I am seriously considering right now buying a 2001 Ram 2500 with the 8.0 liter V10. I am asking all of you V10 owners what you think. I would very much like to know what you think their strengths and weaknesses are, your average mileage and anything I should pay special attention to when I goto look at this truck. I really want a Cummins, but they are very, very hard to find in Montana. Nobody trades them in because they are so reliable, which is the same reason I really want one. Please give me honest candid responses, I want to know the truth. Obviously it will be a step up from my 97 Ram with the magnum 360. One of my biggest concerns is mileage and towing mileage. With my 97 I average roughly 12 in town, and I haven't gotten good numbers on the highway recently. When I tow my camper I average 10.5 or so, and the motor struggles a bit too much to set the cruise control. I am looking for the ability to step up in mileage??? and possible towing performance. Let me know what you guys think.

 

I think you should get what you want.

Even if you have to travel to get it ... hold out for the CTD.

 

A similar question was asked yesterday.. you can check it out and read my reply there its about the same as i would type in here
Link to other thread

Hope this helps.

 

Tommygunz -

I know exactly what you mean - a good 98-02 Cummins is hard to find up here in the Northern Rockies. I live in the Silver Valley of North Idaho right next to Dave Smith Motors (the worlds largest Dodge dealer) and assuming you can find one, a truck with the CTD is worth top dollar. They've got 57 used Dodge trucks listed at the moment, and only 3 are 98-02 CTD's. And they want more than $20 thousand for each of 'em! There was a another recent thread where V10's were discussed: https://dodgeforum.com/m_585835/mpag.../tm.htm#586223

I just bought a '99 2500 quad cab short box 4x4 with the 8.0L V10 and the 47RE automatic with 80K miles nearly 2 months ago. I'm VERY pleased with it so far. For me, it was an economic decision. Like you, I really wanted the Cummins. But I couldn't justify paying +$20K for a CTD versus the $12,000 I paid for the V10. I drive approx. twenty thousand miles a year, and even with the better fuel mileage the CTD gets I'd only save ~$700 a year in fuel costs. But what made my mind up for me was two of the diesel mechanics I work with recently bought V10's in the past six months rather than Cummins. They love the CTD, but decided that even though a 150K mile CTD probably has hundreds of thousands of miles left in it, the minor things that COULD go wrong all start at the $1500 mark and go up from there.

The flip side of the economic decision I made is that if I needed to sell my V10, it would probably take a while to get my money out of it. But anyone driving a Cummins can sell or trade theirs in a heart beat. I wish I had bought one new back in '01.

So far, I get 12.5mpg consistently regardless of how I'm driving, and that's with 35's and 4:10 gearing. I still haven't had a chance to tow a large load further than 25 miles, but others report that their V10 doesn't seem to care much whether it's towing or not. I've driven enough CTD's to say that as far as I'm concerned, the V10 performs as well, if not better than a stock diesel. The key word there is stock - there are a LOT more mod options for a diesel than a V10. The 8.0L is close to as good as it will get when it's in stock form (read TheBurningRom's posts for excellent info on how to get the max out of a V10), while the 5.9L is a great platform capable of tons more improvement.

I'm not disappointed at all with the V10. Unless you go up against a fella with a modded up CTD, you'll hold your own just fine. You'll probably get nearly the same fuel mileage as your '97, with TONS more power, which = FUN.

 

I got my 1999 2500 V-10 4X4 Quad cab automatic about 4 months ago. (after selling my 2001 1500 5.2l with 5 pd standard) I have done very few mods, and really like the power I get so far. As for gas mileage, if it's a V10, then you better have deep pockets. Mine averages anywhere from 10 - 14 mpg depending how much I leave my foot into the throttle.

Before my purchase, I was heck bent on getting the Cummins diesel. I just loved the torque and purr of the engine. But, when I started asking around for opinions, I was convinced to stay with gas. A couple of things hit home. First, my dad said that I would have to be pulling a lot of weight for long periods of time to justify the extra cost of the diesel (purchase price and maintenance). He was right, diesels maintain their mileage under heavy loads, unlike gas. But really, how many times was I going to be pulling something heavy enough to really impact my gas mileage. The other statment came from a salesman that was showing me a diesel. He asked, how may miles did my last truck have? My 2001 was sold with 33K miles on it (5 years). He then told me me not to purchase a diesel. I didn't drive enough miles to justify the diesel, and those motors need to be run. They don't do well sitting like gas motors. He was right, there are months my tuck may only see 100 miles. That 100 miles could be racked up in only 1 day.

