New to Ram - Big Horn or Laramie?

[ClancyO]

I’ll chime in. Had a 19 bighorn level 2. Now a 20 Laramie level 1, but with a bunch of packages (see sig). I loved the bighorn. Only regret on the bh was tow gears (I needed the 3.92), and it didn’t have the led package. The Laramie has everything I wanted and nothing I didn’t EXCEPT for the 33 gallon tank. And yet I towed 10,000 lbs 2400 miles with a 26 gallon tank. It wasn’t fun, I was constantly checking to make sure I was within range of my next stop, but it worked and towed like a boss. (I know you’re not looking to tow, but someone else reading this might). Anyway, I can retrofit a 33 gallon tank if I find I need it, but I’m pretty sure that ship has sailed and 26 will be fine.

Proxy key/passive entry is a big deal. That can be retrofitted to the bighorn if you’re handy and want it. Ventilated seats are awesome, especially now that I live in a desert! Those 2 things are for me the biggest difference. And again, I loved the bighorn. It was all I NEEDED. The Laramie is the first vehicle I’ve ever bought that had everything I WANTED. And there are so many little things, (some admittedly could be package related). Reclining rear seats. Rain sensing wipers. Rear armrest. Front cubbies and glove box a mouse fur lined. Ambient lights. Suede inserts, pano black trim. The difference is quite astounding when you consider this is just the Laramie - the Longhorns and limiteds are surely even more plush!

Bottom line - you can’t really go wrong. The bighorn is not a concession - it’s nicer than the competition at the same level. But if you can score a deal on the Laramie, do it!

 

[Sushiyummy]

2019 Bighorn Sport.

2021 Bighorn, built Nov 2020, Level 2, Premium Lighting Package, Bed Utility, Luxury Bucked seat Brown (Love it)

 

[eTorqueCoasting]

Big Horn 4x4 Crew 6'4" box... that is a big beast my friend

Yes it is

 

[cervelo15]

I had an ‘18 Laramie in Delmonico Red and a sh*t ton of chrome. The day I drove off with it I thought it was the most beautiful truck. The day I traded it in I hated every bit of chrome on that truck.



For the options I had on it, by the time I parted with it I felt most of the options I didn’t use or they didn’t work right anyways. For example, loved the auto hi/lo headlight beam switch, but it stopped working. Could have been the Ezpass transponder blocking the sensor. The cooled seats in summer were nice, but were loud at times when stopped at a light. Hated the faux wood trim. Was a bear driving in the city because of the 3.21 rear end. The bright side was the Alpine stereo system. Crisp and loud with a nice subwoofer to boot.

Funniest thing i discovered 2 days before trading it in how to reset the display themes on the Uconnect screen. Wish I would have known that sooner.

I have a ‘21 Bighorn Night Edition now and I love it. Especially because it’s my truck and with the help of this forum, I’m going to make it standout the way I want to. Plus the sunglass holder in the overhead console is a godsend! Never had one of those..

 

[Mountain Whiskey]

I had an ‘18 Laramie in Delmonico Red and a sh*t ton of chrome. The day I drove off with it I thought it was the most beautiful truck. The day I traded it in I hated every bit of chrome on that truck.

View attachment 85222
View attachment 85223
For the options I had on it, by the time I parted with it I felt most of the options I didn’t use or they didn’t work right anyways. For example, loved the auto hi/lo headlight beam switch, but it stopped working. Could have been the Ezpass transponder blocking the sensor. The cooled seats in summer were nice, but were loud at times when stopped at a light. Hated the faux wood trim. Was a bear driving in the city because of the 3.21 rear end. The bright side was the Alpine stereo system. Crisp and loud with a nice subwoofer to boot.

Funniest thing i discovered 2 days before trading it in how to reset the display themes on the Uconnect screen. Wish I would have known that sooner.

I have a ‘21 Bighorn Night Edition now and I love it. Especially because it’s my truck and with the help of this forum, I’m going to make it standout the way I want to. Plus the sunglass holder in the overhead console is a godsend! Never had one of those..

What made the 3.21 gears hard to drive in the city?

I do a mix of driving. Going to work is about 50 miles one way for me. Majority is highway but it is a short jaunt through the city to get to my building. I am ready to order a truck but am torn between 3.21 and 3.92 rears. Wish I could get the 3.55 but noooo, that is special....

 

[jdmartin]

What made the 3.21 gears hard to drive in the city?

I do a mix of driving. Going to work is about 50 miles one way for me. Majority is highway but it is a short jaunt through the city to get to my building. I am ready to order a truck but am torn between 3.21 and 3.92 rears. Wish I could get the 3.55 but noooo, that is special....

I have the 3.21s and the highway cruising is just amazing. I cruise on the flat spots (not many of them here in the mountains) at 1.5k RPM at 70 MPH or so. I think I have to get close to 80 before I hit 2k RPMs. I have hauled a lot of stuff in this truck and I've never found that gear combo wanting for anything - truck is as fast and powerful as I need it to be.

 

[rbundy84]

I have the 3.21s and the highway cruising is just amazing. I cruise on the flat spots (not many of them here in the mountains) at 1.5k RPM at 70 MPH or so. I think I have to get close to 80 before I hit 2k RPMs. I have hauled a lot of stuff in this truck and I've never found that gear combo wanting for anything - truck is as fast and powerful as I need it to be.

Any issues with city driving with the 3.21? This is the first I’ve heard of this having issues during city driving

 

[cervelo15]

What made the 3.21 gears hard to drive in the city?

I do a mix of driving. Going to work is about 50 miles one way for me. Majority is highway but it is a short jaunt through the city to get to my building. I am ready to order a truck but am torn between 3.21 and 3.92 rears. Wish I could get the 3.55 but noooo, that is special....

