Truck options you wish were offered

[SolarPoweredRV]

Honestly, I could care less about the mileage "advantage".

The amount of control a manual transmission gives me when I'm towing is a huge advantage, for me, over automatic... Until Ford put in the manual selector so I can psuedo control it.

There just isn't anything like a clutch though. I think I'm old school on this one, a dinosaur...

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A manual Transmission is not for me. I don't want to work that hard at driving, and I especially don't want to work that hard when I am Towing !!

The difference in how I feel at the end of the day towing with Adaptive Cruise Control and an Automatic Transmission versus how I felt towing with Old Fashioned Cruise Control and AT is amazing. I am much more relaxed at the end of the day and I can drive farther because of the Adaptive Cruise Control and AT.

I once drove my old rig (Van and 30 foot TT) across Florida using secondary highways instead of driving a longer route on the Interstate. I can still remember how exhausted I felt driving through all the traffic on that road where there was a semi large town every 7 to 10 miles, I had to be 110% focused for every mile of that trip and at the end of the day I was simply "wired and tired".

Now, I contrast that experience driving my 2019 F350 with Adaptive Cruise Control and my Reese Goose Box and I am much more relaxed behind the wheel and I am not tired at the end of the day, even if we've had a very long day of travel.

If I had a Manual Transmission and no Adaptive Cruise Control, I would be right back at that exhausting trip where I would need to be at 110% concentration all day long and exhausted at the end of every day.

I have driven across country and have driven up (and down) some very significant hills and I have not needed, nor missed, having a manual Transmission.

I really like driving in a more relaxed state while towing. I can focus more on what the other vehicles on the road are doing and not so much on what I am doing inside the vehicle.

As a side note, most new Semis on the road today have Automatic Transmissions in them.

[Steven@147]

[QUOTE=DarkRam;382202]Don't know about the Ford's and GMC/Chevy's - but I wish Ram would go back to a manual shifter for 4x4 and add lock-out hubs. Would really help on the mileage.
snip

Yes the dial-a-gear 4x4 shifter knob set up, shift on the fly, of course all manufacturers have gone to computer controlled stuff. Our Ram just got a "4WD Serv" light on. I've only used the 4WD twice since bought new. Probably the actuator, lots of owners seem to have problems with it. Well at least it still moves in 2WD but 4x4 is disabled. That will cost me, got an appointment this morning at Ram dealer to look at it.

[Ynot4me2]

Yeah, that's a real PITA, It should stay on until the computer senses that the trailer is not on the back of the truck anymore.

and @maxdixdragon, after doing some research on this same issue I came across this http://timers.shop/F150_c_20.html Its a drive mode memory. Installs in less then 30min. Very easy intall. It works great in my F150 and I seem to remember that it also works in the F250 adn F350. Maybe send them a note asking to confirm this.

[jproctor9]

Crazy option:

Diesel electric hybrid drive. Electric motors driving the wheels, a smallish battery (50KW?), a plug, and a diesel engine spinning a generator for when you need it. I could do all my around town without the engine coming on, then when towing, I'd have ridiculous power, better efficiency and no range issues, just pull into the truck stop like I do now and fuel up.

THIS! It's essentially a locomotive drive. Efficient and powerful.

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[jkwilson]

THIS! It's essentially a locomotive drive. Efficient and powerful.

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The advantage of the diesel-electric in a locomotive is the fact that it eliminates the need for a transmission that would need to be incredibly robust and complex to handle the loads of a locomotive. In a pickup, you’d need a transmission because the electric motors start to wimp out at higher RPM. A diesel driving a transmission driving the wheels is far less complex and lighter than a diesel driving a generator driving electric motors driving a transmission driving the wheels. And the straight diesel drive is just about as efficient as or maybe even more efficient than the diesel-electric setup would be.

[Overtaxed]

The advantage of the diesel-electric in a locomotive is the fact that it eliminates the need for a transmission that would need to be incredibly robust and complex to handle the loads of a locomotive. In a pickup, you’d need a transmission because the electric motors start to wimp out at higher RPM. A diesel driving a transmission driving the wheels is far less complex and lighter than a diesel driving a generator driving electric motors driving a transmission driving the wheels. And the straight diesel drive is just about as efficient as or maybe even more efficient than the diesel-electric setup would be.

