Ram Trucks
Ram trucks are American vehicle manufacturers in the United States. Ram Trucks have been manufactured in around three main assembly plants located in Mexico, Canada, and the United States.
Ram produces light-duty commercial vehicles for sale mainly in North America and exported to several countries worldwide with different types of cab and body configurations with V6 gas or V8 diesel engine/s available since most models are conventional or cab over engines vehicles.
The range includes heavy-duty pickup trucks, 2-ton class 4×2, 4×4, and 6×4 chassis cabs for vans/utility truck/service bodies (coaches), minivans, mid-size pickups up to 1 ton light duty chassis cabs for buses/campers/emergency vehicles.
Base Ram models are intended to compete with basic versions of the domestic F-Series, Silverado/Sierra, and the 1500 trucks made by General Motors, while more upscale models are competing against BMW’s popular large luxury SUVs.
Naming convention: The names of vehicles produced by Ram were originally used about the frame size on which they were built rather than their engine type or drive system.
For example, the first-generation Ram was available in a ¾ ton (1500) version and a ½ ton (2000) version.
While these designations included the word “ton,” they were referring to weight rating of the vehicle plus payload; therefore, the ¾ ton versions were rated to carry a maximum payload of 1,500 lb (680 kg), and the ½ ton versions were rated to carry a maximum payload of 3,000 lb (1,360 kg).
Truck Bed Sizes
Ram currently produces three different-sized trucks. The Ram 1500, the Ram 2500, and the Ram 3500.
The Ram 1500 is the smallest size truck that Ram makes.
This truck has a bed length of 5’7″.
It also has a payload of 1,590 pounds to give you an idea of how much it can carry.
As far as first impressions go, this truck kind of looks like its bigger brother, the Dodge Dakota, or even smaller brother, if that’s possible because it’s shaped pretty much identical to their other trucks.
This should tell you something about its size. I May not be able to tow as much as bigger brothers but definitely can handle more payload.
Perhaps this would be good for someone who always carries stuff around town in their pickup but doesn’t need anything bigger.
The Ram 2500 or as they say 3/4 ton trucks as some call them is the medium-sized truck that Ram makes.
This truck has a bed length of 8’0″. It can carry a payload of 5,000 pounds to give you an idea of how much it can carry.
As far as first impressions go, this is a beefier-looking truck very similar to the bigger brothers even has silver rims, which I think looks nice with its color.
Now inside it kind of changes course all leather seats and center control console like a bigger brother which if you like that then bigger brother might be a better choice for you but if you’re not into that or want something more similar to little brother then perhaps this would work out better.
Ram 3500 is the big boy of all. It has a bed length of 8’6″ to give you an idea of how much it can carry.
It can carry a payload of 9,170 pounds to give you an idea of how much it can carry.
As I said, this is the biggest boy that Ram makes. It Will stand out in pretty much any crowd because of its massive size, and if you are into that, then this would be for you, but if not, perhaps consider looking at another truck.
The Ram and Ford have six different models, which are very similar to their six different models, so six might seem like a lot for one brand, but since there are two brands involved, remember they have three each, so six won’t seem so bad after all.
Towing Capacities
Towing capacity is the maximum weight of a trailer a truck can tow. Here is what each of the six models has to offer in terms of towing capacity.
Ram 1500 has a max payload of 7,390 pounds so that you might be saying, why does it say 6,020 on the specs I talked about earlier?
Well, this is because there are two different types of weights for trucks: front gross axle weight rating and rear gross axle weight rating, which both affect how much your truck can weigh.
In front of GAWR, it says 4,410, but if you go by its RGAWR, it’s 5,810 lbs.
Ram 2500 has a max payload 4000 pounds or fifth-wheel 14,910 pounds.
Ram 3500 has a max payload 7,680 lbs for fifth-wheel/gooseneck trailer weight of 37,090 pounds which, as you can see, is the biggest amount out of all three.
As far as towing capacity goes, this is what I mean.
Just because it’s bigger doesn’t always mean it can pull more than another truck, especially since you don’t know their max payload or front gross axle weight rating, which would be just like finding out what size engine they have, which could affect your decision on which truck to buy.
ram 1500 5.7 hemi
5.7L Hemi is a pretty big one with 395 hp and 410 lb-ft of torque, so if you are the type that wants the most power out of their truck, then this would be for you, but if you are not into that or maybe want something with more miles per gallon fuel economy wise then there’s always another option.
Engine Sizes
Engine size is most likely the next most important thing you need to know about when it comes to these trucks when it comes to hauling.
Ram 1500 has three different engine sizes, which are 5.7L V8 Hemi, 3.6L Pentastar V6 24V VVT with eTorque, and 3.0L EcoDiesel V6 with Stop/Start Technology.
