What can / cant be upgraded in trim levels?

[eldo]

My wife wants my 17 qc laramie, and that leaves me looking for a new ride (horrible problem right?).

What are the options that can/can't be upgraded on a lower trim to a higher one?

I remember seeing certain parts dont have harnesses or wiring run and would be an epic chore (auto rear window?)
But others are pretty straight forward like the upper glove box and maybe powered seats

What i do like in my laramie:
Console with garage door opener
Dual zones atc
Power/vent seats
Heated wheel
Power folding mirrors with puddle lights
Auto rear window

Im considering getting a new classic, possibly tradesman/express, but don't know what the limitations of upgrades are.

Are there any resources or recommendations from those who've been there before?

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[Brandon-w]

Look into alfaobd. That will really open up your world with options.

 

[1500ram12]

Only real limitations are time and money. @M2Mods makes or can make just about any harness or adapter you'd need. There's write-ups on just about all upgrades done to tradesman/express /SLT trim levels. And with the addition of alphaobd having to go to the dealer to try and activate or explain what they need to activate is a thing of the past.


2018 2500 6.4L Tradesman

 

[18ram18]

bighorn will get you most of what you want without breaking the bank

 

[eldo]

My wife wants my 17 qc laramie, and that leaves me looking for a new ride (horrible problem right?).

What are the options that can/can't be upgraded on a lower trim to a higher one?

On the 4th gen, I remember seeing certain parts dont have harnesses or wiring run and would be an epic chore (auto rear window?)
But others are pretty straight forward like the upper glove box and maybe powered seats

What i do like in my laramie:
Console with garage door opener
Dual zones atc
Power/vent seats
Heated wheel
Power folding mirrors with puddle lights
Auto rear window

Im considering a 5th gen, possibly tradesman/express, but don't know what the limitations of upgrades are.

Are there any resources or recommendations from those who've been there before?
Does this information even exist for the 5th gen since they're so new?

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

 

[crash68]

What are the options that can/can't be upgraded on a lower trim to a higher one?

On a 19 Classic (Gen4) probably the only options you can't add are the ones the Visa card can't cover...lol

Probably about the only option I don't think I've read about someone adding is the air suspension and sunroof. Everything else there is probably a DIY on this forum.

 

[Tach_tech]

Honestly, you’re better off buying the truck with the options you want. Since the 5th gens are still quite new it’s really hard to tell what options may be able to be added, and what can’t, and what ones may be available in the future.

 

[troutspinner]

I've had my 19 for 14 months now and have been hanging around the 5th gen. forum and new 5th gen. site for about 16 months, almost daily. Nothing seems easy to be honest.

Keyless entry, definitely not. Rear USB ports, no dice. There are things like the bed lights, wireless charger and bed step that seem straight forward but when you start breaking down the numbers, especially giving value to your time in research and install, it is worth finding the truck with all of the options you want.

 

[McBroom]

Simple... get a big horn or a lonestar


The Blue Mule

 

[chrisbh17]

Honestly, you’re better off buying the truck with the options you want. Since the 5th gens are still quite new it’s really hard to tell what options may be able to be added, and what can’t, and what ones may be available in the future.

This.

The biggest advantage to the 4th gens is activating things that weren't available at all, depending on trim level (like prox entry on a big horn, etc)

It is far easier and definitely cheaper to just get them on the truck from day 1. Not to mention the fact how new the 5th gens are.

My wife jokes every now and then I should have just bought a limited instead of modding a big horn.

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[mlrtimemach]

I have a 19 4 door Tradesman an I can't even find steo bars that fit or a hood protector so I've given up tryin to see what else could be available. Just because something is advertised as fitting a 2019 doesn't mean it will

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[avantiguy]

Remember that anything you add that is original to the Ram will generally require the computer to be flashed to add the functionality which can cost a bundle at the dealership.

Take the others advice, make a list of your wants and buy them on the truck.

Also remember that the higher levels IIRC have better, more comfortable seats.

I purchased my 19 Laramie Sport by going to the dealer with a list of items I wanted. After driving a Laramie with Level 2 trim there was no doubt I wanted a Laramie or Limited. The lower levels just wouldn't cut it.

They took the list, found a Laramie about 300 miles away that had everything I wanted plus a 33 gal tank so we made a deal and I couldn't be happier with the new Ram.

 

[phantomfixer]

My personal opinion here FWIW...buy something that has all the options you want already in it.Trying to upgrade vehicles, one option at a time, will cost you more in the long run and can create problems that you wish you never had

 

[Steve Cloud]

Agreed. Most of your "likes" are included on a lot of Big Horn edition trucks. Most of the upper trim levels don't add a ton of stuff, other than leather/seat heaters, etc.