So by all means this is no way a technical response backed by any engineering. But I have a 3.92 now in my Bighorn, and the driving experience vs the 3.21 I had in my Laramie is it feels much smoother, better/smoother acceleration, and charges up hills. It’s enough for me to notice a difference that my truck now I feel is faster and more efficient than the one I had.

When I had my 3.21 in my Laramie, driving in the city it felt like it shifted too early to a higher gear during the stop and go and then would bog down (If that makes any sense). I was constantly using the +/- shift limiter to keep the truck from shifting to a higher gear and ‘dogging’ down.

I just had the chance to drive my new truck in the city a week ago and the same route I normally took, I felt the 3.92 behaved better and I didn’t have to touch the shift limiter on my steering wheel.

Maybe it’s more the transmission shift points than it is the rear end, or maybe the perception my new truck ‘feels’ better when driving in the city. But it’s definitely a good different.

I have my first longer road trip this weekend to Delaware and there is a lot of wide open highway driving, so I’m psyched to see how it behaves on the highway. My new truck hasn’t been out of the valley since I got it.

Heres a nice post explains the difference between 3.21 and 3.92:

Thread 'An engineer's Ultimate Guide to 3.21 vs 3.92 axle ratio'
https://5thgenrams.com/community/th...imate-guide-to-3-21-vs-3-92-axle-ratio.16986/

 

[Scram1500]

I enjoy the extra zip from the 3.92, but it really shines when you ditch the OEM tires for something bigger. I also find for me that low speed and engine braking performance outweighs the 80 mph low rpm benefits. I can still drive at 80 but the 3.21 can't idle along at 1 mph in 4 Lo

 

[cervelo15]

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I enjoy the extra zip from the 3.92, but it really shines when you ditch the OEM tires for something bigger. I also find for me that low speed and engine braking performance outweighs the 80 mph low rpm benefits. I can still drive at 80 but the 3.21 can't idle along at 1 mph in 4 Lo

And thats the direction I am heading, putting a level on it and increasing the tire size. It's funny, I would never have cared about the battle between 3.21 vs 3.92 and had no idea my Laramie had a 3.21 until i pulled the build sheet (and read the above thread about 3.21 vs 3.92). Then I verified my BH had a 3.92. I was completely going on feel and definitely noticed a difference between my '18 Laramie and '21 Bighorn and that thread confirmed it.

For instance, the other night I had to haul a freezer fridge home for a neighbor and the truck just seemed to handle it smoothly with the 3.92. Last summer I had moved furniture for my in-laws in my Laramie, packing the bed of the truck with all kinds of stuff. It worked ok, but seemed to struggle a bit.

I think I'm going to like the 3.92 setup and I'm glad i got it.

 

[Scram1500]

What made the 3.21 gears hard to drive in the city?

I do a mix of driving. Going to work is about 50 miles one way for me. Majority is highway but it is a short jaunt through the city to get to my building. I am ready to order a truck but am torn between 3.21 and 3.92 rears. Wish I could get the 3.55 but noooo, that is special....

Apparently it's so special you can only get it if you have the 3.6L V6 or the 6.2L supercharged V8 TRX. How does any of that make sense?

 

[ClancyO]

My ‘19 bighorn has 3.21, the ‘20 Laramie has 3.92. I really needed the 3.92 (towing at/near max!). The 3.21 felt a bit dim-witted - I’m not convinced they didn’t do some programming changes in the transmission between the 2 trucks. The 3.92 is much snappier, faster to respond to throttle inputs. The 3.21 definitely got better gas mileage. Nice beach shot, btw! I kept my surf tag, I’ll put it on my truck here in Nevada just to throw people off!

 

[jdmartin]

Any issues with city driving with the 3.21? This is the first I’ve heard of this having issues during city driving

Nope.

 

[Mountain Whiskey]

I have the 3.21s and the highway cruising is just amazing. I cruise on the flat spots (not many of them here in the mountains) at 1.5k RPM at 70 MPH or so. I think I have to get close to 80 before I hit 2k RPMs. I have hauled a lot of stuff in this truck and I've never found that gear combo wanting for anything - truck is as fast and powerful as I need it to be.

I am glad to hear this. I was leaning to the 3.92 because of this very thought. I know myself I can't just leave well enough alone. I know I will swap tires and lift. No matter how much I tell myself I won't. I thought the 92s would be good for this. I went from 3.27 to 3.73 in my Town Car (I did say I can't leave it alone) and only lost 1 mpg.

Apparently it's so special you can only get it if you have the 3.6L V6 or the 6.2L supercharged V8 TRX. How does any of that make sense?

Exactly! How crazy is that? Put the choice out there for all.


Well not to derail the thread with the dreaded 21 vs 92 debate but I was all set on a Bighorn until I did a build online to find only $1700 between the MSRP on both. That 1700 covers a lot of little extras in the Laramie. I sent the build sheet over to the guy that gave me a price on the Bighorn. Hopefully he can keep that same difference. If so I will bite and take the Laramie.

 

[Boston]

My ‘19 bighorn has 3.21, the ‘20 Laramie has 3.92. I really needed the 3.92 (towing at/near max!). The 3.21 felt a bit dim-witted - I’m not convinced they didn’t do some programming changes in the transmission between the 2 trucks. The 3.92 is much snappier, faster to respond to throttle inputs. The 3.21 definitely got better gas mileage. Nice beach shot, btw! I kept my surf tag, I’ll put it on my truck here in Nevada just to throw people off!

Check with dealer for updates to the transmission software