Interested in the 6.4, which years?

[Bisley45]

I think I am set on a 6.4 RAM 2500 4x4. I am still considering a new Titan XD gas still haven't driven one. My previous Titan was dead nuts reliable and a blast to drive.

I need a truck to tow a 10k tractor and trailer to the deer lease 4x a year. Otherwise it will be a daily driver, 4 miles per day average. Ram checks all the box's of capacity, ride quality, fun to drive, and looks; but I'm not sure yet about reliability.


I have read that the 2014s had wrist pin problems and a different computer than 15+.

Would it be a good idea to only look at 2015 and up trucks?

Anybody have 80-100k on one yet?

Thanks folks!

 

[cyclepuck]

The 14's only had wrist pin issues during a certain build period and was taken care of.

Sent from my SM-G928V using Tapatalk

 

[6.4 dude]

94k on my '14 and no issues....

 

[U&A]

cant give an opinion on reliability yet but I can say that after driving it for just over 2 months now I would have DEMANDED the 4:10 gearing instead of just settling with the 3:73 that I have. I don't do a lot of highway so my mileage sucks anyway as I expected. Don't get me wrong. the 3:73 does a great job at Daily Driving but I im pretty sure that the 4:10 would drive better in the hilly and technical situations with less effort. If I was on the highway a lot I would DEFINITELY get the 3.73 though. I run at 65-67 MPH and the RPM's are right around 1600-1700.

Just my Opinion.

 

[Bisley45]

Why did they change the computer? Was the a hp increase? Torque management change?

6.4 dude- That's great to hear, from all accounts they seem to be a solid package.

Outside of the wrist pin issue that was resolved I'm not sure if there are any other known issues.

 

[Bisley45]

cant give an opinion on reliability yet but I can say that after driving it for just over 2 months now I would have DEMANDED the 4:10 gearing instead of just settling with the 3:73 that I have. I don't do a lot of highway so my mileage sucks anyway as I expected. Don't get me wrong. the 3:73 does a great job at Daily Driving but I im pretty sure that the 4:10 would drive better in the hilly and technical situations with less effort. If I was on the highway a lot I would DEFINITELY get the 3.73 though. I run at 65-67 MPH and the RPM's are right around 1600-1700.

Just my Opinion.

Seems that the 4.10s are rare! I have yet to see one advertised on cars.com or my local dealers.

 

[U&A]

Seems that the 4.10s are rare! I have yet to see one advertised on cars.com or my local dealers.

didnt know that. I guess I would have had to order it and I can assume I get screwed on all the intensives and rebates I got for taking one off the lot.

 

[gustheram]

94k on my '14 and no issues....

That's a lot of miles already! Glad to hear you've had no issues.

Some of the '15 have the potential for wrist pin issues. I have a '15 but my build date is during the window that the wrist pins were an issue. So far no issues, but I do keep an ear out for strange noises.

 

[theviking]

Incentives are dependent on time of delivery. So if you order your truck vs buying off the lot it just depends on what they are offering 6 weeks out when you will likely see the truck.

The computers were locked down in 2015 to help avoid aftermarket tuning. The aftermarket was quick to respond but it does require the ECU to modified, which is an additional cost. If you're not going to tune your vehicle none of this matters.

I haven't personally haven't towed anything near 10k yet but from what I've heard/read the 6.4 would handle it fine. The Cummins fans will say that the diesel would tow a 10k load better, which I'm sure it would.

 

[U&A]

Incentives are dependent on time of delivery. So if you order your truck vs buying off the lot it just depends on what they are offering 6 weeks out when you will likely see the truck.

The computers were locked down in 2015 to help avoid aftermarket tuning. The aftermarket was quick to respond but it does require the ECU to modified, which is an additional cost. If you're not going to tune your vehicle none of this matters.

I haven't personally haven't towed anything near 10k yet but from what I've heard/read the 6.4 would handle it fine. The Cummins fans will say that the diesel would tow a 10k load better, which I'm sure it would.

how do you like the 4:10's and what are most of your miles? highway/city, Towing...... have you driven one with the 3.73? I have not driven one with the 4.10's so i am just making assumptions.

 

[mtofell]

I've been hanging around here since I got my 6.4 in March of 2014. There have been no widespread issues whatsoever with these trucks. Being a new engine I was worried it could happen but the truck has been great.

The only things I really see people complain about are computer issues but even that is rare.

