Dodge Ram 1500 - 2 or 4 wheel drive

I am considering buying a Dodge Ram 1500 in the UK, as I want something big, intimidating and an expression of my manhood : ).

I notice that most Rams advertised are 2 wheel drive models, the 4 wheel drive ones being relatively rare.

I currently have a 4 x 4 Mitsubishi, and have noticed that it is virtually impossible to drive it in snow when it is in 2 wheel drive, but is fine in 4 wheel drive.

I would be grateful for anyones advice / experience regarding the handling of the Dodge Ram in slippery road conditions. Is the 2 wheel drive model very difficult to handle in snow without snow chains? I don't go off-road, but should I opt for the 4 wheel drive model?

Does Dodge produce an SRT-10 in automatic, 4 wheel drive version?

What is the difference between the Ram 1500, the 1500 SLT and the Laramie?

Thanks in advance, Anker.

Reply to
anker
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anker thought everyone should know:

uh i personally wouldn't be taking a srt-10 out in any kind of slick conditions. that thing has the VIPER v-10 under the hood. that's nothing to sneeze at. 4wd is definitely helpful under slick conditions such as snow. but I've never had my 2wd not get me where i NEEDED to go. of course i live in the south and we don't see much of the white stuff round here....add to that my opinion that snow is only good for tearing up otherwise perfectly good vehicles and you see why i keep my butt home when its snowing *grin*

sounds to me like what you really want is a 5.9L v8 with 4wd for your winter weather. trucks are light in the back and as you have experienced not the most stable in slippery conditions. its the nature of the beast..keep in mind the higher the HP the easier it is to get it out of shape fast....of course this depends on the driver experience and habits also.

Reply to
Chris Thompson

P/U's by nature are heavy in front and light in rear and can be dicey or testy on slick roads in 2wd. (Diesel trucks are the worst about this because of heavy engine up front). It is quite possible to do quite well with a 2wd P/U with a little preperation and thought. One is to loose any big wide tires in snow because they make matters worse and consider running a nice set is real snow tires on the rear. Next you want to add a bit of ballast behind rear wells in bed (between 300 and 500 lbs or about 120 to 220 Kg) as this will help a LOT. Actually a 2wd truck can be a pretty good tank in snow with right tires and weight combo. Case in point, I have been plowing snow for many years and own a few plow trucks and I very rarely ever use 4x4 when transporting from job to job and I get around just fine (and that is wiht about 800 lbs of plow hardware hanging on front too) What is my trick? Ballast and good grippy 10 ply truck type bias ply snow tires. Granted I run a lot more than 500lbs most of the time (at least

1000 lbs and some times as much as 3000lbs and more when loaded with salt) When I am carrying a good load (1500 lbs and more) I can even plow light to moderate snow in 2wd without any problems. The problem with depending on 4x4 drive all the time is that you have basically no abilty to steer out of a skid in 4x4 because all tires have to more or less turn same speed and their paths in a skid are different and since they cannot free wheel the break traction on a slick surface. The only good 4x4 system that is safer and predictable for this is a fulltime system that has a differentail between front and rear axle but no major brand US truck come with this today. (they have in past and I still have one that I have owned for 22 years and it was/is nice on slick roads) Granted you can drive a 4x4 and get by with 4x4 and no ballast with caution but you will pay a MPG penalty because Dodges made for last five years or so have no abilty to disconnect front axle from wheels (all models) and they are constantly dragging the ring and pinion and driveshaft even in 2wd and this adds up to a fuel loss of 1 to 2 MPG over all (worse when it is cold and lube is thicker) GM and Ford do not spin front drive shaft or ring and pinion in 2wd mode for what it is worth. Given fuel prices in UK I would tend to suggest making do with a 2wd unit.

----------------- TheSnoMan.com

Reply to
SnoMan

I went through 5 winters here in Colorado with a

2WD Ram. Id did fine, always got me to work on time, and home at the end of the day. The key is proper tires. I used a set of Goodyear Workhorse on the back for winter use.
Reply to
.boB

Chris, SnoMan and Bob, many thanks for your replies. The information you have imparted is very helpful, and I think I have now made up my mind and will go with the 2 wd.

Regards, Anker.

