Long Term Review: Ram 6.4 Hemi 2500 Bighorn | How's it Handle a 10,000 lbs RV!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 ก.ค. 2024
- In this Episode:
The 2023 camping season continues, in a NEW RV!
We’re still pulling this new RV with our 2021 RAM 2500 Hemi, and the question is: how’s it tow?
Everyone has been asking for a long term review of the RAM 6.4 Hemi, yet I’ve had very little to report. That’s a good thing! We still like the truck! 3 years later, and the good things are still good, and there’s really nothing bad about it.
We don’t regret not getting a diesel.
We don’t regret going with the 4.10 axles.
We will keep this truck for (god willing) a very long time.
The Good:
Power
Stability
Reliability
Interior Style, Colors, Comfort
Tows with Confidence
The Bad:
Fuel Mileage/Range
Next Week; We’re back on the trail!
Our journey continues every Thursday at 5:00!
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Friends, welcome to our RV Camping and Adventure channel. Ryan and Rachel here, we are weekend warriors with a mission to highlight RVing in the eastern United States. We are joined by our daughter Sarah, son William, and our two dogs (Trigger and Lilly). Home is in Pennsylvania, and while PA is our favorite State to explore, we’ve found there’s much more to explore! We’ve traded in our Wildwood, and we’ll be camping from now on in our 2024 Salem 29View! We’re pulling it with our 2021 RAM 2500 BigHorn. We hope you will subscribe, join us on some of our adventures and be inspired to go on your own adventures.
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Chapters:
00:00 Intro
01:04 Drain the oil
02:00 Engine and Transmission Temps
03:01 Crew Cab Short Bed
04:23 The Boss Filter
06:05 BFGoodrich KO2
08:51 Any Issues?
11:17 Towing 10k lbs
13:49 Fuel Mileage
14:38 Off Road
15:11 Oil Change
17:17 Regrets? - ยานยนต์และพาหนะ
11:04 it’s exceedingly rare to actually warp a rotor. Instead, the cause of the shudder you may feel through the pedal is an uneven buildup of brake pad material on the rotor itself...known as 'pad transfer'. This happens when you use the brakes hard, i.e.: coming down a steep grade, heat buildup causes resins in the pads to loosen. When you stop the vehicle completely, say at a red light at the bottom of an off-ramp after that steep hill, an imprint of the brake pad on the rotor is made, creating a high spot. By the time you get gas or stop for lunch (or whatever) the rotors have had a chance to cool off, but that high spot's still there. 0.0004 of an inch can be felt through the pedal, and 0.001 inch can be irritating. Repeated use just leaves more material on the high spots, making the shudder worse.
To fix it, you can eliminate the shudder by rebedding the brakes.
To fix: find a safe area where you can make a series of hard slowdowns from 50 mph to about 10 mph. Don’t come to a full stop. Do this several times to heat up the material on the rotors and help 'apply' it evenly on the face of the rotors again. Then drive around for a little while without stopping much to let the brakes cool off.
You can also avoid being hard on the brakes with the vehicle stopped when you know the brakes are hot...or even shift it into Park while you wait for the light to turn at the bottom of the off ramp and take your foot off the brakes. This prevents leaving a brakepad footprint on the rotor.
I pinned this comment, some really good information here! Thanks for sharing!
Also, you can use "flood mode" to start your truck after an oil change. Push and hold the gas all the way to the floor and tap the start button, the engine will crank for 10-15 seconds without giving it fuel, allowing time for oil pressure to build and fill your filter etc.
I've never heard of the "flood mode" but that's a good tip. I'll try it next oil change!
Thanks for watching!
If your truck sits for weeks at a time you can do that before you start it as well the prime the oil system too
Can or should this be done on a 2021 1500 as well? I own a 1500.
@@Erick-ie8ll Yes, it works on all modern rams. I do this after every oil change and if it sat for more than a week.
Great info!! Just picked up a new to me 2022. Coming from a half ton it feels like I’m driving a school bus, but I love it.
The 2500’s can definitely feel big, especially if you’re coming from a 1500 with a 5 foot bed. Thanks for watching!
Thanks for a good video! I'm looking at the 2021 Ram 2500 HD........thanks again.
Thanks for watching! Find one with all the features you want on it, they’re good trucks!
