I honestly dont know what to think anymore I never had a clear picture of what vehicle I wanted so for my first vehicle I ended up with a 1986 tan Ford Ranger Regular cab - 2wd -1.4L 4 cylinder - and manual tranny.

It was my first vehicle and only cost 2,000 bucks with 74,000 miles on it, then I was lucky enough to get backed into by a rich drunk girl with good insurance who was so overjoyed that I let her sober up before she told her father and reported it.

So extra effort was taken to get things right since the truck was so cheap the insurance company settled it as a total loss and the passenger side quarter panel and door were only slightly dented so I bought it back and got a free truck and 500 dollars.

Alas it was a ford in the two years I owned it I had to change out the clutch, u joints, shocks, alternator and a few other amenities like a new column since it had worn out and could be started without a key.

The final straw and nail in this vehicles coffin was the computer burnt out. It was replaced but the genious "a liscensed mechanic" put the computer in backwards at first and bent the pins so they thought it didnt work, Several days later the parts distributor called back and told us what had happened so we fixed it and sold it for 2 grand.

Next since I was still convinced Fords were the cats *** I got a 2001 Ford F-150 XLT extended cab -short bed - 2wd - 4.2L V6 -standard. Had about 32,000 miles on it and wa pretty fairly priced.

But we ran into a continuing problem it was a Ford on a long distance trip to houston my clutch assembly completey fell apart leaving me with a 4,000 dollar bill shortly after that the rear end started coming apart and wineing so I had it replaced at a dealership with a new one, not a rebuild, a brand new part and then I couldnt get any power or traction out of it and codes started showing up that said my exhast sensor and fuel injectors were going bad at 64,000 miles?

So it went up on the chopping block because once again it was a POS ford, I then got smart test drove every type of truck I ended up with a Red 06 dodge SLT quad cab Texas Edition 5.7L hemi 2wd with an auto tranny with 5 miles on it. which I liked except for the lightless cruise control buttons on the steering wheel, and it took forever to cool or heat up which that was the only good thing with the ford is its awesome A/C and heater.

Also I didnt like the fact it had an automatic traction control that couldnt be disabled, I got over it and decked it out with an exhaust system, CAI, and programmer and got within 5,000 dollars of paying it off and just hit the 24,000 mile mark on the odometer when at 1201 am I was hit buy a drunk driver leaving work on september 11th of this year,

she was going so fast I didnt have time to react I took an impact from a Lincon Navigator at 50 MPH directly infront of my driver side door and since my truck was so large she bounced off and the rear of her vehicle impacted the rear of my vehicle and twisted it breaking both axles and bending the whole front end over.



She didnt have a liscence or insurance so my insurance company ended up footing the entire bill and is still in litigation for the rest of it.

So I ended up going car shopping again I had my mind set on a 4wd chevrolet/GMC 1500 or a dodge 2500 4 wd deisel I went through several different lots and didnt find anything I liked and was about to give up for the day when my grandpa who was taking me around who drives a longbed 98 dodge laramie extended cab with a Viper v10 he custom ordered took me by the dodge dealership again and this time something stood out a blue weird shaped vehicle that didnt look like anything else I saw.

The more I looked at it the more I wanted it I test drove it several times but should have pushed it all the way so I could have learned about one of my biggest issues with my current selection.

First off I wanted a 4wd this time but I have a slight addiction with speed over mobility so I gave in again and custom ordered a 2wd 09 Sport with the premium speaker package ad etc.

Now at the time I thought it was kind of Ironic that dodge now offered the exact alpine setup I wanted to put in my murdered 06 and it came stock with the dual exhaust that I had lost. So I pretty much came back to an equilibrium but this time came back and got exactly what I wanted with very limited modification.

Then as time went on I got 1700 miles on this current vehicle 27,000 dollars left to pay and a whole lot of disapointment.

First something that really pisses me off more than anything is the fact that Dodge brags their asses off at having 390 horses under the hood, yet in the end they give the customer a 105 limit and a big kiss my *** in the mopar preformance sector and if you think its just cause they havent got around to it yet look for my 06 air intake and computer upgrades, youll be looking for awhile cause on the mopar site they dont exist.

To stave off the comments well trucks arent made to go fast, I ask you then why does toyota offer a supercharger? why does Ford offer a rousch preformance package? Why did they come out with a rumble bee an srt 10 yet give us nothing but the base product to wait for other people to come up with stuff several months or even years down the line.

Second the looks at first it pops off as orignal unique and etc, honestly I want to pop that ralph gilis guy in the mouth for everytime i watched a video on google stating how its so inovational and etc. etc. every time I look at the lines on the truck they look more and more like every other truck. The black side pillars look exactly like the 06 fords and the the NEW TUNDRAS which wouldnt be that noticeable if the fender lines and the sill lines didnt match the tundras. Also I measured the rear window and ledges with someones titan and they match so I guess dodge while siderailing a little more than the hemi with nissian in their back door dealings.

Now for durabilty did anyone else read where it says not to slam your hood because its made of light cheap aluminum there body shells werent thin enough they had to go and make them thinner and cheaper.

AS for mentioned in a previous thread on bending my front knuckle and having to pay 600 dollars to get it replaced , yes I am a dumbass but I hit the exact same spot to catch air on the exact same beach I had hit with my 06 ram on several occasions yet I did it once exactly the same and my alighment gets thrown and im out a chunk of cash, but this all new coil suspension makes it an mean off roading machine oh wait should i mention the friggin trash bag I hit on the highway that got wrapped around the links and axle and bent something that I had to take to get fixed cause it was knocking around after I spent an hour cutting the PLASTIC BAG out of them but the excellent mechanic had a brilliant idea " you should ve stopped and checked it" FOR PLASTIC BLACK TRASH BAG I HAFT TO DODGE PLASTIC TRASH BAGS IN A TRUCK.

