First time truck buyer, getting close to purchase

[Rampat]

If ordering skip the bed liner and get Linex done after you pick up your truck - you can get the Linex Premium and it won’t fade. Two reasons not to order from factory: no anti fade and only get 3yr 36000 mile warranty. Pay about the same price and have sprayed locally and can get the premium with no fade UV protection and get a lifetime watrranty. Linex is awesome and you will love. Go look at dealers that have pickups sitting on lot with a bed liner for months and you will notice the sun has faded already.

View attachment 151973

Most people end up with a box cover.

 

[Chip Oidos]

I recently purchased a 2019 1500 Limited and would recommend the Level 1 equipment group. The adaptive cruise control is fantastic and the other safety features are worthwhile. I don't have a lot of towing needs and went with the 3.21 rear end, for the same reasons as mentioned by pacofortacos.

 

[ohiobf]

Unless you have to have a camper shell....Ram Box, Ram Box, Ram Box....wasn't sure i wanted them until i had them...can't imagine living without them now.

 

[Fedexguy]

I purchased a 19 bighorn in October it has the E-Torc and I love it. Perfect truck for camping and running around town. Spray in liner is great I've had them in my last 2 truck far better then a drop in. Towing no big deal with the ram I hauled 2 tons of pellets at one time, truck said please give me more. Ram by far the best truck out there I will not even look at the others They don't even compare

 

[Sportznut]

You might want to consider a rubber bed mat either with Line-X or not. Easy to clean and easy on the dogs and knees. You can just spray off with a hose when needed. Easier to clean the hair up too.

Sounds like a camper shell would work best for your dogs and family. A camper shell also keeps the noise segregated and will allow you to have windows open for the dogs without making it uncomfortable for the passengers.

I think a truck makes a lot more sense then an SUV based on my previous experience with dogs, trucks, kids, and SUV's. When I had a Suburban I ended up hauling around everybody's kids because I had the big rig w/3 rows. That's not necessarily a bad thing but it got a little old.

A tonneau cover makes the truck easier to drive (versus a shell) for your wife and daughter. But creates a problem for the dogs.

I am not a big fan of the big sunroof. I have one but didn't really want it ( got a good deal on the truck and it happen to have one). I do not use it.

I don't have adaptive cruise control but I've had it on other vehicles and I really miss it.

I have a 3.92 but I actually am one of the few that miss my 3.21 because I drive a lot of highway miles. 3.21 RPMs are significantly lower at highway speeds. Highway gas mileage was about 10% better as well. I have very little towing needs. max at about 2500 lb.

Good luck in your hunt and let us know what you do and include a few pics!



Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

 

[foolsh1]

I ran a thread on the Etorque payoff time. $2695 option price for it, gas at $3 per gallon the breakeven point is around 83,000 miles.

Remember the Hemi cost $1195.00 and the Hemi with E-torque cost $2645.00 so the actual cost of the E-torque is a extra $1450.00.
as far as the Longhorn it does have Ventilated Rear Seats, also I believe it has the Limited Led Projector headlights too.

 

[justice]

I ran a thread on the Etorque payoff time. $2695 option price for it, gas at $3 per gallon the breakeven point is around 83,000 miles.

*edit* foolsh1 beat me to it ...

The $2695 is of course for both the HEMI upgrade and eTorq. The HEMI upgrade alone is $1195 -- so if you were going to go for that then eTorq is really only a $1450 upgrade (here in the states) -- at least that's how I think of it, but I definitely get what you are saying and I agree, the payoff is too long so I would not purchase it for that reason alone.

I do have a lingering question about eTorq -- maybe an engineer can shed some light -- its a battery right? I saw in the video earlier in this thread that the battery is charged with regen braking and also some when shifting (when lowering the engine RPM for shift, they channel that energy into the battery) ... BUT, I just do not see how the battery would stay charged -- since it is connected directly to the drive shaft (did I remember that correctly?) it would seem that during normal highway driving the system would put SOME load on the engine, I mean unless there is 0 load in turning the eTorq system -- and that could only be the case if the eTorq system is adding a small amount of torque to offset its own load on the engine, which would drain the battery right?

Maybe that would only be an issue on long highway trips with less braking and shifting.

 

[justice]

Be clear on finance terms. I was told I had 96 months term. Finance team sped through the details and it was until I was home looking at the contract that I found that they had me signed up for a balloon loan.
BE VERY AWARE!!!

Ouch!! Thanks Rampat, I'll watch for that. I didn't even know a balloon loan was possible on an auto

You might be able to get it refinanced, but of course your monthly payment might go up from a balloon loan.