Reply to
anker

Reply to
Robert Francis

Robert Francis thought everyone should know:

you know I'm glad to hear that someone up north has been choosing 2wd over

4wd because they felt they didn't NEED 4wd. I've always been of the opinion that if its too slick for a properly set up 2wd then its too slick for 4wd. at some point stopping is going to be a factor.
Reply to
Chris Thompson

It depends on the snowfall you receive. We receive heavy/wet snowfall due to lake effect from the Great Lakes. We can get stretches of bad weather with 4 to 6 inches of snow each day. We've had both a 2WD and 4WD. We prefer the 4WD.

Reply to
Mr.Spock

I'd much rather drive a 4wd on snow packed roads. I agree that 4wd does not help stopping. But it does improve handling. Most vehicles I've seen slid off the road were not trying to stop.

Chains on all 4 wheels, ballast in the rear, limited slip differential etc. will allow a 2wd to perform fairly well on snow but 4wd will do even better.

Reply to
miles

Why's that? Placed behind the rear axle, it'll leverage a bit of weight off the front axle and add more than it's own weight to the rear axle.

Reply to
Beryl

Because that "leverage" also acts as a lever to pull the rear end around the front of the vehicle in a turn and taking weight off of the front tires does not always help the situation, especially when attempting to turn in slippery conditions.

Reply to
TBone

I think you will find its almost impossible to buy winter snow tyres in the correct size in the UK. We are also not allowed studded tyres, I brought my truck over from Canada and ran it with winter tyres in Canada but just use the four seasons in the UK. I personally prefer the 4X4 and if you found your mitsu bad in the snow, the SRT 10 would be horrendous. Im selling mine now low milage 5.7 laramie 4X4 email me if you want details. Rob

Reply to
rob

I have a 89 4x4 burb that I bought new loaded with every option and

4x4 drive but I can honestly tell you that there has only been a hand full of times that I needed 4x4 drive in it to get around and it has been in some pretty serious snow out west. I can remember only once that I needed it in snow and that was on a forest trail in winter (and that trip is a story of its own) With some weight in the rear and good tires and a smart driver a 2wd can surprize you. My wife drive a 2wd Cherokke with a 4 banger and a stick that we bught new in 2000 as a daily commuter. During the winter I run studded snow tires on the rear and the vehicle does a great job in snow and ice. One of her freinds at work traded a minivan for a grand cherrokee several years ago and first winter with it put it in the ditch trying to comute in 4x4 on icy roads thinks they were invincible. They traded it off the next summer and went back to a front wheel drive. More than one person at her job scratches their head at how she seems to do better than them in 2wd on bad roads. Not sure if studs are ablicable here but when you run them on rear ther is not tendancy to spin out and suddenly trade ends on even the slickest roads. Very predictable. I run a set of 4 of them on my plow trucks in winter.

----------------- TheSnoMan.com

Reply to
SnoMan

Studed tires are good on ice. But absolutly suck on wet pavement. Talk about swapping ends.

Reply to
Roy

Reply to
Robert Francis

Yup. The only time you want weight behind the rear end is for compensatory weight, like when you have a plow up front.

Reply to
Roy

Never even remotely have had that problem on wet roads and I have been using them for many years. Now I have seen some studded tires that are studded all the way across the tread and I could see where those could be maybe dicey on wet roads. I use ones that have two staggered rows on each outer edge part of tires and with none in center.

----------------- TheSnoMan.com

Reply to
SnoMan

you can't even begin to make this go away snotroll. studs definately change the amount of friction available on the raod surface over a non studded tire. the tire manufacturers, the stud man. and all of the safety information talk about that all of the time.

Reply to
theguy

Make what go away? You maybe??? I have lived with and used them for many years (on and off since 70's) and I know them well. As I have said I have seen tires that are studded all the way across the tread (years ago Cosco in MT used to stock them) but I have never used that style not would I recommand it unless you are in snow and ice all the time. Number15 or 16 studs (size of them) just on edges of tires is a staggered patern is a good balance between traction on ice and wet roads and you would know this to if you really knew what you were talking about rather than maybe reading a thing or two and calling yourself a expert.

----------------- TheSnoMan.com

Reply to
SnoMan

I can't argue that a few hundred pounds of weight doesn't make a big difference but the best thing you can do is get a "good" set of tires, and not bias ply tires either. Radials are much better in snow and ice. I run a set of Revo's year round and they do a great job plowing. They ain't worth a shit in slimy mud tho...

Denny

Reply to
Denny

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