2015 Dodge 2500 Turbo Diesel

[Scootdawg]

I was looking at some Dodge trucks the past few weeks and I really like the specs on the 2500 Diesel. I was wondering if any fellow forum members have diesels and what is the actual liking of them. I am looking for any and all info, especially gas mileage and breakdown problems. I talked with a few (4) of my friends that have Ford diesels (2010 - 2012 models) and they are continually complaining of issues with the engine and systems. Why the Dodge? Well I do like the ride with the independent rear suspension, and the price range for a Crew Cab is about $55,000.00 for the one that I like priced out.

[purduepete97]

No brand loyalty here - last SUV was a GMC, most recent truck was a Ram 1500, and now have a 2011 F250 Powerstroke - only had it about a month, but have used on two trips so far and LOVE it. It is an over-used cliche, but you don't know the TT is there (7,000 lb 29 ft length).

Re: your friends, the 2010 F250 will have a different engine than the 2011-12 models. The 2010 is I think the 6.4 liter from International and is fairly well-known to be a problematic engine. 2011 was first year for 6.7 liter and has far fewer problems.

Mine has 69,000 miles on it and has had zero (yes, zero) warranty repairs since new. In fact, I was able to have it inspected by Ford and it qualified for an additional 4 year/48,000 mile Ford warranty despite the mileage being over 60k. At $2,400 for the warranty, being that this is my first diesel and being that the truck is older/more miles than I usually buy, I got the warranty for piece of mind.

I will tell you it was hard to find a decently priced late model 3/4 ton diesel, but I'm glad I took my time and finally got one. Also, although I wasn't looking for that level of trim, the King Ranch has some pretty sweet features.

Good luck and be prepared to be wowed by the diesel power (regardless of brand).

[Gleaner]

I think you will be in love with that truck.

I bought a used (60,000) 2012 2500 Ram Cummins in February.
I have had GMC, Ford, Chevy over the years....all gas.
I was about to buy a new Hemi Ram when I finally found this private owned truck 500 miles away.
Coming home with it I got 19.1 .....empty of course.
Towing my 35' TT, I've been doing 11.6 or so and up to 12.
This truck is idling most of the time.
The jake/tranny combo is unreal.....I hardly know what brakes are and North Idaho ain't flat!
I don't see how I could be any happier.

[Jim34RL]

I am a member of Turbo Diesel Register. COM ($35. /year). I have been a member since Nov 07, when I bought my 2008 Ram Mega Cab tuck new. And I have learned about the new 6.7L Cummins with the DEF system on this engine from TDR; it is a vast improvement over the older emission equipped trucks. The new trucks built after 2013.5 have a dual stage exhaust brake that is far superior to any exhaust brake that the other two manufactures have to offer. The fuel mileage has been reported to being between 12 to 14 towing and over 18 when not towing. Check them out at TDR.com for free you can't post but you can read the treads.
I would buy another Ram/Cummins in a heartbeat if I need one but I don’t. My truck is like the energizer bunny it keeps on running and running.

[schrederman]

I've been a Ford guy for many years... since '81... Yes, I'm dating myself. I was about to trade my '11 F-150 in for a '14 F-250 diesel, and took a dare and drove the Ram. Equipped essentially the same... the Ram came out about $6,000- less. I drove both again, and came home with the Ram. That was a year ago tomorrow. I have 22,500 miles on it, with almost 5,000 towing. I have no complaints about the truck. I commute in it every other week (carpool) and average roughly 20mpg. I tow a 7,200# TT and average 13mpg roughly doing that. I have NO complaints about the truck. It's a challenge for an old kodger like me to change the oil filter, but doable.


When DeeDee needs a new car, it'll probably be a Ford. And if they had been a little better on their pricing, I'd still be driving one... But after owning this Ram/Cummins, I'll probably not buy another Ford truck. Did I mention that I'm OLD? The truck'll probably outlast me... Did I mention that I really LIKE this truck?

