Any of you all have a 2017 or so Ram 2500 with the 6.4L gas?

[Luked]

Looking at possibly trading for a 3/4 ton truck instead of my 1/2ton.
Dealer here close has a 2017 and 2022 Ram with the 6.4L Gas motor.
For you all that have them what issues have you had?
And also what fuel mileage do you normally get?

We have a 2019 Ram 1500 with the 5.7 that has a 6" lift and 35" tires.
Nice truck but when we pull our camper its a gas hog. And looking for something to keep more long term and I think the 3/4 ton would be a better bet than the 1/2 ton.

 

[turbobrick]

I have a ‘14 Power Wagon with the 6.4, so pretty close. Mine has the 6 speed auto, the ‘17 should have the 8 which is a way better trans. Mine had a trans pump failure, but it’s been trouble free otherwise. I put the truck on 35s from the first day I owned it, and it has a flatbed, so mileage isn’t great, 12-15 on the highway.

 

[Marshfly]

I have a 2019 Power Wagon on 37s. The new transmission is way better than the old 6 speed. Interestingly I get the same mileage as turbo brick above probably due to the transmission setup.

A regular 2500 (non-PW) will come with almost 34s if it has the 18 or 20" wheels so moving to 35s will not have much mileage hit at all. Mine has been trouble free also.

 

[Elcy]

18 2500 tradesman classic w/ the 6.4 gas. 6 speed tranny, stock size tires, no lift. City/freeway commute-about 13 mpg. Towing my ranger crew utv uphill 8-9 mpg. I drive 80 towing my trailer though.

no mech issues here

 

[jhoff04]

My friend and I both bought 3/4 ton Rams and campers about the same time a few years back. Mine is the cummins and his was the gaser.

I can say that you aren't going to see any substantial improvement pulling your camper with regards to fuel ecomony going from 1/2 ton to 3/4 ton in the gaser. And your daily fuel economy is going to plummet. Don't make the leap to 3/4 ton just for fuel economy reasons while towing. Obviously a 3/4 ton will pull substantially better with more control (i.e. safer). So, if you feel that your 1/2 ton is being overworked or overloaded, then it's worth sizing up.

I love my cummins but it is definitely overkill for me as I don't use the full potential as often as I thought I would. If I were to buy a new truck today, I'd seriously consider saving the $$ and going with a 3/4 ton gaser. Let's maintenance than a diesel and thousands cheaper.

At the end of the day, it really just depends on how big your camper is and how often you want to pull it.

 

[Yellowknife]

I just sold my '18 Ram 6.4L. Decent truck but I don't miss it. Super thirsty all the time. 10-12 mpg in the winter, 13 mpg in the summer. 14 empty on the highway. Towed a camper ok at about 9 mpg. I had relatively minimal engine issues, but went through various driveline parts and a radiator. Changing 16 spark plugs was kind of a bear as well.

A co-worker on the other hand blew one up at 80k miles, so strange stuff can happen.

Switched to a 1/2 ton with larger fuel tank and turbo's. I'm going to hit 600 miles on this tank running empty. Towing mpg will be the same, but at least I've got a few more gallons in the tank.

 

[jaredg]

22 Power Wagon here. 12ish mpg. Great for pulling, lots of torque. But pulling my 16' enclosed to ID I got around 7-8mpg.

 

[wyosteve]

If you go with the 6.4 it needs to be ‘19 or newer to get the 8 speed transmission. Much better than the 6 speed. I had a ‘19 Power wagon , we had a ‘20 3500 with 6.4 and now have a ‘24 2500 with 6.4. Highway mileage at 70 has been 17-18. Towing 9-12. No problems with any of the 3.

 

[Luked]

Drove both a 2022 and a 2017.
The 2017 was a nice truck. But prices have substantially dropped making my trade in no where near worth trading.

 

[WrstMuleHntr]

I own a 2018 Powerwagon. I've had a fuel pump go out on me in the middle of a forest road, not a fun flat-tow back to civilization. I've also had several transmission issues and I am still not convinced that it is fixed right. As others have stated I'd get a 2019 or newer with the 8 speed tranny.

I love my truck and have no plans to get rid of it, but the transmission issues suck. And yeah, Gas mileage is almost non-existent at below 10 mpg almost always.

