Tahoe or Ram 2500

[Kasper_f76168]

Need some opinions on which vehicle I should build out for Overlanding between these two. Looking at which would give me the most capability and ease of repair/ aftermarket support. Thanks in advanced.

Specs

2013 Tahoe Z71 with about 115,000 miles, 5.3 V8 Tow Package, 6L80 transmission, LSD 3.42 in the rear, 4x4 with full-time, 4-hi and 4 lo. Ready to go.

1997 Ram 2500 Ext Cab Long Bed with about 248,000 miles, tow package, camper package, NP241, 4.10 gearing, Dana 60 front, Dana 70 with LSD rear 8.0L V10 with 47RE Auto. Needs a little work/ TLC.

Side note, if the 8.0L ever dies replacing with a 5.9 12v Cummins and plan on getting rid of the AFM on the 5.3.

 

[MOAK]

There are those that will disagree with me, however, it is always a good conversation. Chevrolets have independant front suspension. The Dodge has a solid front axle. The solid front axle is easier to maintain, it is more dependable, and it is much better off of paved roads. The only downside to a SFA is that the ride is a bit more harsh than an IFS. I run with a guy that has an IFS Chevy with 90,000 miles and it has not yet made it through an annual inspection 3 years in a row, without having to replace bushings and getting realigned. I’m soon recieving my first brand new pick up truck in 37 years with a solid front axle. There is that, and as you mentioned, you could easily swap in a mechanical Cummins when the time comes and the NP241 is nearly indestructable .

 

[grubworm]

ex-wife had a z71 ta-hoe (emphasis on the "hoe" ) nice to travel in and was fairly smooth and all, but i dont think it can compete with a ram. i had a 1999 ram 2500 with the 5.9 cummins that was a company truck in my construction company and it was a BEAST. ordered it with factory lockers and it was nearly impossible to stick and i used it many times pulling heavy equipment out of the muddy swamps down here. extremely reliable and just very well built. i later traded it in on a 2008 f350 with the new 6.4 powerstroke and quickly regretted that. i dont know much about the v10, but i can sure vouch for the cummins if you ever go that route
and yes, i REALLY liked having the sfa. back when i was in the navy, i had an '85 sr5 pickup...the last year toyota offered the sfa and that was an amazing pickup as well.

 

[smritte]

Both vehicles are pretty much worn out. What's your budget for baselining and what mod's are you looking at? Are you capable of doing all the work or are you dependent on a shop?

Solid axle is strong with less parts. Independent is just as good if you build it correctly. Driveline lifespan is based more on how the previous owner treated it then brand. There are certain flaws with all brands that also need to be considered. Anything can be built to your needs.

 

[ThundahBeagle]

There are those that will disagree with me, however, it is always a good conversation. Chevrolets have independant front suspension. The Dodge has a solid front axle. The solid front axle is easier to maintain, it is more dependable, and it is much better off of paved roads. The only downside to a SFA is that the ride is a bit more harsh than an IFS. I run with a guy that has an IFS Chevy with 90,000 miles and it has not yet made it through an annual inspection 3 years in a row, without having to replace bushings and getting realigned. I’m soon recieving my first brand new pick up truck in 37 years with a solid front axle. There is that, and as you mentioned, you could easily swap in a mechanical Cummins when the time comes and the NP241 is nearly indestructable .

Naw. I had no trouble at all passing annual inspection many years in a row in my 93 full size Blazer Silverado 5.7, no trouble in my 94 full size Blazer Silverado 5.7, and both were IFS with torsion bars. Have had no trouble in my 14 GMC Sierra 5.3 and thats IFS as well but with coil-overs. In over 200 thousand miles, never failed inspection for anything related to IFS.

Whoever is having trouble passing annual inspection with a 90,000 mile chevy truck IFS is treating it rough (not judging) without maintenance.

Yes it can take a little more maintenance, though, and there is debate if it is lesser off-road...ask a Toyota Tacoma owner if they hate it.

Having said that, I enjoyed the tar out of my 99 Jeep Grand Cherokee and that was the last of the solid front axle Grands. It was a reasonably comfortable ride, with a sunroof.

It's tough to warrant any vehicle with 250k miles, but it's also time to repair/replace that Tahoe transmission for good measure, so...

How are the frames?

 

[ThundahBeagle]

Another thing to note: you are sort of comparing apples to oranges. Im not a Dodge guy, but clearly a 2500 series will have more hauling and towing capacity and any half ton will have a better ride, even if the half ton Chevy were solid axle.

