Great video and very enlightening. The 6.4 Hemi & new 8-speed transmission did not perform as well as I had expected. I think a lot of people would enjoy another run with the 4.10 gears. Thanks for this excellent "real-world testing" video.

Mr truck looks like he’s lost some weight. Keep it up brother!

Remember when a 454ci only put out 230 horse power and was mated to a 4 speed. How did we ever manage? I’d rock that 6.4 in a heart beat.

0:20 watch those hands buddy. Even while he was driving Roman's hands were waving. Someone been watching too much of Scotty's channel lol

Looks like Kent has lost some weight! Good for him!

Finally a TFL signature video please do more of these

Been waiting for this tow test!!! Thanks for the upload André and Mr. Truck!!!

Wow Ken lost some weight , good job

If I'm towing more than 10k up and down steep hills in the mountains on a regular basis I'm just buying a diesel and being done with it.

I keep my Ram 1500 with 5.7 and 3.92s in manual shift mode the entire time when I'm pulling my 32' camper and it does really well up and downhill

people say this would have done better with a different rear end but if that’s the case then maybe Ram should not have rated it for that much towing in this exact configuration.

I swear you guys have the best job on earth. Drive cool new cars & truck through the most beautiful parts of the country? Pretty sweet!! 😍👌

Thank you Mr. Truck for joining TFL once again.

Love the classic Ike gauntlet intro music!!!!

Always go with a 4.10 gear ratio when having to haul/ pull heavy loads . I have two Chevy's one with the 3.73 and the other with the 4.10 the 4.10 will walk off and leave the 3.73.

As one of the guys said below it would be great to see you guys do a video with a 1990s or 2000s model trucks till now and the differences between then and now!! I would love to see the data!! 💯👍

This truck is on Craigslist now. Gently used, not even broke in, never above 40 mph... HOLY CRAP that Hemi is screaming. I'd have a flak jacket on in the front seat.

You are getting more sophisticated with your videos. You are not just presenting linearly: you are breaking things up, presenting pertinent information when it is necessary, varying the "pace" of the information. Very nice.

As always, great test and video gentlemen. Especially for those of us living in the Mountain West. These tests provide a more realistic towing capacity for trucks in my area.

If you're going to tow something like that the 4.10 gears would be a must for me. I don't foresee myself towing that much so a 3.73 would probably be good for me personally. Great test!

The title says it all, and the Dodge was pulling almost 2,000 pounds less than the Ford and the Chevrolet. It certainly would have done better with a 4.10 but it had almost a ton weight advantage over the other 2 trucks. Just saying!

I really appreciate your loaded tests. Brochure specs can always be impressive, but the real test is in the mountains. This is the time when ALL the components under the hood must work together to deliver the results. I urge to push this test even harder, HARDER! . . . Maybe do the gauntlet twice? Back-to-Back to test the endurance! (some people will hate you for doing this because you might overheat something or break something, and this could be embarassing.) You are the ONLY tester in the WORLD, and I mean you are the only authority, who is in the position to wring out the "No Question" Best of the Best.

Uphill towing seems like that transmission was hunting around some. I think Ram might want to consider a recalibration, or maybe that truck just needed to be driven more for "learning".

Really like these Ike tests! I’m a Mopar guy, love my Rams! Air suspension rules, but you needed the 4.10 for this heavy load. High anticipation for the 2021 redesign - larger updated interior, improved tech, and did you say a 7.0 gas hemi??? Where’s my checkbook!!!

So glad to see the Hemi 6.4 on the Ike Gauntlet test! It did about as good as I thought it would as I have pretty much the same truck. I have found that you need to run Premium fuel in the Hemi at high altitudes (8,000+) and the engine braking is definitely lacking at those speeds. I use the manual gear limiting all the time, that's what it's for! Anyway, good job TFL!

As someone who owns this truck with the exact same setup I can say the transmission needs tuned differently. I have just completed around 2000 miles of towing a 10,000 lb travel trailer going up and down even steeper grades albeit not as long and many times the transmission was slow to react. I never felt like I didn't have enough power and really feel the 4:10 would make a massive difference. Yukon just released the 4:30 gears and that is what I will be getting next month for my truck

FINALLY!! Thanks for making this video happen!

Glad to see you guys finally got your hands on the new Ram HD. Others have noted already but is the Gen-y hitch installed correctly? It looked upside down compared to the other ones they have. Edit: I didnt see that it was the low profile one they have so it's supposed to be turned that way.

Mr. Truck sounds like Tommy Lee Jones.

Agreed on the comments about varying trailer. Although the weight of this one is lower, it is 102" (or damn close to it) wide. The other horse trailer was the standard horse trailer width, in the 70-80" range. I have seen from personal experience this makes a decent difference in wind resistance, which impacts pulling and fuel mileage.

