Dodge Ram with the 3.7 V-6

T-Mo

T-Mo

501 Club
I have been thinking about getting another truck, to ease the miles on my 2001 V-8 4WD Dakota. I don't have much money to spend on one, but want one with decent miles. I ran across a 2006 Dodge Ram 1500 SLT with 81,000 miles for under $5K. Problem is, it's a 3.7 V-6 with automatic. My question is, how well will it do pulling my 12 foot single axle trailer with my '47 Cub, with wheel weights and fast hitch? I'm sure it will do okay until the first hill it comes across.

I haven't look at the truck yet, but the pictures show a hitch on it, but I'm not sure if it has a tow package on the truck, which will mean the truck is set up better for towing (cooling, axle ratio, etc.).

Anyone have a V-6 Ram that can comment?
 
Im sure the Dodge 1500 will tow a 12 foot trailer and a Cub just fine :!: I have a 06, Dodge 2500 , bit of advice check the headlights hi/lo and all the other lights Mopar has a major issue with the electrics just plain not working and no way to solve the problem, a google search should turn up a lot of post, my 2500 I never use the hi beams cause they tend to just go out hi and low as in no lights at all , I'd like to slap the Mopar engineers for creating a freaking issue :evil:
 
Thanks. I have had no issues with my '01 Dakota with the electrical. The issues I have with it, and other Chrysler products has been power steering leaks, usually the high pressure hose.
 
I know it’s like comparing apples and oranges but we have a gmc Sonoma with a 4.3L V6 and pulling our 12’ trailer with the Cub kills it and that’s with no hills.
 
T-Mo":3g078hdz said:
Thanks. I have had no issues with my '01 Dakota with the electrical. The issues I have with it, and other Chrysler products has been power steering leaks, usually the high pressure hose.
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the electric issues I believe are just 06 -08 , those years have no fuses on the lights the computer will interupt the system if a spike in current is detected, 3 spikes and the computer shuts down the whole circut, trust me it sucks I would not ever buy a Mopar after this long running screw up
 
The 3.7 is listed at 215 hp and 235 ft-lbs of torque. I had a '98 Dakota V-6, which I think was the 3.9 and it didn't like pulling trailers. It was listed at 175 hp and 225 ft-lbs which was at a lower rpm, I believe, on both numbers. Towing capacity for the 2006 Ram with V-6 is 3800 lbs.
 
Had a 2003 F-150 extended cab short bed 2WD with 4.2L V6 and 4spd auto. Do not know what the rear end gear ratio was but I pulled a UHaul 6'x12' Dual Axle beast with a Cub, weights, plow, etc. several times and it handled it fine. Climbed the I-84 East hill on the PA, NY, NJ line in 2nd gear at 45mph.
Also had a 2008 Silverado regular cab long bed 2WD with 4.3 V6 and 4spd auto. 2.73(?) rear end, could barely pull itself. Anytime on the highway the slightest hill would cause it to downshift and scream to maintain speed...with just myself in it. Pulled my 16' trailer with the Cub on it once or twice, what an adventure. Forget about starting on an incline, had to plan my route to avoid that situation.

Find out what the rear end ratio is.

Peter
 
I have had no experience with the Dodge, but my Ranger is a 4.0 automatic rated for a 5600 pound trailer, and does quite well with 5,000+ pounds. Your differential ratio makes a big difference, plus I strongly suggest brakes on the trailer and a good controller in the truck.
 
I went to look at the truck yesterday. For a V-6, it does have some power. Some of that could have been the aftermarket KN air filter.

A few things...cosmetically it needs some work. Has the clearcoat coming off in places on the hood (my '01 Dakota suffers deeply with that). Grille is busted and needs replaced. Inside, the carpet was dirty and the hinges for the cupholder was broken, and a crack or two on the dash, though not bad. A couple of small dings on the sheet metal, plus my wife noticed someone tried to fix a spot on the driver's side (I missed that one). I'm curious on why the cover for the fuse box underneath the hood wasn't there. The guy did replaced the right side outside mirror with a new one (the old, broken one was still in the bed).

Mechanically, it seem solid. Ran good, got down the highway straight without any rattles, shakes, vibrations, etc. Good power to merge with traffic. Brakes stopped the truck real good. Cold air, factory stereo worked (my wife would like that one). Steer good, stop good, ran good.

Bottom line, I have to weigh the minor things wrong with it with the fact it's a low mileage truck, with a great price, and seemingly good mechanicals.

BTW, here is the craig's list ad (it's been for sale for a month, so that is something). https://stlouis.craigslist.org/cto/d/20 ... 33334.html

I'm still on the fence on this one, but good trucks with low mileage at that price are hard to come by in my limited search so far.
 
