2016 Ram 3500 HD Limited: Top of the Line Hauler [First Impression]

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The 2016 Ram 3500 HD Limited is the new top-of-the-line Ram heavy duty truck. Ram invited TFLtruck for a quick test of the entire truck lineup at the Chelsea Proving Grounds in Michigan. They also provided heavy trailers and the opportunity to run around their test oval/closed course. This is not the high-speed oval, but the simulated highway two-lane.

The total weight of the BigTex trailer and the Case loader is pushing 30K at 29,395 lbs. The Case 580SN backhoe loader itself is around 20,000 lbs of equipment. The maximum towing rating for the crew cab Ram 3500 long box dually 4×4 with the 4.10 rear-end is 30,310 lbs. Needless to say, this truck is loaded to the maximum.

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The truck is equipped with rear air suspension, exhaust brake, and tow/haul transmission setting as you would expect. The air suspension allows the operator to level the truck out after loading. In this case it’s carrying about 4,400 of gooseneck tongue weight. The alternate trailer suspension height was enabled for this pictures and my first drive.

I found the truck to ride rougher than what I expected. Letting some air out of the rear suspension settles the truck a little more. The white regular cab truck pictured above was equipped with leaf springs in the back that provided a more compliant ride. The white 3500 HD was towing a slightly heavier load of steel ballast.

This first drive was limited on time. I will need more time with the air suspension equipped truck to evaluate how it performs under heavy load.

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Otherwise, the 3500 HD Limited performed great. The H.O 6.7-liter Cummins I6 had plenty of power for the test loop acceleration to 55 MPH (385 horsepower and 900 lb-ft of torque). The 6-speed Aisin transmission still shifts smoothly. And the engine and exhaust brake still sound just like a big rig. I had no issues with slowing down this big truck and trailer. The brake controller was set to Electric-Over-Hydraulic (EOH) to send the juice to the big 33-foot BigTex gooseneck trailer. The trailer was doing its job to slow down the rig.

The luxurious interior of the Limited can make you forget that you are towing over 29,000 lbs. The truck inspires confidence with towing and has the equipment to slow you down or speed up.

Competitive trucks from Ford or GM were not available during this event.

The real test will be the Ike Gauntlet extreme towing test. We are looking forward to getting a similarly equipped truck to Colorado and pushing it to the limit in the Rocky Mountains.

TFLtruck has a first drive video of this truck coming to you very soon. In the meantime, check out the 2015 Ram 3500 Longhorn towing another heavy load (WWII half-track) up the Ike Gauntlet extreme towing test.