Ram Rebel?
Whitetail Deer
Looking at buying a truck early next year.
Really like my Toyota's, but the Tundra is laughably behind the rest of the industry tech wise. I understand it's going to be reliable and I certainly appreciate that, but for the $ it had better at the very least have heated seats (2019 TRD Pro does not).
I've been looking quite a bit at the Ram Rebel-every creature comfort you could imagine, a 5.7L Hemi with steel springs all the way around- should be nice and reliable as well + having everything a person could want.
I won't tow much outside of a duck boat eventually, going to be my hunting truck and every-day driver (only about a 15-20 minute drive to work).
Never owned a Ram-those who have what do you like/dislike about the newer Ram's?
I have a buddy who is having fits with Dodge right now, almost died when a steering part failed on the highway and he lost all steering. Dodge has apparently now recalled the part, but his accident occurred before the recall and Dodge has settled on the notion that the part failed because it was damaged in the accident - despite the fact the accident occurred because the part failed. This has been going on since December 2018.
Dodge's fix for the situation was to spot weld the jam nut (which by design is supposed to allow for adjustment) in place, which is kludgy as hell.
The local dealership also told him his warranty was voided by the accident, which is swell.
All the Dodge owners I know say they have a weak front end, suspension and steering, even in the 3/4 ton.
Heated seats don't mean sh!t when your replacing major components. Same problems for the last 20 years. Go with the Tundra.
What Bowbender said! I have on 2002 Ram 1500 SLT Quad Cab, and it's just the stupid little stuff that plagues these trucks, that shouldn't ever be an issue. Electric wiring getting pinched in door jams, severely cracked dashes, windows coming off the tracks CONSTANTLY...the funny thing is, is when I look into issues going on in my 17 year old truck, I often find owners of the newer Rams having the exact same issues! If it wouldn't be for the gas sucking 5.9L 360 Magnum in my beast (and the $0 montly payment), I'd get rid of it in a heartbeat. I'm really liking that Nissan Titan Pro4X that Randy Newberg drives around! :)
Buy a Ram Diesel, in 2500 for same price as the Dodge your looking at and no worries until at least 200k other than normal stuff, like brakes and tires. Their diesals are a totally different animal. Get a chip and get 22-25 mpg as well
One of the bro's has a 2004/5 Ram with the Cummins. Great fuel mileage but he seems to have what I would say are more than a few problems with it. Things I know about was the intake heater, fuel pump system, front end parts. I know he's had numerous brake problems but that could fall under wear-n-tear.
I think if you search for negative issues, you'll find them. The same goes for stories, no one runs into their buddy and says, "Hey my 2009 Ram is running great and only costs me brake pads and tires every few years". That was the case for me until last year when it started throwing error codes indicating they were going to have to replace a sensor inside the block (A friend of mine had a similar issue around the same time on his 2010 and replaced that internal sensor for like $450 and has been happy since) . As for me, my mechanic and I opted out after about 130K miles. But I loved that truck!!!
I settled on a "new to me" 2015 Silverado. AND.... it has issues too. Seems like the gyroscope causes some thumping when you drive it (or the trans is slipping), plus there is an issue with one of the rear struts I have to have taken care of and my hood is starting to show some signs of rust - all on a truck with less than 32K on it. And whatever you do, don't wipe off the dashboard with the radio on - it zaps the Audio entire system for the vehicle.
I sound like my dad when I say, if it gets you from A to B, be happy.
I rented one In Kansas and really liked it so I bought one. It is loaded except I didn’t want the bed boxes. Mine is a 2017 with 55,000 miles. Have had absolutely no issues. I love the ride. I just put breaks, rotors and tires on all the way around.
Dodge rams are either "ram tough" or a "POS". It is truly a luck of the draw. They've always been like that.
I know two guys that have Rebels... One since 2017 and one just bought a 2019 this year. Both seem to like them so far and haven't had any issues... I just got back from an elk hunt with a friend that drove his newer (2015?) Dodge Limited - was a super truck - crap ton of options. He had the RAMBOX which was surprisingly handy for extra storage... His turned 100K on the trip - super nice truck and he hasn't had any issues up to this point... I really like the looks and features of the newer RAMs...
Sent you a PM - I have loved all 4 of the rams I have owned!
Heated seats cost less than a car payment to install.
I wonder how many of the guys on this thread bashing rams have driven one recently? Especially the newer ones? My company rig is a 2020 Silverado and, if put lots of miles on the f150 and ram and it’s not even close. The new rams are awesome. I’d go for a 2020 ram crew bighorn diesel. This coming from a non-truck brand specific fan boy that actually drives all of them! So take it for it’s worth.
