Earthroamer on Dodge chassis

haven

Expedition Leader
A few months ago, Earthroamer announced that, in addition to the original Ford F550 chassis, the XV-LT can now be ordered on a Dodge 5500 chassis. Yesterday I asked Matt Nakari at ER if he had a photo of an XV-LT on the Dodge chassis. Here is Matt's reply:

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"I don't have any photos of an XV-LT on a Dodge chassis, as nobody has ordered one yet. In my opinion, this is for four basic reasons:

Noise: New Dodge is much louder than the new Ford...It was loud enough that it convinced one of our customers, a die-hard Dodge guy, to order a Ford instead.

Size: The Dodge 5500 is not available with a "Mega-Cab". The 4 door Dodge has about the same interior room as the "Super Cab" Ford. [ SuperCab is Ford's two door extended cab model. The four door is called CrewCab. ]

Alternator: The Ford is available with two 160-amp alternators as a factory option. Dodge gives you the option of ordering a bigger than stock alternator (the amp rating escapes me at the moment) but no option for a second one.

Fuel: At this time Dodge does not have a dual tank option for the 5500, you can order either a mid-ship or a rear tank. Transfer Flow is working on a solution, but the simplicity and fuel capacity of two factory option tanks again gives the nod to Ford.

Otherwise, the Dodge 5500 looks like a great truck, and we would be excited to build one...when the Dodge customer shows up, we are ready for them."

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Matt raises interesting points to keep in mind when you're looking for a chassis for a full-size camper.

Chip Haven
 

boblynch

Adventurer
Cab noise is probably not a big deal for most folks. The Mega cab is getting cancelled. The spy shots of the 2009 RAM 1500 show a full size crew cab. Hopefully it will be offered in the 4500 and 5500.

The dual alternator and tanks are nice factory options. The bigger issue not listed is the outstanding question of reliability of the new 6.4 vs. 6.7 motors.

Another thread is listing the new Turtle Expedition Tortuga with 550 and 5500 chassis options. Anyone have more info on these rigs?
 

Octamog

Observer
I recently saw a new Dodge and what struck me (as a Cummins owner) was how remarkably quiet it was. I could never justify buying a Flaming Ford just because it is perceived to be quieter than the Dodge (and the Ford in the video doesn't seem very quiet to me!).
 

Bella PSD

Explorer
All of the above problems with the Dodge can be fixed easy except for one...The small crew cab (Crew Cab as Dodge calls it). It is just too small and no way to fix that. Otherwiser, the Dodge sounds like a good choice almost equal to the Ford/International!

Louie
 

Redline

Likes to Drive and Ride
I agree with this statement!

Fear of the unknown right now when it comes to the new diesels.


boblynch said:
.......... The bigger issue not listed is the outstanding question of reliability of the new 6.4 vs. 6.7 motors.
...........
 

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