No it hasn't

 

I agree with most of what you wrote...but I also think you're being a little hard on the Hemi. It's not the engines fault it's bolted to a ****ty, parasitic tranny that causes more then average power loss. The Hemi has always been dirty engine emission wise especially back in the day...in the redesign they had to make sure there was a complete burn each and everytime. That's why there's 16 plugs and yes it's expensive to tune-up....but being that the plugs are straight down the head makes it easier.

The thing I like most about the 09 Hemi coming out is the variable intake runners....which allow more low-end torque when neededbut also high-end ponies when revved.

 

where did u buy it from. not all ov dos dealers r trustable.they may said they did work on it they really didn't do just 2 get u 2 buy it

 

Since when did 345hp / 375tq from 5.7 liters become "poor"? At the time of its introduction, it killed Ford's 5.4 (and still does) and GM's 6.0. GM's LT1 and LS1 of the same displacement didn't make these numbers either. Yep, the Hemi sucks. You think this is the first engine with dual plugs per cylinder? Hah!

If I'd wanted a Tundra or a Titan, one would be in my driveway instead of the crappy old Ram.

 

The worst dealership/warranty experience I has was with Honda, at one of the better Honda dealers in the area. Had an Accord that sprang a leak in the A/C evaporator. Dealer said that it was due to road hazard, a rock must have hit it or something, so I have to pay $400 for the repair. I asked for the damaged evaporator and asked them to show me where the hole was... lo an behold there was a pinhole leak about the size of a ballpoint pen tip, with no evidence that it was hit by a rock. None of the fins surrounding the pinhole were bent, all were perfectly aligned like new, so I rationalized that it must have been a part defect. Dealer wouldn't budge, so I called Honda. They too wouldn't budge, wouldn't even send a field rep to look at it or take me up on my offer to take the part to Gardena where their corp office was for one of their engineers to look at it.

All other new car warrantyexperiences I've had were very positive - that includes GM, Nissan, and Toyota, and yes, Honda (the same dealership! They replaced all 4Dunlops on a Civic,installed meaty Michelins after I ran the Dunlops bald in less than 22k miles driving mountain roads on my commute).

So what's mypoint?Well, in my opinion, your dealership experience is not unique toDodge nor to your dealership, and the lack of quality in some components is not only a problem in "domestic" manufacturers. So far my most reliable cars in the first year of ownership are a '91 Corvette,my '07 Ram (0 defects in 7 months so far), one of three Hondas ('98 Civic), a RAV4, and one of two Altimas ('99, the '05 had a minor electrical problem with the A/C I just lived with). Remember that most cars in the US market from Honda or Toyota are actually assembled in North America, and most of the parts on a car are outsourced, which usually translates into less control over quality. In my personal experience there is nodifference between a car that's reputed as having "above average" reliability by consumer orgs when compared to ones that are rated "average" or even "below average" (i.e. the Vette and Ram are toward the bottom). Cars as a whole have become so reliable over the past 20 years that I no longer discriminate by manufacturer, I just look for overall value.

As far as cheap feel of the upholstery insome of theRams, I wholeheartedly agree there.The material in myRam reminds me ofthe '02 RAV4 that my wife had a few years back (and no it wasn't the base model either). It's not plush like my wife's Sienna or the Sierra I traded in for the Ram. But hey, do I care? Not really. It's a small concession, considering I got a truck with well over 300 rumbling horses, four doors that open the right way, 20" rims, and great looks for under $21K,orabout $23K with T+L. Running it through edmunds.com, trade-in value comes in at $20,505. Seems a bit high, but in my experience I've never had to give more than $1500 off of edmunds trade-in value, even on cars that were less than two years old being traded in for a loss leader in a newspaper ad.

 

lol...the ridgeline is definitely a gayass ride in my opinion...but, unfortuneately. if they were to drive side by side until one were to just break down, the honda would pwn our rams by liek 1000000 miles.

 

One thing that is just so awesome about American vehicles is the simplicity. Do your own work on a Dodge or to an extent Chev or Ford then try to do the same things on a Toyota or Nissan. Just one example is oil changes. Dodge is wide open and easy placement of filter,Chev has a skid plate that catches oil, and Ford always puts the filter in a stupid place like right in front of the fan. Now go to a Toyota or Nissan, you're dealing with at least two skid plates before you can even start to just look for the filter. And there is something about the rumble of that Hemiwhenyou drop the hammer compared to the whine of aToyota that's just... awe inspiring. And I would hate for that dealership toruin Americana for you. It's these domestics that built the country we live in.Fromrecreational drivers to hard working farmers or construction people, American is the way to go. They're cheaper than imports, can take an absolute beating and still keep rolling, and you could break down in the middle of no where and anyone can fixa Domestic unit. So don't give up on domestic...

End Rant

 

The newer 05+ Tacomas oil filter is directly under the hood....easiest access filter that i've seen.

 

okay, a ridge line dosent' get twice the milage of the old version of the4.7, but it's tow's better than a quad cab ram with the 4.7, I work with a guy who's not gay, and I'm to lazy to start acting gay, his new ridge line tows better than his old 4.7 and gets better milage.

Honda claims the ridge line is good for a tow rating of 5,000 pounds, All I'm trying to point out is I agree no one has to like it, But I really considerd buying one.

as for milage, the hemi is not that bad, better than fords 5.4 and I will agree that gm may have an edge in milage only because the Gm trucks are lighter.

Only knock I have against honda is the ridge line is too expensive for what you get.'

 

to the original poster:
your idea of getting to talk to the Chrysler Zone representative
and going to a better dealership
is a sound one that I hope you follow up on.

Good luck, and sorry to hear about the problems