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Dodge
has been a player in the RV tow vehicle market for some
time now, historically selling about 70,000 units a year.
A Dodge truck has the reputation of being a capable, strong
truck desired by many 5th wheel owners.
 This
new Dodge Ram is a different truck. Not a "Me Too" Truck.
This unit has a muscular feel with a broad hood that falls
to bold front fenders, and a larger horse collar grill that
promotes improved cooling that is necessary when towing
trailers. It has big wheels and a taller profile giving
it a unique image and fresh look. The standard wheel and
245/70R17 tires is the largest wheel combination in the
industry, with an optional 20-inch polished aluminum wheel
with a 275/60R20 tire the largest combination for a half-ton
truck. The truck is even better looking, more pleasurable
to drive, travel in, and definitely more capable of towing
a trailer. Jim Julow, VP for the Dodge brand told us that,
"Everything has been improved, from interior comfort to
carrying capability to storage capacity. Without making
it too big to put into the garage".
I was
introduced to this new truck in Asheville, North Carolina
on a visit to the Biltmore Estate where we were able to
put the truck through its paces on the twisting uphill,
down and around of the back roads of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
There were time that I felt that my stomach was 10 miles
back up the road. This truck with its new independent front
end suspension ate up the road and had a car-like feel when
you pushed it over the hills. The new truck is available
in both two-wheel and four-wheel drive with either a standard
cab or quad cab. For Raving, I prefer the quad cab with
its 40/20/40 front seat and 60/40 split rear seat enabled
four adults to travel very comfortably even on long trips.
The center section of the front seat folds down to provide
great storage on a trip, big enough to hold my laptop computer
and with a power outlet for my cell phone. The cab on this
truck has been extended another three inches over last year's
model for extra knee room in the back seat. And you don't
miss the three inches that were removed from the box. You
still have a full six foot three inches to mount your 5th
wheel hitch. An eight foot box is available as an option.
The windshield slopes more than last year to improve the
aerodynamics of wind and water management. Since
the doors overlap the A-pillar, there is less wind noise.
(Top)
 The
doors open a full 85 degrees for easier loading and unloading
and the windows actually roll all the way down. The rear
seat can be folded down to form a flat load surface and
the regular cab model has convenient storage hooks on the
rear of the seats with a removeable storage bin for tools
or supplies. There is room to store a five- gallon can behind
the seat. The instrument panel has white gauges that are
easy to read both during the daytime and at night.
The
hydroformed frame is wider, offering 400% greater torsional
stiffness and 150% greater lateral stiffness with torsion
bar suspension on a 4x4 instead of a solid axle. This gives
us less unsprung weight for a smoother ride. Longer leaf
springs in the rear reduce wheel hop and improve durability.
Rack and pinion steering also helps provide that car like
feel for more precise handling when you travel down the
road.
Ram
gets two new Magnum engines this year that are more powerful
and fuel efficient than the one they replace. The 3.7L Magnum
V-6 with sequential multiport fuel injection produces 215
horsepower that is 40 horses more than the 3.9L engine it
replaces, and provides one mile per gallon better fuel economy.
The 4.7L Magnum V-8 with16 valves delivers 235 horsepower
compared to 230 from the 5.2L engine in the 2001 truck with
better fuel economy. Also available will be the popular
245 horsepower 5.9L V-8. The 8.0L V10 and the Cummins Turbo
Diesel will be available on the 2500 and 3500 heavy-duty
series models which are unchanged for this year. Entirely
new versions will be available for the 2003 model year.
The 45RFE four-speed automatic transmission has equal ratios
for both first gear and reverse gear. This allows you more
ability to get your trailer moving in towing and hill climbing
situations. There is an alternate 2nd gear for towing. Optional
rear end gear ratios will be 3.55 and 3.92. Maximum towing
for the two-wheel-drive regular cab model is 8,860 pounds,
and the quad cab provides 8,350 pounds . Four-wheel drive
models will tow slightly less because of the extra weight
of the transfer case. (Top)
 One
thing I liked about the front of the frame is it is designed
to crush in a frontal accident for more safety by absorbing
much of the energy on impact. And these sections can be
easily replaced by the bodyshop so that you don't have to
worry about straightening the frame after a front-end collision.
To prevent you from actually running into the vehicle ahead,
the brakes have been enlarged with more surface area, also
improving pad life. Dodge Ram trucks have the first side
curtain air bag in a full size pickup. The bags are in the
headliner just above the doors to protect both front and
back seat passengers.
The
larger rear cabin allows for the installation of child seat
anchors at all rear seating positions. The centre seat on
the regular cab and the rear centre seat have combination
shoulder-lap seat belts which is a first for full-size pickups.
If the airbag deploys, pyrotechnic pretensioners in the
seat belts tighten to keep the occupants safely in position,
and constant force retractors play out the seat belt in
a controlled manner to reduce the risk of the belt tightening
too firmly. The Electronic Brake Proportioning system is
part of the rear anti-lock braking system. It balances the
front-to-rear braking effort when the truck is lightly loaded
in the rear. The truck can be ordered with adjustable accelerator
and brake pedals for more comfort and a better seating position
for short drivers.
Prices
for the 2002 models will be less than the comparable 2001
models. 80% of the production run will be Quad cab units
with 4x4's making up 60% of orders for this new truck. It
will be offered in SLT, SLT+, and Sport equipment levels.
The SLT will have a chrome grill, while the SLT+ features
a body colored grill with chrome crosshairs, and the new
Sport model has body colored grill surround and crosshairs
with a unique billet-bar center.
(Top)
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