That’s a beautiful Ram! Love the color. I had a 2013 Ford F-250 power stroke and the day before Thanksgiving of 2023 my daughter Kate borrowed it to take her boyfriend back to Bozeman because her car was acting up. She hit ice and rolled it and totaled it. I ended up buying a 2023 Ram 2500 with the 6.4 and I’m extremely happy with it. Mine is delmonico red pearl coat because I couldn’t find the color you have, and I needed it right away because we have a ranch with horses in western Montana to move trailers and such. I wanted a new Ford 7.3 F-250 but there were none around at the time, just used ones. But I’m extremely happy with my choice and with 10 k on it, no issues yet. I wanted a Bighorn package but my wife needed the lumbar support for her back and I guess the bighorn didn’t offer that on the passenger side. We ended up with a Laramie instead but still absolutely love the Ram. Love your vids on your beautiful Ram!
Yeah my passenger seat is all manual controls, just the driver for power. I wouldn’t have said no to a Laramie if optioned correctly, but I’m more than pleased with the Big Horn. Delmonico Red is a great color as well, I really like it actually; but there’s a million others out there that color and I wanted unique.
Ford makes good trucks and the 7.3 is a beast, but I like my RAM Hemi quite a bit!
I own a 2019 bighorn black on black 93000 on it tows perfectly I pull a 39 ft travel trailer absolutely fine went to Tennessee and back no problem except for not having clearance lights to the trailer the only problem I have with it is where the 7 pin and 4 pin connection second set of tires on it runs great and very comfortable truck very happy with it
@@richardsokoloski9374 good to hear it’s holding up for you! I use dielectric grease on my 7 pin connector and it seems to keep the connection solid.
Glad to hear the review. I am one of those that requested it. I can tell that the truck is NOT your daily driver simply by how long you have owned it and the mileage but that's good. I bought about 8 or 9 months after you and after watching your initial reviews as part of my research. I have had mine two years and have 20K on mine. Over 50% is towing the travel trailer.
I had a 1500 RAM and it simply wasn't up to it even though it was within specs. The 2500 just gives you the difference between a long drive towing and how tense you are at the end of the day in a 1500 vs coming in pretty relaxed and ready to enjoy an evening not cranky and tight. That's really the difference for me. AND, one surprise was that the gas/mpg is NOT that much different than the 5.7 Hemi. It's different but not nearly what I was expecting.
My review would echo yours although I let the dealer do my oil changes. I have the lifetime oil change deal and don't want them arguing with me if there ever were a problem. It was only 1K and I intend to have it for a long time. One thing I wish I had? The new Ram towing mirrors. I bought in early 2022 (a 2022) and due to the chip shortages, they only had the manual mirrors. but they did give a whole 125 bucks credit... Wow... (sarcasm). The new ones are very nice. One thing about the HD is that they are NOT good daily drivers. They are beasts of trucks particularly in a parking lot.
I agree with you on the short bed, but you can work around that and anyway that is a gravy thing for me. I did get one of those bed steps for mine which is an easy DIY install and worth every penny. My wife was skeptical of getting it in the first place but I told her the boxes she wanted checked off on the travel trailer and our safety and comfort made it a requirement. But, surprisingly she likes after market bumpers and stuff so mine in billet silver looks really good imho with a winch bumper front and nice tough one in back. One thing about Ram bumpers is that if you look at them hard, they will dent.
My truck has racked up a few thousand more miles since filming, I think it's at 34k now. You're right though, I don't drive it every day. The Camaro is much easier on gas. I do tow with the RAM atleast 50% of the miles.
Personally I find the towing experience about the same as my GMC 1500. Having said that, we carry a lot more weight in the bed of the RAM now, and I'd never tow this Salem with a 1500.
We're probably very close to maxing out the truck payload.
I want to get one of the retractable bed steps. I'd rarely need it, but it would be nice for the few times it's needed.
Yes, this whole truck seems like it would dent easily. Post filming this, I hit a deer, wrecked everything up front.
Very informative episode. I’m on my 3rd Ram truck and this one is our long term truck. And yes it’s a 2022 Ram 2500 6.4 liter Laramie. We pull a 2021 Jayco Jay Feather 25RB. My 2019 Ram 1500 was capable, but the 2500 pulls it with ease. Safe travels and happy camping.
That Jayce looks like a nice couples floor plan! With that 700lb hitch weight, a 2500 is definitely a good fit for a tow vehicle.
Thanks for watching!
"this one is our long term truck. And yes it’s a 2022 Ram 2500 6.4 liter Laramie." Me also.
