I was wondering if I could get some opinions and experiences with the 3rd gen trucks with the 3.7L and 6 speed manual. We are moving out into BFE and we need a better commuter vehicle for my wife-we are 1.5 miles down a very rough road and no car will work. We are going back into town tomorrow morning to potentially close the deal on the 08 Ram. It's a base truck with vinyl floors, but it has a/c, cruise, tilt and sliding rear window, with 55k miles. The truck is purely for commuting. My 98 Ram is doing all the work, so the 08 will be solely for my wife's 74 mile r/t commute to work. It will be a commuter and grocery getter and nothing else. Any thoughts from folks who have experience with the 3.7L and 6 speed manual. Anything to watch out for? It really does look and run like new.

 

Nice. Guess even after buying it today I'll be still hanging out in the 2nd Gen section.

 

171 views, no replies, tsk tsk tsk....

 

There probably wasnt any replies, because no one has any experience in that certain model, mainly hemi's, with a good chunk of 4.7 users.

 

The 3.7 isn't owned by many, nor is it regarded too highly. I'd imagine many who read either had no first hand knowledge or are of the opinion "if you don't have anything nice to say"...

I do know that the 3.7 is prone to head issues and those who have it say they get no better gas mileage with their SC 4x2s than the average Hemi V8 QC 4x4 owner gets.

I guess as a grocery getter it would be fine. Although I think if ground clearance was my only issue, I'd try to find maybe an SUV like a Grand Cherokee. I bought the ex three of 'em over the 14 years we were married...

 

Sorry I am deployed and can't be on here everyday...
I can attest to the 3.7 in a Jeep. It's a good engine, just the powerband is too high for an SUV/truck engine. It's a 4.7 mines 2 cylinders with a longer stroke. With the stick shift mileage will be better than an auto, but it will still be **** (little bitty V6 pushing RC=4800lbs, QC=5300lbs). As long as you don't overheat it and use a good quality oil, keep up on maintenance it should run a good long time. Download the 08 service and parts manuals.

 

That's the reason there were no replies. I think Chrysler Corp. said there was a 47-55%-ish uptake of the Hemi, a good chunk of 4.7s, and not much 3.7s that were sold from '02 to '08. I seem to remember reading that a few years ago.

So sorry, but there probably just isn't very many 3.7s out there. We're still nice people here!!!

 

I appreciate it. I looked up the 3.7L's track record and the first 2 model years they were having some over-heating issues, but the last 5 years, very few warranty claims. I paid $9500 for a nicely equipped, low mile truck, so that's why I went with the 3.7L, plus they are rated the same mileage as the 5.7L with MDS and better than the 4.7L. I figure since she drives very conservatively like me, so she ought to beat the 19mpg rating on the highway. I've read a ton of good things about the 6 speed, though, so I'm pretty happy we got the manual. Oh, yeah, the cheapest 8 cylinder ST with the same options was $12k and that was the 4.7L and I want to avoid that engine. Even though my brothers 03 has been bullet-proof for 130k miles, he said his single cab 4x4 gets 12 mpg on its best day.

 

For your intended use, I'm sure the 3.7 will be fine, especially with the manual tranny.

Good maintenance with a little extra attention spent on the cooling system and it should last you for years. Just caution the wife on driving it if it over-heats. Like it's almost identical 4.7 bigger brother, it doesn't fare well if overheated. Very little temp tolerance in those aluminum heads.

BTW, I'd say your brother has some maintenance issues of his own. I've found that the 3.7, 4.7 and Hemi all seem to get about the same fuel economy. I've done a lot of work on an '02 QC 4x2 4.7 for a former moderator on here that regularly got about 18 hwy and about 15 mpg in all around use and I put 5" of lift and big, aggressive meats on that truck...

 

I have the 318 in my 98 Ram and the 3.0L in my Acclaim, so I have just had power when I needed it. I'm glad my wife's going to be the primary driver of this 3.7L. Unless it's over 2500 RPMs, it has very, very, very(and very) little torque.