What's better to have on a 3500, 4wd or 2wd, letting aside that you'll need 4wd for (serious) offroad driving (for which you won't use such a truck (much), anyway, at least not without suitable mods). I'm thinking more of towing applications and of driving through snow and on icy roads --- I've no idea what the effect of the dual rear wheels will be under 'slippery' conditions.

If it is a dually I would definately get 4wd.

A diesel can be hard to get moving if it is a 2wd and icy because the motors are heavy. I would not buy a truck without 4wd personally.

Hmmmm. I can imagine that ... But then, we don't have much snow/ice where I live, I'd only encounter that on holiday trips to Sweden in the winter.

These trucks are very hard to come by here if you want a manual. If my options were not that limited, I would surely get one with 4wd, but I could end up in waiting indefinitely for something to show up.

I'm about to check out a 1998 3500er (24V) with 100kkm on it next weekend. The price is very interesting, but it has 2wd only.

Another one is from 2001 with 160kkm and 4wd, but it's considerably more expensive --- and there's is something about its advertisement that gives me a kind of uneasy feeling about it, though I can't tell where it comes from.

Have to agree with MaxPower's recommendation. I was going to buy a 2wd, Mama JJ insisted on 4x4 since we had a couple of instances towing where we lost traction while climbing a gravel road. I've used it on numerous occasions where I needed all the power to the wheels while towing heavy. :exactly:

JJ :)

i can get stuck in wet grass so fast in 2wd it aint even funny.i would not have a cummins with out 4wd.

Ok, I go along with you. My experience is that you happen to need 4wd sometimes rather unexpectedly, and I was always happy that I could just engage it and go on without problems. It happened a very few times only and I could have avoided it, but getting a truck without 4wd is somehow like getting only 1/2 or 2/3 of a truck.

So IŽll have to rethink it again --- if chances to make a good deal only were not so rare ...

Thanks for the input!

well since I am in Central Florida I can't advise you about the icy conditions. But you do need to look at the towing caps between the two. If memory serves me right when I bought by 3500 the 2wd had about 1500 pounds more towing. Since I usually stay on hard roads anyway I went with the 2wd. Also I have found the dually is more than my cousins 4wd. The reason being is my four tires on back are locked together (after limited slip kicks in). My cousins 4wd truck (non dually) the back axle has to slip before the front engages and then he only gets one front tire pulling. I have pulled my heaver boat out of the same boat ramp that I have had to pull him out of. Just something else to think about.

IIRC the towing difference between 4x4 and 4x2 is usually the weight of the front transfer case and differentials, usually around 300lbs or so. 1500lbs sounds more like the GVWR difference between a 3500SRW and 3500DRW. ;)

olee, if you plan to travel with this truck and tow any significant weight behind it don't let the extra $3-$4k keep you from getting the 4x4. I've ran into numerous "unexpected" situations where the extra wheels were needed and much appreciated. JJ :)

It's not only the snow and ice, if you travel on wet, muddy roads or poor maintained areas, the 2wd dually can get stuck fairly easy. Especially with having to push a heavy motor like the dmax.
I look at 4wd like having a loaded gun in the house:
You may not ever need it, but if you do, odds are you need it right then.

Duallys a notorious for absolutely no traction in sandy, snowy or muddy surfaces with stock tires due to the high air pressure and wimpy tread. If you plan on safely driving in any of these conditions especially with a tow of any type, go 4WD. Like you said, It's like geting only 1/2 or 2/3's of a truck. What about importing one or finding someone in the states to make an even trade with one of those fine German autos? I knew a guy who figured that out with a cadillac and a MBZ.....

There's some chance that the road tax issue might turn bad on me, and I must not wait until that happens. It can take a year or two until things become clear, and once it's decided, it might be much more money than my Tahoe is currently worth. Importing a truck would take too long, and I won't do it anyway because it would mean to buy it without ever seeing it before.

If it were not for the tax issue, I could do better with a 2500 than a 3500. I don't have substantial weight to tow, max. I'd be allowed to is 3500kg unless the trailer would be equipped with an air brake system (letting aside all the trouble involved in getting such a setup legally). I won't consider 3500kg behind a 3500 as 'substantial' since the 3500er appears to be rated for max. 8100kg/20000lbs :) What I would be towing would be my camper which must not weigh more than 1300kg/3200lbs. I guess I would barely notice it behind a 3500er or a 2500er ... And then, I might as well sell the camper and put a self-made camping cabin onto the bed for that purpose. I won't have to tow anything then.

