Anyone buy a '25 tradesman and regret not going to higher end trim?

[Ramtastico]

Some decent pricing on the 5th gen tradesman if you dig around so thinking about upgrading my '21 warlock quad 4x4 to a '25 crew 4x4 with the pentastar.

Started looking a Laramie however prefer the grill and the bench seat on the tradesman and it's about the same price as i paid in '21 for my warlock lol. Seems like a no brainer, but also feels like it can't be that simple lol. PS- I love the big screen and frills of higher trim lines... but won't miss not having them.

Hopefully not a stupid thread. Obviously going to look in person, but wanted to ping the forum for thoughts. Edit- potentially ONLY thing I think I could regret is the manual vs power seat adjustments.

 

[mrack]

If you love the high end features, or frills as you say, then you’ll miss them, those 2 comments conflict

 

[Docwagon1776]

I'm sure some people have and some people haven't. As long as you're honest with yourself about what you really want vs what you're just accepting because of the price but don't *really* want, you'll be fine.

You could always rent one for a week or so and see if anything annoys you if you're not sure.

 

[Ramtastico]

If you love the high end features, or frills as you say, then you’ll miss them, those 2 comments conflict

Well... maybe i just worded it poorly. Maybe i should delete and repost.

I guess the biggest question might be that with rebates, I'm in the 5th gen truck (safer, bigger interior, better ride) for about the same money I spent 4 years ago.

Only thing I'm giving up in the switch evidentially is the power adjustable seats. It just seems too good to be true and feel like I'm missing something.

 

[1979 300]

The main thing I missed on my Tradesman (2013) was the remote start. Other than that it was pretty well optioned with power windows, satellite radio and all. Checking the build and price site, it still doesn't show remote start as part of a package or as a stand alone option for Tradesman trucks.

 

[mikeru]

My first Ram was a used 1 year old 2015 Tradesman. I thought it was well equipped for a base trim level compared to some of the older trucks I had owned before that. But I quickly realized it would be nice to have things like remote start, heated steering wheel, steering wheel radio controls, ventilated seats, and proximity entry. After six months I traded it in for a 2017 Rebel which had all those features. I learned that I'm no longer somone who is happy with a stripped down trim level. If you are at all like me you might want to reconsider this. If you are fine with it then it sounds like a good deal for you. Just try to anticipate whether or not you'll have buyers regret afterwards.

 

[Dodge 1500 4X4]

You could always rent one for a week or so

Good idea rent it for a couple of days and see if you miss the creature comforts.
you're only coming up 4 years, anything wrong with your ride, some of the manufacturing qualities have been slipping up to present, W/ all the management changes, I'll bet your 2021 Warlock is a better ride!!!

 

[kleonard08]

Some decent pricing on the 5th gen tradesman if you dig around so thinking about upgrading my '21 warlock quad 4x4 to a '25 crew 4x4 with the pentastar.

Started looking a Laramie however prefer the grill and the bench seat on the tradesman and it's about the same price as i paid in '21 for my warlock lol. Seems like a no brainer, but also feels like it can't be that simple lol. PS- I love the big screen and frills of higher trim lines... but won't miss not having them.

Hopefully not a stupid thread. Obviously going to look in person, but wanted to ping the forum for thoughts. Edit- potentially ONLY thing I think I could regret is the manual vs power seat adjustments.

I have a 2025 Tradesmen 1500 Crew with the 3.6 and I came out of a 2012 F-150 Eco-Boost. The 3.6 has good power and is a very nice truck. I put a 3.5" Lift and Toyo Open Country RT 35"+11.5"+20 ( and it will turnover the tires on dry pavement ) on it and it did change the speed-o by 5+-mph but it still rides very nice, my fuel milage did go from 19-20+- to 16.5-17.5+-. It has remote start and the larger head unit compared to the 2024 Classic Tradesmen. Hope this helps.

 

[KeithP]

Went from a 2019 Lone Star (Bighorn) to a 22 Laramie mostly for the seats. Rear; slide/recline and front passenger power, heated and cooled. What I would miss most by downgrading?? The proximity FOB. That was just a happy bonus that wasn’t a consideration when we upgraded. Now….I would find it very annoying to not have it.

 

[Farmer Fran]

I bought an Express back in 2013, it was basically a WT with some niceties, had it for 2 years and got a Sport. While I did not necessarily regret it, I was not too happy. But that is me.

