Keith99RS wrote: If Dodge isn't cheap please explain why they have yet to offer a locking tailgate as far as I know. My FIL's 2006 Cummins Megacab is nice but the interior feels cheap and despite redesigning almost everything in it they left the same window and door lock controls that his 1997 Ram had. I won't even touch the new Ram using a coil spring rear suspension. I'm sure the "real truck" guys will have a field day with that one.
That's a loaded question because each MFR offers something that the others don't.
One could easily state "well if Ford isn't cheap then why don't they offer an exhaust brake like Dodge?" Or "If Chevy isn't cheap then why does the Dodge 2500 have larger brakes than the Silverado 2500?"
Granted, Ford and Chevy interiors are beter IMHO than the Dodge that I own, but each MFR puts their development dollars in different places.
But performance wise, I really don't think there's a bad choice amongst the Big 3 offerings.
Keith99RS wrote: If Dodge isn't cheap please explain why they have yet to offer a locking tailgate as far as I know. My FIL's 2006 Cummins Megacab is nice but the interior feels cheap and despite redesigning almost everything in it they left the same window and door lock controls that his 1997 Ram had. I won't even touch the new Ram using a coil spring rear suspension. I'm sure the "real truck" guys will have a field day with that one.
That's a loaded question because each MFR offers something that the others don't.
One could easily state "well if Ford isn't cheap then why don't they offer an exhaust brake like Dodge?" Or "If Chevy isn't cheap then why does the Dodge 2500 have larger brakes than the Silverado 2500?"
Granted, Ford and Chevy interiors are beter IMHO than the Dodge that I own, but each MFR puts their development dollars in different places.
But performance wise, I really don't think there's a bad choice amongst the Big 3 offerings.
Every other manufacturer has a tailgate lock as standard equipment. Not really all that loaded a question.
And If you had a chevy now, your opinion would be the opposite... You know how many times I hear Oh I wouldnt own a ford because I had one that was in the shop one time..Come on..... You paid more for your dodge than the chev you got taken.. GM sells WAY more trucks here and around the world than DODGE, so stands to reason there will be more problems..
It isnt no secret that DODGE has been behind the others, and struggling for sales, always have been...NO SECRET...
I DO THINK DODGE GETS A BAD WRAP though.. People remember the OLD DODGE truck and still have that in their mind.. We had 92-93 dodge trucks here at work back at that time... TANK of a truck< SOLID actually more solid than todays, but ALWAYS in the shop for mechanical repairs.
I have a friend yesterday asking about a new truck, because I have had so many, He asked my opinion.. He wants alot of back seat room and wants it for an everyday driver... I told him the Tundra crewmax.. He said he didnt like the looks... I said go look at the Dodge MEga cab, HE SAID OH I WOULDNT OWN A DODGE.. Ha, thats funny because that is peoples mentality about dodges, even though they never owned them...Hes like the f150 as well.... he called me later and seen a used dodge mega cab that was traded in at the GMC dealer for a duramax.. 2006 4by with hemi for 26k... see what happens.....
Hey I have had most all brands trucks, driven them at work, have friends that we go to the dunes or lake with, Ive seen them all... Im entitled to my opinion based on my experience and you are entilted to yours.. DOES THAT MAKE YOU RIGHT OR ME RIGHT..NOPE...
All I could say about my dodges was, they dented very easily, the front ends were flimsy, and fit and finish were not good.. I think that when the dodge redesigned in 1994 they were nicer than the chevy and ford, but that made the others get better.. Now I think it is dodges trun to come out with another re design..... I had 89k miles on the small block, with no mechanical issues other than the motor when You first start and take off it would hesitate until it warmed up.. Sold it to a guy at work... he still drives it... Had front end re-done, brakes drums, starter and few other things, front grill ended up falling off, paints peeling, head liner falling down, BUT HE IS PRETTY HARD ON THE THING..
But everyone thinks theirs is the best, or they drive this or that brand becasue they had a lemon on another brand so they are all junk.. heck even the Ford 6.0psd owners still have a strong following......