The Tesla semi has no transmission, that's kind of the technology that I was looking at in my fantasy world.

A D/E would certainly be heavier. But instead of a monster 6.7 diesel for the peak loads you rarely need you could have a much smaller diesel engine driving an inverter generator.

You're right though, it would cost more. Depending on how much more, I'd be really interested in it though. The torque would be great, no engine spin up sound going uphill, just a constant 1800 RPMs humming away. And diesels are great at running at a constant speed/load very efficiently.

They can build a hybrid with a battery, a tranny and electric motors for a reasonable price. Have to believe it's possible to do the same for a D/E drive.

[DonZinger]

I too turned to RAM when the 4th Generation was introduced, and no regrets leaving my GM loyalty. Things I want RAM to offer:

- get with AISIN (or Allison) and let's get some more gears behind the Cummins;
- give optional manual control override for the 3500 rear air;
- BIG diesel tank option;
- INTEGRATION for aftermarket trailer cameras (not OE tack-ons);
- INTEGRATED trailer TPMS that can monitor multiple trailers setups and use universal sensors;
- factory hitching lights;
- in-bed power center with inverted AC power receptacle, 12VDC and USB; and,
- shed the DEF and emissions equipment after performing a simple mass balance analysis that you've netted nothing positive for the environment and only increased consumption of natural resources.

P.S. - I want Road Warrior mode for those fun days on the highway!

As an option for you on the fuel tank, when I got my new 2019 Ram, I bought a Titan 55 gallon tank and replaced the OE tank myself. Pricey? Yes, but I really didn't want an in bed tank after having one for years. If you're handy, it is a pretty easy job. I now have a 55 gallon tank on board.

[That 1 Ron]

This will be more 2017 Toyota Tundra specific since that’s what I drive. Hopefully Toyota fixes my gripes on the next generation.

Better sound system with wireless CarPlay. Not the end of the world since I usually upgrade the sound system in my vehicles but really this should be a factory option.

All the window switches and buttons on the dash need to be backlit. I fixed some of them by soldering in some LEDs that make them look OEM and visible at night, what a novel concept.

There shouldn’t be any high gloss or especially chrome surfaces in the interior of any vehicle. The distraction from the glare when the sun reflects just right is a hazard. Why is there chrome in my TRD Pro that is body color or blacked out anyway?! Definitely fixed this by replacing trim and/or sanding and painting.

Lights in the bed to see what’s in there or what you’re trying to find at night.

Spray-in bed liner

Better headlights. The OEM halogens weren’t that bright but better than a 2012 f150 I once had. I fixed this by installing OEM LED headlights from the more current TRD Pro. Much better but I needed more light when off-road in the middle of nowhere so I installed two lightbars and fog lights for nasty weather from Baja Designs. Plenty of light now.

That brings me to another area that has lots of room for improvement, reverse lighting. Not only should reverse lighting alert other vehicles and pedestrians that you’re backing up but it should illuminate the ground well enough to see where you’re going in the mirrors and the backup camera. Fixed this by installing some recessed Baja Designs lights in the bumper, now we can easily see in reverse. The RV industry also should address this. I have some lights for the Imagine, just haven’t found time to install them yet.

On board generator. I feel Ford knocked that out of the park with that option on the F150 but the Super Duty line would really benefit from it as well. Never mind the rest of the hybrid goofyness and especially that annoying start/stop nonsense. Hopefully Toyota will offer something like that on the next generation.

I purchased the double cab (extended cab in big 3 language) tundra because I wanted at least a 6.5’ bed. It’s only my small teenagers that ride back there and they have enough room but I do wish the cab was a little larger sometimes. Somewhere between this double cab and the enormous crewmax cab would be perfect but I definitely wouldn’t want to sacrifice any bed space for it.

Better tires from the factory. And by better I mean an actual LT series tire, taller, and with good all terrain tread that actually works in all terrains. Fixed this by installing some Nitto Ridge Grapplers.

More available payload. It’s a little low by today’s standards and I’m right at, or slightly over when toying the 2400BH. At least it doesn’t feel like it’s anywhere close to being that maxed out but it is what it is.