Hm, maybe I should keep the camper just for having something to tow ;)

The alternative is buying a used, small passenger car with 100--150kkms on it for almost as much as a 3500er. I'm doing about 55-60kkm on it each year, and it takes about 1--1.5 years to get such a used car into a decent technical condition, letting aside the money I'd have to spent on the repairs. I won't get as much usability/versatility from it as I would from a truck (letting aside the problem of towing my camper). After a year, it would have 150--210kkm on it and I would have to sell it because it's finished, and I would get almost nothing for it. That's too expensive.

Another alternative would be buying a new car for about EUR 35000--40000, drive it about 2 years and then sell it for something between EUR 12000 and 15000. I cannot afford that.

However I put it, I'm best off with a truck, especially when I can drive it for 5 years or more. I would like to drive it for 10 years or longer, if possible, thus I want something that will last and give me no trouble. Is there anything better than a truck with manual tranny, straight axles and a Cummins for that?


There have been three occassions where I've been actually needing 4wd during normal driving: Once on some grass sucked with water when towing my camper onto the lot, once going up a fairly steep incline on gravel coming from an area designated for offroad-driving, and on my last holiday trip to Sweden in the winter, on those icy roads. The one that really counts is only the first one, and I could have avoided even that easily. Once the tires need to be replaced, I'll put something decent on the truck --- there's no chance for going icy with stock-like ones, even not with 4wd. Winters where I live have maybe two days of snow, somethimes even five ...

Getting a 4wd 3500er instead of a 2wd would could cost me about EUR 6100 more. The 4wd is three years younger but has 60kkm more on the odometer. Fuel economy seems to be better on the 2wd. My feeling is that that particular 4wd would be a bad deal, though I can't tell why.

There are two online-databases I can search for cars, with a total of maybe two million cars in them. Out of these two million, there are two that would be suitable, one of it too expensive, the other one apparently a good deal, but with 2wd only.

Do I need 4wd that much? What would you do in my place?

well it does not look like you have owned a cummins diesel.the front end is so heavy on them the back tires just sit and spin and that front end can sink like a rock if you get in something soft.If you do not get a 4wd at least make sure it is limted slip.

well it does not look like you have owned a cummins diesel.the front end is so heavy on them the back tires just sit and spin and that front end can sink like a rock if you get in something soft.If you do not get a 4wd at least make sure it is limted slip.

yeah, the rear is a little light.... i get enough weight transfer up front breaking in dry weather to get the rear tires to howl just as they start to lock up [abs trying to prevent that]

that only seems to have happened since i relocated the rear spacer blocks???

and getting going in winter even with a little slush on the ground is fun... or even in wet... as soon as i hit near the torque band, i can break loose the rears in wet in 1-4... in wintery slushy stuff... in 1-6... i like excessive power :D

Ja, it would be my first Cummins. How much does the engine weigh?

How can I tell if it's limited slip or not? The Chevys have codes in the glovebox telling you the options if you can find a list to translate the codes. Is there something like that on the Dodges?

Does it help to put some weight into the bed?

How much does the engine weigh?

a little over 1,000lbs dry...

Convert it to front wheel drive and always drive backwards? Maybe turn the cabin? Anybody tried yet? ;)

look in the glove box on the sticker in there.If it is a limited slip it will say it on the sticker.

look in the glove box on the sticker in there.If it is a limited slip it will say it on the sticker.

Thanks, that's great info :)

Any place else, or codes there, to find out the options exactly?

go to dealer give him the vin # and have him print you out the build sheet on that truck.It will tell you everything you need to know.

go to dealer give him the vin # and have him print you out the build sheet on that truck.It will tell you everything you need to know.

There are no Dodge dealers here in Germany ...

I've had both Dodge and Chevy 4 x 4's towing in snow and ice! If you are going out in snowy and icy conditions it's worth the extra money to get a 4 x 4! Some will buy a 2WD with a limited slip type rear differential thinking that will be adequate! When both rear wheels pull and then they lose traction you can slide sideways and right off the road especially if the road is not level such as on turns on mountain roads! The front axle keep you straight when it pulls! I have my wife put our pickups in "High 4WD" when it rains hard in the high desert as extra protection from having the rear end slide out on her going around corners in the city! The low range in the transfer case makes a great deal of difference in keeping traction and control in nasty situations! You get lots of controllable power at low wheel RPM!

I been places where I couldn't get up the highway on ramp without 4WD due to black ice! When the weather gets bad, I want 4WD to get me to a safe place to wait it out! Some people wait too long to use 4WD! If it's even wet on the highway it won't hurt to be in 4WD at moderate speeds! Traveling in nasty winter weather is no fun when you are doing 25 mph and worried about your safety! Put on the coffee and a good movie and wait it out!

The first thing I was taught about 4WD's is not to get over confident with 4WD! When you get stuck in a 4WD, you're in deep!