New Dodge 1500 looks good

[wny770]

Maybe I missed something but I did not see any 0 to 60 times for the GM? Like you said the 5.3L is just out classed compared to the others. The only fair test would have been the 6.2L GM.

Chris

Chris, not to sound grumpy......
I owned a Dodge truck a few years ago. 1/2 ton 4x4. Nice ride, but I had to trade her off due to the terrible gas milage. I now own a Chevy, my 3rd in a row. 5.3, 6 speed tranny. Real world driving I get 4 mpg more that my buddy with the same year dodge with his hemi. How can anyone say others get better fuel economy than a GM? I know you despise GM by your pic (Dodge $$$ in the 1970's, remember?), but it's hard to argue that the 5.3 gets good economy compared to a hemi in a half ton.

Not to argue, but in the northeast, Dodge's rust. Over the rear quarters, it's no secret. Look around.

I am a Mopar man when it comes to nostalgia, LOVE the challenger over the ugly Camaro, but the Silverado is not that bad. To me. Am I that wrong?

 

[jcmseven]

I do not know if I agree that it was outclassed, unless the solitary reason for this test was to promote the new Ram and its new 8-speed transmission. I do agree that it seems fishy to me that of the three trucks provided the only one not specified without its top power plant was the silverado. I know the 6.2L is hard to find these days, but I feel it's absence likely is because it can still issue a beat down 0-60 to either of the other trucks tested, either on or off the dragstrip, despite the fact it is the only 1/2 ton truck that has not yet undergone a recent redesign. That would not look as good to Ram with its new truck and i suspect this was known prior to the promotion. My father has a two wheel drive ecoboost with limited slip rear diff and in supercab format, which is likely the among the fastest configuration of that truck and while fast it is not 6.2L fast, and yes I suggested the ford to him to buy. Let's not fear though, in about a year or less we shall have a new 1500 Silverado to test and that may toss things up a little.

John M

 

[deerefan]

Chris, not to sound grumpy......
I owned a Dodge truck a few years ago. 1/2 ton 4x4. Nice ride, but I had to trade her off due to the terrible gas milage. I now own a Chevy, my 3rd in a row. 5.3, 6 speed tranny. Real world driving I get 4 mpg more that my buddy with the same year dodge with his hemi. How can anyone say others get better fuel economy than a GM? I know you despise GM by your pic (Dodge $$$ in the 1970's, remember?), but it's hard to argue that the 5.3 gets good economy compared to a hemi in a half ton.

Not to argue, but in the northeast, Dodge's rust. Over the rear quarters, it's no secret. Look around.

I am a Mopar man when it comes to nostalgia, LOVE the challenger over the ugly Camaro, but the Silverado is not that bad. To me. Am I that wrong?

Not wrong. I own a 2011 Silverado 4wd 3.42 gear ratio, 6 spd tranny. I average 17.2 mpg. The truck rides nice, but the 5.3 is not comparable to the ecoboost powerwise. It is a better comparison to the 5.0. Some follks were burned bad by the gm bailout and I cant blame them for their position. I like gm products but do not approve of the bailout. Bankruptcy laws are there and gm should have taken advantage of them.

 

[Diamondpilot]

Chris, not to sound grumpy......
I owned a Dodge truck a few years ago. 1/2 ton 4x4. Nice ride, but I had to trade her off due to the terrible gas milage. I now own a Chevy, my 3rd in a row. 5.3, 6 speed tranny. Real world driving I get 4 mpg more that my buddy with the same year dodge with his hemi. How can anyone say others get better fuel economy than a GM? I know you despise GM by your pic (Dodge $$$ in the 1970's, remember?), but it's hard to argue that the 5.3 gets good economy compared to a hemi in a half ton.

Not to argue, but in the northeast, Dodge's rust. Over the rear quarters, it's no secret. Look around.

I am a Mopar man when it comes to nostalgia, LOVE the challenger over the ugly Camaro, but the Silverado is not that bad. To me. Am I that wrong?

I also had a Dodge Hemi. It drank gas. 11 mpg was the norm and 8 mpg when towing. I never said the 5.3 was a bad motor. It has always been know for its relatively good fuel economy but its never had the grunt of the others. It only makes about 330 or so FT TQ. Its just not up to the same level as these other motors. There have been tons and tons of them made and other than some oil usage I only know of one guy who had a issue and that was a broken cam shaft.