I have a 2016 Dodge and love it. Maybe I haven’t hit the stage where it’s supposed to have issues but I drive a lot! Bought truck with 15 miles, and it now has 119,000. Brake pads, spark plugs, shocks and oil is all that it’s cost me so far. Knock on wood
My Cummins has 110 K on it and it is 2015. Put brakes and tires on and that has been it. Runs like a bear, tows up to 22K pounds with the installed airbags. It does not have all the bells and whistles but most of them. No power seats and thats about it. I would buy another and probably will in 10 years when this one falls apart. Everyone I know says the engine will out last at least two trucks. Shawn
I have a 2019 Ram 1500 Black Out Edition. I love it and have already put 30k on it (I drive a lot). I bought the Ram because my buddy and his family have owned several over the past dozen years. I was always impressed with theirs when ever I rode in one. All my past trucks have been Toyota’s or Nissans. They were all great and lasted me up to and over 200k but we’ll see how this one is running at 150k
Been driving Ram's since they changed the body style in what ? 1994 , Never really had any real bad issues, i think one i had to change both wheel bearings in the front, not at same time, owned gas, and diesel, 360, hemi, cummins , and now the eco diesel, only have about 9,000 mi. on it , so far so good, mileage is great too, I think you'll be fine with the Ram
I couldn’t live with the piss poor gas mileage of a Tundra. Even the guys who love them admit that they are guzzlers.But then, I’m open to any truck out there as long as it’s a Ford ! :-)
I have had 3 Rams, 2007, 2011 and 2014. They all have had some issues.
The 07 ate front rotors like it was job.
The 2011 went through ball joints.
The 2014 went through ball joints, tie rod ends and had electrical issues one after the other. It was a loaded truck and a big pain in the butt.
Power wise they have all been great trucks. Gas mileage has been decent as well.
Now I own a Tundra and don’t plan on going back. Sure I gave up the heated seats but so far so good on the front end.
Ram redesigned their front ends beginning in 2015. Oh... I really like mine. Had it for years this month. Drove toyotas for 30 yrs prior.
I bought a new ram in 2017, long box 4 door 2500 for work. Up to 75000 miles on it already and no issues. I'm not a tech guy so I didn't go for all the jazzy stuff, just cloth seats, basic interior etc. Had a brand new chevy diesel with all the crap in it and just felt like a tool in that thing. Plus, had 2 issues with it within the warranty period but one would have cost 13k if it wasn't warranteed. Got rid of it after that. The ram was 10k less and has done what I need it to do. The turning radius does suck along with the ride not quiet as nice but its a truck. Cant wait tell I get one more guy on my crew so I don't need to own a long box. Hopefully next truck can be a 1500 standard and my guys can handle all the towing.
At one point in my life I owned 75 pickups. I tried them all, Ford, GM and Dodge. I needed 3/4 and 1 tons so Toyota was never in the fleet. Which was best? None of them. I hated them all. To give you an idea of how hard we drove these trucks, at one point my fuel bill was $40K a month. All in the oilfields. Some years any single brand was better than the others. The problem with buying new is you don't know the latest weaknesses until it's too late. I purchased Dodge cummins for the crews that needed to pull a heavy load. I had 4 2006 Dodge Diesels. 3 of them blew a motor under 100K, the 4th at 115K. Before that we were running them for over 200K miles before retiring them. Both Ford and Dodge had heavier suspensions but GM always had better engines and trannies. Even today I own one of each. My favorite is my old 79 Ford 3/4 ton SWB extended cab. I was born a Ford fan. It has over 400k on it but I don't drive it anymore. I have a GMC duramax with 199K and a Dodge Cummins with 110K. Of the 3, the Dodge is my least favorite. I don't even want to think about what I will buy next. Whatever it is, will probably be used so you have some time to identify if it was a good year or not.
Chrysler products make me shudder. They remind me of a girl that’s really good with makeup and belly tighteners, push up bras etc. They’ve got all the glitz and glamour but when the rubber meets the road what’s underneath leaves you wanting.
Heated seats??
You’ll want a heated tailgate, for keeping your hands warm while pushing it.
Owned Fords for 20 years with no major issues. Switched to Dodge this year just to try something new and so far like the ride and interior of the Dodge over the new Fords that i drove.
Droptine is that on the Dodge you're referring to?
