Heavy Duty Ram Truck is a True Work Horse

At Palmetto Yacht Management, we have experience with GM, Ford and Dodge heavy duty trucks in hauling very large and expensive yachts up and down the East Coast.

In previous posts as a guest blogger for Double Coin Tires, I reviewed the Ford Super Duty with the 6.7 Powerstroke engine and the GM Duramax.

In this final installment of my truck evaluations, I'm pleased to share my thoughts on the Dodge Ram HD truck.

In 2010, Dodge released its all new HD line of Ram trucks and boy did they begin to write history! As their new design proved to be an absolute work horse, they then unleashed a new beast in 2013 with the industry leading 30k tow rating. In order to obtain this massive tow rating almost everything under the sheet metal was changed.

The engine was still the 6.7 Cummins; however, the power was increased to 385 hp and 850 lbs of torque. When you begin to accelerate with one of these trucks towing a load, it begins to "growl" like no other! It's a very impressive sound!!

The exhaust brake tuning on these trucks is second to none. This will cause noticeable savings on brake pads over the use of the truck. But just sheer towing power doesn't make the truck what it is.

Looking underneath one of these trucks, you will notice massive suspension components compared to either of the others I have reviewed. The driveline carrier bearing looks more like that out of a semi than that of a one ton. Even the f550 doesn't have this size components!

With this extremely rigid boxed frame and stout suspension, you can rest assured you will feel in total control of whatever you are hauling. In order to obtain this tow rating you must option for the 4:10 rear gear which is almost perfect for the 255/70R22.5 Double Coin tires and American Force wheels. I can assure you this 30k tow rating is a very mild rating for what the truck will do in real world testing!

All this heavy duty suspension does make for a stiffer ride when empty, but this review is on how these trucks WORK!

Moving to the interior, you will notice the most impressive user friendly interface in the dash as well as the cluster. The cluster allows you to place whatever relevant info you prefer on the home screen in each corner. You get the option to place six gauges within the standard gauge screen which is amazing!

The in-dash screen also works in conjunction with the cluster set up and allows for easy adjustment of almost any electronic function. The aux buttons in these trucks are also easily adaptable to whatever function you desire with the click of a button rather than changing wiring like the others. When unfitting these trucks this is a significant deal.

The dash buttons for the AC and steering wheel controls are also laid out perfectly. Many of you may never notice this, but every button is in the place your hand would naturally want it; almost like the truck is designed by someone who drives it 11 hours a day!

One of the most amazing things you will notice at night is your interior is lit by purpose mounted LEDS shining in the door panels, floor board, and console area; all perfectly placed not to be too much light, but just enough to see the things you always end up looking for.

The downfall of the interior are seats that are just not as comfortable as they could be. The other two trucks definitely have softer seats. Also, in order to get a leather console, you either have to get a Limited or choose the option of no full length console. It would also be nice to have a dome light in the mid can region rather than just front or back.

If I could add anything else to these trucks, it would be helper air bags from the factory to level out the rear leafs when they are loaded to the hills.

So there you have it. The Ford and GM trucks have some nice features, but the Ram is the true WORK HORSE in our fleet. Please leave a comment if you have any questions about this review or my previous ones.

And I encourage you to check out Double Coin tires;  I've been riding on them for several years now and have been pleased on all fronts. You can go to their website to see their product line-up and sizes.