3.21 vs 3.92: The Last Word

[Mountain Whiskey]

I didn't know 3.92s were magic either. Does your exhaust pipe spew fairy dust as well? unless it's Black magic!

You didn't know? Where have you been
?

 

[theblet]

You didn't know? Where have you been
?

I’ve been driving around very slowly making exceptional fuel mileage

 

[Ninety-9 SE-L]

FWIW, I'm still waiting for all that disappointment. I moved some of my crap from home to work. IMO, it was smoother and more drama-free than when I pulled a similar load behind a Classic 3.92 Hemi (about a year ago):

I even managed about 20mpg on a short freeway run. This is when I was exiting:

 

[SnowBlaZR2]

"A newer truck with more tech and comfort features felt better than an older truck."

Lol.

You just have to laugh at someone coming from a Frontier talking about not missing the better gears.

 

[Ninety-9 SE-L]

"A newer truck with more tech and comfort features felt better than an older truck."

Lol.

You just have to laugh at someone coming from a Frontier talking about not missing the better gears.

The newer body style probably helps a lot, but I was straight up disappointed with the '20 Classic Hemi. I've towed a LOT with the Frontier. What disappointed me the most about the 4th gen is that it really didn't feel that much better than the Frontier, not to the degree that I was expecting.

The DT is a great truck, in itself, but the EcoDiesel is the cherry on top. I honestly wouldn't think I had anything on the back bumper if I didn't hook it up, myself.

 

[SnowBlaZR2]

The newer body style probably helps a lot

For sure. Having driven them all while I was shopping, I don't think anyone has caught Ram in 2022.

 

[theblet]

FWIW, I'm still waiting for all that disappointment. I moved some of my crap from home to work. IMO, it was smoother and more drama-free than when I pulled a similar load behind a Classic 3.92 Hemi (about a year ago):

I even managed about 20mpg on a short freeway run. This is when I was exiting:

Tastes great, less filling.

 

[SnowBlaZR2]

FWIW, I'm still waiting for all that disappointment. I moved some of my crap from home to work. IMO, it was smoother and more drama-free than when I pulled a similar load behind a Classic 3.92 Hemi (about a year ago):

I even managed about 20mpg on a short freeway run. This is when I was exiting:

Congrats on the truck, btw.

I know we all like to give each other hell for the little differences between our trucks, but always exciting to get a new vehicle that you ordered exactly the way you wanted it.

 

[Ninety-9 SE-L]

Congrats on the truck, btw.

I know we all like to give each other hell for the little differences between our trucks, but always exciting to get a new vehicle that you ordered exactly the way you wanted it.

Thanks. So far it's living up to the hype. It does its job without any fuss.

 

[djevox]

Thanks. So far it's living up to the hype. It does its job without any fuss.

I’m concerned a little about the longevity of the engine and emissions equipment due to the EGR system (and who makes the engine), but I’m not sure if any of my concerns are warranted since a majority of dpf diesels seem to have emissions equipment longevity issues.

 

[theblet]

Thanks. So far it's living up to the hype. It does its job without any fuss.

Awesome. Nice ride!

 

[Ninety-9 SE-L]

I'm telling ya guys, the 3.21 Diesel is able to haul just fine. I'm just glad I didn't get the Sunroof and MFT, I wouldn't want to go over my payload.

 

[djevox]

I'm telling ya guys, the 3.21 Diesel is able to haul just fine. I'm just glad I didn't get the Sunroof and MFT, I wouldn't want to go over my payload.

Glad you made it with that heavy load in the bed- it must’ve been dicey on hills.

 

[Ninety-9 SE-L]

As I passed all the Fords and Chevys on the highway, I could feel the judgement. Luckily, the bike was tied up better than a hooker in a politician's trunk.

 

[Mountain Whiskey]

As I passed all the Fords and Chevys on the highway, I could feel the judgement. Luckily, the bike was tied up better than a hooker in a politician's trunk.

Hooker or call girl?

 

[WXman]

These threads always go sideways. LOL.

On a serious note, I've driven both quite a bit. And I've got a buddy who leases a new Ram every couple of years and he's had both also. And I think we both agree that 3.21s feel very very different. Just got my new truck a few weeks ago with the 3.21s. Moderate acceleration feels like you could pitch a tent and roast some hotdogs. I've seen all the charts with gears matched to ratios and RPMs and all that. But at the end of the day the 3.21s just feel anemic and I haven't even hooked on the enclosed trailer yet. I also find it hard to believe that there's a 2 MPG loss on these trucks with the 3.92. My new 3.21 truck is only averaging 16 MPG. It won't even do window sticker. Sometimes I wonder if the 3.92s wouldn't actually be better around town because the gearing advantage means the accel pedal doesn't get used as hard. Hmm...

Oh well, I'm going to enjoy the truck anyway! But it'll be the last set of 3.21 "airplane gears" as my Dad calls them in my driveway.

 

[StuartV]

These threads always go sideways. LOL.

On a serious note, I've driven both quite a bit. And I've got a buddy who leases a new Ram every couple of years and he's had both also. And I think we both agree that 3.21s feel very very different. Just got my new truck a few weeks ago with the 3.21s. Moderate acceleration feels like you could pitch a tent and roast some hotdogs. I've seen all the charts with gears matched to ratios and RPMs and all that. But at the end of the day the 3.21s just feel anemic and I haven't even hooked on the enclosed trailer yet. I also find it hard to believe that there's a 2 MPG loss on these trucks with the 3.92. My new 3.21 truck is only averaging 16 MPG. It won't even do window sticker. Sometimes I wonder if the 3.92s wouldn't actually be better around town because the gearing advantage means the accel pedal doesn't get used as hard. Hmm...

Oh well, I'm going to enjoy the truck anyway! But it'll be the last set of 3.21 "airplane gears" as my Dad calls them in my driveway.

I had a 4th Gen wit 3.92 and my brother had a 4th Gen with 3.21. Driving them back to back, neither of us could tell a difference. With no load, even the 3.21 has enough power to spin the tires from a dead start, so it's traction that is limiting acceleration off the line, not gearing.

Then I had a '19 Hemi with eTorque. Over 72K miles, I averaged 14.1 MPG. That is all completely hand calculated. If your dash computer is saying 16, it is probably lying. My dash ALWAYS read high.

 

[SnowBlaZR2]

Sometimes I wonder if the 3.92s wouldn't actually be better around town

They are. But, fuel economy savings between either are negligible.

There's really no good reason to order a truck with 3.21s.

 

[c3k]

They are. But, fuel economy savings between either are negligible.

There's really no good reason to order a truck with 3.21s.

Oh, crap! I guess I should return mine?

Of course, even though it'll take me longer to drive it back to the dealership (red-light racing with other drivers), at least I'll feel better leaving it there with more fuel in the tank.

 

[WXman]

I had a 4th Gen wit 3.92 and my brother had a 4th Gen with 3.21. Driving them back to back, neither of us could tell a difference. With no load, even the 3.21 has enough power to spin the tires from a dead start, so it's traction that is limiting acceleration off the line, not gearing.

Then I had a '19 Hemi with eTorque. Over 72K miles, I averaged 14.1 MPG. That is all completely hand calculated. If your dash computer is saying 16, it is probably lying. My dash ALWAYS read high.

Yep my dash is reading 17.5 right now. So realistically 16 to 16.5. My '20 was always reading high also. I wish these trucks had a diagnostic menu accessible on the dash where the MPG display could be calibrated like on the Ford trucks.