I’m on my second Tacoma and yes the Toyota’s are low tech compared to other brands BUT they are bar none the most reliable trucks I’ve ever had. Not to mention besides my back up cam I don’t have much need for any other technology except maybe for a GPS. In my opinion more tech is more problems!
^^^^^^ I agree about the tech. There’s about a dozen different things on my ‘18 F150 that I could do without, but they’re in “the package”. Backup cam, navigation, and remote mirror adjustment will about take care of me, but I do like that power rear window when my dog cuts a fart !
As JSW said, every company has its years to make the best deal going on average. My experience say that Dodge is the exception though. I owned a 1998 I bought off the original owner in 2004. I put 240,000 miles on it. But, I pad for every mile of it in front end repairs. I drove a 2004 2500 dodge for work and put 130,000 miles on it. My company paid for it with the same type repairs. They are just a weak built truck on suspension, steering, and bearings in the front ends. Don't know about the new ones but, I would never drop the coin on a dodge to find out either.
Something to consider. More tech means more to possibly go wrong. And, more that a dealer has to work on versus you or an affordable mechanic. I put 160000 miles on a tacoma that was bullet proof. But drove the transmission out of a Tundra during another fleet vehicle change. As well did multiple employees. So, do some research on all the innovations companies are putting out. And, see which are building on previous success versus trying something new.
My experience is you are going to have a hard time out lasting a f150 or 1500 silverado. Good luck and God Bless
2011 tundra 5.7 front end shot at 100,000 miles along with the drive shaft and spent 20 days in the shop ripping the motor apart to solve the knocking noise . lifters and stretched valve springs. sold it at 110,000 and bought the Ram Hemi 5.7 32,000 miles and all is well. The Tundra i towed a 8,000 lb toy hauler all over the west guess it was a little to much for it.
2012 Tacoma with 110,000 on it. Best hunting truck I have owned since I traded my 2002 Tacoma for it.
4x4 with rear locker with heat/AC and a radio is all I need. Everything else is crap to go wrong and or break. Living in northern WI. I did add a remote start to it.
I have a 99 Taco now, I do like it but want a full size truck
I have a 99 Taco now, I do like it but want a full size truck
Test drove the rebel a couple years ago (loved the 2" raise/lower option!) But there were two things that made it a no-go for me: (1) I wanted leather seats and it was only offered with some strange cloth combo (2) I wanted the option of all-wheel drive. There are times on wet paved roads when more traction is needed, but true 4wd is grabby in tight turns. Rebel didn't offer that option.
Went with the Silverado primarily because of how comfortable the seats/cockpit area is for driver. Plus it had my leather and all wheel drive option (and a 6.2 liter V8 coupled with 8spd trans). Never been happier in a truck!
My last few Rams had auto 4 wheel drive option, so when you started slipping, it kicked in, and for heated seats, for the Tacoma, I think u can buy a kit to put it in , don't know how hard it is,
I drive a GMC Z-71 that had major engine damage at 170K miles. The dashboard is cracked in multiple places, busted rear seal, etc. Maintenance has been a nightmare. GMC would have a tough sell trying to get me to buy another one especially at the current prices. I'm looking at the Tundra for my next truck.
I never understood having a big truck for an "everyday driver." You're throwing money down the toilet.
Drive a newer, but used full size truck when you hunt/haul or need a truck for the bed and then a Honda Civic or other small car to the grocery store or whenever else you're on a paved road and driving by yourself without significant cargo (more than groceries) and you'll save yourself about $100,000 over the course of your life.
My 2005 Honda Civic has 255K miles on it and still gets 39mph and still has the original clutch - nothing other than tires and regular maintenance (oh, and tires after warranty usually cost about $250 mounted and balanced - that's for 4 tires, not 1 tire). I paid $13,130 for this car brand new off the lot in 2004.
My 1999 Dodge ram 2500 with the V10 runs like a champ with 155K miles on it - no issues other than a torque converter. This truck is 20 years old and probably has another 15 years of life in it because I only drive it to hunt or haul firewood and the once-a-year towing of the 5th wheel.
If I need to drive to the bowshop, I still take the Civic because I swallowed that pride long ago. Every year I'm richer because of it.
Dont have a ram truck, but I do have a dodge minivan. Its a pos, lots of typical dodge problems have come up. Trans, hvac, service in general sucks. I would go with the Toyota. Actually Im looking at the Tundra as my next truck. I'd never buy a dodge again.
That's funny. A deer across the hood of that would round it out perfectly.