I got the same truck in a 2014 version and had to put 35'' tires on it's 20'' rims to handle the weight I asked it to carry [slide in camper] It did have air suspension on rear and we added Sumo springs. We were 11540 on the scale! the ol' Ram never gave us a problem. Went back to a 6500lb travel trailer this year, and with it and the truck loaded we come in around 14300 loaded up full.Mpg's are better than with the truck camper. We are 7.5 to 11mpg depending on hill's ,wind and speed. We caught SO much wind with the truck camper it was crazy!
I would’ve bet on getting better mileage with the truck camper! Thanks for sharing!
Finally! Great video. I would suggest upgrading a few suspension parts at this stage. Im at 33K on my 22. I went with the Thuren fromt track bar, front springs, shocks, etc. Totally different ride.
I’ll have to look into some stuff. Some sort of exhaust upgrade has been on my list as well.
Great video and information. I've had numerous HD trucks over the years but for the past 7 I've had a 17' ram 1500 and just recently picked up a new to me 22' ram 2500 Big Horn with the Hemi. Doesn't have the surround view camera system like yours or the Cab Lights, but I like it so far. Nice camper. I've been to a few RV shows recently and looked at the Salem View series. They are really nice! Safe travels!
I think you’ll enjoy the 2500 over the 1500. I definitely have no regrets! Safe travels and thanks for watching!
@@mountainsintomemories Thank you!
They are great trucks and an end of an era...
Hey Ram has the best looking truck along with the awesome ZF8 speed transmission. I use the same oil filter. In my opinion the Ram truck rides , steers and handles better than the others. Nice tutorial
I agree! Best looking trucks right now, especially the interior! I love the ride of the 2500 with coil springs.
Thanks for the overview. I'm looking to upgrade my half ton to a heavy duty with the 6.4L It seems 8-speed and 4.10 are the way to go so 2019+ is what I'll be looking for.
You won’t be disappointed with that combination, it’ll take some searching, but it’s worth the effort to find one.
I’m In the market for a HD Gasser Ram so TH-cam was an obvious choice for comparison videos and real world ownership…
So far , this video was what I was looking for !!
Great points of view !!
I’m glad to help! So far, no regrets in buying a Ram.
Thanks for watching!
I have a 2500 6.4l 4.10 rears pulling horses and hay. You won't go wrong
Thanks for doing this video, very informative, Really like those running boards, are they stock? I’m looking for some and those look really nice…
Yup, stock, wheel to wheel sidesteps.
Thanks for watching!
Good review. I had Fords, then 5 GM's, and in 2014 went to Ram being disgusted with GM and the Crap Duramax and Allison issues I had. Traded it in on a 2014 RAM 2500 CCSB Laramie with Cummins 6.7. Been a great truck for me. I was towing a car hauler a lot so the 6.7 Cummins was needed. Trucks are way to expensive now. My 2014 Laramie with Cummins listed for 62k. I got it for 52.5k. I think RAM builds really good trucks and my dog loves the flat floor in the back. That folds out when you put the rear seat up.
Trucks have gone up in price quite a bit. I paid nearly 60k for this back in 2021. A few years earlier that’s Laramie pricing. It’s a shame, but people keep buying them, so it’ll keep going up.
I really like the flat floor in the back seat as well.
Great video. Lots of good info- thanks. I have a 2016 1500 5.7L, and it seems to struggle with a 4800 lb trailer. Starting to have some issues, so I'm looking at a new Tradesman 2500 6.4. Local dealer has several for around $50K. Don't want the payments, but the 2016 is starting to nickel and dime me.
The 6.4 is like day and night compared to the 5.7, especially if yours is a 6 speed. Truck payments suck, but getting stranded or having to constantly fix stuff sucks too.
Its a great truck. I have 2021 with thr hemi and tow a 8000 lbs camper. Tows great. The transmission temp hovers at 168 snd goes only to 170 when i work it hard.
We’re towing nearly 10k now, it works hard, but does the job. Trans still seems to stay cool.
I have a '17 Ram 3500 drw Cummins with an Aisin & 4.10 rears. I pulled rv's commercially and never saw anything over 167° transmission temp in the mountains and I'm talking heavy 5th wheels. I love the truck. Until the cel comes on. All emissions issues.
I think the ongoing emissions issues will be the death of diesel. I think that sucks, because with today’s tech, you’d have awesome motors otherwise.
