'09 Ram Turns Over New Leaf

Forget about throwing down the gauntlet — Chrysler LLC is shaking a 380-hp spring-loaded, chrome-plated fist in the faces of its fullsize pickup competitors.

Engine enhancements aside, the '09 Dodge Ram makes new rules for styling and utility, while breaking a rule — a big one — on the engineering front. Chrysler's flagship truck features a coil-spring rear suspension instead of the time-honored leaf-spring setup that has served pickup owners well for generations.

Now, tongues are wagging.

“I can't wait to drive it and have (Chrysler) prove to me that coil springs can handle the same kind of nasty loads as leaf springs,” says Joe Phillippi, principal of New Jersey-based consultancy AutoTrends Inc.

Phillippi wonders if Chrysler is bowing to the legions of pickup buyers who use their trucks as grocery-getters instead of stump-pullers. (One senior Chrysler executive playfully refers to this demographic as “air haulers.”)

“These things get an awful lot of miles put on them without too much load in the back,” Phillippi says. “As the Baby Boomers get older — and they're a big chunk of the pickup market — they want a comfortable ride.”

That's all well and good, he adds, but a pickup truck “has got to do the work.”

Chrysler promises to deliver on both counts, without compromise.

“Our multi-link coil-spring setup provides advantages in ride quality and handling characteristics, but doesn't give up anything in terms of payload or trailer-towing capability,” Scott Kunselman, newly anointed vice president-truck product team, says in a statement from Chrysler.

Maximum payload is estimated at 1,850 lbs. (839 kg), while Chrysler sets the Ram's tow rating at 9,100 lbs. (4,127 kg).

Boldly, Kunselman reminds that coil-spring setups are de rigueur on tractor-trailers and railroad cars.

A multi-link mounting design on the solid rear axle comprises the bones of the new coil-spring suspension, which weighs 40 lbs. (18 kg) less than the outgoing Ram's Hotchkiss leaf-spring setup. But the net weight saving is 25 lbs. (11 kg) because the axle design is 15 lbs. (7 kg) beefier to ensure durability.

Dodge makes available four gear ratios: 3.21, 3.55, 3.92 and 4.10.

Meanwhile, the front axle, which boasts ratios of 3.55 and 3.92, features half-shafts that turn the hubs. As a fuel-saver, it also features a system that disengages the axle when 4-wheel drive is deactivated.

Antilock brakes and electronic stability control are standard, and all four wheels feature disc brakes. The Ram's rotors — 13.2 ins. (33.6 cm) in front and 13.8 ins. (35.2 cm) in the rear — are the largest in the segment.

Contributing further to improved ride quality are forward-facing rear shocks, Chrysler says. The shocks are positioned outside the frame rails — a game-changing design pioneered by the '04 Ford F-150.

The '09 Ram also features a new frame which is 30 lbs (13.6 kg) lighter, thanks to the use of advanced, high-strength steel in the front end. Portions are hydroformed, while its side rails are fully boxed.

The frame — which comes in 120-in. (304-cm) and 140-in. (356-cm) lengths — is supplied by Mexico-based Metalsa S. de R.L. Metalsa, 40% owned by Tower Automotive Inc., also shares Toyota Tundra frame sourcing with Dana Corp.

Designers were tasked with meeting the considerable expectations of Ram owners and the market in general, Chrysler says.

“We heard loud and clear,” adds Mark Allen, chief designer-Jeep/truck studios. The public expected “bold, powerful and capable” from the new Ram, he says.

Design proposals were whittled from 11 to three and then to the final iteration, marked by an aggressively styled grille that cants forward to suggest a “head-down” posture.

“The grille's actually smaller than the exit vehicle,” reveals Ralph Gilles, vice president-Jeep/truck studio. “We were focused so much on aerodynamics that we decided not to go bigger. The aerodynamics are amazing on this truck.”

The drag coefficient is 0.42, compared with the '07 model's score of 0.46, Gilles tells Ward's.

Designers walked a fine line, he admits.

“If you want to sell in serious volume, you've got to be careful not to overstyle it and make it gimmicky and try to outdo yourself,” Gilles says. “So we put more attitude in it.”

Industry watchers have noticed. “I'm comfortable with the new look,” Phillippi says. “Some people said it looked too much like a Charger. But it is a Dodge.”