Love yalls content! Keep trucking boys.

Looking fit and happy Mr. Kent, keep it up👍🏻 Always enjoy the content guys, especially the work trucks!

These are great. I would love to see these guy take a 90s or 2000 gas hd up with its max weight and get a comparison from then to now.

I think your downhill procedure is very fair and shows up weaknesses in the trucks programming. That being said I’d really like to know what a truck is truly capable of. For example if shifting manually means 2 or 3 brake applications vs 14 that would be great information to have.

Great review guys. Happy to finally see this test on the 2020 6.4.

Woohoo! Been waiting for an Ike Gauntlet video! And another video with Mr Truck!

Important information not mentioned. RAM trucks lists this particular truck, Ram 2500 6.4L 4x4 crew cab, as having a GCWR of 21,500 lbs. That means the total weight of the truck, trailer, occupants and cargo can not be more than 21,500 lbs. With a listed curb weight of 6785 and trailer of 14,300 your GCW is already 21,085. That leaves 415 lbs for people and stuff. That means... A) the two testers have maxed out the total allowable weight, probably exceeding it. B) you're not adding people, pets or cargo in the back seats. C) when maximum weights are involved, occupants and cargo are sacrificed. So do your research.

Think I'll stick to my Cummins. No drama going down or up the steep grades.

It’s good to see Mr. Truck in a video again, it’s been a while!

Beautiful sight seeing Mr. Tow & Mr. Truck back together again on the Ike!

Thank you TFL for producing these great videos! Truck lovers and most trailer owners love to watch your analysis of all brands of pickups! I agree with the hordes of Mr Trucks fans that he is becoming a “stud” with that reduction in weight! Based on some of these comments that are “bashing” this truck’s ability to maintain speed up the I-70 gauntlet from Dillon to the Tunnel, I would like to add another perspective on why these tests do not reflect how most of us drive, but the tests stay true to max out the truck towing at max weights both up and down the mountain. My experience is probably more indicative of how folks towing with gas engines handle long climbs and descents. I have towed a 26 ft Airstream over the mountains out West based on my known truck’s abilities. Two years ago, my ‘09 F150 with 4.6L required a 35MPH - 45MPH up most of the mountain passes. Drawback on the transmission was I could only access 1 - 3 gears. 4-6 were lumped under “D”. Last month our ‘19 F250 gas, 4x2 went over Monarch Pass at 11,300 feet and we loved the manual option on the transmission. We stayed in a gear that would keep the RPM’s under 4,000 and did not care about our speed going up or down the mountain (downhill rarely used the brakes). Speeds were similar to the F150, but the new HD truck felt more comfortable. Truck lanes were used periodically. Three questions: 1. what percentage of time are you towing in those extreme mountain climbs and descents? If you spend a lot of time towing and in the mountains, then a diesel is a great investment in making the towing experience much easier. I spend less than 1% of my towing miles in the mountains, and am perfectly fine with slowing down and enjoying the scenery. 2. For TFL - I believe the RAM’s information screen provided temperatures for oil, coolant and transmission fluids on one screen? My F250 only provides transmission temperature? It seems obvious that in Heavy Duty pickup that may see a lot of heavy towing, that ALL OEM’s should provide these three temperatures for operating fluids? Have you asked the other OEM’s why they cannot provide sensors in these fluid for us to monitor during rigorous use of our trucks? 3. For TFL - when will you test the Tundra Extra cab at it’s max tow weight? Reason I ask is that on Airstream Forums, folks new to Airstream regularly ask which tow vehicle is best for a given length Airstream I am planning to purchase. Many responders jump into the discussion by informing all of us that they tow up to 30 foot Airstreams all over the country including the Mountains out West. They tout the million mile tundra’s that are reliable, durable and obviously cost effective! However, they rarely discuss the truck’s ability to tow the max weight and maintain manufacturer’s specs for payload (most Tundra’s have 1400 lbs or less payload), Gross combined vehicle weight, rear axles, etc. When I emailed TFL, about testing Tundras you mentioned that they had not changed since your last test many years ago. Plus, TFL could address the safety issues for any tow vehicle, when towing over payload, and the other specs and the impact of Tundra’s brakes on safe travel? Questionable OEM claims on half ton pickups - During last month’s 5,000 mile towing journey, I met a fellow traveler at KOA in Albuquerque, who was new to towing, who provided his rationale for purchasing his half ton pickup. This is what he said; “the salesman said it would tow over 12,000 pounds”! He had a 22 foot Coleman since his wife was willing to finally go camping. As so often happens, he informed me that after spending two weeks with a Murphy bed, his wife wanted a longer trailer with a permanent bed! What a challenge for a half ton pickup to continually support this desire for more living space in a longer trailer!