So, you really must consider the cost difference (up front), maintenance (service/repairs), amount of weight towed (repeatively), and how much you drive daily/weekly/monthly. At the average cost of $3000 - $4000 mire for a diesel, I could replace a lot of V10 engines.

My typical pulling load is a 5th wheel RV, 30 foot with super slide, weighing in at about 10K loaded. My little 01 Ram 1500 with the small V8 518CID pulled that huge thing. However, it wasn't an Earth mover when pulling, but it got me from pint A to point B. Of course, that truck had a 5 speed manual. That helped. Now with my V10, It's almost like the camper isn't even back there.

Mods:
removed both cats
Installed true dual exhaust
Helix throttle body spacer
K&N Air filter
Re-routed air breather hose to front of opening in bumper for ram air effect (re-use stock air input - article to follow soon)

Plan to:
Install tranny temp guage and torque convertor lock-up override switch (causes engine drag when gas is depressed like a manual tranny).

GP

 

Wow, this is why I love this forum. There is such a wealth of information here. I was jus about to write off the V10 as an option, but now it's back on the thought train again. Boy would I like a CTD though. I also live near Dave Smith, I am over in Great Falls Montana. Alot of the time people on this forum talk fuel mileage, and I actually have to look at that and consider a mile or two less per gallon because of the altitude over here. I am already getting 12 mpg consistantly emtpy with my 360 and it goes down to 10.5 MPG when I am pulling my camper or wheelin'. I was driving the V10 around for a good part of a day, and I could never get the computers gauge to read above 8mpg, this may signal that this particular truck is not a good option. Thanks for all the info guys.



I guess I should add on to this thread, what kind of things should I be paying attention to while buying a used CTD? I am no auto dummy, but never bought a diesel.

 

Tommygunz -

My truck isn't a great example, because of the 35" tires - but DON"T ALWAYS BELIEVE THE COMPUTER when it comes to fuel mileage. Somewhere here in the forums I found a very long thread while searching that discussed where everyone reported what they were getting mileage wise. One common theme was that the overhead console numbers were consistently lower than the true fuel mileage, mainly due to non-factory size tires.

I can verify that the company trucks I've driven (with 360's and CTD's, but no V-10's) have all been off by varying degrees, even with the original tires. I rarely go anywhere without my GPS unit running, so I'm always comparing odometer readings of the different rigs I drive against what the GPS track log tells me. There can be quite a variance, almost always because of tires.

I think the best use of the overhead console numbers are as a tool to tell me how hard I'm working the engine, rather than an absolute value of fuel mileage.

I agree with what gphilpot says - evaluate exactly what your driving habits and towing needs are, and make your decision based upon that. Or, say what the hell - I really want a CTD! - and buy one because it's what you'd prefer. But I know I don't regret making the gas decision.

 

I bought my '01 2500 Quad shortbox V-10 in August. Drove it 475 miles from Fairbanks to Anchorage, 75-85 mph, up into the mountains while pushing a heavy headwind. I got 12.79 mpg.
Headers, K&N intake, Fastman throttle body and Aero mufflers are highly recommended to increase the mileage. Put all synthetic fluids in the drivetrain and keep your tires correctly inflated is about all you can do.

 

Wow, you guys are putting up strong arguments for the V10. Here are my driving habits; I drive about 410 miles per month to work and back, normally thats all the mileage my current truck sees, its all town driving, with short spurts of 45 mph. Once winter sets it, I go snowboarding every other weekend. It's an 80 mile one way trip to the mountain from here, highway and hill climbing. Randomely I go off roading, not too much because I curently get 12 mpg and it is cost prohibitive on a military budget. I think I could get out alot more often with the diesel. In the summer I tow my 21 foot camper which weighs approximately 4500 lbs loaded anywhere from 60 miles to 80 miles to go camping. That is as far as I go because If I go any farther I would have to refill to come home, Again, cost prohibtive, Diesel, I can go farther, possibly out of state. I hate driving home on leave to Minnesota in a car, I am not nor will I ever be completely comfortable in a car. I drive home at least once a year, sometimes twice. 1100 miles one way couped up in a car. I can make that trip no problem in a truck, used to do it in my old suburban, no problems. cost prohibitive at 12.5 or so mpg. So, what do you think? do you understand my desire for the cummins now, or is it still somewhat unfounded?

 

Something else to consider, here in northern Illinois Diesel is 50-60 cents a gallon more than gasoline. I just sold my Cummins and bought my V-10, and have been very happy with my decision so far. see my post in the other thread about the V-10 Vs Cummins. Murf