Is the H.O. with the Aisin worth the upcharge?

[crash68]

Has anyone driven both a 22' and 23' 3500 with the Aisin?

Can't speak for the '22 but pulled a 28' enclosed trailer(9500 lbs) about 1000 miles with my buddies '23 3500 CTD HO SRW, the transmission was smooth shifting even when the exhaust brake would engage. Only thing rough was the ride when the truck was unloaded.

 

[oe542bob]

RamGuy110, I agree about the driving one. I had a 2018 Ram 2500 with the Cummins. Did I need it. Absolutely not, but I loved owning and driving it. I rarely keep my gas powered trucks more than 40,000 miles, but my 2500 I had almost 3 years and had 120,000 when I traded it in.
I went back to a fully loaded 2022 1500 5.7 eTorque. But I do miss that 2500 torque and also having an exhaust brake.
By all means, go for it!!

 

[Riccochet]

RamGuy110, I agree about the driving one. I had a 2018 Ram 2500 with the Cummins. Did I need it. Absolutely not, but I loved owning and driving it. I rarely keep my gas powered trucks more than 40,000 miles, but my 2500 I had almost 3 years and had 120,000 when I traded it in.
I went back to a fully loaded 2022 1500 5.7 eTorque. But I do miss that 2500 torque and also having an exhaust brake.
By all means, go for it!!

The 4th gen's were a HELL of a lot more reliable. And I'd have no problem recommending one. 4.5 gen's...ehh....they're hit or miss, and the 2022's were definitely MISS. 2021's are about 50% miss, 2020's maybe 40% miss. Words still out on the 2023's.

If I had to go buy a diesel today I'd be looking for a 2018 with low miles.

Still stand by my word. Towing 10k or less there's zero reason to own a diesel 3/4 or 1 ton. There's no benefit.

 

[Timsdually]

I had it first in my '17 and got it again in my '20.
If you want HD get it.

 

[Timsdually]

I wouldn't bother owning a diesel if I towed 10k or less. You gain nothing other than higher maintenance and repair bills.

I wouldn't own another gasser. Get way better mileage everyday of the week with the diesel. I don't know what kind of extra maintenance you are talking about. I change the oil and the fuel filters and air filters.
Gassers I had were 12+/- (mostly -) not towing and 8-9 towing. And if towing only somewhat heavy you have to put up with a screaming engine.
HO diesel, 17+/- not towing and 12+/- towing. And I don't have to turn the radio up to 20 to hear it if I am towing.

 

[jejb]

Towing 10k or less there's zero reason to own a diesel 3/4 or 1 ton. There's no benefit.

Why do people feel like it's okay to come into a thread like this and try to totally derail it? The OP never asked about gas vs diesel.

 

[John Jensen]

The 4th gen's were a HELL of a lot more reliable. And I'd have no problem recommending one. 4.5 gen's...ehh....they're hit or miss, and the 2022's were definitely MISS. 2021's are about 50% miss, 2020's maybe 40% miss. Words still out on the 2023's.

If I had to go buy a diesel today I'd be looking for a 2018 with low miles.

Still stand by my word. Towing 10k or less there's zero reason to own a diesel 3/4 or 1 ton. There's no benefit.

I disagree with your Aisin "miss" rates, where did you get them? Yes, the 2022s have problems with the K1 clutch drum snap-ring failure, otherwise, the Aisin definitely has been reliable and trouble-free.
And
Towing 10K with a 1/2 ton exceeds its factory limits and is dangerous. Bad advice!

To the OP's original post.
The trucks you could not drive are waiting for the snap-ring recall.

You wonder if it's worth the extra cost and extra maintenance cost to own the H.O.?
IMO it's definitely worth the cost. The only extra maintenance cost is to r/r the fluid every 30,000 miles
The Aisin remains the strongest pickup truck tranny on the market. And it is definitely reliable and trouble-free.

I have a 2020 3500 HO Aisin and love it. I don't tow heavy enough to warrant the Aisin, but I wanted it and am so glad I have it.

 

[Scottly]

Mine had the 2-1 slam shift, and the occasional 1-2 false neutral slam shift, under certain circumstances.

Me, too. HO Cummins gets worse fuel mileage around town...At least having owned both, that's my experience with them. Accelerate normally from a stop, shifting to second then barke to turn...Dead pedal, real bad. Otherwise, it's clunky, noisy, shudders at times...But doesn't die.

 

[Scottly]

I wouldn't bother owning a diesel if I towed 10k or less. You gain nothing other than higher maintenance and repair bills.

Because all the injector noise in the world won't drown out the noise that 6.4 makes when your lifters puke....To quote the old commercials from 2003, "It must be a Hemi!"

 

[M376X6]

Just make sure the Aisin wasn’t built during the 2022 year. Almost the entire year of production seems to be included In the recall/TSB.

That's something to look for. I have a 2022 with the HO and Aisin and haven't received a recall for the transmission. The preheat relay and a capacitor in the computer.
Asfar as power there is a difference between my old 810 Lb Ft engine with the 68RFE and this HO. I like the power and the transmission has had no issues and shifts smoothly. When it is cold -10 to 15 degrees F it does shift a little noticeably until it warms up. I'm going to search my VIN to see what recalls are on it I may not have seen.