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2500 air suspension vs off road package

KB RAM

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I’m buying a gas 2500 this weekend and I’ve narrowed the search down to 2 trucks. Both have all the options I want including ext/int color but one has off road package and other has auto leveling air rear. I’ll be towing as much as I go off road which is minimal.

My question is, which suspension will offer better ride quality unloaded on the highway?

Thanks!
Kris
 

devildodge

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The best ride with a Heavy Duty is going to be with a load. Unloaded it is really going to be the opinion of the driver.

If you do not need the benefit of the air suspension and do not need what the offroad package offers...the best ride will just be the regular suspension.

A 1500 is designed to ride the best unloaded. A 2500/3500 is designed to ride the best loaded. And once again this becomes an opinion also.
 

riccnick

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I would imagine the air ride would be your best option. Also, blanket statements like 1500's are designed to ride "x" and 2500's are designed to ride "y" are just plain not true. Both trucks are designed to have as comfortable a ride as possible BOTH when loaded and unloaded, given their respective capabilities.

Also, why not go test drive both trucks and see for yourself which one rides the best?
 

devildodge

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I would imagine the air ride would be your best option. Also, blanket statements like 1500's are designed to ride "x" and 2500's are designed to ride "y" are just plain not true. Both trucks are designed to have as comfortable a ride as possible BOTH when loaded and unloaded, given their respective capabilities.

Also, why not go test drive both trucks and see for yourself which one rides the best?

And hence why I said it is an opinion. My 2500 rides like a dream til I hit bumpy roads
Then if I load it up it rides like a dream on bumpy roads. But that is my opinion. Others would say it rides rough all the time.

And why I said on the other forum were he posed the same question...if you can use the air suspension to lower for hooking a trailer and then for leveling the load get it.

If you can use the other goodies of the off road package, like hill descent get it.

Cause you can not get both.

If you don't save some money and just get regular.

It is always fun, these opinion questions. Cause each person has a different thought, usually answered by the truck they got or the one they want.

You know, like 3.92 or 3.21, or elocker vs anti spin, or 26 gal vs 33 gal or etorque vs no assist, V6 vs V8.

The best advice is what @riccnick said. Test drive both and decide. Or decide on what you need.
 

KB RAM

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I would imagine the air ride would be your best option. Also, blanket statements like 1500's are designed to ride "x" and 2500's are designed to ride "y" are just plain not true. Both trucks are designed to have as comfortable a ride as possible BOTH when loaded and unloaded, given their respective capabilities.

Also, why not go test drive both trucks and see for yourself which one rides the best?
I was able to find and drive a gas off road package this past weekend but the closest gas air ride is 600 miles away.
 

KB RAM

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Pulled this off a 2500 press release
Suspension:
Heavy Duty trucks generally have a suspension equipped for constant, heavy payloads. A byproduct of that is a harsher ride when unloaded. To combat that Ram is using Frequency Response Damping (FRD) shocks on all four corners. The valves of an FRD shock automatically adjust for the type of vertical wheel input, allowing the Ram Heavy Duty to have a stiffer suspension feel for handling and a supple suspension feel on rough terrain. Engineers added progressive springs and upgraded bushings to the suspension system, including the exclusive five-link coil design on Ram 2500, providing better load-carrying characteristics and improved articulation over obstacles when compared to a leaf-spring system.
A class-exclusive Active-Level rear air suspension is available on both the Ram 2500 and Ram 3500 and includes some ingenious features. Controlled via an in-cab mounted toggle switch you can put the rear air suspension into bed lowering mode to lower the rear of the truck for easier loading or trailer hookup, normal/payload mode or a trailer-tow mode.
The 2019 Ram 2500 uses two air bags to replace the coil springs. Load capacity is not sacrificed, and the Ram 2500’s best-in-class ride and handling gets even better, crushing the competition with two doses of engineering innovation (five-link coil with an air suspension option).
 

riccnick

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And hence why I said it is an opinion. My 2500 rides like a dream til I hit bumpy roads

Opinions can be wrong... Also, most vehicles ride well until they hit a bumpy road...



Sorry, just busting ya, lol.
My response wasn't to say your experience was wrong, it was to say that both vehicles went through a TON of development to get them to ride as nicely as possible when unloaded, regardless of what they're "made" for.
 

KB RAM

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So I bought a new Ram 2500 Longhorn with rear air suspension on Friday. I was able to test drive 3 trucks with all 3 suspension options and in my opinion the air ride rear is by far the smoothest riding truck of the 3. The trick is and I'm unsure why the dealership can't get this right but the air pressure needs to be adjusted off the transport truck. All 3 trucks were still at the psi used in transport of 88psi upfront and 85psi in the rear. Ram recommends 65psi upfront and 70psi rear cold, this info is found right in the door. Once we adjusted the PSI I drove each on the same 10 mile loop at the same speed and there as an obvious difference in the 3 suspensions, but before we adjusted the PSI I could not tell one from the other, all 3 rode equally rough.
 

devildodge

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Thanks for the realworld feedback.

Looks like my first answer to you was a pretty good guess.

Like I said, these opinion questions are always fun.

Really interesting how tire air pressure makes such a difference. Makes you wonder if maybe the door stickers do know something.

Glad to hear you made the purchase.

Hope it treats you well.

Now for some pics.
 

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