We need to go down to one vehicle because I have a company truck and it's silly to maintain two vehicles. Right now we own a 99F250 PSD and an 05 Volvo XC90. My fiver weighs 11K empty and about 13K when loaded. It has 85 sq ft of frontal area making a good load for any vehicle.
Right now we are looking at either the 2500HD Crew Cab Duramax or the 3500 MegaCab CTD. Both with 3.73s. Not even considering the 6.0 Ford fiasco.
I would prefer the Dodge as it has more room than the Dmax but I'm stumbling over the 5-6K higher price for a similarly equipped truck.
Real world Towing mileage with the CTD?
Everyday driving mileage with the Dodge.
Dodge warranty? Is it no longer 70K?
Cummins warranty? 100K?
Has Dodge truly resolved the worst of the auto tranny problems?
How about the steering box and cruddy brake issues?
My Ford is approaching 325 Rear wheel horsepower and pulls the fire out of our trailer. Can I expect similar power from the Dodge with out going aftermarket and all of the warranty issues?
I drove one today and was very impressed with how tight it felt. We live down a few miles of very rough washboard dirt that has a tendency to loosen parts on virtually every vehicle we have owned with the exception of my Chevy 2500HD work truck. Surprisingly at 20K it is still rattle free and sees a lot more dirt than just the road to the house. Will the Dodge stay tight?
Anybody out there towing a fifth wheel with a MegaCab? If so what hitch are you using?
Is the Cummins and 18" of extra cab room really worth 6,000 dollars more?
What are folks really paying before incentives? Over/under invoice?
When will the 6.7 and the 68RE hit the dealers? Any advance rumors about this combo? I know prior to the sick-O Ford there was a lot of noise about how bad it was gonna and sure enough they were right.
I've gotta do something. The Ford is a CC longbed with a six speed and the wife refuses it as the only vehicle.

Thanks

 

Welcome to DTR! It looked as though you asked a bunch of questions, so I went back and counted, and sure enough I counted 14 questions. That's okay though. Most of them will probably be answered....eventually.

Here's my answer to question 2 of 14:
I get about 14/15 mpg for combined city/hwy mileage. Cross country type driving, I get 17-19 mpg, and that's with 4.10's doing 70-75mph.

 

Let me start by saying welcome to DTR, these guys know their stuff. Your wife is a very smart women to want to ditch the Ferd My 05 has been real good to me so far. I don't have as many miles as some of the guys on here, I only have about 8300 miles on her but It hasn't started to sqeek or rattle at all and it gets driven down our 2 mile dirt driveway every day a minimum of at least twice. And our road is like any other dirt driveway, its washboarded and ruff. My buddy just bought an 06 megacab and that thing is big He is a tall guy and is able to ride in the back seat without a problem. It's so big you can't even reach your kids to smack them in the back seat when they act up. I was a chevy guy but I do think the Cummins just can't be beat for towing, you wont be disapointed with the Dodge.

 

Everyday driving mileage with the Dodge.: My 05 does an average of around 16-18 mixed, 06's should be similiar

Has Dodge truly resolved the worst of the auto tranny problems?
The 48RE is a reliable tranny, not fancy, but reliable

How about the steering box and cruddy brake issues?
Had 1 steering box replaced under warranty...so dont think it's resolved
Brakes are awsome.....havent seen any brake issues on posts

My Ford is approaching 325 Rear wheel horsepower and pulls the fire out of our trailer. Can I expect similar power from the Dodge with out going aftermarket and all of the warranty issues?
Dodge rating is 325/610 at the crank, most say the approx rear wheel numbers are 270/510 based on dyno's....it'll pull well

I drove one today and was very impressed with how tight it felt. We live down a few miles of very rough washboard dirt that has a tendency to loosen parts on virtually every vehicle we have owned with the exception of my Chevy 2500HD work truck. Surprisingly at 20K it is still rattle free and sees a lot more dirt than just the road to the house. Will the Dodge stay tight?
IMHO Yes, even my 96 gasser that was jumped with stock susp was tight at 100k+....have 20k on my 05 and it's solid as a rock...

6.7/6Spd Auto: Havent seen anything defenetive yet....there was an small blob on Truck Trends Mag....stating that there is a new cummins 6.7 comming out....who knows.

I dont think you can go wrong with the dodge....that being said, the 06 LBZ (Chevy) appears to really have some power and the ability to get it to the ground....if you can get over the honda accord looks and ride height, I'm sure it's a solid truck....will it be as reliable as the cummins over 200k???doubt it.

Good luck, dont think u can go wrong with either....just stay away from the fords....

 

Thanks for the info folks. I think after doing some more research we will wait for two things.
#1 For the 6.7L/68RE to hit the streets
#2 Daimler/Chrysler to get their prices more in line with the other two. Yes I realize that only paying 5500 for the 6.7L and all of it's necessary technology will not be possible.

Meanwhile, 400 bucks worth of DynaMat and a busy weekend and I think I can probably cut the interior noise levels of the Ford by more than half.
I hope!

 

You are comparing apples and oranges when you compare a Chevy 2500 to the 3500 Maxi-cab, at least step up and compare a Chevy 3500 to the Dodge 3500 Maxi-cab.The large cab on the Dodge is worth something, I have a hard time with the $6000. DIFFERENCE. Are you comparing selling prices or list prices?