When is the 4.10 rear end video coming out? Very interested to see it performs towing 16k! 😎

Great video, I enjoyed it.

Wow Awesome keep on the good work guys!

I see negative comments on here about everything. First, I’m not brand loyal! These guys are trying to push the limits, ‘put the hammer down they say’! Come on, yes we all what to get to the top faster or what ever. But think about it, manufacturers rate the truck for safe, dependable, towing. All trucks are rated for what they can tow without overheating, without breaking, making it to your destination with no problems and for long life. Now a personal point, I will buy any truck, but for me as of now I’d buy the Ram. I don’t need to ‘hold’ a certain speed, I can do 35 mph vs 40, I don’t need to get to the top faster, yes this truck maybe struggled a little, but it made it to the top without overheating etc. And at the end of the video, if your using this truck in the mountains like they pushed it, you should get the 4:10 rear end vs the 3:73, just like they said. Also, it don’t matter WHAT truck you buy, if you tow at maximum tow rating your nuts for trying pushing a vehicle this hard all the time. Now, I can hardly wait for all the Ford, Chevy, and Ram guys coming back here and saying, ‘l do it all the time with my _________’ (name your vehicle)

The Ford's 4.3 rear end supports Ken's suggestion that the Ram with a 4.1 rear end would be a better match for the hemi with this type of usage and load.

As always, the standard setter for truck reviews.

NEW SUBSCRIBER! nice review, i have got to start looking for a truck soon

Honestly I think a recalibration of the tow/haul programming to be more aggressive would make a world of difference. I seems like the transmission up shifted several times dropping the rpms to 3kish and struggling, when it was accelerating at 4kish.

Would love to see the same test with a 4.10 rear.

Thanks for showing the temps!

Have not heard Center High Mount Stop Light in a long time. Luv ya tfl

so i have a 2019 power wagon, essentially the same drive line as this truck, and there is surprisingly little engine braking available. you have to manually lock out higher gears to get any level of engine braking at all with trailers. ram or zf really needs to address this in the programming of the vehicle.

Anyone else notice that the GEN-Y hitch seemed to be fully compressed everytime they showed it. How is it gonna work to soften the bumps (trailer to vehicle) if it is always fully compressed? Even when they were showing it not hooked up, it looked fully compressed.

Great review on a great truck and fantastic trailer 🍻

I think I saw Forrest Gump run past you on the way up....

for what the truck is, i think it handled itself well. it was the smallest engine of the big 3, 6.4 vs 6.6 and 7.3. came in second time wise, but it was only pulling 14,300 compared to the others 16,000. i think the thing thats needed most is the engine/transmission holding its speed, 14 break applications came in last vs the others but once thats corrected i think it can only get better.

From what i can remember the Ford and the Gm were pulling 17000 lbs compare to 14300 in this run you can’t compare directly.

As always, Ike Gauntlet w Mr Truck and Andre are spot on. I’m thinking about a heavy duty and gas engine. I don’t need tow capacity of a diesel. RAM especially in these specs looks awesome. Price wise is right. I’m not racing up the gauntlet either. I guess my 2 looks is this RAM and the Ford. I think the RAM wins since I’ll be mostly taking view from the drivers seat. Gentlemen, real deal and real world tests. Thanks for your input, it really does help when your debating brand and a TON of change to put down! TFL and Mr. Truck, your tests and opinions are much appreciated

Andres look at Kent lmao in first 20 seconds. Seems Mr truck was not having a fun day. Great video guys keep up the WORK

What a terrible towing experience that would be

I had the 6.4L Hemi. It loves to run in the 4000-5200 rpm range for towing. I loved it with the 6 speed. I could tow anything I ever wanted to

Lmfaooo mr.Truck got so started in the beggining 😂😂😂

I always wondered about the 6.4. I'm really glad I bought the Cummins. The Cummins has about double the torque compared to the Hemi. The Cummins pulls like a dream. I pull a 9600 lbs 5th wheel. It never drops below 60 mph and stays in 5th gear @ 2000 rpm more or less on steep grades. Going downhill I never need brakes unless it's you cum up on sharp curves. It sometimes shifts to third gear on curvy hill and goes up to 2800 rpm and really slows down with compression brake on. Thanks for the video as it demonstrates the superiority of the diesel when towing.

I know you guys are running competitions but it would be nice to see what the trucks can do when you use everything the truck has to offer. Like gear limiters going down hill and controlling the gas pedal to get the most out of the uphill climb. Maybe you could do two test. One where the truck computer does the work and the other where the driver actually controls the truck to the best of their skill.

I like how they did the ford in wintertime and the dodge in summertime

LOVE that trailer!!!! I'm building the same concept!!!🤘

You guys are the best!

