2009 Dodge Ram 1500 Review
This truck is naughty in all the right ways.
By: Nathan Adlen
Usually, I have a week or so to test the vehicles I’m loaned. During this time, I try one or two special courses (track, curvy back roads, off-road, long distance, etc.) along with standard commuting duties. This gives me more than a standard “drives nice in the city” only point of view. Rarely do I take a loan vehicle to more than two “special” courses.
Not so with this Dodge Ram 1500.
I took it to nearly EVERY special road I run in several different climates (Denver and the surrounding land can go from a sunny/balmy day to a snow and ice filled blizzard in no time). Each time, the Dodge Ram 1500 impressed me so much that I had to find a new challenge for it. This proved to be expensive (it’s thirsty), but worth it.
There is a road that I like to drive with sporty cars. In fact, I just finished melting the tires on a Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart on this same road (last week’s story) before I began heating up the Dodge’s disc brakes. I was driving the “Sport” model which had massive 20 inch wheels, great for cars – but I was dubious about these fat, tall wheels (275/60/R20) on a truck. The new multilink, coil-spring rear suspension was more than compliant – the Dodge Ram 1500 is currently the only full size truck to offer this rear end setup (Chevy tried it once in the early 70s).
Progressively, I began going faster on my beloved back-road loop. The steering is well weighted and direct. I knew what the front wheels were doing and I felt more like I was driving a car than a truck. At one point, I hit some ice and opted to let the rear end fling sideways as I applied MORE throttle (there’s a lesson here kids, don’t do what I do) and did a sideways drift around a tight bend. The entire time, I truly had control of the truck. There are no other pickups on the market that I would try that stunt in. Any other truck’s rear end would shimmy, stutter and hop. In other trucks I would have most likely spun out, but not in the Dodge Ram 1500.
Later, I put the 1,850 lbs of cargo capacity to use as I got rid of some old steel wheels hanging around my yard. There had to be about 900 lbs worth of weight. The Dodge Ram 1500 didn’t notice anything. It can tow a 9,100 lbs trailer and I have no doubt that the Dodge Ram 1500 would shrug off most domestic towing duties as well. It’s not the beefy 390 horsepower (and 410 lbs feet of torque) 5.7 liter HEMI that makes the Dodge Ram such a Tyrannosaurus Rex on the road – it’s that excellent suspension too.
I noticed the combination working harmoniously when I took my brother-in-law fishing. Drew’s only complaint may have been the lousy fishing, as we caught nothing. To be fair, it is still winter and the river was running shallow. Anyway, we cruised up and down the river’s road and had an event free ride. I left the Dodge Ram 1500 Sport in 4-Hi and had absolutely no problems. I thought at first that it was dry and hard-packed soil we were riding over.
It wasn’t.
We had no problem keeping the rear end planted while driving through ruts and undulating surfaces. It’s all about articulation and that truck liked its tires touching the ground as often as possible. There was a lot of goo and mud, but the Dodge Ram (even with the “Sport’s” 20 inch wheels) could care less. It just rumbled through everything without missing a beat.
We experienced freezing cold, dangerous blowing winds, snow and ice, but the Dodge Ram laughed it off. Soft sand, goo, mud, chunky ice and snow were also a joke to the Dodge. I deliberately went over harder bumps and hills to scare my “city-fied” brother-in-law and he acted like he was on the Universal Studios Tour - unimpressed. This truck was so composed, it almost annoyed me.
The hydro-formed frame is easily as stout as the Ford’s and the cabin was much quieter than the Chevrolet Sierra. Dodge’s Ram has a sweet place to drive. The stitched leather, firm, yet comfy seats and gobs of leg room were very welcome as I am 6’2” and big bad Drew is about 7” less. We were both eminently comfortable; so much so that Drew eased the seat back and got lots of sleep – well before hitting the soft highway.
Inside the Dodge Ram 1500 Sport, I found all sorts of neat storage places including a massive center armrest that is partially made for holding a laptop while the lower section can hold a bowling ball. Underneath the rear seats, there are some handy storage cubbies. If you get the big stereo system, part of this utility is sacrificed for a subwoofer (most would prefer the subwoofer). There’s even a mini hidden storage compartment behind the driver’s seat on the floor. It’s big enough to hold a 6-pack (of soda) and has a liner so you can add ice.
Did I mention that the seats are heated AND cooled!? The steering wheel is heated too. The climate system could easily compete with many luxury cars.
Damned if I’m not impressed.
On long highway rides, the firm suspension magically eases up and gives you a creamy ride that reminds me of my old man’s late 80’s Lincoln Town Car. The music is fed through a fantastic Alpine 10 speaker, 2 amplifier surround sound system. The Dodge Ram 1500 also has an option for Uconnect web WiFi.
“Uconnect web lets you turn your vehicle into a WiFi hotspot, allowing you to connect your laptops, iPhones, PSPs and PDAs. With this authentic Dodge accessory from Mopar® installed at your dealer, each passenger can simultaneously surf the Web, check their e-mail, instant message, download music / photos and play online games, so you’ll never be out of the loop again.” Dodge.com
There are only a few minor gripes. As I was doing my cruise through the Rocky Mountain back roads, I noticed less than exciting mileage. I averaged about 13 mpg. Okay, that was while I was driving like a moonshine hauler during prohibition, still it was a reflection of the driver and HEMI enjoying each other’s company too much.
The storage boxes along the bed-rails are an awesome idea and they hold tons of stuff. It is at the expense of cargo capacity. One can still hold a 4×8 piece of plywood with the tailgate down which is the Holy Grail of measurements for pickup trucks. I think most quad bikes will fit too. It’s just a bit tight for some things. The Dodge Ram’s nifty, integrated, hard plastic bed divider locks into multiple positions. With the tailgate down, it folds out to become the bed extender. It’s a handy tool and feels like it will holdup against several hundred pounds and serious abuse.
There is tons of utility in this truck.
With that said, and my journey now folding into traffic conditions through downtown Denver, I had an epiphany. Yes, the Dodge Ram was an easy drive through the city and very few people wanted to cut me off (I credit that mean looking frontend and overall size). While I was sitting in stop-n-go traffic, I saw many of the competitor’s trucks. The Toyota is less than attractive, but very capable. The General Motors GMC and Chevrolet trucks are good looking, but small in stature. Even the fantastic new Ford F150 had a corporate theme that said “utility” more than “fun.” I’m sure the new Ford Raptor will help that image.
They ALL have an industrial theme to them: work trucks made to be a personal truck.
The Dodge Ram 1500 feels like it was built as a truck for personal use from the offset. That’s what Dodge did right. They made this great vehicle for people who need a tailor made machine. Indeed, if I worked on a site, the Dodge would be great, but the other pickup trucks would be far more competitive. When it comes to being a truck for the people (before the workers) the Dodge Ram is hard to beat.
One final observation: the 2009 Dodge Ram 1500 is a damn handsome truck! That new front end, smooth body panels, tight fit and slim gaps make for a great package. It looks like a truck that enjoys scaring other trucks. It looks like the Jason Statham of trucks; smooth, rugged and a bit mean-spirited (without the accent). You FEEL big inside it and know you’re big just looking at it! Man, it’s better than beef jerky!
I’ll say it now; the Dodge Ram 1500 is the best pickup truck on the road.