If badge is meaningless to you, it's all tow, haul, condition and fuel consumption

 

[MazeVX]

Both are nice and capable rigs to start with, the ram will most likely need twice as much work initially than the Tahoe.

I would consider the personal factors here, what are you plan on doing, where do you want to go and how is the climate there?
Tahoe would be my choice, having my stuff inside the cabin is important for me. Better in wet climates and so on.

 

[ThundahBeagle]

Both are nice and capable rigs to start with, the ram will most likely need twice as much work initially than the Tahoe.

I would consider the personal factors here, what are you plan on doing, where do you want to go and how is the climate there?
Tahoe would be my choice, having my stuff inside the cabin is important for me. Better in wet climates and so on.

I'm a GMC/ Chevy guy, and I used to love those full sized big old Blazers, so my first tendency is to gravitate towards a Tahoe. But clearly a Dodge 2500 has more "oomph!" but it's from 1997...that's a lot of tears ago. A much newer Tahoe? Yeah, I could use the lesser age to justify it

Frame condition would really be a huge factor. Rusted out rear frame tails, for example, would be a hard "no" unless you are a fabricator.

And price. You didnt mention pricing for either, did you?

 

[Tundracamper]

You don’t say anything about what kind of overlanding you want to do. It matters. If you are looking to do heavy off roading in mud and perhaps rocky areas, for example, my recommendation would be neither:)

 

[Kasper_f76168]

As far as condition of each.

The Chevy I have had for over a year and have done all maintenance to it that it needed and haven’t had any issues(knock on wood). Was thinking a RTT and build out the back with a kitchen setup.

The Dodge I just acquired and don’t know much about it. Was thinking either get a camper top and build out the bed for sleeping and roll out kitchen, after going through it maintenance wise(Rock Auto is awesome and inexpensive if you can wait, already replaced radiator, thermostat and hoses for a fraction of AutoZone/Advanced’s prices, $200ish vs $700ish)

Both frames look good, no rust or other issues I can see.

As far as off-roading, don’t plan on anything crazy, mostly Forest Service roads and maybe easy trails. If I was going to do crazy I would just get a Wrangler.

Side note, my wife says Tahoe because of comfort, and my daughter says Ram because of capability(Can put on a camper top and build out to sleep in) Btw don’t want to buy another vehicle, want to just stick with what I have, sometimes cheaper to fix then to buy a whole new vehicle, plus I can still do almost all the work on these myself.

Again thanks for all the advise. I appreciate all the honest opinions, sometimes you need the hard truth whether you like it or not, .

 

[ThundahBeagle]

Simple solution. Since you are saving $ on parts and such...build the Tahoe the way your wife wants and build the Dodge Ram out the way your daughter wants, for those times it will just be the two of you.

 

[Outdoordog]

I've not owned either, but have been passenger in both.
I fell in love with the Ram 2500 black edition.
Feel like the Tahoe would be more kid friendly, but ram is just a more robust vehicle.

 

[MidOH]

Ram 2500. The 2500 is a work truck, the Tahoe is a half ton consumer grade disposable vehicle.

There's no way in heck that the front axles unit bearings and ball joints are original, so the axles may be fine.

That mileage may, or may not be a problem. That's only 6 years of use for us. So for a 25+ YO truck, no biggie.

But newer gas F350's are often available.

 

[North American Sojourner]

I'm going to break some hearts here.
I have installed, sold auto parts for a few decades. These are facts.
I've sold more Dodge/Ram parts than any other manufacture. I know some on here have 970,322 miles without a problem but these are facts.
This is the press used to install Dodge ball joints. Good luck getting them out.

Tahoe's, Yukon's, Denali's etc are high end heavely optioned heavy trucks. They eat parts too. Especially hub assemblies and steering parts.
The entire wheel, tire and brake rotor are held on with 3 bolts and .5" of metal. It's like holding a sledge hammer straight out in front of you. LMAO
Skip the digital "climate control" big stereo and rear air conditioning and buy a old Surburban with a 350 motor and put a fuel injection unit on it.
I'm not a Ford guy by any means but they make the best peripheral parts in the industry and the fuel pumps are awesome. I sold 3 in 23 years.
That's all for the today.
Stay tuned for more. LOL
Zim

 

[MidOH]

We just scrap/auction our GM's at 150,000 miles, not fix them.

So yeah, the GM's in our fleet, use way less parts than our other trucks.

The Express 3500 vans are particularly reliable. But I want to cut my wrists every minute I'm driving one. That's how Murphy works. The most reliable truck out there, is pure hell and depression.