Anyway rant ove rI haft to go back to work in an hour.

 

It sucks that you had some bad luck with your F150 and first Ram, but I can't really take you seriously when you complain that a truck has a 105 MPH limit.

It weights almost 3 tons. It has a very high center of gravity. The tires are tall and have high sidewalls. It could go 105 with a trailer behind it. There are no good or safe reasons for a stock half ton to go over 100 MPH. The SRT-10 was highly modified to go fast.
Dodge, and others, make V8 powered cars that are built to go much faster.

Catching air and breaking something? Not really suprising. Even if they do show it in the "Ram Challenge" videos. That's sheer abuse on a vehicle without a bit of upgrading.

Ramping a brand new pickup you hate for being limited at 105 MPH...I don't know what to say. Buy a used Mustang, supercharge it, and with the money left over, buy a SFA Toyota and ramp it all day. I think you bought the wrong vehicle.

 

he has every right to be pissed off. All the advertisements for the 09' were basically false statements. Its not tougher, its not an inovative design as the design mimics allot of the other trucks on the road, if it has 390hp I would like to know where they are hiding it, sure it has some pep to it not much more than the previous years though, not to mention if they are going to offer 390hp then I want all 390hp to play with. It be like owning a viper and only being able to go up to 100mph. The only thing I really like about the 09's is the ride quality, it drives so much smoother and quieter than the previous years, but if a black plastic bag is all it takes to cause any damage to it then there is something really wrong there.

 

First off, truck advertisements have been BS for a long time. I would never hitch a shipping container to a Tundra and yank it up over the edge of a cliff. I would never tow 10,500 LBS with an F150, no matter how cool the trailer sway control is. I would never ramp a Ram like a dune buggy.

When it comes to driving fast, I still stand by what I said. Driving 105+ in a pickup truck is not safe or smart. Get a motorcycle, sports car, a SRT-10 or a SVT Lightning.

It's not "like owning a Viper and only being able to go up to 100 MPH". It's like driving a 6,000LB brick with R rated tires. Even if Rams came with V rated (149 MPH) tires, the suspension and brakes would be very strained, trying to wrangle all that weight around. At 100 MPH, the brakes have to dissipate almost 3x more energy than at 60MPH, when you panic stop for that guy who cut you off.

390 HP is there so you can pull a boat up a hill, or accelerate onto the freeway with a ton of fill in the bed. And so they can sell more trucks.

I'm not trying to be a shthead. If you honestly researched and compared, and *test drove* all 3 or 4 fullsize half tons, chose the Ram, and are still disappointed, that sucks. But if you didn't do all your homework, that's on you.

 

SRT -10 Highly modified? it had a larger sway bar and thats about it and that large sway bar is inferior to the new technology they put under it now the 09 ram has no high center of gravity unless your in a raised 4X4 version.

and buy a mustang? !WTF?@!3 why would I want a ford that just falls apart faster.

buy a Toyota ahahaahahha....no

If I wanted a weak framed POS with 5 miles to the gallon Id get an 1954 ford f 100 pickup.

"I think you bought the wrong vehicle."

Heres where I agree with you since I had to do real world testing to waid through the lies and propaganda fed to me.

Im not looking for a 4 second truck but when my speedometer says 120 I want it to go 120 like a chevrolet, like a ford like my old 06 ram. Not something sitting there lying to your face saying it can go 120 and advertised as being the fastest truck.

Wait what the fastest truck hmm did I just mention the several videos showing them racing other vehicles oh no, no i didnt cause thats wrong and unsafe why would you race someone its so unsafe and it doesnt happen every single day on every single road yes its illegal yes the finds are steep but why doesnt it stop hmmm because competition is in the human gnome and what mopar fans are known for.

Also im 6'2 210 pounds my long legs dont fit into most cars, I fit in the challenger but the terrain around here and use of my vehicle doesnt get along with cars suspension and weak frames, the roads flood and those shiny little sports cars line the sides of the roads alot places I go are in rural areas with crappy roads where even an all wheel drive car doesnt cut it which is why you see texas highways lined with suvs and trucks.

 

I did my homework and im not that gullable to beleive the advertisements im just disapointed after researching and every point they said this truck had the advantage in and every thing it seemed to have is false.

 

The SRT has over 150 changes from a stock 1500, it is more than a sway bar.

Sorry about your truck. You have some valid points and invalid points. Bottom line is every auto maker has issues. It may even get worse given how they now have to cut back.

 

The gauge says 120, the truck doesn't go that fast. OK. The fuel gauge doesn't stay on F all the time either.

Mustangs are out...Subaru WRX.

It's not like I don't enjoy going fast. The #1 speed limiting factor is most likely the tires. So get some V rated summer sports, plug in a tuner and erase the speed limiter, and go knock yourself out.

Genome.

http://www.life.uiuc.edu/ib/494/images/genome.jpg

Gnome.

http://www.pkmeco.com/images/gnome.jpg

 

I know but I like dodge its just a let down.

 

I gotta agree with Cramerica. Besides the fact that a trash bag broke your new Ram(what's up with that????), is it really any big surprise that it's not built for speed or taking jumps?

If it is a surprise, you gotta do more research when you're buying a vehicle.