Used 2016 Ram 2500 Tradesman Power Wagon 4dr Crew Cab 4WD SB (6.4L 8cyl 6A) Consumer Reviews
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Former Ford fanboy says... WELL DONE RAM!
Slick, Tempe, AZ, 08/17/2016
Ram 2500 Tradesman Power Wagon 4dr Crew Cab 4WD SB (6.4L 8cyl 6A)
19 of 19 people found this review helpful
I was looking to replace my 2k Super Duty V10 4x4 supercab with a crew cab to give the dog more room, and fewer repair projects for me. After getting frustrated with the local Ford dealers, started looking at Ram. Spoke with several neighbors and co-workers who had made the switch from Ford to Ram & were extremely happy with the reliability & value of the Ram. I had an extremely pleasant buying experience. I did not want (to pay for) a loaded model. I was able to find pretty much exactly what I wanted. I bought a '16 2500 Heavy Duty crew cab short bed 4x4 with the 6.4L gasser & 4.10 gears in the Tradesman trim level (not a Power Wagon). It's optioned almost to the SLT level with the chrome appearance package, preferred equipment package, UConnect 5.0, 4.10 gears, anti-spin differencial, shift-on-the-fly 4x4, park sense/park view, power trailer tow mirrors, and LED bed lights. The ride is nice, albeit a bit stiff... but that's mainly a function of running 80 psi in the tires. I'm amazed at how quiet the cabin is. Being a base model, there are plenty of hard plastics in the cabin... but so far (fingers crossed), no squeaks or rattles... & it seems well put-together. I wish it had a telescoping steering wheel, and the brake pedal sits a bit high for my foot. I'll get used to it tho. The seats seem quite comfortable... even the back seats. The cylinder deactivation is imperceptible, tho at low speed/rpm, it will chug a little, on occasion. The shift points (of the transmission) seem a bit off, even with the 4.10s, but all work smoothly. It just seems like it's easy to catch the transmission off-guard pretty regularly... a common occurrence in newer cars/trucks with 6-10 cogs in the trans... it's tuned for mileage. I'm getting around 11-13 mpg in town & 17-18 mpg on the highway. No complaints there. I'm still in the break-in phase, so no towing yet. Overall, I'm a happy camper!
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major software issue, death truck, lots of recalls
Uncle Jessie, Flat Rock, NC, 01/04/2017
updated 04/18/2022
Ram 2500 Tradesman Power Wagon 4dr Crew Cab 4WD SB (6.4L 8cyl 6A)
16 of 19 people found this review helpful
Transmission went out at 5300 miles. Would have killed us if we'd been on the interstate. Luckily, it died near the house and reverse still worked enough to get us home. Truck just stopped, transmission by-passed Drive and went to 'Tow' mode and got stuck in 4th gear, unable to move forward. I had it towed to a more reputable Dodge dealer than our local one so Ddoge charged me for the towing extra mileage. Update: the part for the transmission (solenoid) was replaced with the same faulty one. Since then I have had it replaced with a newer version and at 14k miles all has been OK although the truck is more sluggish and not as quick as before, towing suffers too. Another recall came about- the truck may jump out of PARK. I got that one taken care of under warranty. Another recall just came out about the tailgate latch coming loose. So far it's been a typical 'Dodge' as far as initial quality (there is none). When I took it in for multiple recalls they 'fixed' the tailgate issue but broke the latching mechanism and didn't bother to tell me. Found out later when I got home and tried to shut the tailgate. It gets decent fuel economy considering the beefy engine, it's very comfortable and roomy and it tows great but when I took it in one time for stopping dead in its tracks the service person asked it I'd been towing a lot with it so I wonder it towing is a concern for the stalling? I see no relation with my towing and transmission issues. Update: got another recall about a steering bolt being the wrong type that may come loose and lose control of steering. I believe this is the fourth different recall. Pep and pick-up not what it was before the tranny issue and gas mileage suffering these days. We drive it a lot for family outings though because it is so