You happy with what you have fine, but dont sit there or drive around and look at the other guy thnking your truck is better.. PEOPLE PUT TO MUCH EMPHISIS ON WHAT PEOPLE DRIVE.....DIVE SOMETHING NEWER, I HAVE MORE MONEY... DONT KNOW HOW MANY TIMES I HAVE SEEN OLD TRUCKS SITTING IN FRONT OF VERY EXPENSIVE HOUSES....
GBuilders wrote: Well I've owned an 03 Chevy and an 04 Dodge and the Dodge was a better built truck. It may look cheaper but it didn't break. The Chevy 2500HD always had little things that either made sounds or came apart and the GM service dealer new me well. I had a rear brake light that kept burning out and the dealer finally said we can't find anything wrong but just keep bringing it back and we'll replace the bulbs. The 04 Dodge had 1 problem a squeak under the dash and was fixed in 10 minutes and never went back to the dealer again. BTW the Chevy I had for 35K miles and the Dodge had 78K. That's why I'm driving a new MC. I use to say I would never drive a Dodge and I'm loving them now because a lot fewer problems. rsh757 had a nice post, rob85546 doesn't seem to have a clue about the newer Dodge trucks. Oh and the Dodge was $1800 more than the equally fitted GM but Gm's cab is to small also.
2007 GMC DURAMAX,LBZ,4 by Crew, Allison
Magnaflow Turbo Back Exhaust
Predator Tuner
18by9 Helo's on BFG's
5year old boy
3 year old baby girl
Sea ray boat
Wilderness 5th wheel
SandRail
HD WideGlide
FORD Expediton
honda Eu3000
DODGE SELLS MORE THAN NISSAN DOES TITAN, BECASUE THERE IS THAT MENTALITY OUT THERE THAT I WANT TO BUY AMERICAN......PLUS DODGE HAS A PRETTY GOOD SALES PITCH AND INCENTIVES.. I THINK NISSAN IS FAR BETTER OFF FINANCIALLY AND DONT HAVE TO PUSH THEIR PRODUCTS AS HARD.
ALSO I THINK GM AND FORD SELLS MORE TRUCKS BECAUSE PEOPLE STILL HAVE THAT MENTALITY THAT THE DODGES ARE NOT AS GOOD.. LIKE I SAID, I TOLD A FRIEND TO LOOK AT THE DODGE MEGA CAB AND HIS FIRST RESPONSE WAS "OH , I WOULDNT OWN A DODGE."
PEOPLE GET IN IDEA ENGRAINED IN THEIR MINDS AND THATS IT.. OH I HAD A FORD THAT BROKE DOWN, NOW I WOULD NEVER OWN ANOTHER FORD.... EVEN THOUGH THAT WAS 20 YEARS AGO..
Keith99RS wrote: Please don't assume because Dodge sells more Rams than Titans that they are the better truck. Once again the sales numbers do not distinguish 1/2 ton from HD models so that blows up right there. Nissan also offers pretty much two configurations of the Titan. King Cab and Crew Cab. The only real other option in 08 is the addition of longbed models. No regular cab, V6 fleet trucks to pad sales. IIRC Dodge was also just about giving away Hemi 1/2 tons not too long ago (remember the free Hemi campaign??) and from what I read about the deal with Cerebus, Dodge had to liquidate the excess stock of trucks before the deal finalized. 1/2 ton vs 1/2 ton I think the Titan beats the Dodge. I think merging the trucks is a mistake for Nissan as they had beat what Toyota did in the fullsized field out of the gate on the first try. The first full redesign would have made the Titan 100% solid and pretty much bulletproof as well as right there with any of the competitors.
I regretfully do agree with some that a lot of buyers go Dodge for 2 reasons. Cheap and Cummins. The Cummins is a great motor and I can certainly see why people would jump for it.
Keith99RS wrote: If Dodge isn't cheap please explain why they have yet to offer a locking tailgate as far as I know. My FIL's 2006 Cummins Megacab is nice but the interior feels cheap and despite redesigning almost everything in it they left the same window and door lock controls that his 1997 Ram had. I won't even touch the new Ram using a coil spring rear suspension. I'm sure the "real truck" guys will have a field day with that one.