That engine sounded like it was strugggggling

Seems like the engine is plenty powerful, just waiting for the transmission to downshift.

really enjoy these videos. Andre and Mr Truck fail to mention the adaptive feature on this trans. It is a new truck, probably less than 5k miles on the clock

Great review. Definitely want to see a repeat if you get Ram to send a 4.10!

I tip my hat for not blowing that thing up 😂😂😂

Would love to see the 4.10 truck run. I had one (6.4L/4.10) and it was rated for 3000# more max towing than a 3.73 truck.

Love the OWL Firestones. I'd really like some on my 1500.

I love Kent and Andre, good rapport and some good chuckles along the way. Grandpa slang and a Russian accent for the win!!!

With so many brake applications, did you reach out to Ram about the number of brake applications and and maybe getting a reprogram on that transmission? At the same time, I would be manually shifting anyway which I think most people do anyway🤷‍♂️ That trailer is simply awesome👌

Proof positive that you want a cummins for towing!!!

My 2016 1500 has the same problem of not down shifting if left in auto. Manually down shifting drastically helps in the mountains.

I hope the new 8 speed is an huge improvement in reliability over the POS 66RFE that's in my '15 Ram 2500. Mine needed the valve body replaced at 32,000 miles and had the transmission pan replaced a few weeks ago because it rusted through at 65,500 miles. Now it's making a bunch of different noises as I drive. I have the lifetime powertrain warranty....I hope it blows completely up so I can get complete new trans. I do have the 6.4L with 4:10 gears, it tows and plows great, never a lack in performance. The reliability is a different story.

I'm a ram guy, I thought it performed decent except downhill untill I found out it had 2k less on the trailer then the other brands.... wtf ram who sends a 373 gear truck to a ike??? And ram it's time to work on that down hill engine breaking

Yes, another run with the 4.10 gears would help it out. I say you guys do another standard run up and down. After that, I say do another run but manually shifting the transmission. Do it for all the makes. Because honestly, most drivers want control of their rigs in tense situations like this. I think its clear the transmission tune is not aggressive.

"I think it is of a sexy beast variety" is an iconic quote

Miss you two !

Would love to see runs down the mountain with cruise set at 60 and see what the trucks do to attempt to maintain speed. With all the programming for fuel efficiency I think they want the trucks to coast as much as possible unless you tell the truck what you’re trying to do (cruise control) or manual shifting

Great test as always, and love your stuff, but as several people have pointed out before each truck uses different tech and should be used accordingly. Without applying the cruise control on a Ram while in tow mode it does not actually slow the truck down while going down hill. If you set the cruise control it will automatically downshift and apply breaking as necessary. If you don't want to use the cruise, you * have * to use the manual settings to control it, otherwise the truck assumes you are not trying to control the speed in any way. That is how the truck is setup to work, but if they are used it works very well. =)

I would really like to see you use all your driving knowledge on a 3/4 or 1 ton gas trucks on the ike gauntlet run. I can appreciate wanting to even out the playing field by letting the truck do it's thing but I think manually downshifting would allow us to see real world uphill and downhill capabilities of these gas engine trucks. They will not come close to the diesel engine option when getting close to their towing and payload limits but most owners try to abide by the safer loads of not more than 80% of towing and payload limits. Thanks

Just bought this exact truck but with the Cummins. Waiting for it to arrive!

Always been a Chevy guy until recently I traded in my Silverado for a ram 2500 mega cab with the 6.4 hemi and I don’t know why I didn’t make the switch much sooner. Love it! Way better truck. It makes my Silverado look like a baby truck lol

Needs the 4.10 gears plain and simple. Huge difference in performance

Get ahold of the 2022 2500 with the 4.10 rear end with the air ride and THEN see what it does and rates. Can't wait. Nice job guys.

I’m buying me a 2018 LongHorn 3/4 ton Ram with the 6.4 HEMI. For me, it more than fits what I want, it can pull what I need, and can cruise nicely. I’m looking forward to this Ram

You guys do a great job as always !! You need to start testing big rigs !! Can I bring our peterbilt out there 😜😜

This video should help Cummins sales

When they gave the advice to manually shift when pulling in mountains they’re giving solid advice. I have a truck that is almost identical and you definitely want to do manual shift.

I’m willing to bet if it had the 4.30 rear diff it would have done better , but as always good job guys I love your content

Glad I went with the Ford 7.3L after seeing this review. Coming from a ram, I'm all to familiar with having to put the transmission in manual mode to make it shift properly while towing. I was hoping the new 8 speed would have resolved this, guess not. Ford is the one to beat now.

That seemed very sketchy going up the Ike 🤦‍♂️

Say, isn't that the same music 'Off The Ranch' uses for his opening title? Damn royalty free