comfortable and the kids/grandkids love the space and ride quality. Even with all the issues we love the power, ride, towing, etc. Just not a dependable truck. Having been a Dodge/Ram owner for decades, I'm used to the quality being a little sub-par to be honest but buying a brand new truck and paying what you have to pay these days - you should get a better quality vehicle for the price. Update 4/13/2021 - left the family dead on the side of the interstate three days ago; transmission? computer ghosting? No one knows. Shook violently like before; less than 5 years old and less than 38k miles. Had to have it towed to a trusted mechanic, sat for a couple of days and ran 'fine'. Read the forums and many of these trucks have the same issues. No check engine or code to look into just shuts off and/or violently jerks all over. A true danger. Update - Took the truck to a local Dodge dealer to fix all the recalls, one of which was for a software upgrade that was supposed to stop the transmission/sudden death stops issue and after a few thousand miles after the upgrade it has had no issues and actually runs much better. Update 4/16/2022 - died at an intersection, managed to coast through and limp to a parking lot. Let it sit for a few minutes and decided to head home 1.5 hours away. Got on the highway and made it about half way home when it violently started jerking on the highway. Pulled over, start/stopped until we limped it into a gas station. Took the negative off the battery and let it sit - we heard this might work and it did. After about 5 minutes I hooked the battery back up and it drove normal all the way home which tells me its a 'software issue', computer's software is failing and telling the truck to do things it should not. Next day, drove it to run errands to see if it would go OK and it did. Again, asked everybody who I know who works on trucks and they all have the same answer - it's a typical Dodge product, expect problems and as a life long Dodge truck owner I do but this is ridiculous and fixable. Someone is going to die, we've just been lucky so far but I'm not willing to kill my family or others so I'm getting rid of it as soon as I can. 45,000 miles and nothing but an unreliable death truck. Dodge has no inclination to fix these issues until people die and they get sued. Note: this is not a Power Wagon but a 2500 with the 6.4L V8 which was not an option to choose from.
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2016 Ram 2500 for sale near you
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- Laramie Diesel Crew CabMSRP: $42,97425 mi away
- Tradesman Diesel Crew CabMSRP: N/A191 mi away
- Laramie Diesel Crew CabMSRP: $46,753In-stock online
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RAM 2500 a Grand Slam
John, Four Oaks, NC, 02/22/2017
Ram 2500 Tradesman Power Wagon 4dr Crew Cab 4WD SB (6.4L 8cyl 6A)
5 of 6 people found this review helpful
My 2016 RAM 2500 Diesel has been great. MPG is about 19 around town. No issues what so ever. It is a Beast! It is a big truck and I've had to adjust to the size, but I bought it to tow and haul and it does that well. Time will tell, but so far, so good.
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Acceptable Oil Consuption
Joe Layman, Glenpool, OK, 10/18/2016
Ram 2500 Tradesman Power Wagon 4dr Crew Cab 4WD SB (6.4L 8cyl 6A)
3 of 5 people found this review helpful
Dodge Ram 2500 6.4 engine - At 1,000 miles, I notice that the oil was about 1/2 a quart low, checked again at 2,000 miles - full 1 quart low. I put a quart of 0-40w synthetic oil. Again at 3,000 miles - 1/2 quate low and at 4,000 mile had to add another quart. Dealers tell you the recommended oil change interval is 6000 miles between oil changes however, they do not tell you about oil consumption (based on Ram's "Acceptable Oil Consumption" maintenance notification - one quarter every 2,000 miles at over $10.00 per quart is within their accepable level). That only applies if you have less that 50,000 miles, after that, it's one quated for every 750miles. Love the truck - hate the oil consumption. Buyer beware - ask about any Dodge or Ram models there maintenance flier regarding "ACCEPTABLE Oil Consumption" - its the same.
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