That's a loaded question because each MFR offers something that the others don't.
One could easily state "well if Ford isn't cheap then why don't they offer an exhaust brake like Dodge?" Or "If Chevy isn't cheap then why does the Dodge 2500 have larger brakes than the Silverado 2500?"
Granted, Ford and Chevy interiors are beter IMHO than the Dodge that I own, but each MFR puts their development dollars in different places.
But performance wise, I really don't think there's a bad choice amongst the Big 3 offerings.
Every other manufacturer has a tailgate lock as standard equipment. Not really all that loaded a question.
Not to be argumentative, but I'd rather have an exhaust brake and larger brakes than a tailgate lock. So does that make Ford or GM trucks "cheap" because they don't stack up in one area or another??
It's easy to pick one particular feature and make a claim about it. But most folks make purchase decisions based on the entire truck. Not just a tailgate lock or exhaust brake or what have you.
But if a tailgate lock is that important then by all means make your choice. Someone else might have other priorities. That's why having choices is a good thing.
surveyorjp wrote: This may be a Nissan Truck owners first chance to own a 3/4 or 1 ton Nissan pickup with the mighty Cummins! (I am just speculating, but it would seem possible that the Nissan truck built by Chrysler could include 3/4 and one ton offerings).
The Nissan truck built by Dodge will be the 1/2 ton, 150 class. The 250 and higher classes will be part of the Light Commercial Vehicle production coming out of Nissan's Mississippi plant. The 1/2 ton Nissan and the LCV trucks (250 and up) will not have much in common.
Keith99RS wrote: If Dodge isn't cheap please explain why they have yet to offer a locking tailgate as far as I know. My FIL's 2006 Cummins Megacab is nice but the interior feels cheap and despite redesigning almost everything in it they left the same window and door lock controls that his 1997 Ram had. I won't even touch the new Ram using a coil spring rear suspension. I'm sure the "real truck" guys will have a field day with that one.
That's a loaded question because each MFR offers something that the others don't.
One could easily state "well if Ford isn't cheap then why don't they offer an exhaust brake like Dodge?" Or "If Chevy isn't cheap then why does the Dodge 2500 have larger brakes than the Silverado 2500?"
Granted, Ford and Chevy interiors are beter IMHO than the Dodge that I own, but each MFR puts their development dollars in different places.
But performance wise, I really don't think there's a bad choice amongst the Big 3 offerings.
Every other manufacturer has a tailgate lock as standard equipment. Not really all that loaded a question.
Not to be argumentative, but I'd rather have an exhaust brake and larger brakes than a tailgate lock. So does that make Ford or GM trucks "cheap" because they don't stack up in one area or another??
It's easy to pick one particular feature and make a claim about it. But most folks make purchase decisions based on the entire truck. Not just a tailgate lock or exhaust brake or what have you.
But if a tailgate lock is that important then by all means make your choice. Someone else might have other priorities. That's why having choices is a good thing.
1) Ford does not recommend an exhaust brake on the Powerstroke last I knew. IIRC this was correct witht he 6.0 but may have changed with the 6.4L. Something about the transmission offering engine braking so it was not required.
2) You realize brake size is kind of subjective yes? Bigger diameter does not always mean better breaking. Swept area is more important. Also if you can show me how a difference of less than one inch in diameter is a huge performance issue I'm all ears. Brakes are also designed by the trucks capacities. The manufacturer is going to design brakes to match the use.
The comment about a tailgate lock is that Dodge is the sole manufacturer who does not have one. I think it is a big indicator of cost cutting. It isn't like they need to retool the whole manufacturing process to include one. There have been quite a few freshenings to the Ram. Like I said before another penny pinching area was reuse of some late model interior bits in the 06 Rams. All new interior, same window and lock switchgear. Looked totally out of place. Go compare the Dodge interior to a Ford, Chevy or even Titan. Cheap plastic abounds. Hard and poorly textured.
