2004.5

[kober]

Ok, so maybe this is a dumb question from a newbie, but I give up. What's the difference between a 2004 and a 2004. 5 Dodge Ram?

 

[PJ]

the 04 has less hp but is quicker, the 04 has no cat converter or other bad smog stuff, the 04 also gets better MPG. I have 2 friends with 04. 5 and when they have driven mine, they want to trade. They say its like havong the SO and then going to the HO. Yes, i love my 04 305HO 555 Oo. Oo.

 

[DPelletier]

The 2004 HO truck has the 305/555 ETH engine. The 2004. 5 had a mid-year release of the new 325/600 ETH engine which was necessary to meet the January 2004 emmissions regulations. They also discontinued the ETC Standard Output engine.

The new engine has several changes, including the radiator shroud, intercooler, exhaust valves, turbo housing, ECM and has a post injection event as well as a catalytic converter. I have both and they are both good trucks. The 2004. 5 has a little more power, but gets a little worse mileage. Feels like maybe 10 hp difference and 1-3 mpg. Just hypothesizing as I haven't done a direct towing or mileage comparison between the two.





Dave

 

[Po' Riggity]

wow. . full of crap much? Ive driven both an 04 555 and my current 04. 5 600... The 04 was ok, but was by no means quicker than my 04. 5. Also, the mileage on my 04. 5 is about the same as the 04 that I drove. . 16 city 20 or so highway...

Scott

 

[ndennis]

I have a 2004. 5 325/600 and a 2000 ETC, both 2WD and 6-speeds. The 2000 will blow the doors off the 04. 5 and get a good 2 mpg better... ..... but then again, I have DDII's and and Edge EZ on the 2000. If I get in the 2000 and try to drive it like the 04. 5, the truck has a tendancy to lunge forward due to much better throttle response(not to mention way more smoke). I wish the 04. 5 would respond better, but then it would not be the environmentally friendly truck that I always wanted.

N Dennis

 

[DPelletier]

Scott,

who exactly is full of crap?



Dave

 

[RottnDogue]

Scott,

who exactly is full of crap?

Dave

Dave

my guess is Dennis... ...

I wish the 04. 5 would respond better, but then it would not be the environmentally friendly truck that I always wanted.

N Dennis

Darren

 

[gsbrockman]

Ok, so maybe this is a dumb question from a newbie, but I give up. What's the difference between a 2004 and a 2004. 5 Dodge Ram?

About 4 to 7 miles per gallon if I were a guessin' man ! :-laf :-laf :-laf :-laf :-laf :-laf

Greg

 

[Po' Riggity]

actually, that was aimed at PBJohnson, forgot to quote him in my reply

Scott

 

[GFritsch]

They are more similar than different. My truck gets great milage, has lots of power, and Po'Riggity, I knew who you were talking about. This guy has nothing nice to say in any post I have read.

 

[GFritsch]

Here is a poll I posted a while back. Seems most folks are happy.



https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/showthread.php?t=100912

 

[klenger]

It seems that most of the negative comments about the 2004. 5 models come from those who don't own them. There are a few 04. 5 owners who seem to have ligitamate millage issues, but most are happy with performance and milage. I also see posts from 2003 and 2004 owners reporting poor milage.



I have 90 HP more power than the 2001. 5 HO that I had before and get maybe 1 MPG less empty and the same milage as my 01. 5 towing.

 

[Gonzo 1066]

I have a 2004. 5 325/600 and a 2000 ETC, both 2WD and 6-speeds. The 2000 will blow the doors off the 04. 5 and get a good 2 mpg better... ..... but then again, I have DDII's and and Edge EZ on the 2000. If I get in the 2000 and try to drive it like the 04. 5, the truck has a tendancy to lunge forward due to much better throttle response(not to mention way more smoke). I wish the 04. 5 would respond better, but then it would not be the environmentally friendly truck that I always wanted.

N Dennis

Wow!. Just injectors and a box=more hp and less fuel than a completly stock truck?? :-laf



My 64 Dodge with a 440 six pac will run circles around my new Geo Metro.

 

[PJ]

actually, that was aimed at PBJohnson, forgot to quote him in my reply

Scott

I see that you are the one full of crap as I see you live in Calif, where they don't sell the 04 HO 305hp. . The only one you could have had was the Calif SO that was about as much of a slug as your 04. 5! :-laf



PS, your comments about being full of crap is crap buddy. . keep your comments like that to yourself :-laf :-laf

 

[PJ]

They are more similar than different. My truck gets great milage, has lots of power, and Po'Riggity, I knew who you were talking about. This guy has nothing nice to say in any post I have read.

I see there are two guys here that are "full of crap" and don't know how much better a NON Calif truck performs. . Hey kids, get your facts straight. :-laf

 

[ndennis]

Gonzo 1066: I do like the 04. 5 and have no regrets in the purchase. I do miss the 00's get-up-n-go. Some of the mileage loss is in the difference in gearing and I would have like to have had the 3. 54's in the 04. 5 but I live with it. The Edge EZ and DDII's made a world of difference with the 00 low output Kalifornia model. The last mileage check I did on the 00 put me at 20. 4 mpg..... 6 round trips between Napa and Pittsburg... mostly highway/urban with about 20% stop-n-go... limited to 70 mph... totally empty... . a few acceleration contests each direction and all this on a truck with 110,000+ miles and a stock clutch. The 04. 5 on the same trip schedule(minus the acceleration contests) will get me 18. 0-18. 5 which puts me in as one of the lucky 04. 5 owners as far as mileage goes. It is a quiet, almost smokeless, has better braking and is a reliable worktruck that may or may not stay bombless in the future. The 00 was and still is a reliable truck which only had 3 problems in 110,000 miles: one lift pump, one set of starter contacts, and a fuel guage sender. The only problem with the truck overall:the brakes.

N Dennis

PS: I do not share the same views as PBJohnson, nor do I wish to trade back a year or 2. I am satisfied with what I have and time will tell if I drop a bomb on the 04. 5

 

[Po' Riggity]

I see that you are the one full of crap as I see you live in Calif, where they don't sell the 04 HO 305hp. . The only one you could have had was the Calif SO that was about as much of a slug as your 04. 5! :-laf



PS, your comments about being full of crap is crap buddy. . keep your comments like that to yourself :-laf :-laf

Just because I live in CA, that somehow means that Im forbidden to travel to another state, perhaps to visit family, while test driving a non CA truck?? Thats not possible at all now is it?

Scott

 

[KBertetto]

this thread is starting to sound like it should be on the "other" diesel site. Love my 600, get 21-23 mpg consistently on the highway... nuff said



Bert

 

[PJ]

The kid, Po' Riggity comes on and says Im full of crap, then continues to post similar posts. I think this thread needs to be closed.

 

[EEngel]

04 vs 04.5

Okay guys, enough of the high school crap.



kober,



You will see loyalty from what ever truck the individual owns. I guess you should yake advice from the people who have both trucks and drive them all the time to compare.



The other thing is most people are comparing 2 completely different trucks. I traded a 2001 (exact same options as my 600) for this truck. Ya, that truck was quicker when when I sold then my 600 was new. However, it had been bomed. It's not a fair comparison. Also the 600 is VERY tight when it's new. The truck became much more responsive after some miles were on her.



Now that I added some goodies to the 600, it is far quicker than the 2001. As for mileage, I believe there are some poor perfoming 600's, but I have also read about some poor 305's. In addition, milage is not as much a factor of the truck as the driver (99% of the time).



Just my thoughts... ...