Tradesman with Powerwagon Package vs Powerwagon

[mass-hole]

I am looking to buy a Powerwagon to replace my 2014 Lariat F150. I went through the build and price on the Ram website and it seems like the Tradesman + Powerwagon package with a couple of options thrown in puts you within spitting distance of a lightly optioned Powerwagon. Am I wrong? Is their any reason to go with the Tradesman trim?

Are the Tradesmans much lighter(IE higher payload capacity) than a lightly optioned Powerwagon trim?

How does the powerwagon tow? I have a 5500 lb travel trailer that I tow around UT, WY, MT, ID and CO, so high elevations and lots of big grades. Will the 6.4L do well? My current F150 is an Ecoboost and pulls really hard but has trouble with cooling once the temperatures get hotter in the summer.

 

[BowerPower]

I see almost zero reason to get the tradesmen because of house close in price it is to the non tradesmen version. If you are going to be in the truck for long periods and or daily it, you will be more happy with the soft touch material in the higher end truck. It's nice not leaning your elbow on a hard plastic door panel for hours.

The tradesmen will definitely have a couple hundred pounds more payload depending on the options. With no options it's ~1500 pounds and with all of them it's ~1200 pounds. I have towed with it and over loaded the payload and it doesn't care and isn't noticeable. I haven't towed up and big mountains but think about this. The 6.4 can be had in a 3500 rated for north of 20,000 pounds of towing, so towing 6,000 pounds in the mountains should not be a problem at all.

 

[mass-hole]

I see almost zero reason to get the tradesmen because of house close in price it is to the non tradesmen version. If you are going to be in the truck for long periods and or daily it, you will be more happy with the soft touch material in the higher end truck. It's nice not leaning your elbow on a hard plastic door panel for hours.

The tradesmen will definitely have a couple hundred pounds more payload depending on the options. With no options it's ~1500 pounds and with all of them it's ~1200 pounds. I have towed with it and over loaded the payload and it doesn't care and isn't noticeable. I haven't towed up and big mountains but think about this. The 6.4 can be had in a 3500 rated for north of 20,000 pounds of towing, so towing 6,000 pounds in the mountains should not be a problem at all.View attachment 511887View attachment 511889

Nice truck. I like the green a lot but not too many around it doesnt seem like.

How are the LED headlights? That is one thing I noticed that the Tradesman doesnt have and is probably worth any price increase alone. Crappy halogen headlights arnt fun.

 

[turkeybird56]

MASS-HOLE: LED'S are night and day. I have an early build Bighorn (2018) and have LED lighting. Now, mine are fixed, standard reflector, not move like on higher trims but they R great. I will never buy another vehicle with Halogen lighting. Just a BOIRD's view.

 

[Pudge]

You‘ll almost not know 5500 lbs is back there on either the tradesmen or the PW compared to the F150. But I agree with above, if you are on the road a lot, the PW is the more comfortable truck, even without a lot of options.

 

[Keith67]

I have a 2021 Power Wagon lightly optioned as follows (1450lb payload):

-Level 1 (LED headlights thank God)
-Towing Tech (360 cameras, etc.)
-Vinyl Floor
-Trailer TPMS
-Bed Utility
-Dual Alternators

I tow a 21’ travel trailer that weighs 6,100lbs wet. I’ve spent a lot of time towing through CO/NM/UT (high mountain passes and/or summer heat) and am always impressed by the truck. The ZF trans, 4.10 gears, and cooling will surprise you. On steep grades the truck is happy around 4k RPM, converter locked. It’s not 6.7 PowerStroke fast but I’ve never felt that I didn’t have enough power/torque.

Gas mileage towing is ~9mpg average with my 285/75R17 (34”) Cooper ST Maxx E load tires.

The same drivetrain in a non-Power Wagon is rated to tow a lot more than 10k lbs, so the cooling system is never a concern. Trans stays at ~170* and oil is ~220* with or without a trailer. It really feels like the PW drivetrain would pull 15k without complaining, suspension aside.

Note: I did replace the rear bump stops with SumoSprings SSR-312-47 which made a huge difference in the inherent instability when towing with a big squishy off-road truck.

 

[retired]

When I bought my Power wagon in 2020 I went back and forth the dealership had several of each and was dealing because it was August of 2020 and they were not sure how covid was going to affect them. You could get a Tradesman with PW package for $45000 out the door or a PW for $50000 OTD I ultimately liked the PW's interior better and went that route. They have almost identical pay loads. I took these the day I bought mine and was deciding between a white tradesman and silver PW. Have a little regret that I did not go with the white as the grill on the tradesman looks so much better and silver is so butt ugly.

 

[akguy09]

I will say that it depends on what options you want. I got the Tradesman PW because I did NOT want that big ugly Nav screen as the IPHONE is a better Nav tool. I wanted Chrome bumpers, didnt want any stripes or words on my truck and I didnt want a Center console or a sunroof. Plus I didn't want to pay for a bunch of options that I didn't want.

The nearest thing in PW trim was a Level 1 and that had stuff I didnt want.....I saved about 7K by going tradesman PW and dont miss the options and have the money in my pocket. I knew I woulndt miss the options either becuase the Cummins 3500 I sold to get my PW was a Laramie LongHorrn and I didnt like half the crap that was in it.

 

[mass-hole]

I will say that it depends on what options you want. I got the Tradesman PW because I did NOT want that big ugly Nav screen as the IPHONE is a better Nav tool. I wanted Chrome bumpers, didnt want any stripes or words on my truck and I didnt want a Center console or a sunroof. Plus I didn't want to pay for a bunch of options that I didn't want.

The nearest thing in PW trim was a Level 1 and that had stuff I didnt want.....I saved about 7K by going tradesman PW and dont miss the options and have the money in my pocket. I knew I woulndt miss the options either becuase the Cummins 3500 I sold to get my PW was a Laramie LongHorrn and I didnt like half the crap that was in it.

I think you and I are on the same page. My Lariat is pretty much fully loaded. I virtually never open the shade on my moon roof because the Utah sun will bake the interior. I dont care about leather(although heated seats are still on the want list) and I want a bench seat in the front.

 

[BowerPower]

I think you and I are on the same page. My Lariat is pretty much fully loaded. I virtually never open the shade on my moon roof because the Utah sun will bake the interior. I dont care about leather(although heated seats are still on the want list) and I want a bench seat in the front.

Only level 3 pw get a center console, all others are bench. Moon roof is an option, one I very specifically didn't get because I would never open it. Level 1 pw is not letter seats, it's party leather like and cloth in the middle. Tradesmen can get heated seats.