Thanks for making this video. Especially appreciated the info on how good the tranny keeps cool while towing. I’ve really been on the fence between diesel and gas but I’m prob gonna go with the Hemi. Just an fyi on towing. There is a TH-cam site called CJC OFF-ROAD They are a truck suspension company. They have slide in airbags for the Ram. I believe they slide in on top of the bump stops. When your not towing you can take them out and When your towing your slide them in.
@@johnomahony7364 I’ll have to look into those airbags. I just adjusted my hitch trying to make things more stable, I’m hoping not to have to mess with anything else.
Solid video brother! Thanks for sharing. Don't feel bad about having to get on a ladder to work under the hood. I'm 6'5" and have to stand on a 5 gal bucket to work under the hood on my stock height 2018 6.4. I've always been a Mobil man myself but looking into the Pennzoil...
Project Farm has some great oil comparison videos. Pennzoil is right up there with amzoil in his tests. Thanks for watching!
I love his work! I'll look for that video. Thanks!
Hemi fuel mapping is definitely interesting, temperature wise. Had a 7mpg difference on a road trip, from 0° to 80°.
It definitely seems like temperature can really affect it. I’d say this truck’s fuel economy varies more than anything I’ve experienced.
On that oil filter... idk what/why the debate is about, so w/e. Anyhow, I have an almost horizontal mount on my 2UZ-FE, but I can fill the filter 80% & not spill putting it on.
Just get the part with the threads hooked on the mount relatively straight & spin it nice & fast. The centrifugal force keeps the oil inside from getting out very quickly.
I feel like some people just want to justify being lazy. I spilled very little putting this one on.
KO2's - At 12K I got rid of the Transforce OEM tires at like 12K. I've had KO2's for three trucks over time. There are big arguments over tires and towing. I also have been known to do some 4WDing and have that package, so back in like 2015 I got em first time. I have found them to be great towing tires and for sure noticeably superior to the OEM Transforce's. My only issue was with the wear even with rotation. But until this latest set on the HD, they were the ones without the road warranty. I hear they changed the compound slightly to do that. I'm looking at yours at 30K and mine never looked that good at 30K for sure. I usually got around 36K out of them before changing. But their road manners are wonderful towing AND off light offroading. And now they have the new KO3's.
Notes: 10K payload? Mine is 3,000? Wish I had the 3.92 rear end. I do have higher RPM's. My mileage is ever so slightly better...maybe...and I'm in the Rockies. I actually got an mpg improvement of around .5 mpg with the KO2's over the Transforces... I keep em up there on PSI when towing.
Ram pricing has gone wild, but lately with massive incentives, it's almost back to when I bought in early 2022 for a 2023 "leftover" lot darling. And they have held on pricing in 2024. You can still build a decently appointed Big Horn with some incentives around 60K and I found a 2023 with like a 73K MSRP all the towing stuff at like 57K here last week... BUT, the interest rates are no where near the 3.24 I got and that alone adds up to a couple hundred bucks payment on present prices.
I kept building my truck after I bought it until you couldn't anymore on the Ram build site and from my 62,600 MSRP (Laramie), I watched it go up to 71K and change MSRP over like a 10 month period, identical build no changes... That was ridiculous at like 1500 bucks every six weeks to a couple of months increase and my decent deal in early 2022 was looking really good by the time I could no longer build it on the Ram site in early 2023.
I am OK with my mirrors, but I really do like the new Ram Mirrors on the HD's, best in class.
"The truck is great, the truck does what it's supposed to do..." That covers it. AND, you know what's happening with Cummins and a gas powered 6.7? NO ONE knows that stuff yet... But, so far, I do have a better initial opinion of the Hurricane as I do almost nothing below 4,000 feet (where I live) and non-aspirated isn't at its best at altitude. Take care enjoy watching your stuff as you and I are quite similar in taste and requirements and point of view...except for those light interiors... What are you thinking?
So payload; mine is near 3,000 lbs. The 10k # is the GVWR which would also include the curb weight of the truck. Nearly 10k is also the GVWR of the Salem.
I run 60psi front and 65 rear with the KO2's 365 days a year. Half my mileage is towing something.
At the time I filmed this (December) there were no incentives, however, I see that's changed with RAM having excessive inventory. I, like you, have a 3.2 % rate on the loan, so I can't see buying something now and paying 8%.
I haven't looked at the new RAM mirrors in real life, but also not looking for an excuse to be upset with my mirrors.
TFL just did a video on the new 6.7 Cummins and talked about the Gas motor potentially having 600+ lb ft of torque. 300ish HP. I'd seriously consider upgrading to that.