J.P. Morgan analyst Himanshu Patel writes in a research note: “The redesigned '09 Dodge Ram lived up to its maverick heritage within the pickup truck segment with a significantly more athletic exterior.”

However, the revamped interior, the first new vehicle to benefit from Chrysler's commitment to upgrade its cabins, is a letdown, Patel adds. The new Ram, he says, “seemed a notch below the refinement standard originally set in this segment by the '04 Ford F-150,” and which was repeated by the '07 GMT900 pickups and the upcoming '09 Ford F-150.

Chrysler insiders suggest early critics were looking at the lower trim line. (Because of short supply, the auto maker could display only two examples of its highest-volume product by the time the Detroit auto show opened its doors to the public.)

In the face of criticism over its use of hard plastic, the auto maker has paid particular attention to softening touch points, such as door panels.

Chrysler also made sure storage wasn't given short shrift. From the glove box to map pockets to the console, the new truck features 38 storage spaces — twice as many as the previous model.

Most notable are a pair of concealed in-floor bins in the rear footwells. Each accommodates 10 standard beverage cans - with ice. Removable inserts make for easy cleaning.

Dodge also adds a crew cab to its lineup for '09.

But with any pickup, it's the bed that counts. And the new Ram supplements its rear cargo capacity with RamBox - two lit, dry, lockable compartments that add 8.6 cu.-ft. (243.5 L) of storage.

Chrysler says market research indicated “dry, lockable storage was critical to light-duty pickup owners who used their trucks for a variety of lifestyle activities.” This is particularly true for first-time truck buyers, so RamBox is “Dodge's response to that need,” Kunselman says.

More than a dozen designs were tried before a final version emerged: two bins built around the wheel wells, with hinged lids that open 90 degrees.

Originally, Chrysler planned to outsource construction of the RamBox.

But when cost estimates were too high, President and Vice Chairman Tom LaSorda championed for an alternative solution.

“He embraced this thing,” says Mike Donoughe, who shepherded the new Ram's development as vice president-body-on-frame product team. “He saw the value in terms of what it's going to mean to the consumer.”

LaSorda even arranged a preview for Steven Feinberg, founder and chairman of Cerberus Capital Management LP, which acquired Chrysler in August. “He loved it,” LaSorda tells Ward's.

Then the auto maker determined it could preserve margin by constructing it in-house at its pickup assembly plant in St. Louis.

The result is a storage space large enough to hold items ranging from golf clubs to chainsaws.

And there remains enough room to accommodate a standard plywood sheet.

Meanwhile, the Ram's engine lineup offers more power and increased fuel economy. The new truck will benefit from an upgraded-for-'09 version of Chrysler's trademark 5.7L Hemi V-8.

The new Hemi will feature an increased compression ratio; improved cylinder head port flow; streamlined exhaust and induction systems; and an intake manifold that features long runners for greater low-end torque and short runners to boost power at high revs.

The engine is rated at 380 hp and generates peak torque of 404 lb.-ft. (548 Nm). Compared with the previous powerplant, those figures represent a surge of 10% and 8%, respectively. Variable valve timing and expanded use of Chrysler's MDS cylinder deactivation technology contribute to a 4% improvement in fuel economy.

Also available is an E85-compatible 310-hp 4.7L V-8 that provides peak torque of 330 lb.-ft. (447 Nm). Like the Hemi, it features improved port flow.

The standard engine is a 210-hp 3.7L Magnum V-6 with peak torque rated at 235 lb.-ft. (319 Nm).

Chrysler also plans to add a diesel to its light-duty Ram in 2009, followed by a gasoline-electric hybrid powertrain in 2010.

But of all the new Ram's features, its groundbreaking suspension is generating the most buzz. Within hours of the truck's debut at the recent Detroit show, would-be buyers were calling dealers.

“They were interested in the handling,” says Blair Gardiner of Provincial Chrysler, located just over the Canadian border from Detroit, in Windsor, ON.

Despite a 1.8% decline in U.S. sales last year, the Dodge Ram held its 4.2% share of the light-truck market, according to Ward's data.

After seeing the '09 model, however, Vice Chairman and President Jim Press offers this prediction: “We don't steal share,” he says. “Customers choose what truck they want to buy. The truck will increase our share. The Hemi will; the diesel will; and when the hybrid comes, it will, too.”