History and Overview

For years, the hot competition in the pickup truck market was between Ford and Chevrolet. All that changed in 1994 when Dodge's all-new Ram showed up, sporting imposing Peterbuilt-inspired styling, cabs that offered a new level of comfort and utility, and a recently-revamped series of powerful engines. The jewel of the lineup was the Cummins-sourced six-cylinder turbodiesel engine, which looked and sounded like it was lifted straight from an eighteen-wheeler. The Dodge diesel quickly became known as the ultimate in towing hardware, and sales of Dodge trucks doubled. But Dodge didn't rest on their laurels; the barrage of improvements and industry firsts has been almost relentless -- the center-mounted "business console," big enough to hold a laptop computer; the first V10 engine available in a pickup; and the first four-door extended cab in a full-size pickup. This year, the all-conquering Cummins diesel gets a redesign and a boost in output.

Taken as a group, Ford's F-series has been the best selling truck in the United States for the past twenty-two years, so Ford wasn't about to let Dodge steal the spotlight for too long. Ford made a bold move by splitting their full-size pickup truck line into two unique platforms, one for light duty and a second for more severe use. The light duty trucks bowed in 1997 as the F150 and F250; this year, Ford is launching the Super Duty series -- F250SD and F350. Like the Dodge, the Super Duty offers a four-door extended cab, but Ford goes one better with a full-size four-door "crew cab." If the styling isn't enough of a clue, the recently developed V10, the much-improved Power Stroke diesel engine, and the availability of a 4x4 with dual rear wheels are clear signs that Ford is aiming the Super Duty series directly at the heavy-duty Rams.

Is the new Super Duty good enough to knock the Cummins-powered Dodge off its perch? My assignment was to find out. I looked beyond their pulling ability to see how they performed as day-to-day transportation. And because not all work is limited to the asphalt, I checked out their off-road abilities as well. For my comparison test, Dodge offered up a five-speed diesel-powered Ram 2500HD Quad Cab 4x4 in work-a-day ST trim. Ford didn't have an extended cab diesel available, so they supplied me with two F250 Super Duty trucks -- a diesel-powered regular cab 4x4, and a gasoline-fueled Club Cab 4x4, both in range-topping Lariat guise and both with an automatic transmission.