I ended up with the 3.73s and tow heavy. The higher gears would definitely be better. I've looked into it and swapping is +/- 2K to have it done at the dealer and keep the warranty intact. You'd probably end up paying 2K more ordering than if you could find something on a lot a dealer was really motivated to get rid of

 

[Bisley45]

My heavy towing will be flat land, 500 feet above sea level. I know a f150 ecoboost would probably serve me well, but what happens when a car pulls out in front of you....that's why I'm looking a at gas 2500.

Viking- That's understandable about the computer, I don't plan on tuning the truck. I leave things pretty stock these days.

I have heard that if there wrist pins were the bad ones it was absolutely obvious in the first couple thousand miles.

 

[Bisley45]

I've been hanging around here since I got my 6.4 in March of 2014. There have been no widespread issues whatsoever with these trucks. Being a new engine I was worried it could happen but the truck has been great.

The only things I really see people complain about are computer issues but even that is rare.

I ended up with the 3.73s and tow heavy. The higher gears would definitely be better. I've looked into it and swapping is +/- 2K to have it done at the dealer and keep the warranty intact. You'd probably end up paying 2K more ordering than if you could find something on a lot a dealer was really motivated to get rid of

That is very logical!

 

[U&A]

My heavy towing will be flat land, 500 feet above sea level. I know a f150 ecoboost would probably serve me well, but what happens when a car pulls out in front of you....that's why I'm looking a at gas 2500.

Viking- That's understandable about the computer, I don't plan on tuning the truck. I leave things pretty stock these days.

I have heard that if there wrist pins were the bad ones it was absolutely obvious in the first couple thousand miles.

excuse my ignorance but what is the "wrist Pin" and how is it obvious if its going out/bad?

 

[theviking]

how do you like the 4:10's and what are most of your miles? highway/city, Towing...... have you driven one with the 3.73? I have not driven one with the 4.10's so i am just making assumptions.

My driving is mixed, but more city miles overall. Never drove one with the 3.73's so I can't comment here. Even with 4.10's my truck doesn't shift into 3rd until 72mph under full throttle. So with the relatively lazy tranny gearing these trucks definitely benefit from the higher (numerically) axle ratios IMO. I think it would actually be even better if they offered something like a 4.30.

Here are the tranny ratios if you curious (3rd column, the 66RFE)

 

[tjfdesmo]

excuse my ignorance but what is the "wrist Pin" and how is it obvious if its going out/bad?

The wrist pin connects the piston to the connecting rod's small end. It is so named because it articulates like your wrist, make a fist and bend your wrist up and down. Wrist pin failure or improper clearance/sizing is usually associated with a hollow knocking sound that can appear to be at double speed since the piston changes direction twice per revolution.

 

[gustheram]

The wrist pin connects the piston to the connecting rod's small end. It is so named because it articulates like your wrist, make a fist and bend your wrist up and down. Wrist pin failure or improper clearance/sizing is usually associated with a hollow knocking sound that can appear to be at double speed since the piston changes direction twice per revolution.

Thanks for that. The 6.4 is easily the noisiest gasser I've driven so never knew quite what to listen for.

OP, my truck has been rock solid except for the head unit and I've had some TPMS issues. But that's all the computer junk. Mechanically, it's fantastic. Gas mileage blows but I didn't expect anything different. You won't be disappointed in a 6.4.

 

[reloaderguy]

4.10 or bust.

 

[6.7CumminsDrvr]

My driving is mixed, but more city miles overall. Never drove one with the 3.73's so I can't comment here. Even with 4.10's my truck doesn't shift into 3rd until 72mph under full throttle. So with the relatively lazy tranny gearing these trucks definitely benefit from the higher (numerically) axle ratios IMO. I think it would actually be even better if they offered something like a 4.30.

Here are the tranny ratios if you curious (3rd column, the 66RFE)

That snapshot shows it all, why, why, why hasn't the 8 speed been made available in the HD gassers? I've said it before and I'll say it again, I'd buy one tomorrow!

 

[MADDOG]

excuse my ignorance but what is the "wrist Pin" and how is it obvious if its going out/bad?

Read all about it here:

http://www.ramforum.com/f158/clattering_truck_thread-66030/

It was a limited number of faulty wristpins (the small connecting pin between the rod and the piston) that caused the issue. I was one of the lucky ones. The problem manifested itself within a week of ownership and I got a new engine out of the deal.

If you are going to be towing that heavy I'd highly recommend the 4:10 gears. You'll suffer a small reduction in hwy mileage with them but I'd not be too worried about that as (1) You'll be glad you have the additional torque to move that combined vehicle weight mass, and, (2) you don't buy a 6.4L HEMI for the gas mileage in any event.

And no...there's no way a 1/2T ecoboost will stand up to the strain of towing that heavy. It will go boom pretty quickly.