Light color interior doesn't show dirt like black. The different colors provide depth to the design. I won't ever own another all black anything. To me, this RAM is a perfect balance of lights and darks. GM finds a way to make every option look drab...
@@mountainsintomemories Thanks for the info. The Rear Bed Steps keep coming down now with the ones that are OEM knock offs in the 109 to 120 range on Amazon. It is virtually indistinquishable from OEM including it came with OEM instructions with the MOPAR cut off... It literally took 30 minutes to put on. Don't worry too much about torque settings. I couldn't get my torque wrench in there... It is well worth it all done by your foot... I use it a lot at the transfer station. I'm kidding on the interior color... I came close once to getting a Longhorn...
I would argue about the coils. Those coils are stiffer than gm 2500 leaf and no different than ford. The only difference is the coils are slightly smaller toward the top. So when you're empty it gives you a better ride. The do not squat anymore than anything else
Overall, I'm pleased with the suspension. It seems to work well towing and unloaded.
I have a Ram 2500 gasser too. I tow a 30Ft RV. I was considering a camper cap for mine, but I heard you can lose MPG with the Cap. Have you noticed a difference in MPG with and without the cap?
I only had it for 200 miles before putting it on, so I don’t know what it would do without it. I get about the same for mileage as everyone else on the Facebook groups. 17hwy, 13 city, 8 towing.
I'm thinking about getting a 24 bighorn 2500
They’re good trucks! Bighorn is a nice package, all the essentials, maybe a few extras, not as overpriced.
I own a 2019 Ram 2500 Bighorn, I love it and tow’s excellent! Great video!
Thanks for watching!
The newer HD gm and ford transmissions operate at a higher temp in general, it’s not danger danger territory (according to them). My GM runs much cooler than the 7.3 gasser I had. That 7.3 would sit around 215-225 unloaded.
I know a lot of people running GM’s that have recently cooked their torque converters. Mine was just starting to slip when I traded it. I always attributed that to the 200+ trans temps.
I imagine they have them run hotter for more mpg, which is good for them and CAFE. Probably not as good for longevity. I seen in the GM groups people were deleting their trans thermostats so they’d run cooler.
@@mountainsintomemories
Yea the torque converters were a known issue on the 6L90 but to my knowledge there’s been no issue with the Allison clones, yet anyway. Cruising around unloaded my Allison sits between 175-187ish. I’m towing to Alaska with it in the near future so it’ll be interesting to see how it handles that. But that heat didn’t bother my F250 and this gm runs significantly cooler so I have no worries.
Except for the motor and transmission the rest of my f250 was a lemon. I’ll add too that the transmission programming is superior in the gm, that skip shift the Ford does can cause it to get confused much easier. They felt the same towing though. I wanted a truck like yours but haven’t been fortunate enough to stumble on one.
I just saw a TFL review of the new Hurricane in a 1500 mind you but they noted they are still using the ZF 8 speed. Their attitude was if it ain't broke, don't fix it noting the temps advantages and issues with the 10 speeds hunting and not nearly the advantages you might think... They stated that the ZF tranny was the benchmark for the 10 speeds but that they were almost forced to the 10 speeds due to patents was the implication.
From what i have witnessed in the past. I will never use penzoil in any vehicle I own.
Before recently, I would’ve told you the same thing. I don’t recommend any other pennzoil product, except “Ultra Platinum.”The regular “platinum” is definitely not good.
ram suspension on these trucks suck!!!! I would go to thurn to get it set up right! that is my only complainant on my 2500 gas, after front and rear shocks and a torsion bar truck drives like a dream.
I’m thinking about a Hellwig sway bar, but past that I’m fairly content with OEM. I’ll upgrade shocks when these wear out.
I have a 2022 3500 tradesman with the cummins and like it a lot. I still like my f 350 better but saying that this 3500 Ram does a good job. Only problem I’ve had was at 107 thousand that stupid thermostat valve in the transmission block that opens and closes stayed closed and caused ky transmission to get hot. I replaced it with the the ATS thermal bypass. Anyone that has a Ram needs to replaced that junk immediately
I bet the Cummins pulls like a freight train. What year was your f-350? Diesel?
@@mountainsintomemories 2022 also and yes it’s a diesel . I love both my trucks. I use them for my lumber business
Added a Finder mount antenna and bolt is cover in rust on my 22 any preparation for that
Spray it with Surface Shield.