Hi all from New Zealand!

I am thinking about buying a 3rd gen ram, but not sure what all the model designations mean, and was hoping someone could explain them to me, as I see SLT, laramie etc and I'm not sure what they mean. I would like to get a double cab, 2WD, 5.7 V8 as I do a fair amount of towing, and need the 4 doors for crew members when we go away racing. Over here we don't have Dodge dealers, and all the rams on the road are private imports, that then have to be converted to right hand drive. It is a fairly expensive operation, so it makes these trucks worth BIG dollars. I am even thinking about making a trip to the US and finding/buying a truck, then shipping it home, as this will still be cheaper than paying for one that someoneelse has imported, and I get a trip overseas as well!

Can someone give me some guidance on what to buy, and what they are worth approximately?

 

Laramie is the top of the line, leather, nav big rims, and upgrades sound system, uap power seats, more bells and whisles. I have s SLT it is the model right below a Laramie. It has cloth seats, basic speakers. I would say Laramie’s are more luxury than the SLT's. It depends on what you like better I guess.

 

where in the US do you plan on buying the truck?

Laramie is the top of the line. has everything. we have one. it gets expensive. but you can also buy an SLT or a SPORT. they cost less and have a few less additions on them. you can save money on buying a SPORT or SLT ram or even an SXT with the HEMI and use that saved money to change the steering to the right side with that money you saved. when you go racing, do you race the trucks or what? you should look into a 4x4 too then since it seems as though youll be racing the truck or hauling a lot to do your racing. hope this helped. good luck!

 

Not too stressed about spec levels,as they all have a lot of gear in them anyway. More interested in what to pay for a good one. How much does a SLT go for in the spec Im looking for?

As for my racing, the truck will be the tow vehicle (you would have to mad to race a nice truck like one of these!) but I tend to sway towards having a 2wd for towing, as it seems to be a waste of fuel to drag around all those extra diffs etc, when you will only use 4wd when the roads are loose surface anyway.

Will go to the west coast to buy, as that is closer to me than anywhere else, otherwise shipping costs will be higher.

 

ok, im in san diego, california. there is a great dealer here right by my house. heres the website: http://johnhine.com/

great service and very, very professional. but an airplane ticket would cost much less to go to los angeles. lol. and yes, you would be mad to race a brand new truck! lol. you can buy a nicely equipped ram for around $25,000. maybe even less. hopefully some other chime in on this thread with their prices. and dont forget, dodge has about $10,000 in rebates from the sticker price after chrysler ($8,000) and dealer ($2-3,000) rebates.

 

oh, and the dealer i went to will gurantee the lowest price in san diego. maybe even souther california.

 

OK, had a look at the JH website, they have a ram 1500 there for about 11k. Is the 1500 the lower spec truck? And is the 4.7 litre ok for towing? i would prefer to get the 5.7 if Im going to this much effort!

 

hey man ive been to auckland, it aint flat, no way in hell will a 4.7 work for you... how many miles are you gonna put on it each year, how long do you plan on keeping it?
a cummins diesel will be better, sure diesel is more, but when youre towing your mpg will be far far worse in a gas vs a diesel...

how much weight are you gonna tow? and is it a trailer or a 5th wheel, if its the second of the two then youll want a 2500 series and if you get a 2500 you might as well get a diesel.

 

1500 istn necessarily the 'lower spec truck.' it is just a wekaer body frame than a 2500 or 3500. thats all. but if you want, if you get a 1500 ram Mega Cab, the 1500 would be built on a 2500 frame so it would be very strong.

 

Haha, yes Auckland has a few volcanoes doesnt it? No, not towing a 5th wheeler, it is a tandem axle car trailer, car on it wieghs about a ton, my 5.0 falcon tows it with ease at the moment, but I know tht the dodge is a heavier car. i will pass on the mega thanks, they are not really my thing (sorry to all megaowners !) Yeah, thought about a diesel, but never driven one. What do they go like?