If you like GM buy it. I will not due to poor service I received in the past and the bailout sealed the deal for me and many others.

 

[wny770]

I also had a Dodge Hemi. It drank gas. 11 mpg was the norm and 8 mpg when towing. I never said the 5.3 was a bad motor. It has always been know for its relatively good fuel economy but its never had the grunt of the others. It only makes about 330 or so FT TQ. Its just not up to the same level as these other motors. There have been tons and tons of them made and other than some oil usage I only know of one guy who had a issue and that was a broken cam shaft.

If you like GM buy it. I will not due to poor service I received in the past and the bailout sealed the deal for me and many others.

I did not like the bail-out either.

 

[Code54]

I currently drive a 1500 Ram Crew cab 5.5 bed, 4x4 for work with the Hemi. Just for fun I been watching the mileage so I could compare it to my 2500 Diesel. The Hemi on the highway with cruise (set at about 75ish) gets about 17 on the hills roads of WV and PA. I didn't think that was too bad.

 

[jcmseven]

I agree with Chris and others about the bailout. I was unhappy about it. There are many details about this process I am sure we do not know and probably would be even less happy if we did with the process. I personally do not feel this was handled well or properly when it occurred. That said, TBN is not a political forum. This is one place where I have felt we could debate the pros and cons of trucks, trailers, equipment, etc. and share opinions based on real or perceived product merit. Having owned both Ford and GM products I like them both, and I feel that Ram also now makes a competitive product and it appears for 2013 it is going to be even better. I however do not feel that the GM product is outclassed in this setting. The 1500 gm truck is a very reliable vehicle that tows adequately well and has as good, if not better fuel economy than the newer more exotic offerings from competitors while not yet having been redesigned. I am not so sure that even the 6.2L would lack much in the fuel economy arena v. The ecoboost or muliply geared Ram. Its styling is in need of an update, but there are areas where the gm truck is still quite competitive. I sense an undertone that those who own those products are either in agreement with bailout or are hoodwinked into buying a lesser vehicle that is destined to give trouble. I do not think this is the case and certainly not in my case personally. I switched to gm trucks after being a ford man for many years and have been extremely satisfied with my purchase. I just wish I would have done it sooner. I also can say that my dealer has been much more responsive to my needs than my prior dealers when I owned Fords. While i have only worked with one GM dealer, I have worked with many Ford dealers and it seemed the friendship always was tabled at the service department. If that was how Ford managed to avoid bailout I am not sure it will be effective long term to maintain loyal customers. This spoken, I think each of the three major brands are making good trucks that are very reliable at this time. I would say the worst personal vehicle I have owned was a 2008 Ford 150 King Ranch which I traded with only 20,000 miles for my current GMC, which is ten times the truck. My ford was poorly made and had marginal performance and fuel economy. That said, I still recommended Ford to my father when he was looking for a 1/2 ton truck because the ford fit his needs well and because I did not hold prior disappointment on that one truck against the brand when I knew Ford had made significant improvements since that time and due to my generally positive feelings toward the brand. GM and Ram have done the same I feel and likely should be viewed on their current merits. While brand locality is inevitable and to some degree welcomed, I must say that in my personal dealings locally with people who own each brand, and when looking on the various forums and complaint arenas, GM trucks seem to have the fewest complaints and generally the most satisfied owners. It remains to be seen whether Ford can recapture some of the loyalty it lost with its handling of the 6.0L issues from again, the past. I think it can. I also believe with its proven Hemi engine and 8 speed transmission, Ram will offer tough competition. I am excited to see what GM has on the table next year.

John M

 

[davkir]

I just thought it was a cool picture.

 

[TedBell]

I was impressed with the RAM Express I checked out recently. It had a 5.7-liter Hemi-powered engine with the right amount of perks like power windows, locks for a nice price. The interior was a definite upgrade from what I now drive - a 2003 RAM 1500 ST.

Its amazing how much towing capacity has increased in the last 10 years. My 2003 RAM can only tow about 3500 lbs - the offerings today are up to 9 to 10 K.

However if I bought now I'd definitely check on the Ford offerings. They have really up'ed their game in the last few years and have a solid truck offering. And of course the F150 is still the best selling truck in the US.