RAM 3500: payload, towing and specs

1 variant in our database, from $177,950 to $177,950 list.

The RAM 3500 is a five-seat dual ute, listed at $177,950, rated to tow up to 8,000kg. It offers a six-cylinder, which is a rarity in a class of fours, and more torque than anything else of its shape in our database. Readers weighing it up usually also look at the Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD, Toyota Tundra and Ford F-150.

Also worth comparing: Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Ford Ranger Super Duty Ineos Quartermaster Volkswagen Amarok Jeep Gladiator Toyota HiLux GWM Cannon Alpha

What each variant can actually carry

Worked out for a typical touring load: two people, 150kg of gear and 150kg of accessories. “Spare payload” is what is left after that. “Max trailer” is the heaviest trailer that load still allows, which is usually well under the headline towing rating because GCM and towball weight both take their cut.

Variant	Price	Payload	GCM	Rated towing	Spare payload	Max trailer
Laramie High Output	$177,950	1,652kg	14,433kg	8,000kg	1,192kg	8,000kg (towing rating)

What’s left to carry as the trailer gets heavier

For the Laramie High Output. Payload left for people, gear and accessories once the towball has taken its 10 per cent of the trailer’s ATM.

GVM is the binding limit the whole way to this vehicle’s towing rating, so payload falls only by the weight on the towball.

Compare the RAM 3500

Pick a rival. Bars are scaled to the highest figure among this vehicle and the 10 rivals listed above, so the longest bar on each row is the best of that group rather than simply the better of two.

RAM 3500 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD

Payload 1,652kg 733kg

Braked towing 8,000kg 8,000kg

GCM 14,433kg 12,474kg

Ground clearance 222mm 251mm

Touring range — —

Torque 1,458Nm 1,322Nm

Comparing the Laramie High Output with the LTZ Premium. Each model is represented by the variant nearest its own median price, so every figure in a column comes from the same vehicle rather than the best one of each. See the full line-up.

Engine and driveline

Variant	Engine	Transmission	4WD system	Power	Torque	Kerb weight
Laramie High Output	6.7L inline-six turbo-diesel (high output)	8sp auto	Part-time dual-range 4WD	313kW	1,458Nm	3,700kg

Fuel and touring range

The official ADR 81/02 figure is measured unladen, at low speed, on smooth tarmac. We lift consumption by 40 per cent to allow for the weight, the all-terrains, the bar and the dirt, then divide what is usable in the tank by that — leaving 5 litres in it, because planning to run a tank dry is how you end up walking. Where we have measured a vehicle ourselves we use our own figure instead. A plug-in hybrid’s claim assumes a full battery, which is gone within the first hour of a long drive, so it gets multiplied by five rather than 1.4.

Variant	Claimed	Tank	Touring use	Touring range
Laramie High Output	—	117L	—	—

Off-road geometry and dimensions

Angles and clearance are the manufacturer’s, measured at kerb weight on standard tyres. Load the back of a ute and the departure angle goes with it.

Angles are drawn to this vehicle’s published figures. The outline is generic, not a drawing of the vehicle itself, and the clearance is labelled rather than drawn to scale.