Not sure if I've ever poste in here but here we go. I'm looking at a new 1500 with the 5.7, gears are 3:55 stock & 3:92 option. My question is I tow a 7000lb camper about 4 to 5 times a year will this truck handle it? I'm along with the dealer having a hard time finding what I want without ordering. I really don't want to order due to the time it takes to get here, I've been told anywhere from 4 weeks to 4 months. I see the towing charts but just wondering if I'd be better off with the 3:92's.


Thanks for the help
Mitch

 

Go with the 3.92 (which i have towing a 6300 travel trailer) i dont believe the 3.55 are enough truck to tow the 7000lb. Mine tows great.

 

Get the 3.92's. If you research these forums, you will find many owners who wish they had bought them when they ordered their trucks.
Their reasons include better acceleration, greater towing capacity and (it's been suggested) better fuel economy at least in the city.

 

Do yourself a big favor and get the 3.92 option and also get the anti spin option which is a separate order on the sheet. I just ordered a new Hemi 1500 Ram Sport 4x4 with the 3.92 + anti spin. The dealer said 7 – 8 weeks to get. It is almost impossible to get 3.92 in trucks on the lot as they all come standard with 3.55. The only model that comes standard with 3.92 is the Outdoorsman. If you get the 3.55 you’ll be kicking yourself even if you only tow occasionally. The 3.55 is absolutely the wrong gear for a truck. The 3.55 doesn’t improve the mileage over the 3.92 to even matter. It’s a truck and if you’re concerned about mileage, buy a car imho.

The new Ram I just ordered will replace my 2004 Hemi Durango that has the 545 trans and 3.92 gears, the same as the new truck. I pull a 24’ enclosed 8.5’ high car trailer that weights 7,500 lb and the Durango does it all day at 65 mph in the tow haul mode. The Durango is rated at 8,950 towing because of the 3.92 and 17” tires. Getting the truck with the 17” tire verses the 20” will also improve the towing capacity which is what I’m doing with the dealer swapping wheels with an SLT model.

 

Thanks, I figured as much! I'm changing from the 5.9 Cummins with 4:10's.... so it's going to be a big change for me.

 

The 3.55's will tow 7000lbs fine...will be more sluggish then the 3.92's. Just make sure your hitch is good up to 7000. Stock hitches are only good up to 5000lbs I believe unless you have a weight distribution setup.

 

Go with 3:92's. I did and am really gald I did. I would not have bought the truck with 3:55s. My last truck was a Ford F150 (had it 6 years) with optional 3:55s and I always regretted I did not find one with lower gears. I vowed not to make that mistake again and didn't.

 

I tow a camper a little heavier than yours with my 09 laramie crew cab with 3.55's. It's a little sluggish to take off on a hill but other than that once it gets moving I cruise past a lot of slower moving cars even on steep upgrades.

 

Pulled the trigger today. '11 quad cab laramie 4x4 5.7l 3:92's. Should be here in a couple days.... Thanks for the help.

 

Just putting my opinion out there. I have had a 97 1500 with 3.55's, 01 off road with 4.10's with LS, 02 with 3.92's with LS, 04 2500 cummins 6 speed with 3.73's and now, even though I said I would never have the 3.55's, my 09 has them and 20" wheels. I will admit that the 97 did seem weak with the 3.55's for towing and the 01 with the 4.10's did tow nice, but with the power of the Hemi, don't let the 3.55 gears scare you away from a truck that you like. I currently pull a 24' enclosed trailer with up to 10,000 lbs, I bump it down to 4th gear and it will pull it as fast as you want. The weak part for towing on these trucks is not the powertrain, it is the suspension. As far as the Limited slip on these trucks, I don't have it but with the traction control I have found that it will apply the brake on the wheel that is slipping and they both spin anyway. I always liked the limited slip diffs but I am not sure how much it helps with the traction control that we have on these trucks now. Try not to beat me up too bad.