2017 Ram 3500 weight

RAMBOX — IF EQUIPPED
The RamBox system is an integrated pickup box storage
and cargo management system consisting of three features:
•Integrated box side storage bins
• Cargo extender/divider
• Bed rail tie-down system
RamBox Integrated Box Side Storage Bins
Cargo storage bins are located on both sides of the pickup
box. The cargo storage bins provide watertight, lockable,
illuminated storage for up to 150 lbs (68 kg) for 1500 series
vehicles or 300 lbs (136 kg) for 2500 and 3500 series vehicles
of evenly distributed cargo.
CAUTION!
Failure to follow the following items could cause
damage to the vehicle:
•Assure that all cargo inside the storage bins is
properly secured.
• Do not exceed cargo weight rating of 150 lb (68 kg)
1500 series vehicles or 300 lbs (136 kg) for 2500 and
3500 series vehicles per bin.
RamBox Cargo Storage Bins
3
UNDERSTANDING THE FEATURES OF YOUR VEHICLE 209

▫5.7L Engine .......................... .541
▫ 6.4L Engine .......................... .542
▫ Reformulated Gasoline ..................542
▫ Gasoline/Oxygenate Blends ...............542
▫ E-85 Usage In Non-Flex Fuel Vehicles .........543
▫ CNG And LP Fuel System Modifications ......543
▫ MMT In Gasoline ...................... .543
▫ Materials Added To Fuel .................544
▫ Fuel System Cautions ....................544
▫ Carbon Monoxide Warnings ...............545
 FLEXIBLE FUEL (3.6L ENGINE ONLY) —
IF EQUIPPED ......................... .545
▫ E-85 General Information .................545
▫ Ethanol Fuel (E-85) ..................... .546
▫ Fuel Requirements .....................546
▫ Selection Of Engine Oil For Flexible Fuel
Vehicles (E-85) And Gasoline Vehicles ........546▫
Starting ............................ .547
▫ Cruising Range ....................... .547
▫ Replacement Parts ..................... .547
▫ Maintenance ......................... .547
 ADDING FUEL ........................ .548
▫ Loose Fuel Filler Cap Message .............549
 VEHICLE LOADING .....................549
▫ Certification Label ..................... .549
 TRAILER TOWING ..................... .551
▫ Common Towing Definitions ...............551
▫ T

railer Hitch Type and Maximum
Trailer Weight ........................ .558
▫ Trailer Towing Weights (Maximum
Trailer Weight Ratings) ..................559
▫ Trailer And Tongue Weight ...............559
▫ Towing Requirements ...................559
▫ Towing Tips .......................... .567
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STARTING AND OPERATING 379

WARNING!
There is an increased risk of rollover when crossing an
obstacle, at any angle, with steep sides.
Crossing Logs
To cross a log, approach it at a slight angle (approximately
10 to 15 degrees). This allows one front tire to be on top of
the log while the other just starts to climb the log. While
climbing the log, modulate your brake and accelerator to
avoid spinning the log out from under your tires. Then
ease the vehicle off the log using your brakes.
CAUTION!
Do not attempt to cross a log with a greater diameter
than the running ground clearance or the vehicle will
become high centered.
Getting High Centered
If you get hung up or high centered on an object, get out of
the vehicle and try to determine what the vehicle is hung
up on, where it is contacting the underbody and what is the
best direction to recover the vehicle. Depending on what
you are in contact with, jack the vehicle up and place a fewrocks under the tires so the weight is off of the high point
when you let the vehicle down. You can also try rocking the
vehicle or winching the vehicle off the object.
CAUTION!
Winching or rocking the vehicle off hard objects in-
creases the risk of underbody damage.
Hill Climbing
Hill climbing requires good judgment and a good under-
standing of your abilities and your vehicle’s limitations.
Hills can cause serious problems. Some are just too steep to
climb and should not be attempted. You should always feel
confident with the vehicle and your abilities. You should
always climb hills straight up and down. Never attempt to
climb a hill on an angle.
•
Before Climbing A Steep Hill – As you approach a hill
consider its grade or steepness. Determine if it is too
steep. Look to see what the traction is on the hill side
trail. Is the trail straight up and down? What is on top
and the other side? Are there ruts, rocks, branches or
other obstacles on the path? Can you safely recover the
vehicle if something goes wrong? If everything looks
good and you feel confident, then change transmission
462 STARTING AND OPERATING

