Thinking about trading in 2019 Ram for 2021 TRD

yeah my AT is brand new but no issues with passing power

I just had some semi with no mud flaps in front of me on the freeway, and I’m super anal about rock chips being thrown at the new truck

So I punched it and passed doing around 75-80, no engine rev, no downshift, passed just fine. But maybe my expectations are different

 

No, I think you have normal/reasonable expectations. Tacos have plenty of power especially in the higher rpms.

 

Yeah didn’t mean for this thread to turn into a slam-the-brand, but hey we’re all truck aficionados here, lol..
That being said. True, the two trucks are built for different missions. It does seem a bit ridiculous to compare the two.. I’m just an old school manual transmission junkie and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get a bit excited seeing a manual transmission still being offered on a truck. Guess I will stick with my Ram and see how long it will last! So far it’s been a great truck. I’m also a big fan of the Tacomas and also looking forward to seeing what the new Tundra will look like, that truck was my close second choice if I couldn’t find a Ram.

 

You sure you’re mashing the skinny pedal?

Never had any problem passing or merging. That’s one area I think the 3.5 shines, assuming you aren’t trying to do either in 6th gear at 1100 RPMs. For what it’s worth my 4.0 Tacoma, 4.0 4Runner, or 5.7 Tundra wouldn’t do that either.

 

I would likely never purchase a Ram just based on paranoia about reliability, but if I owned the truck in this photo and never had any issues and didn’t live in a city that makes a full size a nightmare, there’s no way in hell I’d move to a Tacoma. That truck looks super nice!

 

Whether I was going to buy a Toyota or not I would sell the Ram while it is at the top of its resale value, once the vehicle shortage rights itself, it will drop like a rock probably over a matter of days. I like my Tacoma but I went from a full size Ram to a tacoma and it took me almost a year to actually like the tacoma and appreciate it for what it was. I needed to get out of the Ram, (horrible resale) and the Tacoma made the most sense (Resale value). You will miss the Ram, a Tundra might be a bit less of a let down but you won't have the manual.

 

I owned 2 of them and they were as reliable as the two Tacomas I have owned. Now...I did not have very high mileage on either on of the Rams and I didn't have confidence in the reliablity after 100k but they were solid. I would buy another if I was going to trade every 100k or so.

 

I had a Hemi Ram too, and loved the truck. I don't know that I would trade my Taco to get it back, but it's really six of one and a half dozen of the other. The trade-offs you mention are legitimate. The only disappointment I had with the Ram was fuel milage took a tremendous dive when towing. Of course the Taco won't tow nearly as much. I certainly would never trade a truck I loved just to try another.

And you really like LED lights? Really? I've driven same/same trucks with LED and Halogen and liked the illumination of the halogen much more in all cases. The only time the LEDs looked brighter was when I was looking directly into the lights, and what good is that? The halogens illuminated the road farther and the quality of light was far superior. Personally it seems like LEDs are one of those fads that climb in popularity until someone says the Emporor isn't wearing any clothes.

In any case, I like my Taco for parking ease and style, but I don't have any heavy uses for it. If I had a trailer of any size to pull I'd keep the Ram.

 

Don’t know how LEDs are on other vehicles, but I had halogens on my prior truck and the Ram LED setup and illumination between the headlights and the fog lights is insane. Maybe it’s just a great setup, but from what others have described in the Ram forums, the halogens come up short. It definitely makes a huge difference at night. Plus I much prefer the white beam pattern vs the yellow from halogens, it looks a lot cleaner/crisper

 

If your planning to load the Taco with overland crap & steel bumpers, it becomes a dog. In this case, I'd stick with the V8

 

I get what you are saying about driving a manual. I had a 2004 Tacoma that I had for almost 13 years that was a standard. I just traded my 2019 Tundra so I could get back into a standard. I don't tow or haul much but the fun of shifting my own gears just drew me back into the Tacoma. Your wants and needs are probably different than mine but I just enjoy driving my truck now so much more than I did. The Tacoma is slower, has less power, not as comfortable but I don't care, I enjoy driving now.

 

I'm in SE VA too and I think I've seen you around, license plate is super familiar!

 

I went from a 2016 OR Tacoma to a 2019 Ram Rebel and loved everything about the truck except for the size. Where I live, the lack of maneuverability became a real issue and I actually found myself wishing I had stuck with my Tacoma. Long story short, I moved to a new Cherokee with the 2.4L 4cyl and, while it was great transportation, it was boring as hell with 0 power. My new Tacoma is currently in transit to the dealer and I couldn’t be happier with the decision.