Here is something to think about. We the taxpayers bailed out GM with American money. Not long ago GM was given permission from a bankruptcy judge in NY that they could stop the contract they had with Stillwater Mining in MT to buy platinum, palladium and rhodium which are used in catalytic convertors. Now instead of buying in America they are looking to buy overseas.

http://www.billingsgazette.com/news/stat...1cc4c03286.html

Either is a good choice. All full size trucks have advantages that will appeal to one consumer and not another. On price it is hard to beat a Dodge. The Chevy tends to try and pack a ton of goodies in their trucks and as such they tend to be a bit pricier. Ford offers a good mix of equipment at a good price. I'm a Chevy guy but I think Ford allows customers a better choice at getting some of the goodies without forcing the whole 5K upgrade package on you.

There are a ton of 15+ year old Fords/Chevy's on the road still so either is a fine choice there. I won't comment much on the Toyota/Nissan offerings other than to say I believe one is high quality/priced and the other is (or was) trying to get Dodge to build their trucks (enough said). The fact that neither offers 2500/3500 series trucks is enough in itself for me to write them both off.

I know a lot of people are down on the so called "bail out" but when all is said and done we may find that the deal was a steal for the government/UAW. GM had sales in excess of 120 billion last year so the loans they received compared to the business and assets appears to be a government theft to me with the shareholders getting fleeced. The government will get the money back through loans being re payed and sale of the new shares however the old GM share holders and taxpayers won't likely see much of that. People fail to realize GM/Chrysler could not do what Ford had the foresight to do a few years ago (mortgage the assets to stockpile operating cash) due to the banking fiasco.

My rant for the day, I feel better now .

I have an 02 ram quad cab slt, 360 gas engine, 3.55 rear, 4X4 (and to the earlier poster the 1/2 tons are not solid axle), I bought used with 65,000 miles on it and have had it 4 1/2 yrs. with no problems at all.
This has been one of the best trucks I have ever owned and pulls my 18' champion like its not there.
I constantly pass chevy's and fords (gas or diesel) on hills and this is in overdrive towing.
I will buy another dodge and get the LIFETIME WARRANTY, which other company offers that kind of deal on the powertrain.

I always think of resale when I buy a truck.Dodge resale is horrible. The same truck in Chevy or Ford with same mileage(used)is roughly going to be the same price. Not Dodge. Dodge seems like is always 2k to 5k thousand cheaper. That is for a reason. I am talking loaded 3/4 ton or duallys. But half ton also dodge is by far the cheapest probably because it is a P.O.S. I am a Ford follower just because they simply last the longest hands down. Back in the 90's Chevy could was good but not now. There trucks drive like little lite cars I hate that. I need some resistance in my steering not a loosy goosy steering.

If you want a truck with power get a Dodge with the cummings in it, it is the best towing truck on the road.

i saw a dodge the other day it was a regular cab short bed 2500 with a cummings, i liked the way it looked. i knew that cummings wasent pulling any weight.

wow. put those same trucks with 10K pounds of steel on a gooseneck trailer and try it again....

By no means am I trying to call someone out but, I have owned a bunch of gas and diesel trucks and my experience is that gas powered trucks just don't do it. If they did, I would think they would put them in 18 wheelers. I have even tried building blueprinted, high lift short duration cammed motors to pull with and they still don't compare to diesels. Just my .02 cents worth

Gassers can better utilize gearing because they turn more rpms but who wants to pull anything in 2nd gear? Diesels pull a lot more weight in overdrive, don't downshift nearly as much and get better mileage while doing it.

Got 17,000 miles on a 09 Dodge, best truck ive owned so far. Thats 4 chevys and 1 ford and one dodge in the last 12 years.

It will pull my boat as good as a chiped diesel in any gear except 1st.

is it manual or auto tranny

Stephen Mills boat:

Auto

And the the post above, the Toyota will pull just as well as my dodge, i just found the dodge to be a lot nicer on the inside, it fit my eye better. Also, were talking about a 3,000# boat not a 7,500 horse trailer. Both gas trucks will flat out YANK a 21'boat, ive towed with many dodge and chevy chiped diesel's on the economy setting. As I said above they pull just as good in any gear but fist. The chiped diesel deffinatly is faster/stronger taking off from a dead stop than the dodge/toyota

"in any gear" simply isn't true. Your truck won't pull a 3000lb trailer in OD through the hill country without downshifting ofen. Won't happen. And a 3000lb pontoon is as hard to pull as a 7500lb horse trailer. It's like pulling a freakin parachute. Weight isn't the only consideration.

Yeah well my golf cart pulls a boat at 90 on the Highway my 5 hp motor is the best ever made. What do you have on that??

lol! Must be a Honda.

You are correct about the downshifting, I was refering to the acceleration ability in any gear. However my 5.3L chevrolet stayed in OD when towing, my dodge will only downshit on a steep grade hill when driving 75+ at 70mph it very rarely downshifts.

my 08 gmc 1500 with the tow haul mode ON down shifts to second when pulling up a hill, it pisses me off cuz its at 4000 rpms at 65mph. but after it gets up the hill it goes back to OD. to avoid that i just put it in 3rd with the tow mode off and away i go. in 3rd im about 2200 to 2500 at 65 to 70

Yeah and it leaps tall buildings in a single bound. I'd paint a yellow S on the hood.

I love it when guys on here result to posting like a 2 year old on the TFF. Ignorance isnt bliss, its apparently your way of life.

Thank you for your honesty. That pretty much sums up my experience with ever gasser I've towed with.

5.7 Hemi peak torque - 4000rpms 400ftlbs
Cummins peak torque - 1500 rpms 650ftlbs

This ain't rocket science.

You make stupid claims you get stupid responses.

What do you drive? A honda Civic? do you even own a bass boat?

Heres an idea, why dont you go test drive the new dodge or even toyota, then you wont have to run your mouth because you would know how much of a ignorant idiot you are being. Until then your just pissing in the wind. Cheers to you!

You've been watching too many Hemi commercials. The TVs fried your brain. That or you need a tac so you can tell what gear you're in.

Your so-called experience goes against everybody elses, friend. That 5.3L comment was damn funny btw.

No, the Toyota will pull better than the Dodge:

During our towing exercise, the 2008 Toyota Tundra showed a minor advantage. The 2009 Dodge Ram was equipped with the 5.7L Hemi and the Tundra had its 5.7L i-Force, and both trucks were hitched to a 7,000lb car trailer. The course began with a steep incline, where we were asked to reach and hold 50 mph. While the Tundra was able to complete the task, the Ram struggled. The transmission of the Ram kept the engine RPM at a point where it wasn't pulling strongly, and it wouldn't shift down to another gear, causing the truck to get stuck around 45mph. Once reaching the top of the hill, both trucks made short work of the course through a series of smaller hills as well as a variety of mild turns. Even though the Ram did a fine job through the rest of the course, the struggle up the first big hill gave the Toyota the advantage in the pulling exercise.

http://www.dodgeforum.com/articles/2009/01/the-2009-dodge-ram-1500-vs-the-2008-toyota-tundra.html