Ram 3500 Dually

[Radio Paul]

We are looking to upgrade from a bumper pull to a fifth wheel. We have been fulltiming for three years. When I walk around the campground I see more Rams pulling travel trailers and Ram Duallies pulling fifth wheels than other brands. Any thoughts from the forum.
We are looking at a Ram dually with the Cummings engine.

[NN5I]

I see that here too, and I've wondered. According to Consumer Reports, Ram pickups have the worst reliability of all major brands, foreign or domestic. This is interesting to me, because I may possibly be in the market for a large pickup one day soon.

[N3LYT]

Well they have all the power you would ever want I had an older one pulled a 5th wheel trailer hauling lumber 16,000 to 18,000# pretty regular. They are very popular I seldom give much credence to consumer reports ask the campers driving them.

[NN5I]

Yeah, I've asked several who own them (I'm thinking of looking for a pickup like the long-bed crew-cab F350 I wish I still had, though I think perhaps I'd like a Suburban instead). Everyone I've talked to gives the Ram excellent reports on all counts, and they're pretty nice rides. But, of course, so say the Ford owners and Chevy owners too. My conclusion: I don't know enough yet, and they're all pretty good vehicles. Still, I'm occasionally a worry wart since I no longer can pull & rebuild my own engines, transmissions and axles at home as I did when younger.

[N9JKP]

Originally Posted by Radio Paul

We are looking to upgrade from a bumper pull to a fifth wheel. We have been fulltiming for three years. When I walk around the campground I see more Rams pulling travel trailers and Ram Duallies pulling fifth wheels than other brands. Any thoughts from the forum.
We are looking at a Ram dually with the Cummings engine.

The Cummins engine is hard to beat, everyone will know you have a Cummins diesel, they have a distinctive sound.

I have had two Chevy Duramax Diesels. My current is a 2008 3500 (non dually). We use it to pull a horse trailer with living quarters. It is a great tow vehicle and the Allison transmission is rock solid.

I doubt Consumer Reports really tested dually diesels, and if they did I would question the sample size.

The one vehicle I would stay away from is the ford, not sure whose Diesel engine they have in it now, but for years they were using Navistar diesels and had a lot of problems.

[NN5I]

Originally Posted by N9JKP

I doubt Consumer Reports really tested dually diesels, and if they did I would question the sample size.

Probably didn't test them at all. What CR does for reliability reporting is survey subscribers who own vehicles, and their sample sizes are typically in the multi-thousand range. Statistical significance is not a worry, I think.

[N3LYT]

Last load I hauled was 17,000 lbs of building materials with my dually 5 spd 97 diesel Dodge and 5th wheel.