About 2 months ago, I was at my Dodge dealer looking at a Ram 2500. But the salesman said they had one Brand New Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab 4x4 left...and it was a little bit more than half off the sticker price. Still cant figure out why they could sell it so cheap up to today. So I bought it...

downside it...it came standard with 3.55 axle ratio and the towing rated capacity is only 7500 lbs, i think on mine is +another 500-1000 lbs because I have the smaller 17's on it.

The thing tows my 5000-5500 lbs powerboat fine but I might move up to a bigger boat if i can find a deal...I really dont want to go through the sell/trade process for a new truck so..

can I still upgrade aftermarket or from the dealer to 4.10's or 4.56's like the Power Wagon? I know that the Power Wagon with the same power train of my 1500 (5.7L Hemi 345hP) will tow 11000 lbs. Around how much would it be for the upgrade? What pros/cons would a higher axle ratio have besides increased towing?

In the next month or so, I'm going to be adding probably the a Superchips Flashpaq. Is there any better programmer out there to give most horsepower? What do you guys use?

 

The Powerwagon is a 2500 which is why it can tow 11,000lbs. Do with 4.10's with the 17" wheels unless you are going to 35" tires, then go 4.56. The max tow rating I have seen on a 1500 (even the 09) is 9100lbs.

Oh, and welcome to the forum

 

3.55s suck for just about everything except maybe highway mileage. You'll not get up to 2500 specs but 4.56 gears will help towing performance dramatically, in combo with the Superchips "Towing Performance" tune, you'll be about as good as you can be in a 1500.

 

Not so much here either from what I am seeing with people and comparable trucks

 

Where can i get the 4.00 and over axle ratios?...Do i bring it back to the dealer or do I bring it to the truck mods shop around my town?...How much$$$ are we talking about here...

 

http://nationaldrivetrain.com/shopsi...RYSLER925.HTML

Call around different shops for installation. You might also check with the trans/rearend guy at youyr dealer. He may do it on the side.

 

I called my dodge parts dealer about the job...to regear to a 3.92 is around 1200 bucks front and rear job..?...

it has to way less than that...cant they just swap the rear end rings?

 

That's actually not out of line, especially for a dealer. The front & rear ring and pinions have to be replaced, parts cost is probably around $500, labor to set them is gonna take them the better part of a full day.
I paid just over $1400 after tax for 4.56s front and rear AND an Auburn Gear LSD (about $350 of it was the LSD) so, they are ball park. But I'd not pay that much just to go from 3.55s to 3.92s, not enough gain for the $. I'd go min. 4.10s and if a tire ANY larger than stock is in your future, then do the 4.56s and don't look back. Not only will your rig tow a lot easier and ease the burden on the tranny, but your towing capacity will actually increase by about 1000 lbs...

 

the biggest reason the 2500 can pull so much more is suspension and frame. more power is the last thing you need with a hemi under the hood. get yourself some airbags in the back so you don't have to worry about tongue weight as much.

if you have the truck to tow, go 4.56. 4.56 gears are very acceptable for a 31" tire (stock on 17" rims), and it leaves room for bigger tires if you ever want them without another gear swap.

don't skimp on the gears. if someone is willing to do it for $700, think twice. remember, you saved thousands on the truck, spending 1200 on making it just right for what you want is not a bad deal.

 

will that void lifetime warranty? changing gears? or lifting the truck