Attention: TDR Forum Junkies I'm potentially looking to pick up a mildly used (less than 100k miles) 4th gen Ram 3500 for my next vehicle. I have long term plans to gradually turn it into an offroad vehicle (overlanding, 4wd exploration, whatever you want to call it) while still maintaining most of its towing/work capabilities (toy-hauling, horse trailers, moving building materials and construction equipment). When I say "offroad" what I mean is I want to explore the many logging and forest roads and trails in the Northeast US and Canada; not trying to turn this thing into a dedicated rockcrawler or mud bogger, but it needs to be able to handle rough terrain and obstacles when I encounter them. I've read a lot about the current iteration of 6.7l Cummins engine and the 2500/3500 platforms, have talked to owners, done some test drives, so I've got some idea of what to expect from the vehicle in its stock configuration. My questions are really more focused on what to expect from the vehicle once it has been modified for more offroad/overland type use.
1) Is it possible to find aftermarket options similar to what the Ram Power Wagon offers? For example, I know ARB offers lockers. Is there anything on the aftermarket that resembles the Power Wagon's disconnecting swaybars or articulink? Would anything like that even work on a heavy diesel truck or would the weight be too much?
2) The oil pan seems to hang low on the 6.7l cummins. Are there aftermarket skid plates for that part of the engine? Or has that even been an issue for owners who take their 6.7l ram offroad?
3) Due to the fact that I want to keep some towing performance and mpg, I don't plan on going any bigger than 35's for tires. Will the stock 3.43 gearing work with those or would 3.73's be better (assuming an Aisin transmission)?
4) Will the emissions systems (DPF especially) run into any issues for sustained periods of idling (e.g. using a winch) or slow-speed (4wd low) driving? Reading up on the emissions, it seems there has been a marked improvement over the earlier versions used 2007.5-2012, but I still see many people saying that the truck needs to be worked hard in order for the emissions to work properly. I expect that this vehicle will see more highway driving than anything else, but I still want to know if the DPF (or other systems) will run into issues during slow driving. I plan to keep the emissions intact.
5) I've heard more than a few on this forum and others talk about the "dead pedal" issue. Is this an issue for all Ram diesels or just some? And similar to the previous question, will it interfere with 4wd low driving?
6) I understand that the 3500's come with rear leaf springs which, due to their high payload rating, ride extremely stiff when unloaded and aren't setup for offroad driving. I will want a rear suspension that offers half decent ride and articulation in the rough stuff, but still maintain most of the vehicle's tow and payload capability. Basically I want a compromise of sorts. Will airbags with something like daystar cups offer that compromise? Or will weird suspension angles and offroad articulation mess them up?
I'm basically looking for a mildly-built, diesel version of Ram's Power Wagon. It sounds like more than a few aftermarket companies have started to put out products with the 6.7l cummins in mind (AEV, Thuren, Carli, Warn), and I've seen a lot of videos and articles discussing build projects with that platform. But I haven't seen a much specific and technical feedback on how a 6.7L Cummins Ram handles itself when the road gets rough.
I did see one aftermarket company (I think diesel power products or something like that) do a video on a 6.7l offroad build project and they mentioned, briefly and vaguely, that the ECU needed some tuning to make the emissions work better (their build was emissions intact). Unfortunately, they didn't say much else on that topic.
1) Is it possible to find aftermarket options similar to what the Ram Power Wagon offers? For example, I know ARB offers lockers. Is there anything on the aftermarket that resembles the Power Wagon's disconnecting swaybars or articulink? Would anything like that even work on a heavy diesel truck or would the weight be too much?
2) The oil pan seems to hang low on the 6.7l cummins. Are there aftermarket skid plates for that part of the engine? Or has that even been an issue for owners who take their 6.7l ram offroad?
3) Due to the fact that I want to keep some towing performance and mpg, I don't plan on going any bigger than 35's for tires. Will the stock 3.43 gearing work with those or would 3.73's be better (assuming an Aisin transmission)?
4) Will the emissions systems (DPF especially) run into any issues for sustained periods of idling (e.g. using a winch) or slow-speed (4wd low) driving? Reading up on the emissions, it seems there has been a marked improvement over the earlier versions used 2007.5-2012, but I still see many people saying that the truck needs to be worked hard in order for the emissions to work properly. I expect that this vehicle will see more highway driving than anything else, but I still want to know if the DPF (or other systems) will run into issues during slow driving. I plan to keep the emissions intact.
5) I've heard more than a few on this forum and others talk about the "dead pedal" issue. Is this an issue for all Ram diesels or just some? And similar to the previous question, will it interfere with 4wd low driving?
6) I understand that the 3500's come with rear leaf springs which, due to their high payload rating, ride extremely stiff when unloaded and aren't setup for offroad driving. I will want a rear suspension that offers half decent ride and articulation in the rough stuff, but still maintain most of the vehicle's tow and payload capability. Basically I want a compromise of sorts. Will airbags with something like daystar cups offer that compromise? Or will weird suspension angles and offroad articulation mess them up?
I'm basically looking for a mildly-built, diesel version of Ram's Power Wagon. It sounds like more than a few aftermarket companies have started to put out products with the 6.7l cummins in mind (AEV, Thuren, Carli, Warn), and I've seen a lot of videos and articles discussing build projects with that platform. But I haven't seen a much specific and technical feedback on how a 6.7L Cummins Ram handles itself when the road gets rough.
I did see one aftermarket company (I think diesel power products or something like that) do a video on a 6.7l offroad build project and they mentioned, briefly and vaguely, that the ECU needed some tuning to make the emissions work better (their build was emissions intact). Unfortunately, they didn't say much else on that topic.
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