 

[GTyankee]

If you can afford a BigHorn or SLT

Then it has a good chance of having a Powered Drivers Seat & a 8.4 Ram radio, with or without Nav, get the Premier Instrument Cluster

17" wheels & tires nothing fancy
No Upper Glove Compartment
what it does not come with, you can buy a bit later

 

[diymirage]

I needed 3 things in a truck

1 it had to be a 2500
2 it had to have a front bench
3 it had to be any other color than black

That pretty much narrowed it down to an SLT, which is what I ended up with

Over time, I've upgraded the radio to an aftermarket one with a large screen and added a back up camera to that

Because of the radio I added the steering wheel controls

And I added remote start (really, turned on remote start, 95% of the hardware required was allready there)

Short of heated seats and a heated steering wheel, I can't thing of anything I'd want to add that I don't have...except maybe a locking rear dif

 

[Dean2]

I have a 2021 2500 Laramie. I would NOT trade it straight across for a 2025, 2500 of the same trim level, let alone go down in trim. The 2021s are a better built unit. Unless yours is getting to be high miles, I would just keep that.

 

[VTCharlie]

I bought a 2024 1500 Tradesman 5.7 Hemi Night Edition . Pretty basic which has been fine .The only real feature that I regret not opting for is the fact that it only has the old school 5" screen and wish I had at least one that supports Apple Car Play and a larger screen other than that a basic Tradesman comes with enough stuff for me.

 

[turkeybird56]

Some decent pricing on the 5th gen tradesman if you dig around so thinking about upgrading my '21 warlock quad 4x4 to a '25 crew 4x4 with the pentastar.

Started looking a Laramie however prefer the grill and the bench seat on the tradesman and it's about the same price as i paid in '21 for my warlock lol. Seems like a no brainer, but also feels like it can't be that simple lol. PS- I love the big screen and frills of higher trim lines... but won't miss not having them.

Hopefully not a stupid thread. Obviously going to look in person, but wanted to ping the forum for thoughts. Edit- potentially ONLY thing I think I could regret is the manual vs power seat adjustments.

No 25 Tradesman's here anywhere, just 2024's or 2025 Laramie's.

 

[suicideking]

Not a Tradesman, but my last truck was an '18 F150 STX. Similar to a Tradesman, but with an appearance package. It wasn't terrible, just really basic. Wanted Sirius radio and that wasn't an option. Seats were pretty plain looking. Ended up trading it in pretty early when my wife needed a car and I was just looking for an excuse to get rid of it.

For the non-power seats, this really only matters if you're not always the one driving it. If it's just you, you adjust once and you're done. Though probably doesn't have height adjustment like the electric.

I would test drive it, look at all the options, stereo, seats, anything that's different. Then test drive a Big Horn. See if you still think it's worth the money you will save.

 

[Guitar Guy]

I bought a 2024 Tradesman Classic crew cab and was shocked at all the missing features that were stock on my four earlier Tradesmen trucks. I had a cow at the dealer. Mine came without Sirius radio, remote entry / tailgate, receiver hitch, carpet, and other stuff that was included on all of my earlier base model trucks. I was told on the phone it had leather seats. Lying ********! It may have been a contractor model, but was not indicated or marketed as such and was not contractor white. I bought it sight unseen because I wanted a hemi before they were all gone. They already had my cash and were not about to give it back. I will never do that again, nor will I ever see that dealer again. The dealer didn't even tell me it had a dent in the bumper which I couldn't see doing walkaround in the darkness.

Grrr! Worst truck transaction ever!

 

[DickLowman]

I have a '22 Tradesman. Two things to consider if the '25 options are similar: The Tradesman came without an option for running boards. Those could not be added without buying an expensive "package". So I had to add those from third party afterwards, not a big deal. Many posts in this forum note that the reflector headlights on the Tradesman are terrible, and I can attest to that. You'll probably have to upgrade your headlights. Aside from that, I have no regrets. On the positive side, the Tradesman did come with real steel rims and sensible tires.

 

[NotSoFast]

The headlights were the worst, and might be hard to test drive. Upgrading the headlights was expensive, but it's a safety issue.

 

[Had a Dodge or2]

I went from a 2012 3500 SLT added leather heated seats.
To a 22 Laramie + package 2500 Gas. ( Sits a lot , reason for 6.4 gas.)I don’t really miss the Dually
However the 22 Pearl 2500 Laramie Sport has been awesome so far.
Ac seats/Big screen. /Cameras Pulls great 12k Max Trailer occasionally (Flat Land) 6-8mpg with trailer. 12-15 mpg empty. Factory Firestone TransForce Tires could be better . Very solid Pickup. $12k off sticker new.
Don’t miss what you never had. Get all you can get wile you can.