Pickup Review: 2021 Ram 2500 Mega Cab Limited

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You’re officially old if you can remember when a work truck was as basic as you’d expect it to be. Of course you can still go entry-level, but that’s definitely not how I’m riding here.

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Instead, Ram has outfitted my 2500 Mega Cab Limited with just about every luxury known to mankind, including a new-for-2021 Night Edition appearance package that includes a black grille and trim, and black 20-inch wheels. My tester started at $85,570 and was goosed up to $106,675 before freight and taxes.

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While the Ram 1500 only comes in quad or crew cab, the heavy-duty 2500 and 3500 models start with a two-door regular cab, then to a crew cab, and finally to the Mega Cab. It’s longer, with most of that dedicated to storage. Crew cabs from GM and Ford have more front legroom than the Ram’s Mega, and virtually the same for rear legroom, but the Mega Cab has more space for storing items behind the rear seat, or for reclining them. The Mega comes only with 4×4 and 6-foot-4 bed, and is available on all 2500 trims except the base Tradesman and off-road-ready Power Wagon.

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It’s hard to believe you can outfit a truck to what a luxury limo used to cost, but with trucks now far more popular than cars, it makes sense for companies to offer a full range of goodies — and in this case, Ram loaded mine up to show them off.

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The default engine is a 6.4L gasoline V8 that makes 410 horsepower and 429 lb-ft of torque, mated to an eight-speed automatic. I had the optional 6.7L Cummins inline-six turbodiesel, which comes with a six-speed automatic and adds an eye-watering $9,450 to the price. It makes 370 horsepower and 850 lb-ft of torque. For the 2500, that’s actually the lowest torque number in the segment, where GM’s diesel makes 910 lb-ft, and Ford’s makes 1,050 lb-ft.

On Ram’s 3500 models, you can then opt that diesel to a high-output version. It makes 1,075 lb-ft of torque, and that’s new for 2021. It was retuned from last year’s 1,000 lb-ft, and that’s because Ford recently increased its Super Duty’s 6.7L V8 Power Stroke diesel to that aforementioned 1,050 lb-ft. These two have been fighting it out for a while now, and it’s almost comical to see them regularly whip out their powerplants to see whose is bigger. When the Torque Wars first began — GM has wisely decided not to bother — I was laying odds on who would first announce a thousand. Now, I’m thinking of betting on who’ll first crow about 1,500 lb-ft of torque.

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Ford, GM and Ram are the only automakers offering heavy-duty pickups. Toyota doesn’t, and Nissan’s Titan XD is halfway between light and heavy, and leaving the Canadian market once the 2021 model finishes up.

All three companies put very good diesels in their heavy-duties, and this Cummins is smooth, strong, and relatively quiet. The 850 lb-ft of torque isn’t meant for rapid acceleration — it’s actually rather leisurely — but for grunt when needed, because there’s not much point paying for a diesel if you’re not going to do something with it.

Tow ratings depend on how the truck is configured, and while Ram advertises a maximum 2500 diesel towing capacity of 19,780 lbs, that’s for a regular-cab truck. For the Mega Cab 4×4, it drops to 14,700 — still a lot of haulage, but be sure the truck you’re buying matches the trailer you’re hauling.

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Official fuel figures aren’t published for heavy-duty, but without working it hard, I averaged 14.0 L/100 km. Diesel exhaust fluid, or DEF, is a requirement, and there’s a gauge on the dash showing the level. That’s something to remember with diesels: Not only are they more expensive to buy, but they’re more to maintain, including DEF and expensive oil changes.

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Like all trucks, the Ram is needlessly oversized, and I welcomed my Limited’s standard power running boards. But there’s no easy way to get into the bed, even with my optional $300 deployable bed step, which you kick to open and close. GM’s integrated bumper-end steps are still the gold standard here. My truck also had an auto-levelling rear air suspension, for $1,595, which can lower the truck slightly, making it easier to remove a trailer.

Speaking of towing, the Ram’s tow-spotter mirrors are worthy of praise. They can be manually flipped for horizontal or vertical, depending on the view you want. Best of all, the little convex spotter mirror is power-operated, a feature that originally debuted on the Ram ProMaster work van. No longer does your passenger have to lean out the window, manually pushing that little mirror in…no, too far, back out…no, not there, move it up… Just push a button; it’s genius.

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Ram still has the nicest interior, and the Limited piles it on with heated and ventilated front seats, heated rear seats and steering wheel, stitched dash, and a console with so much configurable storage space that I actually lost stuff in it. There’s a wireless charger, and I am in absolute awe of whomever decided to emboss RAMCHARGER across it.

Still, despite the Limited’s luxury, I’d likely opt for a lower trim level just to get the 8.4-inch touchscreen that’s stock on the rest of them. It’s personal preference, but I dislike a big-screen TV in my dash, and the Limited’s standard unit, which is optional on most other trims, is a vertical 12-inch chunk of glass. It has a few switches alongside to toggle the temperature or fan speed, and dials for stereo volume and tuning, but I prefer a smaller screen with more hard controls for less distraction. That said, the intuitive Uconnect infotainment system in both screen sizes is excellent, and the bigger screen can be split to display two functions as desired.

The Ram can also be equipped with driver-assist functions, as mine was with a $3,095 package that added adaptive cruise control, emergency front braking, surround-view camera and lane-keep assist, plus a premium audio system and digital-camera rearview mirror.

The reality among trucks today is that no one makes a bad one. For most, the choice will be brand loyalty, or the model that best combines the features you want. It’s certainly possible to get a Ram 2500 for considerably less than my tester costs, but if you want to go whole-hog, this one proves that the sky is pretty much the limit.