2024 Ram 2500 Tradesman on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2021 Ram 1500 Limited Longhorn 10th Anniversary Edition revealed with southwestern flair

Ram has made pickups as a standalone brand for about 10 years now, and the company is celebrating this milestone with a special edition truck. It’s called the 2021 Ram 1500 Limited Longhorn 10th Anniversary Edition. Being the “Limited” trim, itÂ’s starting out as the most luxurious and well-appointed Ram that money can buy. Ram is sweetening the deal with a bunch of southwestern-themed appearance items. On the outside, the 10th Anniversary Edition distinguishes itself with a chrome-slate grille, chrome headlight header, chrome bumpers, a special tailgate badge and new 20-inch wheels that are available in multiple finishes. YouÂ’ll also get tow hooks, side steps and the adaptive LED headlights as standard equipment. On the interior, Ram ramps up the luxury even higher than normal. It comes with a new leather-wrapped dashboard, suede door inserts, leather seat inserts on the bolsters with a unique design to highlight a “southwestern style.” It comes in a Mountain Brown interior color theme and features hammered aluminum accents, a 10th Anniversary instrument cluster with graphic and badge, a glossy black shifter cap, metal pedal kit and a brushed-zinc badge on the center consoleÂ’s lid. YouÂ’ll be able to spec the truck with the 5.7-liter V8 or the 3.0-liter turbodiesel V6. ItÂ’s only available in the Crew Cab body style, but you can get it in either the 5-foot-7-inch or 6-foot-4 bed lengths. Pricing begins at $58,565, including the $1,695 destination charge. These trucks are on sale now, so check your local dealers if you want one of the special editions.

Some 2014-19 Ram ProMasters recalled for shifter cables that could detach

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has issued a recall for hundreds of thousands of 2014-2019 Ram ProMaster vans with a 3.6-liter engine. Campaign No. 20V036000 states that the shifter cables on these vans could disconnect from the transmission, which could lead to a variety of unsafe situations. The new recall comes after Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) has issued transmission-related recalls for several other brand products in recent years. Jeep and FCA were thrust into the spotlight in 2016, when "Star Trek" actor Anton Yelchin's shocking death was linked to what was deemed an unintuitive shifter design. FCA recalled more than 1 million vehicles with a rocker-style eight-speed ZF shifter, including Jeep Grand Cherokees, Chrysler 300s, and Dodge Chargers. The design was unclear to some, and that confusion lead to dangerous rollaways. In 2017, FCA was back in the news when it announced a transmission recall for 1.8 million Ram trucks that had a faulty interlock that could result in the transmission shifting out of park. And in 2019, FCA announced two more transmission recalls, this time for 320,000 Dodge Darts and 51,788 Fiat 500s, both of which had cable bushings that could degrade due to temperature and moisture.  FCA's unsettling pattern has bled into the new decade, as 222,207 ProMasters have been recalled for an entirely separate transmission issue that could once again lead to a rollaway risk. The NHTSA estimates approximately three percent of these vehicles could have built with a transmission gear shift cable that was kinked during production. According to the recall document, "the vehicle population was determined to include all ProMaster vehicles equipped with a 3.6-liter engine from the beginning of 2014 MY production on April 23, 2013, through September 14, 2019, when the vehicle manufacturing process was revised." If the shift cable separates, the shifter is no longer connected to the transmission. The driver, then, would not be able to shift properly, or the transmission could be in a different position than believed. If the driver thinks the vehicle is parked, but it is actually still in drive or neutral, the vehicle could unintentionally move. As a precautionary measure until the vans are checked and fixed, FCA suggests owners use the parking brake when parking these vehicles. FCA will begin notifying owners on March 13, 2020 and plans to replace the damaged parts free of charge.

NHTSA probing Ram recall pace, communication

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has announced that it's looking into Chrysler Group's handling of a pair of recalls affecting roughly one million Ram pickup trucks. Reuters is reporting that the regulatory agency is focusing on the availability (or lack thereof) of parts and "poor communications" from the automaker in its investigation.
"Customers have been advised in accordance with the regulations governing recalls," Chrysler spokesman Eric Mayne told Reuters via email. "We are continually replenishing our supply of replacement parts. Chrysler Group regrets any inconvenience our customers may have experienced."
NHTSA disagrees, arguing that the recalls, which affect 972,000 trucks from 2003 to 2012, are being delayed by the lack of parts.