MechanicalGuy
Platinum Member
I'm looking for a gas dually for farm use and occasional towing (tractors, excavators, skid steers, lawn mowers) around a slightly hilly 25 mile radius between several properties, the family farm, and my new house and property. I'm not impressed at all with the offerings from the big three. Let me explain.
The gassers:
Chevy 3500; 6.6l engine is quite sufficient, but mated with the 6 speed transmission, it's just not 2021 material. Also, I have stinging memories of the 8 speed issues that the 1500 series trucks were plagued with. How long have you been making trucks Chevrolet? An the new face of these trucks are so fugly, it's a waiting game for a facelift in the coming year or years.
Ford 3500; 7.3l engine is very impressive, I'm super excited about this engine, and I'm also super excited about the 10 speed endeavor that Ford has embarked on, with the 10R140, a different transmission than the GM co-developed 10 speed that they were putting in the F150, but this is still an UNPROVEN and even problematic transmission. There are FAR too many reports and videos of issues with this transmission to buy a new $50k plus truck with this transmission. I would love to buy this combo if it were solid, but it is definitely NOT imho.
Ram 3500; 6.4l engine is alright, I'm not excited about it, especially given that it is 410hp and 430tq, when the 6.4l SRT charger and Challenger are much higher 485HP and 475TQ and have very flat torque curves. Not sure why the massive detune. The torque curves look flat from 1600rpm on up. I just don't get this. And on top of that, the completely awesome, totally proven 8 speed transmission that they paired this engine with, FINALLY, apparently isn't controlled nearly as nicely as it is in all the v6 and v8 cars that have been running it for almost a decade. I've had three different Chrysler 300s cars, and they have been amazing transmissions. But according to TFL (the fast Lane) on youtube, they say that the transmission doesn't downshift with common sense and there are not paddle shifters for easy manual control on these RAM trucks. They were constantly using the brakes to hold speed when going downhill, and they had to let of the gas and then floor it to make the transmission shift when they were losing speed going uphill! Sounds like it needs a lot more tuning before I plop down $50k on a RAM.
When you look at the diesels, that is WAY more than I need, and Ford still has a 10 speed problem, Chevy has the "FUGLY" problem, and RAM has an RFE or AISIN trans problem. Neither of those are up to par with the Allison 6 speed, I'm not sure about the "Allison branded 10 speed" though. The Aisin is clunky and shifts roughly according to a lot of reports. The RFE is not up to the task with it's small friction clutch disks. It isn't worthy of a high dollar truck. Period.
So I can understand exactly why the used truck market is insane right now, and people are giving BIG BUCKS for heavily used Duramax/Allison trucks. The current big three offerings are very much lacking.
I want to be wrong, but I'm not.
The gassers:
Chevy 3500; 6.6l engine is quite sufficient, but mated with the 6 speed transmission, it's just not 2021 material. Also, I have stinging memories of the 8 speed issues that the 1500 series trucks were plagued with. How long have you been making trucks Chevrolet? An the new face of these trucks are so fugly, it's a waiting game for a facelift in the coming year or years.
Ford 3500; 7.3l engine is very impressive, I'm super excited about this engine, and I'm also super excited about the 10 speed endeavor that Ford has embarked on, with the 10R140, a different transmission than the GM co-developed 10 speed that they were putting in the F150, but this is still an UNPROVEN and even problematic transmission. There are FAR too many reports and videos of issues with this transmission to buy a new $50k plus truck with this transmission. I would love to buy this combo if it were solid, but it is definitely NOT imho.
Ram 3500; 6.4l engine is alright, I'm not excited about it, especially given that it is 410hp and 430tq, when the 6.4l SRT charger and Challenger are much higher 485HP and 475TQ and have very flat torque curves. Not sure why the massive detune. The torque curves look flat from 1600rpm on up. I just don't get this. And on top of that, the completely awesome, totally proven 8 speed transmission that they paired this engine with, FINALLY, apparently isn't controlled nearly as nicely as it is in all the v6 and v8 cars that have been running it for almost a decade. I've had three different Chrysler 300s cars, and they have been amazing transmissions. But according to TFL (the fast Lane) on youtube, they say that the transmission doesn't downshift with common sense and there are not paddle shifters for easy manual control on these RAM trucks. They were constantly using the brakes to hold speed when going downhill, and they had to let of the gas and then floor it to make the transmission shift when they were losing speed going uphill! Sounds like it needs a lot more tuning before I plop down $50k on a RAM.
When you look at the diesels, that is WAY more than I need, and Ford still has a 10 speed problem, Chevy has the "FUGLY" problem, and RAM has an RFE or AISIN trans problem. Neither of those are up to par with the Allison 6 speed, I'm not sure about the "Allison branded 10 speed" though. The Aisin is clunky and shifts roughly according to a lot of reports. The RFE is not up to the task with it's small friction clutch disks. It isn't worthy of a high dollar truck. Period.
So I can understand exactly why the used truck market is insane right now, and people are giving BIG BUCKS for heavily used Duramax/Allison trucks. The current big three offerings are very much lacking.
I want to be wrong, but I'm not.
