 6.4L Hemi is a contender.
Trailer cushion, Cody gooseneck cushion, Shocker Hitch, Popup CC2 Cushion, Gen-y Torsion
Centramatic Automatic On-board Tire and Wheel Balancers
Gen-Y Hitch Heavy Duty Receiver Hitch Sale
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