Is the New Dodge Ram Soft?

how sensitive of you. these "pigs" are driving this economy and are essential for anyone who lives in the boonies and has to haul food, supplies, work tools, hunting gear, you name it. also they happen to be a lot of fun to drive over the occasional spoiled BMW driver...

Who buys a half ton to haul 10,000 lbs anyway. if people need to tow they buy an f250 superduty, silverado 2500hd or ram 2500 or greater. there is really no point for a half ton being that stout. anyone towing or hauling that much will buy a 3/4 ton or 1 ton pickup.

I think you have a point about serious trailer duty. But for the average Joe with a boat, the extra towing capacity is nice. Higher towing ratings usually equate to a more solid tow for lower weights. I used to pull my boat (about 3.5 tons) with a 9th Gen F-150. It was a hassle to say the leaszt but the 11th Generation was a different story. Definitely a more competent vehicle which made towing a breeze by comparison.

So I can understand, from a consumers point of view, the need for a stouter 1/2 ton for occasional towing. In the end, you're still right on about serious towing. I ended up getting an F250 6.0 and never looked back.

Is the New Dodge Ram Soft?

I don't know at this time, but you should buy the Nissan Titan any day over the Dodge POS.

The Dodge is trash for the next 4 years!

It's funny you mention the Titan and the Ram together since Nissan is partnered w/ Dodge to basically rebadge the Ram into the new Titan here soon, the interior and sheet metal will be the only changes (the Hemi and 5 speed auto will be carried over to the Titan as well).

Hmm...maybe your bias is leading you down a dark road.

EL, I recall the term sore loser being used back in 2000. Get over it all ready. Thats old news!

Buy the truck made in Japan or the truck built by non Union workers.

The UAW has a website and they show what trucks they will build for 2009.

I'm getting over buying American for the next 4 years.

WTF?? This cant be EL34, telling people to buy a Japanese car over an American?

Imposter??

Well then you can support the mexican economy and buy the dodge or support american workers who designed and built the titan. The dodge is appealing though. I personally would take the tiatan overall over everything else because you don't have to opt for a V8 even a stripped down titan still has the 5.6 317hp v8, so as far as bang for the busk is concerned its hard to beat the Titan.

Sorry for the mis-spellings, i got fat fingers tonight. I need to slow down and proof-read before I click submit.

I think you're helping to illustrate the point - the only people buying these trucks right now actually NEED them for something (work, camping, RV'ing, etc.). Are these buyers going to go for fancy interiors and diminished tow capacity in exchange for a better ride?

Very good point. Big pickups and SUVs are great for all the tasks you mentioned - but they are a lousy pick for suburban commuters and "soccer moms". In today's world of high fuel prices and and economic uncertainty, I suspect that a lot of drivers will buy normal passenger cars for normal automotive duties, and rent the big bruisers for when they actually need to drive off-road a lot, haul a lot of cargo, or tow a big trailer or boat.

Who knows, maybe even the station wagon will make a comeback in the U.S. as the vehicle choice for people who need to haul or tow something just a little bit too big for a normal sedan.

By the way, I have always wondered about something. Other than greater ground clearance and/or ride height, what is the difference between a crossover-utility vehicle and a station wagon?

i rarely see heavy duty pickups actually towing close to their limits. I don't see regular pickups towing more than 5,000 pounds.

Correct, if you need to tow anything heavy just occasionally, why not rent a tow vehicle for those "occasional" times and use a lighter more fuel efficient truck the rest of the time or should I say "most" of the time. No use driving around in a very capable vehicle when you don't fully utilize its capabilities. We must change our lifestyles from "excessive" to "just right".

I would come with you on this but I have one problem. My F-250 6.0 diesel gets much better gas mileage than my F-150 350 ever did. Why not just have the best of both worlds?

Unfortunately you are right, that's why I drive a Honda Civic.lol

All I know is this will be better than both import truck brands, even if it is the third best American truck.

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Dodge was the first to eliminate lift blocks, Lift blocks increase leverage on the leaf springs that increase wheel hop.(good for Dodge) In general I like the coil suspension,(it would be safe to say that the wheel travel is too limited) but the heated steering wheel? How ridiculous! As far as towing and load bearing is concerned I think that they could have a secondary air bag set up for the increased load and some adjustable shocks when the increased spring rate is imposed. Unfortunately I think that this truck has gone soft because it is too low to the ground! It's got a good engine but the whole reason I would buy a truck is so I could take it hunting up the mountain. And this truck is definitely the weakest of the bunch.To improve this truck I would make it shorter by shortening the hood,increasing wheel travel at both ends to at least 20inches min. and improving the approach and departure angles to be competitive with the Hummer H-1 and selectable lockers front and rear.This vehicle isn't even engineered with off road in mind and it isn't the king of the half ton trailer princesses either! Someone better like the heated steering wheel or this will become extinct.

How many pickups are really geared for off road. before GM had the rear diff lock, only toyota had it in the tacoma. I pulled a Z71 out of the snow with my old 1980 volvo because he was stuck only spinning one front tire and one back tire. now I think everyone had a rear diff locker. the Dodge power wagon had front and rear diff lock and remote disconnect swaybars. the rest of the pickup world are just 4wd with open diffs. on slippery uneven terrain they are not much better if any, than a 2wd with a rear diff lock. If you want a real 4x4 that can rock crawl you have the H3 pickup and the dodge power wagon 4x4. if you don't have to have a pickup you are for the most part limited to the land cruiser/lx570, Fj cruiser, G class benz, any land rover except the freelander/lr2, and a jeep wrangler rubicon. As far as being bone stock from the showroom floor, these can't be beat. I am sure I missed a couple but you get my point.

You say many wise statements here with the exeption of the new Toyota FJ as a capable off road vehicle, and the H-3 is just a little more capable than the FJ off road. It's debatable if the H-3 belongs on the list? I wouldn't buy a Land Rover either, my friend had a Defender (great off road for 2 open diffs) and when his 5 speed tranny went it costs him $10,000.!!!If that doesn't scare you don't worry about it.lol

Give me a vehicle that has more utility than a truck! Not everyone is interested in driving a econ box on Luxury car. I have a truck and a car. The amount of times I needed my truck makes it indispensable.

I guess for you people living in Apts or whatever may not need it but for those that have property or house typically do. All my apt frenz constantly beg to use my truck.

As for article the Dodge has done good things for the Truck segment and typically has been a leader in truck drivability that others follow.