Here you go....a Tundra TRD Pro with heated leather seats. I honestly thought they were standard on the new Tundra Pro's. Now get that Dodge crap out of your head :-)
I loooove my new F-150. Can't rust - aluminum. My 6cyl twin turbo ecoboost has same torque as the big v8. Get 24 mpg on highway. Locking rear diff. Off road package. Roomy, comfortable, and drives great. Magma Red - nice color. Go FORD or go home I say!! LOL
Jack....what engine did you get?
CAS_HNTR - I got the 2.7 six cyl- trust me I do NOT need any more torque or acceleration, it's every bit as capable to toe as an F150 with the 8. I tow a 15' polarcraft boat with 25hp merc, or a Can Am 650 Quad. I don't even know it's on there. Lose a few MPG but not as much as I lost with my 2011 6cyl Jeep GC... I felt I was towing something a little bit with the GC, not at all with the F150.. Now - the 3.5 twin-turbo ecoboost is an absolute beast if you read the specs. Blows everything away. I would not have turned that down for a 1or 1 mpg reduction but it seems like overkill. Then - there is the Raptor which is even a more bored out version of the largest 6 designed for offroad racing... Rediculous torque and power in souped up packages - but thats for the under 40 crowd I am 55. My truck looks totally appropriate for a 55 year old ! Only 6K miles in but I absolutely love it. I do commute with a 2013 MB E350 that I picked up "used" and as nice as that is, the truck just rides better. Oh and I have already had it offroad in deep oily clay mud on the Delaware river hauling my boat out and it had amazing traction.
I can't decide if I want a mid size or full size.....that my current battle. The F150 has my eye.
Jack, sounds great. It's amazing to hear of a truck that size getting 24 mpg - that's fantastic. The only thing I don't like about it is the bed is too short for my taste. I haul a lot of firewood and the long bed is nice. Also, when I go hunting, I tend to take way too much stuff and it's nice for that too, but i suppose you could get 1/2 your stuff in the back.
All depends what you need in a truck, clearance is a big thing out west. Sorry but jacks f 150 in the picture wouldn't make it down many roads in arizona or colorado . the locking rear diff is useless when you have 8 inches of clearance to the running boards and its high centered with car tires.
F150 you can get longer bed and less legroom in back... Depends what you want. If driving roads with clearance challenges, yeah not where I would take my truck - I would bring the Can Am there. Just saying it' s very powerful and very capable with major traction covering most applications. The amount of stuff you can put inside the cab i the back is insane.. So it made me rethink why I needed a longer bed. I know a big buck fits in that bed inside a jet sled, and with a good tonneau cover i have driven it to Outer Banks NC and kept all extra stuff in the bed dry. It performed excellent in loose sand was driving it for miles on the beach every day on the coast of NC.
I went from a Tacoma with the 3.5 l to an f150 with the 5.0 v8 because I needed more towing capacity. I miss the Tacoma a little, but the rear seat capacity of the Ford is huge. I pulled a 8 foot pop up and lot’ of gear to Colorado this month and got 19.1 on the Ford. Same trip and load two years ago with the Tacoma was 17.5. Normal driving around home I can average 21.5. I’m happy with that
"...almost died when a steering part failed on the highway and he lost all steering."
I also almost died when the brakes went out on my buddy's Ram as we were going down a steep curvy incline on a highway with a cliff on one side. The design put the brake line too close to a part that got very hot, and it melted through the brake line leaking out all the fluid.
I'll stay a Tundra driver!
I love the "I don't want a Toyota because I need more tech" comments, I hear that so much. All I want for tech is Bluetooth and a backup camera for hooking up my trailer, the rest is just window dressing and extra things to break. My buddy just called me (I'm just the silly guy who bought a Tundra) two nights ago and asked for a ride home and a tow for their trailer, because his nice new Ford blew up in Fairplay our other buddy's Ram was in the shop in Denver and couldn't do it...again...but buy what you want, trucks are fun :)
Problem I see with Rams around here is that they are rust buckets in five years unless they are garage warmers
Few months back I bought my fifth PU. First was an F150. Didn’t like it. The last four have been Chev. Had one minor problem with previous one, sone modulator valve in tranny. Was fixed free under recall. Other than that, flawless. The current one, a 19 has the 6.2 motor vs previous 5.3. Gas mileage seems similar, but lots more power. I’ll probably get another in three years.
I have a 99 Taco now, I do like it but want a full size truck
Jake, how much do you want for the 99 Taco? My youngest son is looking for a truck.
As for the new Rams, I wouldn’t own one. Guys around here (Metro Detroit) say you never buy a Ram, you only lease them.
