Dodge Debuts Redesigned Ram HD

By Joe Howard
Managing Editor

DETROIT — On a crisp Michigan morning, members of the media put the all-new 2010 Dodge Ram HD through its paces during a daylong introduction of the truck that parent company Chrysler Group LLC hopes will increase the Ram’s share of commercial truck sales.

Any new vehicle launch is important to an automaker, but the Ram HD introduction marked the first major new product launch since Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy and part-nered with Italy’s Fiat SpA.

The Ram HD could be a key ingredient to the merger’s success, as the truck ranks fourth among Chrysler’s top five sellers, after the top-selling Chrysler Town & Country mini-van, Jeep Wrangler, and the full-size Ram 1500.

Plus, the HD models comprise one-third of all Ram sales, said Mark Heber, head of Dodge truck marketing.

Chrysler hopes the new-for-2010 crew cab can boost those sales, since crew cabs make up half of all heavy-duty truck sales, said Michael Berube, director of pickup truck product planning.

The crew cab stretches to four the number of Ram HD cab designs, joining the regular, extended and Mega Cab, which was the model driven for the first portion of the test.

Seat Time

Two-driver teams were sent on a route that bookended scenic drives through quaint small towns with sprints along the interstate.

The tested truck was equipped with Cummins’ 6.7-liter turbo diesel, popular with many Ram HD buyers. The engine delivered robust acceleration on the highway but was easily controlled during less-demanding jaunts along the back roads.

Just enough diesel grumble ensures you’ll never forget there’s an oil burner out front, but sound from the engine — which produces 350 horsepower 650 foot-pounds of torque — is sufficiently muted at cruising speed.

The Mega Cab rides on a 160-inch wheelbase, but capably navigated winding roads and delivered a comfortable ride along the highway.

In fact, improving ride quality was one of Dodge’s key goals for the new Ram HD, so engineers equipped the truck with C-pillar hydra mounts to better manage shaking over rough surfaces, and improve ride quality.  

Dodge provided driver teams with a detailed, turn-by-turn map of the route — which terminated at Chrysler’s proving grounds in Chelsea — so the navigation system was some-what unnecessary. Still, for the first leg of the trip, it was turned on. The system — the same setup found in some Ferraris — features a female voice that points the driver to the next turn. H

1  2

Next >>