2019 Ram 1500

  • Thread starter CodeRedR51
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CodeRedR51

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Looks like they're going for an edgier look, and it's nice to see a truck with headlights that are not massive.

http://www.autoblog.com/2016/10/19/2019-ram-1500-spy-shots/

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I only hope they retain the cross hair grille design for this generation. I was never fond of the last generation Ram trucks, but I'm sadly not putting my hopes up on the next generation.
 
Still looks ok. As long as it still retains most of it's DNA it should be ok. What I'm most looking forward to is improved safety. One of the few things missing from the current gen.
 
It looks familiar somehow. The crosshair grill and lower headlights are one thing, but it looks like some other concept I've seen but I can't place it. Still looks better than these:

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Those first two: what's with the obsession of the prowler style fender headlights?:yuck:
Prowler, Power Wagon (1st Pic), and "Power Box" (2nd Pic) are all design callbacks to designs where the headlights stood apart, usually hung off the grill. Lights like that now...I don't know if they're illegal to produce as such, but this was how Chrysler decided it should be integrated for the Dodge side, I think the Prowler was OK it was the bumpers that killed it.
 
I much prefer this design yes, but I feel like there's be a way to have something as simple just modernized if they'd try.
Simple doesn't sell enough anymore. It has to be flashy to draw in the magpies who wouldn't know hard work if it hit them.
 
Simple doesn't sell enough anymore. It has to be flashy to draw in the magpies who wouldn't know hard work if it hit them.
These trucks now are far from flashy....they are downright ugly.
 
I agree most of the full size trucks these days are messy. Mid-sizers are better I feel, and as old as the current Frontier is, I still think it's a good looking truck.
 
I agree most of the full size trucks these days are messy. Mid-sizers are better I feel, and as old as the current Frontier is, I still think it's a good looking truck.
Even the mid size ones are a bit rough....the new Colorado is a great example. Size wise I think all of them are getting to be a bit ridiculous. The cab space is nice, don't get me wrong, but we don't need grilles that are the size of a whales mouth either.
 
Even the mid size ones are a bit rough....the new Colorado is a great example. Size wise I think all of them are getting to be a bit ridiculous. The cab space is nice, don't get me wrong, but we don't need grilles that are the size of a whales mouth either.
Well one of the reasons we don't have a new Frontier yet is because Nissan thinks that the new Navara design is "too feminine" for the US. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. Guess we'll find out.
 
Well one of the reasons we don't have a new Frontier yet is because Nissan thinks that the new Navara design is "too feminine" for the US. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. Guess we'll find out.
Not necessarily either one. I'm all for an aggressive looking truck, but the designs that are out between automakers now are to the point that it's getting to be a bit too outlandish.

They don't really look like trucks anymore...more so like big toys for toddlers.
 
A lot of the design has to do with aerodynamics and that buyers use their trucks like big cars, which means more interior space and a more car like appearance which can throw off proportions. With the need for high fuel economy numbers too you get these super low hanging front ends that make any utility of the truck off the pavement to be fairly useless (i.e. the Colorado). Also with the advent of LED lights, headlights can be significantly smaller which automakers feel like they have to capitalize on which makes everything look like it's squinting.
 
A lot of the design has to do with aerodynamics and that buyers use their trucks like big cars, which means more interior space and a more car like appearance which can throw off proportions. With the need for high fuel economy numbers too you get these super low hanging front ends that make any utility of the truck off the pavement to be fairly useless (i.e. the Colorado). Also with the advent of LED lights, headlights can be significantly smaller which automakers feel like they have to capitalize on which makes everything look like it's squinting.
Except that in reality the actual light output on most of the newer trucks is exceptionally poor.
 
Smaller lights mean that they're less likely to be damaged in a minor accident as well. That results in cheaper insurance and less cost of ownership.
 
I much prefer this design yes, but I feel like there's be a way to have something as simple just modernized if they'd try.
It's not a case of trying. In theory, there's little stopping a designer doing something simple, but I suspect the general customer base simply wouldn't buy it.

And as Joey says, aero almost certainly plays a part - though I'd be intrigued whether it's possible to build a truck with an effectively square front end that still has decent aero. Not just good for economy remember, but also highway refinement, higher-speed acceleration etc.

Suspect it'd be difficult, largely because a lot of things that you need in a truck - high ground clearance, lots of suspension travel, large mirrors for better visibility etc - tend to all be things you don't want from an aero perspective.

Would be interesting to see what someone like @Nessy could come up with.
 
It's not a case of trying. In theory, there's little stopping a designer doing something simple, but I suspect the general customer base simply wouldn't buy it.

And as Joey says, aero almost certainly plays a part - though I'd be intrigued whether it's possible to build a truck with an effectively square front end that still has decent aero. Not just good for economy remember, but also highway refinement, higher-speed acceleration etc.

Suspect it'd be difficult, largely because a lot of things that you need in a truck - high ground clearance, lots of suspension travel, large mirrors for better visibility etc - tend to all be things you don't want from an aero perspective.

Would be interesting to see what someone like @Nessy could come up with.
The design doesn't necessarily even have to be square. It just needs to be something that's not so cluttered that it looks like a toddlers Tonka truck.
 
The design doesn't necessarily even have to be square. It just needs to be something that's not so cluttered that it looks like a toddlers Tonka truck.
I suspect part of it is brand differentiation. All the trucks on sale at the moment broadly look pretty similar so brands are essentially just using details to mark them out from the others.

Seems to go in waves. The late-90s trucks all looked pretty different to each other, but go back to the mid-80s and line up an F150, a Dodge Ram 1500 and a Chevy Silverado next to each other and you're essentially looking at boxes on top of boxes with subtle differences in the grilles or positions of headlights to differentiate them. Go back to the 50s or 60s and there was once again a lot greater difference.

Design, and taste will always evolve. Pickups aren't likely to disappear any time soon so perhaps in the next 10 years or so the designs will be more to your tastes. Or in ten years you'll look back on today's stuff and not think it's so bad.
 
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