Best New 2500 Diesel

[Quackerbox]

I have a buddy with a hemi 2500. He pulls a bumper trailer in the size op mentions. He says the only time he sees diesel being better is pulling hills.

While the gas does it, the oil burners to it easier

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[Palmetto]

I did look at the new duramax also, I looked at all the trim levels and have to say there are no rear av/ heater vents in the center console that point into the back seat, I found that really strange as even the Denali did not have them.... that immediately kept me from even test driving one.

They rear vents are under the front seats on my '16 3500 WT model. They help allot!

[Turtlewax]

They rear vents are under the front seats on my '16 3500 WT model. They help allot!

My '16 Duramax 2500 LTZ has the rear vents under the seats as well. They dont help cool the back of the cab though.....or i dont notice cause i sit in the dog gone drivers seat!

[12RingKing]

When I looked, I was stuck on Ram for many reasons.

I just enjoyed driving it. It felt the best to me.

Options. If you want certain creature comforts but don't want to buy inflated packaging, go with Ram. Back up cameras for example. I have been spoiled and I love my backup camera. I was going to have to spend 4-5k extra to jump to an XLT with Ford to get it. Ram, you can get it in a tradesman model, which I liked. My tradesman is basically almost an SLT, so it doesn't feel like a work truck completely.

[ColinR]

For me it would be a toss up between Ford and Chevy. All the diesels out right now perform very well. The Ran will fall apart around that Cummins. I like the look of the Ford and Chevy about the same. Currently driving a Ford F-350 6..7.

[Doug Roberts]

One more reason i would chose the Ram with the Cummins again is mechanic type motor work.... When I had my Duramax and modded it, My CP3 (injection pump) was getting weak and couldnt keep up with the commanded rail pressure. So, I purchased a new one and decided to change it myself in my driveway. Well,... It was a slight PITA to say the least. It is down in the valley area and is run off the timing. Getting it out and back in was a little tough as I had to twist and rotate it like it was some sort of ancient puzzle. The gear on the cp3 needed to be pressed off and pressed on the new pump, so I had to take it to a local shop ( luckily my buddy owned it) and he helped me get it pressed off and on... long story short, I have worked on all 3 engines and the Cummins is by far the easiest... You can get to pretty much everything very easly. the Duramax and the Powerstrokes need to have the cab taken off or at least moved to get to the turbos... The Cummins is again... right there where you can get to it. Its just all my personal experience. They are all good manufactures and once the stupid emission stuff is removed they are all very reliable!

They rear vents are under the front seats on my '16 3500 WT model. They help allot!

I have heard that the vents for the rear are under the front seats before. I guess thats what I was saying when I mentioned the placebo effect, "I can see them so they must work" and the " I cant see them so there must be no airflow" came to my mind. But yes I have head that people were quite happy with the way GM designed it.

I remember my 2002 duramax crew cab had them in the center console for the rear seats... So, I know that they use to have them and now for some reason they doen and they are the only one of the big 3 that dont have them there.

[Doug Roberts]

For me it would be a toss up between Ford and Chevy. All the diesels out right now perform very well. The Ran will fall apart around that Cummins. I like the look of the Ford and Chevy about the same. Currently driving a Ford F-350 6..7.

I appreciate you comment and you might have had a bad experience at one time with a Ram, but I do have to say, I think the last 2 generations have been very well put together and the latest generation has a really awesome fit and finish to me... Again, thats my opinion.

[Hunter98]

One more reason i would chose the Ram with the Cummins again is mechanic type motor work.... When I had my Duramax and modded it, My CP3 (injection pump) was getting weak and couldnt keep up with the commanded rail pressure. So, I purchased a new one and decided to change it myself in my driveway. Well,... It was a slight PITA to say the least. It is down in the valley area and is run off the timing. Getting it out and back in was a little tough as I had to twist and rotate it like it was some sort of ancient puzzle. The gear on the cp3 needed to be pressed off and pressed on the new pump, so I had to take it to a local shop ( luckily my buddy owned it) and he helped me get it pressed off and on... long story short, I have worked on all 3 engines and the Cummins is by far the easiest... You can get to pretty much everything very easly. the Duramax and the Powerstrokes need to have the cab taken off or at least moved to get to the turbos... The Cummins is again... right there where you can get to it. Its just all my personal experience. They are all good manufactures and once the stupid emission stuff is removed they are all very reliable!




I have heard that the vents for the rear are under the front seats before. I guess thats what I was saying when I mentioned the placebo effect, "I can see them so they must work" and the " I cant see them so there must be no airflow" came to my mind. But yes I have head that people were quite happy with the way GM designed it.

I remember my 2002 duramax crew cab had them in the center console for the rear seats... So, I know that they use to have them and now for some reason they doen and they are the only one of the big 3 that dont have them there.

I'm really leaning towards a tradesman with a backup camera. My f250 is a XLT and doesn't have a backup camera. I'm not into a bunch of options, I like to keep it simple. I love the Chevy's but don't like the prices.

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[Doug Roberts]

I'm really leaning towards a tradesman with a backup camera. My f250 is a XLT and doesn't have a backup camera. I'm not into a bunch of options, I like to keep it simple. I love the Chevy's but don't like the prices.

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PM Sent

[Mertzon Man]

Can't make up my mind on which Truck to buy, I currently have a 2014 F-250. Which has had a few problems so kinda on the fence on a new F-250 plus I don't know if I like the new body style.

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Body Style looks ok but I don't like the little lights that outline the headlights. Makes it look cheap to me, but I am 63.