1) Ford does not recommend an exhaust brake on the Powerstroke last I knew. IIRC this was correct witht he 6.0 but may have changed with the 6.4L. Something about the transmission offering engine braking so it was not required.
2) You realize brake size is kind of subjective yes? Bigger diameter does not always mean better breaking. Swept area is more important. Also if you can show me how a difference of less than one inch in diameter is a huge performance issue I'm all ears. Brakes are also designed by the trucks capacities. The manufacturer is going to design brakes to match the use.
The comment about a tailgate lock is that Dodge is the sole manufacturer who does not have one. I think it is a big indicator of cost cutting. It isn't like they need to retool the whole manufacturing process to include one. There have been quite a few freshenings to the Ram. Like I said before another penny pinching area was reuse of some late model interior bits in the 06 Rams. All new interior, same window and lock switchgear. Looked totally out of place. Go compare the Dodge interior to a Ford, Chevy or even Titan. Cheap plastic abounds. Hard and poorly textured.
Those were just examples to prove a point.
We buy from the company that offers the things we want.
ALL car companies cut costs, in a variety of ways.
GM & Ford used the same switchgear across many models for decades until the latest generation vehicles. This is nothing new...but it influenced buying decisions, and the companies eventually got wise.
I'm with ya...the interior of my Ram is crappy compared to GM and Ford. But each truckmaker has SOMETHING they did to cut costs and we could sit here all day and pick any one of them apart.
I just think that a blanket statement like "Dodge is cheap because they don't have X" is unfair because you could easily make the same statement about the offerings from other MFRs.
And we all have opinions. Yours about tailgate locks is important to you. Mine about exhaust brakes and brake rotors is important to me. You can minimize mine all you want, but that's my reality, and you have yours
Tell you I think the ford is the best truck, but wouldnt touch the 6.0psd with a 10 foot pole.....been there done that....... Gm to me has some weeker front ends.. SO yes each of the big three has their plus/minus....
pronstar wrote:
Keith99RS wrote:
1) Ford does not recommend an exhaust brake on the Powerstroke last I knew. IIRC this was correct witht he 6.0 but may have changed with the 6.4L. Something about the transmission offering engine braking so it was not required.
2) You realize brake size is kind of subjective yes? Bigger diameter does not always mean better breaking. Swept area is more important. Also if you can show me how a difference of less than one inch in diameter is a huge performance issue I'm all ears. Brakes are also designed by the trucks capacities. The manufacturer is going to design brakes to match the use.
The comment about a tailgate lock is that Dodge is the sole manufacturer who does not have one. I think it is a big indicator of cost cutting. It isn't like they need to retool the whole manufacturing process to include one. There have been quite a few freshenings to the Ram. Like I said before another penny pinching area was reuse of some late model interior bits in the 06 Rams. All new interior, same window and lock switchgear. Looked totally out of place. Go compare the Dodge interior to a Ford, Chevy or even Titan. Cheap plastic abounds. Hard and poorly textured.
Those were just examples to prove a point.
We buy from the company that offers the things we want.
ALL car companies cut costs, in a variety of ways.
GM & Ford used the same switchgear across many models for decades until the latest generation vehicles. This is nothing new...but it influenced buying decisions, and the companies eventually got wise.
I'm with ya...the interior of my Ram is crappy compared to GM and Ford. But each truckmaker has SOMETHING they did to cut costs and we could sit here all day and pick any one of them apart.
I just think that a blanket statement like "Dodge is cheap because they don't have X" is unfair because you could easily make the same statement about the offerings from other MFRs.
Little things like a tailgate lock, quality interior, options add up. That is why Dodge is 3rd in a three MFR race. Bear in mind I wasn't referring to it being bad that vehicles share switchgear, just that redoing an entire interior but installing a 10 year old switch design is like remodeling your home and leaving the old paint on it. Funny thing is that Dodge changed the switches a year later. GM is slightly guilty of the same thing in their designing a great 6 speed tranny but not putting it in all their new trucks now 2 years later. Ford did it withthe Fusion. All new car, ancient 3.0L Duratec engine. If you are going to redesign something make it a finished product.
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