96 k2500 6.5L vs 99 RAM2500 V10?

[Ace37]

Don't know where this should do, but which truck would you guys think is better for towing with a 5th and daily driver? I love my OBS Chevy's only reason Ive been ignoring the better Cummins and looking for a 6.5 but I've found a V10 RAM and I've heard great things about those engines. Besides the obvious money I'll spend in gas trying to feed a V10, what are you guys thoughts?

 

[Lanny]

The V10 will definitely beat the 6.5 in terms of fuel guzzling. The V10 will have more horsepower and similar numbers for torque. Dodge has terrible crash test ratings for those body styles. I definitely wouldn't want to put my family in one of them. Im a fan of the 6.5 when they are running well. But in the end dodge would probably handle the load better than the Chevy would. Just at an added cost. Also depends what kind of numbers youre looking at for trailer weight.

 

[GL1500]

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I own a 98 Ram 2500 2wd with the V10, only 78k. It's been dealer serviced and used as a tow-pig until last year when I picked it up. I used it as a DD for a few months, and towed my 6500# 5th wheel 90 miles away for a week of camping. The only repairs I've needed to do were a oil sending unit (leaking), and 02 sensor, and a wiper motor.

What I found:

First, it's thirsty, but I expected that. Unloaded as a DD, it gets about 10 mpg. Towing the 5th wheel 90 miles to Silver Lake, I left it in tow mode and got a little over 8 mpg. Coming home I left it in overdrive and pulled a little over 9 mpg. So much torque down low that I had no problem with tranny searching. It uses the same transmission as the diesel so I believe it's considered pretty bulletproof.

The thing that scares me about the V10 is that Mopar no longer supports it and parts for it are getting quite scarce. From what I've read, the real killer of this engine is either oil pump failure, cam position sensor and crank position sensor. If I recall correctly, noone makes a camshaft position sensor and there's no work-around or substitute part for it. It's been a while since I read up on it but I never felt confident never knowing if a $30 part was going to leave me down for the count. Add to that the fact that I just prefer the GM trucks, and I now have the Ram for sale. If either my 5.7 or 7.4 goes down, I can head to NAPA and get pretty much anything needed to put it back on the road.

 

[redfishsc]

From a reliability standpoint I would not buy anything made by Chrysler or Dodge from that generation, for any reason.

I have had a few times I considered the Cummins, and while the engine is great, I can't legitimately trust everything that's bolted to it that makes it a Dodge truck.

I'm not saying this just to dog Dodge, but I'll see so many of these and their car is broke down on the side of the highway that I just can't bring myself to buy one

They are nice looking trucks, I'll give him that, in fact I think they're the nicest looking truck on the road, and they have been for a very long time

 

[Ace37]

The V10 will definitely beat the 6.5 in terms of fuel guzzling. The V10 will have more horsepower and similar numbers for torque. Dodge has terrible crash test ratings for those body styles. I definitely wouldn't want to put my family in one of them. Im a fan of the 6.5 when they are running well. But in the end dodge would probably handle the load better than the Chevy would. Just at an added cost. Also depends what kind of numbers youre looking at for trailer weight.

See the thing is I'm not too much worries about the gas mileage ONLY because my Suburban gets about 8-10 for some reason with just me and about 100# of gear in the back. I so really miss my old 6.5 Diesel numbers (I miss that truck everyday) but also know the 6.5 can be a trick to work on if something happens. And I plan to pull around 10k, maybe top the GVWR a few times but I know the V10 can handle it, bot sure about the 6.5

 

[Ace37]

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I own a 98 Ram 2500 2wd with the V10, only 78k. It's been dealer serviced and used as a tow-pig until last year when I picked it up. I used it as a DD for a few months, and towed my 6500# 5th wheel 90 miles away for a week of camping. The only repairs I've needed to do were a oil sending unit (leaking), and 02 sensor, and a wiper motor.

What I found:

First, it's thirsty, but I expected that. Unloaded as a DD, it gets about 10 mpg. Towing the 5th wheel 90 miles to Silver Lake, I left it in tow mode and got a little over 8 mpg. Coming home I left it in overdrive and pulled a little over 9 mpg. So much torque down low that I had no problem with tranny searching. It uses the same transmission as the diesel so I believe it's considered pretty bulletproof.

The thing that scares me about the V10 is that Mopar no longer supports it and parts for it are getting quite scarce. From what I've read, the real killer of this engine is either oil pump failure, cam position sensor and crank position sensor. If I recall correctly, noone makes a camshaft position sensor and there's no work-around or substitute part for it. It's been a while since I read up on it but I never felt confident never knowing if a $30 part was going to leave me down for the count. Add to that the fact that I just prefer the GM trucks, and I now have the Ram for sale. If either my 5.7 or 7.4 goes down, I can head to NAPA and get pretty much anything needed to put it back on the road.

Yeah it would suck to have a simple part put you out of commission, but there's a few of the V10 Rams near me so *hopefully* nothing goes wrong but if something does I'll go to the ends of TAG/SC to find my part lol. I like the 454s also but know they don't make as much torque or HP as the V10. I'm a Chevy person but I'm looking for big numbers. The truck I pick will also be my second hotshot so has to be strong

 

[Ace37]

From a reliability standpoint I would not buy anything made by Chrysler or Dodge from that generation, for any reason.

I have had a few times I considered the Cummins, and while the engine is great, I can't legitimately trust everything that's bolted to it that makes it a Dodge truck.

I'm not saying this just to dog Dodge, but I'll see so many of these and their car is broke down on the side of the highway that I just can't bring myself to buy one

They are nice looking trucks, I'll give him that, in fact I think they're the nicest looking truck on the road, and they have been for a very long time

Yeah my dad who's a former transmission builder and still a mechanic always tried to stray me away from 2nd gen dodges but I ended up getting a 2nd gen Dakota one time and ifaik that truck was great to me, didn't like the "growl" of the V6 but it was a good truck. So IDK reliability sucks with the RAM 1500s I know but I haven't heard a 2500/3500 horror story yet.

 

[Ace37]

I also found a second 6.5 down here for pretty cheap but the seller doesn't know of the PMD or Fuel Pump failed. Said it just gave out one day and won't start now. It's a great deal so I'm considering but want to know the actually issue, and it'll need two batteries.

 

[skylark]

Neither. Both have issues. Buy a 6.5 only if you want to go diesel down the road. Otherwise get a reliable 454, I would go tbi, and deal with a decent priced truck that you can gets parts for anywhere and that will get the job done.

 

[Ace37]

Neither. Both have issues. Buy a 6.5 only if you want to go diesel down the road. Otherwise get a reliable 454, I would go tbi, and deal with a decent priced truck that you can gets parts for anywhere and that will get the job done.

I like the 454s and found one down here for 2900 but not sure if they handle loads as good as the V10. As good or better than a 6.5 I'm sure but idk