The cover from the fuse box was missing cause the owner was pulling the hairs out of his head as to why the headlight/tails/wiper blades don't work, my guess in disgust he sent the fuse box cover off into the treeline :mrgreen: ,,,,,,,,,,,,, seriously I'd ask that question and ask about the headlights its a big issue with that year truck , I'm almost bald from it :lol:
 
Jackman":c7p3dsll said:
The cover from the fuse box was missing cause the owner was pulling the hairs out of his head as to why the headlight/tails/wiper blades don't work, my guess in disgust he sent the fuse box cover off into the treeline :mrgreen: ,,,,,,,,,,,,, seriously I'd ask that question and ask about the headlights its a big issue with that year truck , I'm almost bald from it :lol:
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I had your earlier comment in mind when I saw that cover missing. It did make me pause and wonder if that was an issue, or if the previous owner who put on the KN filter also tried to mess with an aftermarket stereo at one point. I doubt if this guy knows anything about the missing cover - he seems to be just wanting to flip it. I had the feeling he was buying and selling vehicles as a side business. That is another negative in my mind about the truck.
 
Does it have the tow package? That is what you wanted. If it doesn't, there is a reason. Also, I'm somewhat out of the loop about newer vehicles but it is becoming obvious that Mopars suffer from tasty wire insulation. There is always a mouse and even Mr. Goss over in Motorweek mentioned this. A great number of off road and seemingly impermeable vehicles have issues with the electrical wiring. For some reason, the insulation was changed to biodegradable compound which mice like to chew.
This is probably old news. It was interesting talking with a friend and he was ready to power spray his Jeep's engine. I muttered "whoa now" and he said; Hell these are made for off road and all kinda water..sure. Except that it had already been in the shop to replace a section of wiring harness the meese ate.
 
After Jackman's comments/advice, and after my own research plus seeing the truck in person, I think I'll pass on this one. The potential electrical gremlins plus the condition of this truck makes me want to shy away from it.

I did find a 2003 Chevrolet Silverado LS 2WD with the 4.8 V-8 with around 86K miles for the same price. I will go look at that one, but an '03 is getting a bit older than I may feel comfortable with. Also, I found a 2006 Silverado, but it has the 4.3 in it and with the above comment from Peter's 2008, I have to wonder about that one. I may be okay with the proper axle ratio, but it may not.
 
T-Mo, we had a 2008 Silverado 4WD with the 4.8 V8 and it was okay for riding around but hook something behind it and it was like a boat with an anchor out, could be gear ratio I don't know but I do know I had trouble selling it because the small V8 and lost money on that deal.
 
I currently have a 2006 Silverado LS 1500 4WD Crew Cab with 4.8 V8 & 4spd Auto with 200,000 miles on it. It has the 3.73 rear end gear ratio. I bought it with 113k on it in Oct 2012.
Just towed a 1997 S10 2wd regular cab long bed on my 16' trailer for 125 miles, mostly interstate. Towhaul mode and put it in 3rd and pulled fine up the long hills of western CT.
Last fall had one (1) cord of green white oak on the trailer, so my total weight was right around 7k trailer & wood. Truck was not happy coming over the mountain in Avon, CT but it did it.
Guy at work had a 2016 Silverado 1500 4WD Double Cab with 5.3 V8 & 6spd Auto with the 3.08 rear end. Couldn't get out of its own way on the highway going uphill!

Gear Ratio has a huge impact on how well a truck tows.
 
The 2003 Silverado with the 4.8 has a RPO code of GT4, which is the 3.73 gear ratio. I didn't ask them to look for the 2006 Silverado with the 4.3 - it had too many miles on it for my liking.
 
T-Mo":12lfe7gn said:
After Jackman's comments/advice, and after my own research plus seeing the truck in person, I think I'll pass on this one. The potential electrical gremlins plus the condition of this truck makes me want to shy away from it.

I did find a 2003 Chevrolet Silverado LS 2WD with the 4.8 V-8 with around 86K miles for the same price. I will go look at that one, but an '03 is getting a bit older than I may feel comfortable with. Also, I found a 2006 Silverado, but it has the 4.3 in it and with the above comment from Peter's 2008, I have to wonder about that one. I may be okay with the proper axle ratio, but it may not.
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Trust me you don't want to go through what I deal with on my Mopar truck it is common issue I found out after the purchase :oops: :evil: ........ Any way I towed a trailer every work day for 25 years (loaded with lawn equipment) had a 3/4 or one ton but my first truck was a 4 speed/six cylinder F-150 and a home owner type rear gear did fine towing only lacked a bit in the braking dept so I bought up to an F-250 , if your heaviest load is a small trailer with a Cub I think you be fine with any1/2 to reguardless of the gear ratio :idea: :tractor:
 
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