3.0L EcoDiesel V6 with Stop/Start Technology is pretty cool if you ask me because it has good power having 240 hp and 420 lb-ft of torque, and has fuel economy since the V8 Hemi doesn’t, and that’s 30 mpg on the highway.
3.6L Pentastar V6 24V VVT with eTorque is somewhere between those two engines based on its stats like having 290 hp and 260 lb-ft of torque, but the fuel economy isn’t the same good as the 3.0L EcoDiesel, which has 18/25 mpg city/highway and 20 mpg combined.
In contrast, this one only has 17/25 mpg city/highway and 19 mpg combined.
Ram 3500 almost has the same engine as the 1500 only difference is in size.
Other than that, they pretty much have the same stats meaning 5.7L Hemi, 3.0L EcoDiesel V6 with Stop/Start Technology, and 3.0L EcoDiesel V8 with Stop/Start Technology only difference is the V8 Hemi has a 5.7L instead of an 8′ bed and one thing that does stand out is that this engine size is the only one to have a 7′ HD pickup box which would be nice for anyone who is looking for something bigger with better fuel economy.
Ram 4500’s engines consist of V6 3.0L EcoDiesel, 6.4L Heavy Duty HEMI VVT with eTorque.
An 8′ HD pickup box comes in at only 7 yards which I think is pretty cool, but not many people care since they probably won’t need it anyway, but if you ever do, then it’s there for you.
Engine size for ram six not only has the same engine as the one in the 4500, but it has a bigger 8′ HD pickup box, which is pretty nice if your looking for something bigger and better fuel economy with some more power thrown into the mix as well so why not.
ram trucks models
Ram 1500 is a half-ton truck, while Ram 2500 & 3500 are 3/4 ton trucks, and Ram 4500, 5500, 6500 are 1-ton trucks.
1/2 ton is suitable for small work applications that don’t require heavy-duty features but still want something capable of being useful.
For example, most people use these types of trucks to haul stuff around, whether it’s tools or materials they need for whatever job, so if your one of those people, then this would be perfect since it will have more than enough power even though it’s only a v6 motor.
3/4 ton is excellent for a lot of work applications that require more heavy-duty features, so if your using it for hauling tools and materials around but also need something with a little more power to be able to pull trailers or something then this would be perfect as well because these types of trucks the 3/4 ton have good pulling capabilities.
One ton is great for anything you might encounter, from hauling stuff around to pulling trailers and being an everyday use truck, meaning they are not just for work anymore.
The police department uses them, the fire department, paramedics.
Anyone that needs a truck that can do it all since 1 ton is known as the jack of all trades master of none, which means you can do everything but isn’t too specialized at one thing.
Fuel Economy
V6 3.0L EcoDiesel with eTorque is a good thing for people looking to save some money on fuel economy since the diesel engine has a higher compression ratio which allows it to get more power out of its fuel, around 10% more power.
Still, the downside is that diesel doesn’t have as much energy in each gallon, meaning you will need to put more away from time to time.
If you are one of those people who drive a lot, having this type of truck would probably be better off because the efficiency makes up for not having as much power due to it being smaller than most engines and all that stuff I mentioned before about how diesel does slightly better when pushing heavy loads whereas gasoline doesn’t do very well.
The (gasoline) 5.7L HEMI V8 with eTorque.
This is a very powerful engine that performs well whether you’re hauling stuff around or offroad, pretty good fuel economy for its size but not as great as the diesel engine because gas engines are bigger and do more than produce power.
They also need to work on producing torque which requires more energy, so the large displacement of the engine is needed to be able to produce enough power to turn heavy loads, unlike diesel, where it uses compression ratio which uses pressure instead of displacement, so less energy is used meaning it’s smaller than most gasoline engines giving them better fuel efficiency.
Tow Ratings
Ram 1500 5,000 lbs tow rating is usually enough for small boats to campers that are not bigger than a regular-sized one-bedroom apartment.
This would also be good for smaller trailers in general because it can tow anything within the range of its tow rating, which is pretty much anything under 6,000 pounds.
Ram 2500 & 3500 8,700 lbs and 17,000 lbs, respectively.
If you get the 3500, then there’s no need to get 2500 unless you are on a budget or still think you might not ever need more than 8700 lbs, but if you do, then go with the 3500 because it will last longer and save some money itself due to having better fuel economy since it doesn’t have as much payload as the 2500 so it’s not as big.
It doesn’t use as much power but still has a fairly large engine for its size.
Conclusion
Ram trucks are great for anything you might come across.
Whether you are hauling tools around or offroad, everyday use like the 1 ton Ram, or used by professionals like the 3/4 and 1 ton Ram’s, there is always a ram truck that will suit your needs.
The engine type depends on what kind of work you want to do with it, so if you need more power, go with gas.
Diesel is usually for people who need better fuel economy because they do the same amount of work, but diesel does it with 10% less fuel.
We hope you enjoyed this post on Ram Trucks : For Those Seeking True Performance