redneckdr, garyj... . etc
The long stroke, I6 that Cummins put in the Dodge is the main reason I bought the Dodge. I could have gotten a better deal on a P/S Extra HD Ford, but it was a real desiel I wanted... .
I had a Ford Van with the"optional" I6 300... It didn't wind out, it wasn't going to win any races. . but it out pulled the 302V8 I had in another Ford Van... I had a long stroke 4banger in my Yota... I could lift the front end off the ground in 1st gear, once I put track bars on the rear... Low end grunt... . with a rear stump pulling engine... thats what Dodge got with the CTD. Thats why we buy these trucks... After owning my Dodge, the only thing I really do wish it had was a set of leaf springs and a set of locking hubs. . a gen 1 front end... Than the gen 2 would be perfect.
I did/do like the front end suspension and axle on the Ford better , thats what almost got be to buy the Ford... but figured I could always change whats on the dodge, and it's more work and money to but a CTD in the ford. Auto transmission rumors abound about the Dodge that almost swayed me not to buy it and again I figured thats fixable if it's marginal, since too many nambybambies complain that a truck's transmission shifts to hard, making the big 3 program trannys to be soft shifting. . again fixable. But I came to discover most people killing these auto's , early on, where bombing the @#$@# out of the trucks and toasting the transmission's.
Anyway all this talk has made me want to go out and pull something big , ugly, nasty and heavy around.
ARgh ARgh ARgh...
Attention: TDR Forum Junkies 
(Boy, was I sorry to hear Bob Seger sell out to them)