WARNING!
Do not descend a steep grade in NEUTRAL. Use
vehicle brakes in conjunction with engine braking.
Descending a grade too fast could cause you to lose
control and be seriously injured or killed.
• Driving Across An Incline – If at all possible avoid
driving across an incline. If it is necessary, know your
vehicle’s abilities. Driving across an incline places more
weight on the down hill wheels, which increases the
possibilities of a down hill slide or rollover. Make sure
the surface has good traction with firm and stable soils.
If possible transverse the incline at an angle heading
slightly up or down.
WARNING!
Driving across an incline increases the risk of a roll-
over, which may result in severe injury.
• If You Stall Or Begin To Lose Headway – If you stall or
begin to lose headway while climbing a steep hill, allow
your vehicle to come to a stop and immediately apply
the brake. Restart the engine and shift into REVERSE.
Back slowly down the hill allowing the compression braking of the engine and transmission to help regulate
your speed. If the brakes are required to control vehicle
speed, apply them lightly and avoid locking or skidding
the tires.
WARNING!
If the engine stalls or you lose headway or cannot
make it to the top of a steep hill or grade, never attempt
to turn around. To do so may result in tipping and
rolling the vehicle, which may result in severe injury.
Always back carefully straight down a hill in RE-
VERSE. Never back down a hill in NEUTRAL using
only the vehicle brakes. Never drive diagonally across
a hill, always drive straight up or down.
Driving Through Water
Extreme care should be taken crossing any type of water.
Water crossings should be avoided if possible and only be
attempted when necessary, in a safe responsible manner.
You should only drive through areas which are designated
and approved. You should tread lightly and avoid damage
to the environment. You should know your vehicle’s
abilities and be able to recover it if something goes wrong.
You should never stop or shut a vehicle off when crossing
464 STARTING AND OPERATING

WARNING!
Never use tow straps with end hooks or link two straps
with a clevis pin. These heavy metal objects could become
projectiles if a strap breaks, which could cause severe
injury. Never leave more than 2 to 3 feet (.6 to 1 meter) of
slack in the strap. More slack than this greatly increases
the risk of injury and vehicle damage. Always keep
everyone at least 30 feet (9 meters) away from a strapping
or winching situation.
•Winching (Refer To “Winch Operation” For Additional
Information) –
Winching is most commonly used in the
following situations: there is no support vehicle available,
a high controlled force is required to recover the vehicle,
there is a high risk of environmental or vehicle damage, or
where nothing else seems to work. A winch can deliver a
high pulling force with a great deal of control. It allows
you to walk the vehicle out of the situation in a slow
controlled manner. This control works well for avoiding
further vehicle damage. Once you decide it is time to use
the winch look for a good anchor point. It needs to be
strong enough to hold more than the vehicle’s weight and
provide a direction of pull as straight as possible. Use
block and tackle if necessary to improve the angle of pull
or increase the winch’s pulling force. If the anchor point is a tree use a strap around its base and hook the cable to the
strap. If it is another vehicle, then place that vehicle in
PARK and block the front tires. If you cannot find an
anchor point within reach try using your spare tire by
burying it. Once you have determined an anchor point
hook up the cable, ensuring there are a least five wraps of
cable left on the drum, and place a floor mat or something
else over the strung out cable. Placing something over the
strung out cable helps keep the cable on the ground if it
breaks. Next, place the vehicle in first gear and apply a
very light throttle as you power the winch in. Be careful
not to allow slack in the cable as you recover the vehicle.
Do not try to guide the cable into the drum. If it starts to
bunch up on one end, let it. You can re-spool the cable
afterwards. Never use a winch cable as a tow strap and
always stand back while winching.
WARNING!
Winch cables are under high tension when in use and
can become a projectile if they fail. Never stand over or
straddle the winch cable. Never jerk or overload the
winch cable. Never stand in front of the vehicle while
winching. Failure to follow these instructions can result
in serious or fatal injury.
5
STARTING AND OPERATING 469