 

[wowzers]

I have a 22 3/4 ton tradesman and the mileage is terrible. I get single digits as soon as anything is hooked to the bumper. This probably the worst I had seen it hauling a 16’ cargo trailer on logging roads with a hydraulic hose press and various fittings. So nothing heavy duty. Regular driving in the woods and town I get about 11mpg. Also the tank is pretty small and I end up having to fill up every other day or so.

 

[WV Mountaineer]

Looking at possibly trading for a 3/4 ton truck instead of my 1/2ton.
Dealer here close has a 2017 and 2022 Ram with the 6.4L Gas motor.
For you all that have them what issues have you had?
And also what fuel mileage do you normally get?

We have a 2019 Ram 1500 with the 5.7 that has a 6" lift and 35" tires.
Nice truck but when we pull our camper its a gas hog. And looking for something to keep more long term and I think the 3/4 ton would be a better bet than the 1/2 ton.

My buddy has a 2018. Not sure if it’s the same truck as the 2017. But, it’s a nice truck. His only has 55,000 on it. No problems at all. Pretty good power. But, if you pull your camper with it, expect to get pretty dismal mileage. Like 8-9 if you are in the mountains.

 

[Felix40]

My work truck is an 18 tradesman. It developed a bad death wobble and had about 2k in suspension work done. It goes to the shop for some little thing about once a month. It gets about 13 mpg. I wouldn’t take one for free as my personal vehicle.

 

[180ls1]

Did you re-gear? That big of a lift and tires really hurts you.

A stock rebel with the aggressive gearing and air ride would be a huge improvement.

 

[Elk botherer]

When you upgrade to a 3/4 ton you get more trailer control, higher towing capacity, and payload. What you do not get is better fuel economy whether you’re empty or towing. I had a ‘15 2500 6.4 hemi and I got 6-7 mpg towing a toy hauler or a 25’ bumper pull travel trailer on hilly and mountainous Idaho roads. I got 10-14 mpg running around empty. I liked the truck but absolutely hated the transmission, it was never in the right gear and was constantly shifting when it didn’t need to. Everyone is right, if you do get a 6.4, get the newer updated transmission that is actually designed for the 6.4. I miss my half ton mpg when I drive my current f-350 6.2 gasser around empty, but when I hook up to a trailer, I absolutely do not regret the upgrade. The safety, control, and being able to tow what I want without worrying about payload or gvwr is worth the mpg penalty to me. Good luck.

 

[Still Hunter]

RAM 2500, LWB 4x4, 2018 with the 6.4 , 14.2 mpg most the time. Do not get a truck with the 68RFE Transmission. Absolute crap. Love the truck but Transmission is POS
FACT! They cannot build new Transmissions fast enough to meet demand for 68RFE replacements.

 

[Whaledriver]

Had a 6.4l and traded for the 6.7l diesel. The 6.4l didn't like mountain passes with a trailer. Trailer was around 8k. It would drop eventually into first gear and Rev limit at 4k and 10 mph. Not ideal. At sea level it was a different truck. I think 4.10 rear end would have helped at altitude. Got 15mpg empty and 9mpg pulling. Diesel does 20 empty and 11 pulling in the mountains but at 2k rpm and less drama. My 6.4l also had a funny tick to it. Not sure what it was. Never had any other issues before I traded it.

 

[JasonT]

I had a ‘22 gasser and hated it. The gas tank was way too small, especially with the low mpg. I really didnt like the truck and don’t think I kept it a year. I thought the ride was terrible, even for a 3/4 ton. I traded it for a 3/4 gmc and I like it much better.
You can’t buy a 3/4 truck and worry about fuel mileage .

 

[Weldor]

There's a great you tube with the Ram, Ford and Chevy towing test in Colorado. Watch before you decide. Very interesting. Those big gasser's unfortunately just can't do grades very well. I see the big 3 test vehicles on hwy 87 testing all the time in AZ. During summer of course.

 

[Geewhiz]

I have a 2017 2500 crew cab with an 8' box and the 6.4. Its leveled on 35's. When I first got it, it was bone stock and I did a little experimenting before I did the level/tires. Factory ride height and tires with the cruise on 70 on the interstate for 4 hours the dash told me 19.4 mpg. On the way back I set the cruise to 80 and it was 17.something mpg. After the level and larger tires with more offset I am getting around 12-14 day to day and 9-10 when towing stuff that's not too heavy. About the most I've towed was a mini ex so total towed weight was around 16-17k, got 8.8 mpg per the dash so its a little better than that in real life.

Bought at 26k miles, currently around 47k so haven't put a ton on it but zero issues so far. I really like the truck for what is is.