i'm leaning more toward the ram i mean you can't argue with the cummins, and i'd prefer a six speed truck, the food has a bigger back seat. both are decent trucks and the ford at least has the 7.3l. just wondering what to look out for on the dodge and what your thoughts are? any help would be great

 

It all comes down to personal choice. The 7.3 is a good motor and the Ford is a better pickup than the Dodge is. I love my Cummins, Stock it's about where my chipped 7.3 was.

Buy what makes you feel better!

 

Which engine does the '03 Cummins have in it, the 305hp or the Cal. version 245hp?

What's the price difference/miles/options?

 

Both motors are a dog in stock form (225 hp 7.3 and 245hp cummins).
I had an 01 7.3 that just ripped after I put exhaust/wicked wheel turbo/diablo flip chip. And you can safetly bump the cummins motor as well. The ford is a great package with that motor, fit and finish is nice. The dodge is built cheaper as you can tell by the interior parts such as the seats/dash radio however I don't have any rattles/squeeks and love the 5.9 motor.
There isn't a truck on the road today that would seperate me from the 07 5.9.

 

i have disagree on the cummins being a dog in stock form, if it was i never would have bought it. the main reason i buy is that it does what i need with out chipping it. the others seem to need a little help to do the same or to out perform the 5.9

 

I agree, that's the reason I drive 5.9 truck's, they're more than adequate in stock form. I have driven an 01' Dodge 2500 5.9 auto and even though it is rated for less hp and torque, it still feels way quicker and more powerful than the 7.3 in my 01' Excursion. Honestly, the 5.9 in my 92' feels a whole lot stronger at idle and in off the line, light throttle accelerations up to about 10 mph, after that the 7.3 is able to use it's more efficient transmission to it's advantage. The best analogy is what was said earlier, a chipped 7.3 of those years feels like a stock 5.9.

The thing the Ford does have going for it though is that it has have a cooler running A/C system, the seats are more comfortable, and it all around just feels like a more solidly build vehicle, but not by enough that I wouldn't buy a Dodge.

 

Having a 2002 Stroker, I have to say that it does need some help to run at what a stock Cummins can produce. Running a Turbonetics BB turbo with a TS chip it now runs with my 06 Cummins stock. However, mirrors, A/C, seats, and build I like the Ford better. One of the only parts on the Ford I did not like was the 4R100 auto, but have an aftermarket BTS trans and haven't looked back. Solid truck.

 

My 7.3 had a mild programmer (Power Programmer III) which affected both engine and transmission (increased line pressure, I believe). With that installed, my seat-of-the-pants power meter told me the enhanced 7.3 was about equivalent to my stock 5.9. The shifts on the Ford were crisper, IMHO, than my Dodge.

 

I agree that ford could have a nicer build. However. Trying to compare apples to apples. We have a 01 stroker and a .03 hemi. They are plain work trucks and interiors feel the same and the fords are rusting bad. However I haven't seem other trucks of asme year rust this bad. If you compare a 03 dodge to ford both are great trucks. The 7.3 will last just as long as the 03 cummins. If you have a big family. Get the ford. If not. The cummins will give better fuel mileage. But both will pull whatever you have