1976 Dodge Ramcharger Reviews, Pricing & Specs

In any option configuration available, you will have a very capable truck with the Dodge Ramcharger. 1974-1980 models were based on the Lifestyle Era Dodge pickups. Galvanized steel was introduced in the 80's to the Ramcharger which slowed down rust and corrosion. These trucks are very well engineered and have very few issues. I will get right to the issues before the accolades as they are important: AMP gauges at the dash are troublesome. They should be by-passed, and then install a VOLT gauge in it's place. Google "Mad Electrical Dodge Truck" and read all about how to execute that repair. Front wheel bearings are a bear to replace and are expensive. Don't ride oversize tires on the Dana 44 front end. You can upgrade to the 8 lug Dana 44 or the Dana 44 HD or better yet, the Dana 60 front end! Carry a spare Ballast Resistor in the glove box. It's a $6 item, super cheap but bad ones will leave you stranded!! They short out easily, especially as the truck ages. Always have an extra. If your rig won't start or starts after many tries it could likely be the ballast resistor's internal wire is getting burned and not making a good conniption. If not the Ballast, perhaps your coil is burned (check for heat). Now the good part: Dodge (Chrysler) engines are quite simply the best in the industry. All Ramcharger engine options were great! The 318, base engine is legendary. It will give decent power and excellent fuel economy. I've seen 318's out perform many many other brand vehicles and the 318 small block Chrysler engine is one of the best designed engines ever made by ANY manufacturer. Next step up power wise from the 318 is the 360. The 360 shares many parts with the 318 and bolts right up to the tray and motor mounts etc. Easy upgrade if your looking for a power upgrade from the 318 and if you lack the sophistication to sauce up the 318. The 360 will use a little more fuel. The 400 big block is a GREAT motor as well. It can trace it's roots to the 383 of the 1960's. Lot's of guys love the 400 and use it as a base for a stroker. The stock 400 will bring plenty of power and not that bad gas mileage considering it's a big block. Although not great mileage, It should still bring about twice as much fuel economy as a Ford of similar size, and I like Fords too. I'm just saying it like it is. The king of the Chrysler power plants is the 440. Excellent performance, durable, easy to keep running smoothly, tough as nails and horrible on gas ;-). If you are lucky enough to have a Ramcharger with either the 400 or 440, you probably have the rare dash tach. The rear 9 1/4 Dodge diif is well respected as is the optional Dana 60. The 4x4's all came with the Dana 44 up front. Lot's of guys running big meats and/or abuse their rigs tend to upgrade to the Dana 60 front found on 1 ton Dodge's. Try to get one from 1980 down so maintain the fulltime driveline. Switching to part time in order to save fuel is a waste of time. There has been no credible evidence of gas savings going from full time to part time. It's one of those things that sounds logical but is not based in fact. Fulltime gives you excellent traction all the time. Never have to get out and turn the hubs. You still get a low lock gear on the full-time when/if you need it. The NP203 transfer cases on the early Ramchargers are excellent. Thirty-five years later they have proven to be reliable, tough as nails and sought after by other off-roaders with other brand 4x4's to use as a doubler or upgrade from their stock inferior unit. When the 203 first came out, it replaced the legendary gear driven NP205 of the same company. Old timers were wary of of the newcomer and dissed the 203 pre-maturely as it replaced what they were familiar with which was the best t-case ever designed up to that point. Time has erased all that panic. The only thing to watch for is chain slop in the NP203 after 100k miles. Borg Warner sells a replacement chain and it is not difficult to replace. Or you can take it to a tranny shop for them to replace if you ever need it. BTW, the "NP" in the NP205's and NP203's stand for New Process which was wholly owned by Chrysler at the time. The transfer cases and standard shift transmissions found in the same era Ford and Chevy were probably New Process as well! Ford and GM had to go to the Dodge parts bin for their 4x4 needs!! Basically, with Ramcharger, you get best in industry engines, transfer cases and standard shift transmissions which are Chrysler designed that support the whole 4x4 industry. The automatic tranny's, (if so optioned) are all the 727 load flight, torque flight that is literally best in class. The Ramcharger has an optional steel removable hard top. Bestop used to make a Tigertop soft top that was great. They stopped making them a few years ago but a new company called the B-D company (b-dco dot com)promises to start making their own version. The Ramcharger is stronger than the Scout's & Bronco's, similar to the Blaser/Jimmy but much better engineered in my opinion. Certainly the Dodge drivelines last longer!! Ramchargers are rugged and handsome and are very cheap to buy. I was the choice vehicle for the Border Patrol and Walker Texas Ranger. i drive a 1976 Ramcharger 400 convertible!!Jun 19, 2011