 

[justice]

I went to the dealer today to look at the 'indigo/frost' interior colors on the limited and ended up test driving the vehicle.

My first time driving the RAM and wow, that is one smooth ride. And I loved how quiet the ride was -- all I really heard was a little wind noise at highway speeds -- you know the truck is quiet if you just hear wind.

I'm getting excited but am in no big rush -- I am not sure but when I start talking about price I may have missed an opportunity at the end of the year, I am afraid now I may have to wait for 'truck week' in feb/march ... but maybe not.

 

[Steve Foulks]

My truck is very similar to the one you are ordering and it seems like you have thought it through.

Bed liner - I like the spray-in bed liner because the ones that fit in will just sand the paint finish on the truck bed. In my case I probably won't keep the truck long enough for it to be an issue.

Bed length - I don't like the looks of the shortest bed and would prefer an 8 foot need really. I am not sure that a less than a foot longer bed would make parking that much easier. I live in the UP of Michigan which is more of a wilderness area and it seems like parking spaces are bigger than in cities and suburban areas.

33 gallon tank - why? My butt would be pretty sore driving thru a 26 gallon tank.

Sunroof - I am into astronomy also but a sunroof has a pretty limited range of viewing. My truck came with a sunroof which I would never order. When I have had them in the past, I normally leave the sunshade closed and never open the sunroof. However when I picked this one up, the sunshade was retracted and it was a cloudy day as is many of our days so I have always left it open.

eTourque - it wasn't available when I got mine or I would have got it. I will say the mileage is a little disappointing.

Where I live snow is a big factor in the winter. We normally get 15 to 30 feet of snow, so I purchased a second set of wheels 18" with Blizzak snow tires.

 

[justice]

beautiful truck Steve, thanks for sharing the pics

I would definitely get the 6'4" bed except that it will not fit in my garage Cheap home builders ... but thats another topic.

On the 33gal tank -- I hear you, my only reason is because they offer it? LOL, actually, we do make a camping road trip to the same spot each year and its a full day and a half drive, I realize stopping for gas is no issue and we would be stopping for breaks anyway, but the closer we get to our destination the more the gas costs. It would be nice to 'fill er up' when I find cheap gas and tanker it around -- would probably never make up the initial cost of the tank however ... so I'm still up in the air on that, may change my mind yet again

Also, where we are in Tx Krogers grocery stores have a loyalty program where you get discounts on gas -- sometimes 40-60 center per gallon off the price -- and each fill up they allow I think 35 gallons max -- so for years with my odyssey (17 gal tank) I have been missing out on the additional discount and was looking forward to being able to use it all with the truck

Love the fall leaves you get there, but would not welcome the 30' of snow!!

 

[justice]

Unless you have to have a camper shell....Ram Box, Ram Box, Ram Box....wasn't sure i wanted them until i had them...can't imagine living without them now.

Whats the best thing about the Ram Box? If you don't mind sharing, what are the kinds of things you carry in them?

I could see maybe some tie down ropes might be handy. I can definitely see how getting something out of the Ram Box would be easier than having to go into the bed. Does the Ram Box still work with the Tonneau?

The 5'7" box is small as it is, and adding Ram Boxes would make it even smaller though

 

[TBTn7]

Make sure whatever you get has adjustable pedals. It is a "set it and forget it" thing but definitely necessary in my opinion. Also if available get the dual sun visors. Both our other trucks (Ford and Nissan) have these features but our 2017 Ram Big Horn has neither.

 

[JD Martin]

Whats the best thing about the Ram Box? If you don't mind sharing, what are the kinds of things you carry in them?

I could see maybe some tie down ropes might be handy. I can definitely see how getting something out of the Ram Box would be easier than having to go into the bed. Does the Ram Box still work with the Tonneau?

The 5'7" box is small as it is, and adding Ram Boxes would make it even smaller though

I thought I wanted the Ram boxes when I first saw them come out. Then three things happened:

1. I realized it took quite a bit of space away from the bed;
2. I realized I couldn't fit my low profile tool box in there because of the boxes;
3. I saw one of my home inspector's trucks. He has the Ram boxes and the sides of the truck underneath the openings was all scratched up. Told me he tried to be careful but that things tended to get tangled up in the Ram boxes and flop out and scratch/dent the truck.

With all the storage in this truck I'm pretty happy without them, though I still admit they're pretty cool as a concept.

 

[justice]

Anybody know if adding the off road pkg with the skid plates makes getting an oil change any more difficult? I would hope there is still easy access to the filter and oil drain.