 

[south7west]

Personally I believe the Bighorn / LoneStar submodels would have everything you would want, minus leather seats and I think heated/cooled seats and the heated steering wheel. It doesn't have the wood interior trim either, but it is still a nice look on the inside. If you choose to get any submodel lower, you would be adding a lot of upgrades yourself later down the line.

 

[avantiguy]

Before you gussie up a Bighorn, drive a Laramie or limited also. You may be presently surprised by the difference. Put what you want on both trucks Big Horn vs Laramie or Limited and do the pricing, If you chose the Big Horn at least you will have made an informed decision.

I did and it was Laramie or nothing. The Limited was just a bit too fancy inside for my taste.

 

[Random_Walk]

Devil's Advocate #1: To be fair, in some cases it's not what you can configure, but what you can find.

My little SLT was bought used. It was originally ordered and configured by someone else - Enterprise Rent A Car, to be exact. But, that doesn't stop me from wedging in the bits I do want (LED lighting is inbound, hitch and trailer brake was added, etc).

Devil's Advocate #2: Maybe folks want some things, but not everything that comes with a given trim level. Maybe a single-cab 2WD Tradesman is just fine for the buyer's needs and most of his desires, but he wants that sweet uConnect RA 8.1 kit and maybe projector HID lights... but nothing else. Would it be worth paying that $3,090 MSRP bump (2019 5th-gen pricing) or $13k MSRP bump (2019 "Classic", or 4th-Gen) just to get $1500 in kit that he can install himself?

 

[NapaRam]

If you really want the power vent seats and auto rear window then get a truck with them way too much trouble and expense to add them later the others items can be done more easily if you are really motivated to do them but I agree that the Bighorn is a great place to start. I have an express which I love because I didn't want power seats or auto rear window. Mods are great for small things (radio, mirrors, steering wheel etc..) much harder on larger stuff like seats

 

[circuitguy]

Purchased my 17 Ram Regular Cab Tradesman new and since have added many factory options to it. Cost is not so bad compared to buying the truck new with the option from the factory. I think the time to research, purchase parts and install the options correctly is a challenge to me and kinda fun.

Here is what I have done so far: "with a bunch of help from many on this forum"

POWER FOLD SPORT MIRRORS
LIGHTED SUN VISORS
GARAGE DOOR OPENER
AUTO DIM MIRROR WITH SMARTBEAM AND UCONNECT
LEATHER STEERING WHEEL WITH AUDIO CONTROLS
PREMIUM GAUGE CLUSTER
8.4 RA4 RADIO WITH NAVIGATION
CENTER FLOOR CONSOLE
CONSOLE MOUNTED CD PLAYER
PASSIVE ENTRY WITH PUSH BUTTON START AND ALARM
GLOBAL WINDOWS DOWN
REMOTE STARTER
FOG LIGHTS
LED SPORT TAILLIGHTS

I know there is more that has been done and more waiting to be.

 

[JD Martin]

My wife wants my 17 qc laramie, and that leaves me looking for a new ride (horrible problem right?).

What are the options that can/can't be upgraded on a lower trim to a higher one?

On the 4th gen, I remember seeing certain parts dont have harnesses or wiring run and would be an epic chore (auto rear window?)
But others are pretty straight forward like the upper glove box and maybe powered seats

What i do like in my laramie:
Console with garage door opener
Dual zones atc
Power/vent seats
Heated wheel
Power folding mirrors with puddle lights
Auto rear window

Im considering a 5th gen, possibly tradesman/express, but don't know what the limitations of upgrades are.

Are there any resources or recommendations from those who've been there before?
Does this information even exist for the 5th gen since they're so new?

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

Not enough people are around that have tried to do these things, but based on my experience with other trucks and what you are looking for, the only possible thing I see on that list that you might do "plug and play" is the garage door opener, which on my truck is on the visor. Everything else on that list is going to be a boatload of work & money. Keep in mind that virtually anything can be done if you're willing to throw enough money at something - look at custom vehicles. But I get the sense what you want to do is just plug and play these things. Virtually everything on that list requires special harnesses that are probably omitted depending on the trim level; I know on my Titan you couldn't (easily) add memory to the mirrors because the trim level got a different harness, even though you could get power and heated on both trim levels.

There's no compelling reason for the manufacturer to spend more money on buried harnesses so they don't. The exception to that is if there is an accessory they want to make available to the dealers for add-on purposes, but nothing on your list fits that description, because FCA also wants to upsell vehicles and they're not going to let dealers have people buy Tradesman and then just cherry-pick the parts they want.

For what you want, you definitely want to get into at least a Bighorn. I have a pretty loaded vehicle and I don't have some of the options you list (like AC seats and power folding mirrors with my tow package).