2017 3/4-Ton Premium Truck Challenge

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

SouthTexan

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 24, 2015
Posts
2,149
Reaction score
1,303
Ram Year
2014
Engine
408 CTD
All top of the line 3/4 ton diesel trucks. Coming in May!

The contenders:
Chevy 2500 LTZ Duramax

Ford F-250 King Ranch

Titan XD Platinum Reserve

Ram 2500 Laramie Longhorn


My take.... When it comes to stock 0-60, fastest up the hill, and other acceleration tests, the Ram 2500 Cummins will no doubt come in behind the more powerful Duramax and Powerstroke engines. I see the Ram Cummins winning the mileage tests ever the other two, but not over the Nissan Cummins. Too bad they don't have a dependability test. The Ram Cummins would easily win that one hands down.


Update: 2017 3/4-Ton Premium Truck Challenge Video: What the Judges Thought
 
Last edited:

drittal

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 24, 2015
Posts
1,557
Reaction score
636
Location
E. Montana
Ram Year
2013
Engine
6.7
I was a little surprised by the outcome of the 3500 DRW challenge with the F350 being slowest.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

GsRAM

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 9, 2016
Posts
2,929
Reaction score
2,743
Ram Year
2017 Dodge Ram 2500
Engine
Hemi, 6.4L
The titan XD is not a 3/4 ton truck. It's a heavy half. A friend has one and it only has 2039 lbs of payload and that's with the V8 Gas.

It's a nice truck for what it is, but it's no where in the same league as my ram is in terms of size of suspension components, steering components, etc.
 
OP
OP
SouthTexan

SouthTexan

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 24, 2015
Posts
2,149
Reaction score
1,303
Ram Year
2014
Engine
408 CTD
The Titan XD is a 3/4 ton per its specs. What qualifies a truck as a 3/4 ton if it has a GVWR within the class 2B weight limits of 8,501-10,000 lbs. The Titan XD crew cab has an 8,990 lbs GVWR which is just 10 lbs less than the 9,000 lbs GVWR of the Ram 2500 with a 5.7L. So saying that an XD is not a 3/4 ton would be saying that a Ram 2500 5.7L is not a 3/4 ton either.
 
Last edited:

coobie

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 20, 2016
Posts
481
Reaction score
490
Location
S.Michigan
Ram Year
2022 Ram 1500 big horn
Engine
5.7 hemi
I sure hope DANNO is one of the judges :flipthebird:
 

Ratket

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 14, 2014
Posts
3,571
Reaction score
1,300
Location
Arizona-
Ram Year
2018 1500
Engine
Hemi 5.7
We will see how the nissans hold up- The motor is obviously sound.. but we will see how the rest of the truck does
 

spoon059

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 30, 2015
Posts
496
Reaction score
343
Location
Just north of Washington DC
Ram Year
2015
Engine
6.7 CTD
The Titan XD is a 3/4 ton per its specs. What qualifies a truck as a 3/4 ton if it has a GVWR within the class 2B weight limits of 8,501-10,000 lbs. The Titan XD crew cab has an 8,990 lbs GVWR which is just 10 lbs less than the 9,000 lbs GVWR of the Ram 2500 with a 5.7L. So saying that an XD is not a 3/4 ton would be saying that a Ram 2500 5.7L is not a 3/4 ton either.
You are 100% right, but I understand what he meant. The Nissan with the diesel has a very low payload, because of the weight of the truck and the lower GVWR. The 5.7 Hemi is substantially lighter than the Cummins in the Nissan.

Its all semantics anyway. It will be interesting to see how they all compare.
 

stoney

Senior Member
Joined
May 5, 2014
Posts
300
Reaction score
68
Location
Ontario
Ram Year
2015 | 2500 SLT CC
Engine
6.4L w/ 4:10
We will see how the nissans hold up- The motor is obviously sound.. but we will see how the rest of the truck does

Have you heard of the engine replacements due to some turbo problems?
Talking to guy that had two of these, both needed new engines for the same turbo issue, apparently there was quite a few of these out there but did not seem all that publicized, and he also commented on some electrical gremlins with both of these trucks.....so he decided to get out of the Nissan for a few years until things got better.
Otherwise, he did love the truck.
 
OP
OP
SouthTexan

SouthTexan

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 24, 2015
Posts
2,149
Reaction score
1,303
Ram Year
2014
Engine
408 CTD
Well, it it was exactly what I thought. The new and improved Duramax and Powerstroke engines out accelerated the ole' less powerful Cummins in just about every challenge while the Cummins got better fuel mileage both loaded and unloaded. That new rev happy short stroke Duramax must be a screamer and would probably what I would buy if I wanted to tow something fast. I would rather have the better fuel economy and dependability with the Cummins though which is why I would go that route again if I had the chance to choose.

Although the Duramax does not have as much of an overly intrusive torque management in the first few gears like the Ram and Ford's have. I remember watching a video where a tuner from Calibrated Power said that EFI software showed torque management on the Ram is the worst, with the Ford second, and GM has the least.

I am kind of surprised that that the Cummins beat the Powerstroke in the 1.25 mile Davis damn towing 10k and even bested the smaller 5.0L Cummins in towing mpg.


3/4-Ton Premium Truck for 2017 Results
 

drittal

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 24, 2015
Posts
1,557
Reaction score
636
Location
E. Montana
Ram Year
2013
Engine
6.7
I think there must be something, tuning or nanny, holding back the PSD as the Ram bested it in the 3500 Ike test.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
OP
OP
SouthTexan

SouthTexan

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 24, 2015
Posts
2,149
Reaction score
1,303
Ram Year
2014
Engine
408 CTD
I think there must be something, tuning or nanny, holding back the PSD as the Ram bested it in the 3500 Ike test.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yep, I would have to agree. Looking at the dyno numbers, the ford should have mopped the floor with the Ram. Considering that the Ram had the tallest gearing and lowest power numbers, it really didn't do bad at all. I wonder how things would be if the Ram and Ford would have had 3.73s like the GM did.
 

drittal

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 24, 2015
Posts
1,557
Reaction score
636
Location
E. Montana
Ram Year
2013
Engine
6.7
Seems like the power wars are now just a marketing gimmick as the levels are too high for the rest of the powertrain


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

wyo2track

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 9, 2014
Posts
210
Reaction score
139
Location
western Wyoming
Ram Year
2014 RAM 2500
Engine
6.4L Hemi w/ 4.10's
Some take aways from what I see...

Agreed...the super duty is under a tight rein.

The 3.42's in the RAM 6.7 get criticized all the time, but, test after test with 3/4 ton load classes, they continue to compliment the CTD nicely. :waytogo: IF....If Ram would just eliminate 30-50% of the torque management they have on these trucks it would go a long ways.

Assuming PUTC ran the same 111 mile loop as they did with the 3/4 ton work truck (gas trucks) the 2017 CTD is a solid 3.5 mpg better than a 6.4 Hemi with 4.10's. The Ford and Chevy diesels only did 2.5 mpg better than their gas counterparts with 4.10's.

The Titan XD.... don't really know what to say, but it would appear the gooseneck hitch is really more of a marketing ploy than anything. Figuring a 15% hitch weight of the 10K trailer put it 300# over its payload...without anyone in the cab...without any other gear...and the truck just about weighs as much as the 2500's...and it doesn't have much more payload capacity than a RAM 1500 with the Ecodiesel.... Ooooffff.. :****sweak:

All these trucks are damn expensive!!
 
Top