ArcaMax

They say a bachelor's degree is what a high school degree used to be. In the same way, a 2500 is what a 1500 used to be -- in that most 2500s still come standard with a regular cab, an 8-foot bed and a V8 engine, all of which have become harder to find (and are usually optional) in new half-ton trucks.

You can also get a diesel in a truck like the 2025 Ram 2500 -- one that touts more than 1,000 foot-pounds of torque and that can take you about 18 miles on a gallon of fuel too.

Just be sure to top off the diesel exhaust fluid tank!

What It Is

The Ram 2500 is what 1500 trucks once were -- in that it is available in the configurations and with the engines that are becoming unavailable in the latter. It is also a heavier-duty truck and so more useful for work than a half-ton truck.

Interestingly, it is not much more expensive -- at least to start -- than a half-ton truck.

The base Ram 2500 Tradesman trim, which comes standard with a big (6.4-liter) V8 engine -- as well as a regular cab and an 8-foot bed -- lists for $45,565 with two-wheel drive and $48,495 with four-wheel drive. The base Ram 1500 Tradesman with 2WD stickers for $40,275, and it is not available with a V8 or a long bed. If ordered with its optional turbocharged inline six, which adds $2,695 to the price, a Ram 1500 only costs about $2,000 less than a Ram 2500 with a V8 -- and the long bed you can't get anymore in a Ram 1500.

The 2500 is also available in crew-cab form -- for those who want the extra doors and the additional passenger carrying capacity. This version is also available with either a 6.4-foot bed or an 8-foot bed. There are also more trims available, with the prices starting at $49,185 for the Tradesman with the 6.4-foot bed and topping out at $73,165 for the Limited Longhorn.

There's also a Mega Cab iteration with an extra-large rear area.

It's available in three trims: Laramie ($78,540), Limited ($90,205) and Limited Longhorn ($90,205). These versions of the 2500 come only with the 6.4-foot bed, but all come standard with 4WD. These trims are also available with the Cummins turbo diesel six mentioned earlier, which comes standard with an exhaust brake -- just like the big rigs -- and the DEF tank too.

What's New for 2025

The Ram 2500's optional Cummins turbodiesel six touts 420 horsepower and 1,075 foot-pounds of torque versus 370 horsepower and 850 foot-pounds of torque last year. There's also a new, heavy-duty eight-speed automatic transmission (last year's Ram with the diesel had a six-speed automatic).

On the other hand, the output of the standard 6.4-liter V8 is down 5 horsepower -- to 405 from 410 previously.

The truck's styling also gets an update, as does the touch-screen interface.

What's Good

-- Available in the configurations (and with the engines) that have become hard, if not impossible, to find in a half-ton pickup.

-- Only slightly more expensive to start than a half-ton.

-- 20,000-pound towing capacity outclasses any half-ton's towing capabilities.

What's Not So Good

-- Diesel is an expensive option (almost $13,000) and limited to a few of the higher-end trims.

-- Diesel engine comes standard with a DEF tank that must be kept topped off, or else the truck's maximum speed is throttled back to just 5 mph.

-- It's hard to get at stuff in the bed because the truck is so high off the ground (and the bed walls are so high).

Under the Hood

Unlike every currently available half-ton truck, the Ram 2500 comes standard with not just a V8 but a bigger one than is available in any new half-ton truck. It displaces 6.4 liters, so it does not need a turbo (or two) to make up for the size it lacks. It touts 405 horsepower and 439 foot-pounds of torque.

The touted output of the 6.4-liter V8 is down slightly -- by 5 horsepower versus the same engine in last year's Ram 2500 -- but it's still enough to enable the truck to pull up to 17,750 pounds.

The touted output of the optional Cummins turbo-diesel six -- which is even larger, displacing 6.7 liters -- is up substantially. It now touts 420 horsepower and 1,075 foot-pounds of torque, peaking at just 1,800 RPM. This makes it ideal for pulling a heavy trailer -- up to 20,000 pounds.

The gas V8 engine can be paired with either 2WD or a part-time 4WD system that has driver selectable 2WD high-, 4WD high- and 4WD low-range options, all push-button selectable. The Cummins diesel comes standard with the same system -- plus an exhaust brake that is also push-button selectable.

On the Road

People who still need a truck like they used to make them now buy trucks in the 2500-and-up class. Part of the lure is that they are still in fact trucks -- meaning, useful for real work -- but also that they have the extra-beefy feel of a truck. Even with light-effort power steering, it's still a handful -- and that's exactly what most people looking for a truck want. Just the same as people who bought, say, a Dodge Viper back in the day didn't care that it wasn't as athletic (much less as refined) as a Corvette. The attraction was the same that Don Corleone felt toward Luca Brasi.

The Cummins diesel does require periodic topping off with DEF, which is a component of the emissions system -- and if you let the tank run empty, the truck's computer brain will limit the speed you can drive to no faster than 5 mph. On the upside, you get a warning in the main gauge cluster that this is impending, telling you how many miles you can still drive at normal speeds before you run out of DEF (and the speed gets limited to 5 mph, tops). Also, the DEF is easy to find; most auto parts stores and Walmarts stock it, and it only takes a few minutes to pour the stuff into the DEF tank (there's a separate fill hole right next to the diesel fuel fill hole).

At the Curb

This truck is still available with -- comes standard with -- a two-door regular cab and an 8-foot bed, which makes it useful for the work people used to buy half-ton trucks for. As a counterpoint, the current Ram 1500 comes only with four doors and short beds, making it very useful for carrying people and a muddy dog in the bed.

The downside -- depending on your point of view -- is that this truck's a behemoth, both lengthwise and otherwise. The regular cab/8-foot iteration is 232 inches long and stands 78 inches tall -- 13 of those inches being how high the body stands off the ground. You won't need to "lift" this truck -- unless you just like the look of being able to drive over things that happen to be in the way.

But you will want the running boards. They'll help you bridge the gap between the road and the cab.

A crew cab with the 8-foot bed is even longer -- 260.8 inches -- and just as tall. This is a big truck -- and some like it exactly that way. The Mega Cab is even bigger -- in terms of room inside, for the backseat passengers -- but it's slightly less long (249.9 inches) because Ram does not offer this iteration with a bed longer than 6 feet, 4 inches. But that's still a longer bed than the arguably silly vestigial 5-foot beds that come standard with several half-ton, four-door cab trucks -- and the rear of the Mega Cab is so huge you could sublet it.

The Rest

The only problem with all this bigness -- all this tallness -- is that it's not easy to get at whatever you put in the bed. The combination of very tall bedwalls and being so high up means that unless you are extremely tall -- as in 6-foot-5 or taller -- you will likely have to literally climb up into the bed to get whatever's in there out.

The Bottom Line

They do still make trucks like they used to. Just not the half-tons.

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Eric's latest book, "Doomed: Good Cars Gone Wrong!" will be available soon. To find out more about Eric and read his past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.

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