2009 Dodge Ram

[Jim Prower]

Didn't Ford do it for this last F-150 (I'll admit that I'm not up on truck specs)? If anything, it seems like their load-carrying ability increased...

I think they were still running leaves, but changed their shock position.

 

[hemisport15]

the only thing i don't like is the two tone paint, it looks bad. other than that it all looks good to me. the hemi sport and srt 10 versions will look even better:tup:.

 

[JohnBM01]

You're right about the two-tone deal. Like here in Texas, you can have a Texas Edition Ford F-150 with a two-tone paint job. It looks great when the color choices go together overall. If it were up to me, I'd make it two rich shades of blue with twin gold-colored racing stripes. That would be a John special. Anyhow, I just think they've softened its looks up front to the point where it's aggressive, only not purely aggressive. Most of you will probably agree that the last Ram had some great style up front. I always say this new design makes it look more like the late 1990s Rams up front. Is this the kind of looks you want to give your company's signature pickup truck? I can only imagine what injustice would take form if elements of this truck's design go towards the next Dakota. If you like (loathe) this design, you may not like the next Dakota if these styling cues take form.

 

[Jim Prower]

So you'd make a US Navy Blue Angels truck?

I didn't like the last Ram up front, it was trying too hard to be tough. and anything would improve the Dakota, honestly.

 

[JohnBM01]

Kind of. If you see my Photo Album on Myspace, you'll know the Subaru Impreza semi-inspired me of a blue and gold scheme. Not exactly the Blue Angels, but that's what I've seen in pictures and even at a Houston Air Show event once. [UPDATE]My alternative colors would be red and gold.

Anyhow, do you think people are actually going to be turned on to the Ram if the next Ram looks like this?

 

[Jim Prower]

I don't know. Chrysler is in an AMC, precariously-on-the-edge-of defeat-but-doing-our-damndest-to-survive-mode right now. Will it win Truck of the Year next year? that depends on how good the F-150 is. But I think the more conservative look is more attractive and will be more livable with both members of a marriage. However, with the housing market going bust, and the economy going into recesson, I think truck sales on a whole (many of the pickups I see are for building contractors...and they're top-line models, too.) will go down a bit. we'll see how things turn out.

 

[Joey D]

Americans will still buy pick-ups because they feel they need them for whatever reason. I don't expect to see a decline it sales, but I can't see some of these "true" pick-up guys accepting such a toned down truck. I mean a lot of people bitched when GMC starting offering built in DVD players with the Sierra, I can only imagine what they will do with this.

 

[Jim Prower]

On the other hand, "True" pickup guys are in the minority. Many guys buy trucks because they need them. Besides, if it's easy to modify, the truck guys'll be all over it.

At the end of the day, there are three things most full-size truck buyers will look at:

1. Will it be capable of doing what I need it to do, (read, pulling/hauling what I need to pull/haul,) and will it do it as well as the other guy?
2. Will it come with the features I want?
3. Will it give me any trouble down the road?

1 and 3 give me the most worries about this one, especially since the suspension's new for a full-size, body-on-frame application. We'll see what happens.

(I'd like to see the new Cummins mill for this one, too. Still with the Diesel 2JZ...err, straight six, or are they doing something new?)

 

[Tornado]

You want a "nice" place to be in AND you want performance you buy a Ford, Toyota, or a Nissan,--you want just a truck to do random stuff and price is an issue you buy a Chevy or Dodge.

You know, the Nissan range is generally just as terrible inside as the Dodge range. It is for a different reason, but it is just the same. I LOLed at the performance part with the Ford, too. Good joke.

 

[JCE]

You know, the Nissan range is generally just as terrible inside as the Dodge range. It is for a different reason, but it is just the same. I LOLed at the performance part with the Ford, too. Good joke.

Ford generally out hauls and tows all of its competition--that's the performance I'm referring to.

 

[Tornado]

Ah. I thought you meant numbers. I'm too lazy to check, but I'll take your word for it.

 

[YSSMAN]

Ford generally out hauls and tows all of its competition--that's the performance I'm referring to.

Only on standard engines with the "regular" trucks. The GMT900s will happily outdo the Fords with the optional engines added on. Remember, Ford pretty much stops at 300 BHP with that 5.4L V8.

In general, the truck market is still GM's to command. The GMT900 is a good balance of everything that we love, and it generally comes at a good price. Its why I usually see far more Silverados and Sierras than anything else around here, the Ram in a distant third.

How I'd rate the market?

- Silverado/Sierra
- Ram
- Titan
- F-150
- Tundra

 

[JCE]

Only on standard engines with the "regular" trucks. The GMT900s will happily outdo the Fords with the optional engines added on. Remember, Ford pretty much stops at 300 BHP with that 5.4L V8.

No no no. You are slightly missing it. Ford's pickup truck range is the F-series--which does generally out tows and hauls just about everyone. Chevy has the Silverado name moniker--which they stick its heavy duty nameplate to. So its a perfectly accurate comparison to compare the Ford F250~350 to the Silverado 3500HD. In which case GM loses on most areas of tow/haul catagories as well as everyone else. Chevy wins out only on intial cost.

Anyway this is about Dodge, and since it is about a Chrysler product I don't need to be in here due to my disgust of the brand,