[Jim34RL]

Originally Posted by schrederman

I've been a Ford guy for many years... since '81... Yes, I'm dating myself. I was about to trade my '11 F-150 in for a '14 F-250 diesel, and took a dare and drove the Ram. Equipped essentially the same... the Ram came out about $6,000- less. I drove both again, and came home with the Ram. That was a year ago tomorrow. I have 22,500 miles on it, with almost 5,000 towing. I have no complaints about the truck. I commute in it every other week (carpool) and average roughly 20mpg. I tow a 7,200# TT and average 13mpg roughly doing that. I have NO complaints about the truck. It's a challenge for an old kodger like me to change the oil filter, but doable.


When DeeDee needs a new car, it'll probably be a Ford. And if they had been a little better on their pricing, I'd still be driving one... But after owning this Ram/Cummins, I'll probably not buy another Ford truck. Did I mention that I'm OLD? The truck'll probably outlast me... Did I mention that I really LIKE this truck?

I think I am just a little bit older than you are my first car was a 54 Chrysler Imperial with a Hemi bought used in 1967.

I hope to get at least the 200K plates from Cummins some day on my truck right now I am a little shy of 100K. I will probably order the 100K plates earlier next spring from Cummins.

Enjoy your Ram truck with the 6.7L Cummins. Did you get the Aisin or the 68RFE auto?

[micpib1]

I love my 2013 Ram Cummins with the Auto Trans. There are two different Auto Transmissions, everybody raves about the "Asain" (sp), I have the "other one" and love it. My last three trucks have been Rams, my previous five were Fords with the 7.3 Diesel for what it is worth and they weren't bad. Again, I love my Ram. JH

[randygk]

I have the Ram in signature and same fw in a Flagstaff. Runs fine together, however if I were to do it again I would buy a 3500. I'm near my GVWR for the truck. If you go 4X2 you'll get about another 300 lbs payload. My payload is 2100 lbs. Truck is great and no problem changing oil and filter - I'm 63.

[avolnek]

I am going to start by saying I am biased to Ram.

I however can appreciate Ford as they are a solid platform with a nice engine. I personally am not a fan of the styling of the chevy's and i am dislike their independent front suspension as it can be weak in comparisons to the solid front axles...

I am a firm believer in the cummins mainly for the simple concept its a straight 6 and not a v8 like the powerstroke and duramax. The reason i say this is because the cummins brings air in on one side of the motor and exhausts on the other. One intake, one exhaust. Compare this to either of the others with their manifolds running all over under the hood to the turbo... very clustered in my opinion. Is it a problem? no, but i will take the simplicity over more complex any day...

the 2015 ram you are looking at is the only truck brand that has switched over to the generalized tow rating format to try and get all the brands on a level playing field...

Mileage out of a full size truck is going to vary widely due to the vast differences in regions they are driven and in the manners they are driven. I recently traded off a 2006 cummins for my 2015 6.4 hemi. I only drive a mile or two to work every day and couldn't pull myself to buying a diesel with that short of trip and all the new emissions they are bound to.

My father has a crew cab long box 3500 dually with the cummins and pulling 16,000 42' 5er he averages 15 hand calculated.

my suggestion though is to not worry so much about fuel mileage... if you begin to worry too much about it i assure you it will consume much of your free brain time...

[wshelton1]

I love mine. 9-12 mpg towing 5er and 20 mpg unloaded highway. Exhaust brake is really super. In town stop and go mpg is about the same loaded or unloaded.

[MOODMAN]

Coincidentally, I am going on a long road trip tomorrow, and today I received a Smarty Jr J-06 diesel tuner. I did my research before ordering this, and am going outside to install it after I post this.
I own a 2003 Dodge 3500 Laramie quad cab with 8' bed, 4x2. I get 24 MPG without towing and 14 towing my 42' 5er. The engine is a Cummins 5.9 common rail
This tuner promises minimum additional 30hp in economy mode and 100hp added in performance mode. It also says it will improve my MPG in econ mode.
We shall see on this trip.
But I can say that pre-tuner, I can tow 70MPH on the flat, but it bogs down a little on mild hills. I want to eliminate that and be able to keep up with traffic.