Got an offer in the mail earlier this summer to come test drive the new Ram Truck and they would give us a $50 for doing so. Our youngest (looks like a mini you, minus the beard. HA!!) talked me into taking him to see what the trucks are like.
I told the salesman I wanted the biggest gas engine, Crew Cab with the most amenities they had to offer. Figured if I was going to get another truck, I might as well get what I wanted.
He went and got us the keys to a really nice looking Ram 1500 that had been lifted and had much bigger mud tires compared to stock. Went to start it, and nothing. It wouldn’t start. Literally had to get it jumped in the lot with right around 40 miles on the odometer and my hopes were quickly fading on getting a new truck. Once they got the truck started, we drove off the lot and of course had to get on it to see what it’ll do. The transmission wouldn’t come out of 1st gear. Had to “shift” into neutral then back into drive then it went into what I believe to be 4th gear and stayed there till I once again shifted into neutral, then it was back into 1st gear. In the 7+ mile test drive, we only had 1st and possibly 4th gear, and on every hard Left/Right turn, the tires rubbed the wheel wells.
Made it back to the dealership, went inside and told the salesman what had happened. He looked at me like “Yeah Right”. Told him to hop in the truck with us and he is driving. He took me up on the offer and the 3 of us got in. He started it up (luckily it worked this time), then he pulled out of the dealership and onto the main road...where he couldn’t get the truck to come out of 1st gear. I don’t bother telling him what to do, wanted to see if he could figure out to turn it to Neutral (and who the hell designs a dial instead of a gear shifter for a truck? We aren’t turning up the volume). Well, we drove for close to 4 miles in 1st gear and when he turned hard Left/Right, the tires rubbed the wheel well HARD.
Honestly, I really wanted to like the trucks, but they did everything they possibly could to make me love my current truck more. Made it back to the dealership, and the salesman was visually pi$$ed off because I was right about the truck and he was wrong. He went to his manager, and a few minutes later walked over and handed me a $50 bill just as the brochure said they would. I handed my son the $50 and told him to hold onto it till he finds a truck he wanted to buy.
The next night after MMA training, I asked one of the guys I was training with (happens to be a mechanic at one of the Dodge dealers near us) about the problems I ran into and he said there are so many computers running on these trucks at all times that if left not started for a couple weeks, the battery drains. Also mentioned the transmissions had been coming in with the same issue I mentioned. It was fixable, but still shouldn’t be happening. He just smiled when I said I was keeping the Chevy.
So, back to my opening question...how much do you want for the Taco? He has $50 to put towards the purchase. I’ll probably have to help him out a bit too. Shoot me a text, or give me a call tomorrow.
Bought a new truck last year and went through a similar dilemma. My screening criteria was it needed to have all of the features I needed for dual-duty of both my hunting chariot and suitable for hauling my wife’s horse trailer. So, half-ton V-8 4x4 with Off-Road Package - HD Shocks, skid plates, locking diff & with Towing Package - factory hitch and wiring, oil cooler, tow mirrors, integrated brake controller. Did the research and test drove all the major brands - after a lot of hands-on evaluation, discussion and deliberation we narrowed it down to either the Ram 1500 or Nissan Titan. I wanted the Rebel but that was clearly a better off-road hunter than hauler. So it was either a loaded Laredo trim or higher 1500 or a Nissan Titan Pro-4X (we previously had one that served us well). In the end we were just a bit concerned about the Ram’s long term reliability and the price difference was about $13.5k (including rebates/incentives) on the best deals I could make on trucks with similar features - the Ram was a bit nicer, but it wasn’t $13.5k nicer - bought the Nissan and like it a lot. To also specifically close the loop on the issues raised by the originator - really wanted to like the Tundra, but after review agree it is a very old/tired design. The Rebel is a great off-roader but a bit too specialized to be a regular hauler or comfortable everyday driver - it can still do those things but really isn’t designed for that. After driving my Titan for about a year I’m even more assured that we made right choice as it’s much more versatile - it’s a great cruiser on the highway, it’s a very capable hunter/off-roader, and my wife loves it for hauler.
Unless youre talking about a Ram that's been new in the last 3 years it's pretty irrelevant. A '98 F250 doesn't have much in common w a '19 F250.
I have a newer 2500 crew cab 4x4 w 5.7 and love it. Absolutely no issues. I do wish I would have went w the 6.4L. The projected mileage scared me away but having talked w guys that have one, it's not much dif than a 5.7L but better power.
I've owned multiple Ford's and Chevys and have had issues w EVERY single one.
Plus the tech is top notch.