[Black Ice]

Body Style looks ok but I don't like the little lights that outline the headlights. Makes it look cheap to me, but I am 63.

That's the best part of the truck lol.


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[Mertzon Man]

That's the best part of the truck lol.


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I knew I had it wrong lol. They just need some dice hanging from the rear view mirror and a bobble head dog to go with it.

[smithb164]

Here's my .02......

As the owner of a 2016 Ram 2500 Diesel Mega Cab 4x4, I absolutely love the truck and barring any unforseen issues will purchase the exact same truck the next time around. That being said, that's going to be a long ways off because I tend to hold onto vehicles for a very long time. As a result, I can't give you specific feedback on each vehicle in this category because I don't play musical vehicles, but I have spent A Lot of time in each of the vehicles you mentioned. I'll give you a brief rundown!

Chevy 2500, I have a good friend that owns one. He is relatively pleased with the vehicle. I would say of the 3, Chevy, Ford, Ram (mega cab), it's physically the smallest in size. I don't know if that's something you have to keep in mind or not. I have to disagree with a previous post about everything falling a part around the Cummins in the Ram trucks. My buddies 15 Chevy 2500 has had several things falling a part around it. I also have noticed this on a previous Chevy Tahoe that I had. To me, and it could've been just a few bad experiences between my truck, and other acquaintances vehicles, I am not impressed with the longevity of all the small things inside the Chevy vehicles. Every one I've been in seems to rattle, panels falling off, etc. I'm just not that impressed. Again, this could only be my experience. Also, when Chevy is the highest priced of the 3, I was able to easily cross it off of my list. Again, take that info for what it's worth. I'll also admit, I'm in a 2016 Ram and just went over 48k miles, so there is a chance some of the mechanical things I mentioned about the Chevy could pop up in my Ram.

Ford 250, honestly, my decision came down to this truck and the Ram Mega Cab I purchased. I was looking in 2016, before the new body change. I could've gotten a heck of a price since they were about to close out the model and bring the new ones in, that being said, I still went with the Ram. I cannot attest to the performance of the Powersteoke, in all my test driving it felt like a smooth driving, riding vehicle. I only spent a little bit of time test driving it. I have a neighbor that swears by Fords, and I thing he has been relatively pleased. I did not like the interior fit and finish of the F250 Lariat that I was looking in to. I felt like I was in a plastic Tonka truck. My wife got to go on a second test ride in each of the 3 vehicles, she thought that the F250 front passenger seat was the most comfortable, but only by a very narrow margin over the Ram 2500. I'm not sure how to describe it, but the small electronic features in the F250, I.e the window controls, up/down, seem to have a slightly better "proportional control" or more acute response to how light or hard you are pushing the button in regards to the response of the windows. The Ram seems to be just an up/down at one speed, regardless of how fast you want it to go. That being said, I wasn't purchasing a truck because of which window had the best control. I wish I could give you more performance related advice on the Ford, but I can't. Of the 3, this would've been my second choice.

Ram 2500 Mega Cab. As mentioned earlier, up to this point, all I can say is WOW!! I got the Laramie edition, and I absolutely love the fit and finishes of the interior. To me, the seats are extremely comfortable, they are holding up extremely well. I have 2 kids constantly getting in and out of the truck, spilling crumbs from food, an occasional drink, and I have been beyond impressed with the durability up to this point. At first, I wasn't considering a Mega Cab because they just look and seem so big, but after driving one, seeing how much room I have to get kids in and out of car seats, rear passengers have the ability to lean the rear seat back on long trips. The AC vents facing backwards on the console in the rear of the truck were a huge plus since it's so hot here in Texas. If I remember correctly the Chevy did not have that option. I'm not a big electronic guy, but the Ram radio/gps package (I don't even know what it's called) was the most user friendly of the 3. The back up camera is sensational and was the best of the 3 to me. I did not get the sunroof, I did not want to chance anything rusting or leaking, and I don't need a sunroof anyways, I'm not in California. Little features like the LED lights under the rear seats to light up the floorboard at night....I could go on, but bottom line, I love the fit and finish of the inside of the truck. Oh....and with the Mega Cab, you can fold down the rear seats and put a blowup mattress in the rear of the Cab and sleep back there if needed. Now, to the muscle and grit of the truck....I absolutely love the Cummins. I had not been a previous Diesel owner before purchasing this truck, but I'm going to say....I will probably never own another gas truck. I'm currently getting 19.5 mpg/city and about 23/highway. That's without any mods or deletes. I never saw anything better than 14.5mpg in my previous truck or my Tahoe. The performance and power in the Cummins is unreal. I've hauled 14k lb trailers and that truck laughs at that load up in the mountains. I have had absolute zero problems in regards to transmission. In fact, I feel like it's the smoothest on the highway shifting between gears compared to the other 2 models mentioned above. You have to be careful, you can look down and you're going 95mph before you even know it. It's that smooth. Also, like previously mentioned, I felt like I had better access to the engine compartment in this truck, which was important to me.

Bottom line, I don't think you'll go wrong with any of the major 3. It comes down to personal preference. All I know, if I were doing it all over again it'd be another Ram Mega Cab.

[Doug Roberts]

I'll also admit, I'm in a 2016 Ram and just went over 48k miles, so there is a chance some of the mechanical things I mentioned about the Chevy could pop up in my Ram.

You definitely spend a good bit of time in your truck!

[Traildust]

If you go with the dodge, be sure to get the extended warranty and throw $50 month in a kitty to cover the cost of rebuilding the front end at about 80K miles.