attempt to stop the sway. TSC will become active automati-
cally once an excessively swaying trailer is recognized.
NOTE:TSC cannot stop all trailers from swaying. Always
use caution when towing a trailer and follow the trailer
tongue weight recommendations. Refer to “Trailer Tow-
ing” in this section for further information.
When TSC is functioning, the “ESC Activation/
Malfunction Indicator Light” will flash, the engine power
may be reduced and you may feel the brakes being applied
to individual wheels to attempt to stop the trailer from
swaying. TSC is disabled when the ESC system is in the
“Partial Off” or “Full Off” modes.
WARNING!
If TSC activates while driving, slow the vehicle down,
stop at the nearest safe location, and adjust the trailer
load to eliminate trailer sway.
Hill Descent Control (HDC) — If Equipped
HDC is intended for low speed off road driving while in
4WD Low Range. HDC maintains vehicle speed while
descending hills during various driving situations. HDC
controls vehicle speed by actively controlling the brakes.
HDC has three states:
1. Off (feature is not enabled and will not activate).
2. Enabled (feature is enabled and ready but activation conditions are not met, or driver is actively overriding
with brake or throttle application).
3. Active (feature is enabled and actively controlling ve- hicle speed).
Enabling HDC
HDC is enabled by pushing the HDC switch, but the
following conditions must also be met to enable HDC:
• Driveline is in 4WD Low Range
• Vehicle speed is below 5 mph (8 km/h).
• Parking brake is released.
• Driver door is closed.
5
STARTING AND OPERATING 505

This placard tells you important information about the:
1. Number of people that can be carried in the vehicle.
2. Total weight your vehicle can carry.
3. Tire size designed for your vehicle.
4. Cold tire inflation pressures for the front, rear, and sparetires.
Loading
The vehicle maximum load on the tire must not exceed the
load carrying capacity of the tire on your vehicle. You will
not exceed the tire’s load carrying capacity if you adhere to
the loading conditions, tire size, and cold tire inflation
pressures specified on the Tire and Loading Information
placard in “Vehicle Loading” in “Starting And Operating”,
or the Tire Information Supplement, located in your Own-
er ’s Information kit.
NOTE:
Under a maximum loaded vehicle condition, gross
axle weight ratings (GAWRs) for the front and rear axles
must not be exceeded. Refer to “Vehicle Loading” in “Start-
ing And Operating”, or the Tire Information Supplement
located in your Owner ’s Information kit, for further infor-
mation on GAWRs, vehicle loading, and trailer towing.
To determine the maximum loading conditions of your
vehicle, locate the statement “The combined weight of
occupants and cargo should never exceed XXX kg or
XXX lbs” on the Tire and Loading Information placard. The
combined weight of occupants, cargo/luggage and trailer
tongue weight (if applicable) should never exceed the
weight referenced here.
Steps For Determining Correct Load Limit—
(1) Locate the statement “The combined weight of
occupants and cargo should never exceed XXX kg or
XXX lbs.” on your vehicle’s placard.
(2) Determine the combined weight of the driver and
passengers that will be riding in your vehicle.
(3) Subtract the combined weight of the driver and
passengers from XXX kg or XXX lbs.
(4) The resulting figure equals the available amount of
cargo and luggage load capacity. For example, if “XXX”
amount equals 1400 lbs. and there will be five 150 lb
passengers in your vehicle, the amount of available
cargo and luggage load capacity is 650 lbs. (1400-750
(5x150) = 650 lbs.) 5
STARTING AND OPERATING 515

(5) Determine the combined weight of luggage and
cargo being loaded on the vehicle. That weight may not
safely exceed the available cargo and luggage load
capacity calculated in Step 4.
(6) If your vehicle will be towing a trailer, load from
your trailer will be transferred to your vehicle. Consult
this manual to determine how this reduces the available
cargo and luggage load capacity of your vehicle.
Metric Example For Load Limit
For example, if “XXX” amount equals 635 kg, and there
will be five 68 kg passengers in your vehicle, the amount of
available cargo and luggage load capacity is 295 kg (635-
340 (5x68) = 295 kg) as shown in step 4.NOTE:
•
If your vehicle will be towing a trailer, load from your
trailer will be transferred to your vehicle. The following
table shows examples on how to calculate total load,
cargo/luggage, and towing capacities of your vehicle
with varying seating configurations and number and
size of occupants. This table is for illustration purposes
only and may not be accurate for the seating and load
carry capacity of your vehicle.
• For the following example, the combined weight of
occupants and cargo should never exceed 865 lbs
(392 kg).
516 STARTING AND OPERATING