I am looking at buying a Dodge 2500 or 3500 mega, I am not interested in a dually but the 3500 price seems better than the 2500 at my dealer. Can anyone provide me on some benefits of going with the 3500, also looking for some real numbers on fuel comsumption. I am training K9's and spend a good bit of time on the weekend carrying around the 3 dogs... from tracking field to street searchs.
Be it a Ford, Dodge or Chevy the ONLY difference between a 2500 and a
3500 SRW is another leaf in the rear and sometimes a upgrade to 265x16 "E" load range tires if it does not already have them (a pair of 265 E"s will carry about 7100lbs at max presure and 245 E's are rated to carry a little over 6100lbs at max pressure) The axles, brakes and chassis is the same. THey will try to tell you other wise at dealer but it is just the same truck whith a slight spring change and tires change like stated earlier and a different label on the door. What doe this mean to you? By the truck you like be it 2500 or 3500 and if need be you can beef a 2500 up a bit if you really need more capacity but honestly if it is a CTD CC 2500, you will never be able to get anywhere near 6000 lbs on rear axle without exceeding your 9900 lb GVW rating on a 3500 because the front end will weight between 4800 and 5200 lbs loaded and that only leaves 4500 to 4900 lbs on rear axle weight at ground if you go by GVW rating on a 3500 which means the even 245 E's will be more than enough tire.----------------- TheSnoMan.com
the 3500 srw is a 1 ton truck as you well know and has a payload capacity to match. the 2500 is a 3/4 ton again as you well know I'm sure. and also has a pay load capacity to match.
the trailer weight ratings for the two trucks are identical IRRC, the advantage comes in the pay load. think pin weight if you pull a 5th. and contrary to what some will tell you. the 3/4 comes with "E" rated tires. mine is a 2500 and serves me well, but I would advise you to get the 3500 if you even "think" that you "might" someday need the extra payload capacity or rating. both are extremely good choices. IMHO the price difference between the two is not worth the possible liability risk of a overloaded (in regard to manufacturer ratings) "beefed up" 3/4 ton, if anything was to ever happen.
as far as your fuel mileage concerns. the Cummins is the best! I'm realistically seeing 18 ~ 19 mpg in town. I've seen as high as 21 on the highway (keeping her round 60 ~ 65) and 14 ~ 16 towing, depending of course on my driving style and what I'm towing.
I have wondered why some come with dually wheels and others don't.
Two different GVW packages is why. They all do it with SRW and DRW models. Given that the rear axle Dodge uses in 2500 and 3500 SRW has a actuall rated capacity in excess of 4 tons (8000lbs) They go easily rate it higher than 9900 GVW on SRW models with proper tires and springs but then that would cut into DRW model sales. A 11000 lbs GVW SRW P/U is quite doable if they wanted to market it. You would only need 5000/6000 (front/rear) or 4500/6500 wh9ich is well within the capacity of axles themselves and 265 E tires. Just need the suspension to bring it all together and maybe a brake tweak too.
----------------- TheSnoMan.com
How screwed is the truck and its occupants when it blows a single rear tire at maximum load at highway speeds?
If you're serious about towing, go DRW for additional rolling stability and backup for those 'ohshit' moments. The Boeing 747 has 4 engines - shouldn't you have 4 rear tires?
And before you start whining about additional tire expenses - you can much more 'safely' run retreads on the back of DRW trucks :)
JS
I agree with this poaster. Course I have a 1 ton dually. Actually the tires wear out on the front first, so you can replace them and then 6 months later replace the back 4.
How many blow outs have you had from a properly inflated tire for the load????? Me zero in over 35 years. Tires do not just blow out and when they do it is usually from under inflation so you panic claim of stablity in a blow out is unfounded. I guess semi's, buses, motor home's and the like should have dual wheels in front in cause of a blow out right??? Same with some fuel tanker trucks around here that use single wide base tires instead of duals on tractors and trailers because it reduces rolling resistance and fuel consumption. Duals may had a little extra stabilty put to suggest that you must have them to safely carry a 7000 lbs axle load in a pick is pure hogwash.
----------------- TheSnoMan.com
so you mean to tell me you would choose srw over the added stability and flotation that drw gives you? hmmm interesting.
No what I am saying it depands a lot on what you plan to do. If you have a big tall 5th wheel or a big slid in cab over camper then dual may help you but if not a SRW can do just fine. I have been hauling up to 4000 lbs of salt in my 2000 K3500 SRW for over 6 winters now and never felt any lack of stabilty. Never wished for duals even once. If you really do not need, why drage a 8 foot plus wide rear end with you down the road all the time? It can get old and be a handicapp at times as I have seen many times.
----------------- TheSnoMan.com
Thanks for the post, This has been a big help in narrowing down my choices... seems like either would be fine. I am looking at dealers right now, hoping to find a good one, who can give me a good deal. With the EP pricing I should be able to find a 2500 or 3500 mega cab 4x4 with nav for about 40k. If anyone knows a really good dealer, who is giving better than EP pricing, send me the information.
SnoMan wrote:
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