2013 Ram 1500 2wd Quad Cab 140.5" Tradesman on 2040-cars

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2019 Ram 1500 Warlock is priced right and revives a retro name

Few car companies have a history as rich and fun as Mopar, and few companies take advantage of it like Fiat Chrysler. Bringing back fantastic colors such as Sublime, or exciting models such as Power Wagon, FCA is an ace at retro vehicles. Well, it is most of the time. Then there are things like the 2019 Ram 1500 Warlock. But before we dig into the new one, we need to talk about the original, which was a trim introduced in 1976 on Dodge's old full-size truck. It was part of a line of pre-customized Dodges called "Adult Toys" ( we're not making that up). The Macho Power Wagon was one of them, and the modern Power Wagon's stripes come from that truck. The Warlock was likewise a pre-customized truck that came with gold pinstripes, wheels and upholstery, bucket seats and oak bed rails. It was also available with a six- or eight-cylinder engine and two- or four-wheel drive. The new Warlock does fit some of the original's spirit, since it's customized from the factory. It has a one-inch lift over the stock truck, powder-coated bumpers, fender flares, 20-inch wheels and decals aplenty. It's even available with six or eight cylinders and rear- or four-wheel drive. But our two main problems are that this doesn't look any different than other special Ram models, and nothing about it references the old Warlock. As for the first problem, we've seen all the parts and most of the stickers on this truck before, especially on the Rebel that has the same lights, grille, bumpers and fender flares. And for the second, this was a big missed opportunity to try out some cool retro touches, such as the gold wheels and pinstripes. A custom interior would have been especially nice. The new Warlock has just the plain "Diesel Gray" interior found on most basic Rams. And this is all without something unique like the original's wood bed rails. There is an upside to all of this, though, and it's that the Warlock offers truck buyers a way to get a new Rebel-style Ram for a lot less than the real thing. The Rebel trim no longer exists on the Ram 1500 Classic (what the Warlock is based on), and it starts at $46,635. The Warlock starts at just $37,040 with two-wheel drive and the standard V6. Buyers can also add a V8 and four-wheel drive as options. So the Warlock isn't a great Warlock, but it's a solid budget Rebel. Related Video:

2014 Ram ProMaster 2500

Front-wheel drive is what sets the all-new Ram ProMaster full-size commercial van apart from its competition. In a segment still choked with thirsty, rear-wheel-drive, ladder frame, pickup truck-based cargo vans, the American automaker is introducing something entirely new - well, new to our domestic market, as Europeans will recognize Ram's fresh entrant as a made-for-USA Fiat Ducato.
While the big ProMaster doesn't have a traditional body-on-frame chassis, it isn't a pure unibody either. Consider it a hybrid of both, with a unibody cab up front and a reinforced high-strength steel subframe in the rear. The platform employs double A-arms and MacPherson struts on the front axle, while the rear uses a simple tubular beam axle. Tires are 225/75R16 at all four corners. The steering is hydraulic rack-and-pinion (allowing an impressive 36-foot turning radius) and there are disc brakes with two-piston calipers all around. It is a solid, if unsophisticated, setup.
This game-changing van, which has already arrived in showrooms with a starting price of $28,630, is propelled by either a gasoline-powered 3.6-liter Pentastar six-cylinder (280 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque) or a new turbocharged 3.0-liter four-cylinder diesel (174 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque). Ram will offer a traditional six-speed automatic or a new six-speed automated single-clutch manual transmission that drops the hydraulic linkage to improve fuel economy - details are still emerging on this unique gearbox.

2019 Ram 1500: Everything we know

We're not too far away from the sheet being pulled off the 2019 Ram 1500. But over and over, we've had spy shots come in revealing much of the truck before hand. The latest ones have given us a very clear look at the truck's new grille, which boldly does away with the signature crosshair grille. The main iteration we've seen is the one above with the "RAM" logo in the center flanked by split chrome bars. Chrome is used extensively elsewhere, too. The traditional Ram logo has also probably been binned, at least on the exterior, in favor of the broad Ram script currently seen on the Ram Rebel, Laramie Longhorn and Limited trims. Indeed, it seems like a change that the brand has subtly been trying to get its customers ready for, as a quick trip to the company website will show a greater reliance on those trim levels to visually represent each Ram model (including the heavy-duty 2500 and 3500). View 3 Photos Now, there will likely continue to be multiple grille options available as there is today to at least differentiate luxury and off-road models. In the renderings above, we show a version of the grille without those chrome bars. The rest of the truck in the rendering is based on what we saw when some gusty weather unofficially revealed the Ram 1500 to a spy photographer, as seen in the gallery below. View 18 Photos As for everything else we know about the 2019 Ram 1500 ... The Interior View 8 Photos We got pretty good shots of the new Ram interior a few weeks ago. There will be a huge, vertically oriented touchscreen available, possibly with updated UConnect interface software, flanked by hard buttons for the climate control system. A volume knob and redundant multi-purpose control knob will remain, as will the rotary transmission selector. New toggle switches below will be dedicated to various vehicle controls, and we would assume would remain in place throughout the trim level range. Smaller touchscreens will almost certainly be found on lower trims with a traditional array of climate controls between them and the toggles. It'll be steel View 5 Photos An intrepid magnet-wielding spy photographer back in August examined a 2019 Ram test mule's body panels and discovered the majority of them are steel. The hood and tailgate are aluminum, however. There will be a split tailgate option View 18 Photos Speaking of that tailgate, spy photos have shown that it will be available with a split, barn-door-style tailgate option.