The heroic winch.
Just add snow and
Scott Evans, and
we've got a rescue.Testing out the winch in
better conditions ...Another family of good Samar-
itans had already stopped and
provided chains to help the
Ford E-Series van–based RV
get traction on the icy road,
but with the passenger-side
rear wheel just off the edge of
the pavement, the motor home
was crab-walking itself down
the road rather than backing
out of the ditch.
“‘My son said: Now that
looks like a truck that could pull
us out!’ the helpful father said
to me as he flagged me down.
The spirit was certainly willing,
but my brain was just a little
uncertain the Power Wagon
would be up to the task.
“Without consulting the
internet, I figured the van that
RV was built on would weigh
around 4,000 pounds as aI
have a confession to make:
I’ve been a bit greedy with
the keys to my long-term
2018 Ram 2500 Power Wagon.
I adore the unstoppable,
gas-guzzling beast, and not
just out in California’s back-
country. Weirdly enough, I like
it in Los Angeles traffic, too.
People just don’t seem to move
out of my way with the same
sense of urgency when I’m
driving other vehicles.
At any rate, with fellow
features editor Scott Evans
and his lovely wife planning
an expedition through Arizona
over a long, cold weekend a
few months back, I figured it
was only right to relinquish the
keys to the Power Wagon for
a few days. Turns out, it was a
good thing I did. What follows
is Scott’s report from the road:
“On a long weekend vaca-
tion out to Monument Valley
and the Grand Canyon this
winter, poor weather was to be
expected. The South Rim sits at
6,800 feet and averages nearly
5 feet of snowfall annually.
More than 6 inches of it fell just
the night before.
“I figured it was only a
matter of time before we found
a car in a snowy ditch, but I
was worried that when I did,
there wouldn’t be a good point
to winch it from. For better or
for worse, the vehicle we found
in the ditch was an RV.
“We came across the Cruise
America rental RV just south of
the park entrance, nose down
in a ditch on the east side of
the road. I didn’t ask how it got
there, whether the driver hit
the brakes and slid off to his
right or just hit a patch of ice
and the crown of the road took
over. He and his adult family
were from Southeast Asia—I
didn’t ask where, specifi-
cally—and spoke little English.
bare-chassis cab and could
only support a few thousand
pounds of payload. Best guess,
the gross vehicle weight would
be in the range of 10,000
pounds. The Power Wagon’s
winch is rated to 12,000
pounds, so there ought to be a
cushion. Later research would
suggest a curb weight around
11,000 pounds. Regardless,
there was little worry of over-
heating the winch motor in
20-degree weather.
“Thankfully, Cruise America
RVs seem to all be fitted with
trailer hitches, and although
a sticker on the receiver
mandated a trailer of no
more than 2,500 pounds,
that number is based on the
RV’s ability to pull and stop
the combined weight of the
vehicle and trailer. With even
light-duty pickup trucks able
to pull over 13,000 pounds off
a receiver hitch these days, it
stood to reason the hitch could
take the weight of the RV, so
that’s where we attached the
winch cable.
“I at first hoped to keep the
southbound lane of Route 64
open to traffic while I winched
the RV, but from that angle themotor home continued to crab
along the ditch and the edge
of the road rather than pull out.
With the other family stopping
traffic, my wife repositioned
the truck and I reattached the
winch. With the RV in reverse
and the cable taut, it was time
to put up or shut up.
“Progress was encouraging
at first. Despite the snow and
ice, the Power Wagon stood
firm and pulled the RV toward
it, not the other way around.
The RV moved slowly back until
the front wheels came up to
the edge of the ditch. I held
my breath as the winch slowed
nearly to a stop, but the RV’s
front wheels popped up over
the lip, and the motor home
continued back until we had it
on the pavement with enough
room to turn and pull away
safely without falling back in.
“Automakers naturally prefer
we return their vehicles in the
same condition we received
them in (or as close as possible),
which leaves us little oppor-
tunity to test features like a
winch that only get used when
all else fails. Lucky us, we could
combine a real-world winch
test with a good deed.”“The Ram Power Wagon’s winch
is typically a last resort, but I’m
happy to report it’s a reliable one.”
Christian SeabaughService life:
10 mo/17,986 mi • Avg Fuel Econ: 10.9 mpgAvg CO2 1.78 lb/mi Energy cons 306 kW-hr/100 mi
Unresolved problems None Maintenance cost $9 7.17
(1-oil change, inspection, tire rotation) Normal-wear cost $0
Base price $53,245 As-tested $63,280 E PA Cit y/Hw y/Com b
Fuel Econ Not rated Real MPG 11.6/15.3/13.0 mpg
2018 Ram 2500 Power Wagon
UPDATES
90 MOTORTREND.COM SEPTEMBER 2019