A man can never have too much power

[Bullrider]

Originally Posted by Scootdawg

I was looking at some Dodge trucks the past few weeks and I really like the specs on the 2500 Diesel. I was wondering if any fellow forum members have diesels and what is the actual liking of them. I am looking for any and all info, especially gas mileage and breakdown problems. I talked with a few (4) of my friends that have Ford diesels (2010 - 2012 models) and they are continually complaining of issues with the engine and systems. Why the Dodge? Well I do like the ride with the independent rear suspension, and the price range for a Crew Cab is about $55,000.00 for the one that I like priced out.

We tow a 345v12 loaded to about 15,000 pounds with a 2012 Dodge 2500 manual transmission. Pulled all over the western USA and averaged about 9.2mpg. Eastern USA average 9.8 mpg. It is the diesel and we love it. Ramboxes are a big plus.

[Rodgers]

I have drove the Ram with the Cummins both 5.9 12v and 24v and now the 6.7 in my 2014 3500 DRW. I won't drive any other make. Like was said in another post go to the TDR. It's the place to get your info on the Ram truck

[Bones]

We have a 2006 ram 3500 megacab with 5.9 cummins, auto transmission and jake brake. We tow a SS 285 and is 14000 loaded. realy nice to have the power for towing and climbing. Currently have 114000 miles with minimal problems. We tupically get 21 mpg unloaded and 12-14 towing. Our lowest mileage was 9.5 towing against a 50mph head wind. After that event I have been considering installing a 52 gal fuel tank.

[Stovebolt]

Originally Posted by Jim34RL

I think I am just a little bit older than you are my first car was a 54 Chrysler Imperial with a Hemi bought used in 1967.

I hope to get at least the 200K plates from Cummins some day on my truck right now I am a little shy of 100K. I will probably order the 100K plates earlier next spring from Cummins.

Enjoy your Ram truck with the 6.7L Cummins. Did you get the Aisin or the 68RFE auto?

Why do they have two different transmissions? Is one better for towing over the other?

[gbrown]

Drove Fords for 30 years before switching to Ram. No regrets here. The Ram has the best engine, period, end of discussion.

[uhduh camping]

Have not heard anything bad about them. That being said my buddy just got his 2015 2500 Cummings with 13,000 miles back from the dealer last week. Four weeks ago it went in to limp mode it blew out 6th gear. I think he said it would go to 2700 RPM regardless of gear. So he traveled I-95 at 45 mph for 25 miles. Two days later it blew out 4th gear left him sitting on side of the road. I know the second time was for a pump gone bad. Not sure what the fix was for the first repair. After being in the shop for total of 33 days getting Trans refurbished not rebuilt or replaced it now slips. He is seeking Lemon Laws with lawyers.

[Travler]

Nothing like a diesel for towing. The Cummins is one of the best engines on the market. Personally not a Ram fan but they are good trucks. The upgrade transmission is worth it. Several people I work with have had transmission failure with the standard one. On the 3/4 ton you may need air bags due to the new ones use coil springs that ride better but sag more when loaded heavy.

[Ford Idaho]

Originally Posted by Scootdawg

I was looking at some Dodge trucks the past few weeks and I really like the specs on the 2500 Diesel. I was wondering if any fellow forum members have diesels and what is the actual liking of them. I am looking for any and all info, especially gas mileage and breakdown problems. I talked with a few (4) of my friends that have Ford diesels (2010 - 2012 models) and they are continually complaining of issues with the engine and systems. Why the Dodge? Well I do like the ride with the independent rear suspension, and the price range for a Crew Cab is about $55,000.00 for the one that I like priced out.

What is the cost difference between a 3/4 and a 1 ton?

[cbconway]

Truck listed in my signature. This is my second Ram diesel (prev was a '98).
Mileage: 11-12 towing; 19 hwy empty; 16 in town. I hate the nav unit -- it's been trouble since the start -- but I love everything else about the truck. It's powerful, smooth, tows very easily, stops well, good mirrors, great exhaust brake, great dashboard info, integrated trailer brake, very comfortable buckets, great legroom all around, and I love the remote start and keyless operation. I wish I had power folding mirrors but they weren't on this one. But, most of all, it sounds like God intended a diesel to sound -- powerful and civilized. Did I mention that I love my truck?