The Awards Keep Rolling in....

Automobile Magazine Ranks Ram 1500
“2010 Automobile All-Star”
Dodge Ram 1500 From meathead to egghead.
By Joe Lorio

The pickup market is among the most stagnant and resistant to change of any
segment in the automotive arena. So when a new pickup has the fortitude to
question established practices, it deserves to be recognized. The new halfton
Dodge Ram is that truck.

Cutting against the unquestioned trend of ever-more-ludicrous towing figures,
towering "in-your-face" grilles, and absurdly jacked-up ride heights, Dodge
engineers stepped back from the mindless braggadocio to create a vehicle that
actually works smarter. Throwing out years of accepted wisdom, they scrapped
the antediluvian leaf springs in favor of a well-located coil-sprung rear
axle, dramatically improving the pickup's ride quality. They retreated from
the cartoonish styling and instead shaped their truck in the wind tunnel, and
consequently it uses less fuel. They also at long last addressed the issue of
covered, secure cargo storage - which other makers of full-size trucks had
consigned their buyers to add themselves or do without - and created the
hugely innovative RamBox in-bedside storage compartments. Apparently also
questioning the notion that a noisy truck is somehow acceptable where a noisy
car is not, Dodge created a Ram that is astonishingly quiet to drive
(although we are glad to still hear the Hemi V-8's distinct burble at startup).
In the suddenly competitive domain of interiors, the Ram sets the
standard by living up to the radical idea that the cabin of a $40,000 truck
should be as nice as that of a $40,000 car.

In all these changes, the Ram often had to go not just against its
competitors, but also its own history. It surely was not easy. The Dodge Ram
has gone from meathead to egghead, adding brains to its brawn. As a result,
it surges to the front of the pack as the most livable yet still highly
capable big pickup in the land.