Ya I have a single cab and my gf has 2 kids and its hard to go out to do stuff , how much do you guys pay to insure for full covrage ?

 

Also what makes the hemi so much more powerful than the hemi I'm the 3rd gens ?

 

I see you're from da 'burgh. If you're looking to buy used Baierl Toyota in Cranberry always seems to have a few used Dodge Rams on their lot.

 

I own a 3rd Gen and have driven a few 4th Gens. I don't really notice the 50 additional HP, BUT I have 4.56 gears and a good many power mods.

The 4th Gens do drive REALLY nice by virtue of coils at all four corners BUT IMO they don't tow worth a sh*t. I pulled a 7700 lb. load with my truck one direction and with a 4th Gen QC Hemi 4x4 back and to be honest it was VERY hard to control the load and it kinda "white knuckled" me at times. Where the 4th Gens impress me is with the interior - light years ahead of the 3rd Gens.

Just the continuing trend towards making half ton trucks more "car-like". 2nd Gens had solid front axles where 3rd Gens went to IFS, now 4th Gens have coils all around.

You want the extra ponies and plan for speed and handling then wait for a 4th Gen. You want your truck to be more like a truck then get the 3rd Gen or find a deal on a 4th Gen 2500...

 

90,000 miles; I had a 02 2500 4x4 cummins before buying the 08. The cummins got around 18mpg. I havent drove the HEMI enough yet to determine what kind of mpg its going to get but I'm sure that it want be no where near as good as the cummins!

 

It's hard to gauge MPGs off of me. My 2nd Gen (RCSB 5.9 4x4) I lifted and had 35" tires on. Not many mods other than a true dual exhaust and drop-in K&N. But riding on 4" of lift and 35s I almost never saw double digit fuel economy. Maybe could hit 11-11.5 on strictly highway driving.
My 3rd Gen is lifted, has 35s and weighs in at nearly 7000 lbs. with winch, grill guard, full sub-frame, etc. and being an '04 has no MDS. But I average about 12.5-13 in all around driving, can nip 16 MPG in trips. Lot more performance mods on the 3rd Gen than I had on the 2nd Gen...

 

Hammer what gears did u have before 4.56 ? And do you think u can take a 4 th gen off the line due that you have bigger gears than say a 4th gen with 3.91 ?

 

3.92s they were fine until I went to 35" tires.

I can't take anybody off the line at the weight that's on my truck, plus a lot of my mods are for more low end grunt than mid/high speed. But I can hook up to a stock 4th Gen gasser and pull it all over the lot, LOL...

 

I have a 2008 with a 6 in lift and 34 in tires on 3.92 gears and I see the same mileage as Hammer does

 

Well, I'm in Albany, NY and have a 2008 QC 4x4 Bighorn w/10kmi and have priced out my truck numerous times through NADA, KBB, Galves, at Dealer lots and at auctions as I have thought of selling it..thought of it, didnt say was gonna happen.

My truck has consitently booked and sold as such;
NADA-$23.5k
KBB-$24k
Galves(auction based)$18k
local auctions-$17-19k(mileage varying)
Dealer Lots-$22-24k(mileage varying)
Private sales-$21-23k(mileage varying)
Remember, my truck has only 10kmi on it and the lowest mileage above was for one with 23kmi. Once the older styles get up past 30kmi, they start to drop in price.

Gearing..3:92's were so-so with stock 20's(33" rubber) UNTIL I went with the trans tuning through superchips. Made all the difference. I made the truck hold the gears longer and downshift sooner with less pedal effort. pressing the gas pedal 3/4way to force a downshift wastes gas! Keeping the truck higher in the rpms raises power and actually improves mpg's.
Gas mileage..12-14city/14-16highway depending on how I'm driving with the Superchips and advanced trans tuning and with mds disabled. My window sticker states 13city/17highway.
Rear leaf sprung can haul more, but is prone to the *** end being tossed around on loose surfaces.
HP..claimed 345hp for my 2008 is plenty. 've hauled alot of weight numerous times. Never had any troubles. Empty, there's loads of power. Why anyone would need more is all about bragging rights, and not really for useage.
I'd get whatever you like the looks and feel of better, granted it fits into your budget. I personally like the simplicity of the interior of my '08 and thus why I chose it over a Ferd or Cheby.