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2017 Ram 2500 Laramie 4x4 | Drivers' Notes

The Ram 2500 is a heavy-duty truck that sits square in the middle of Ram's truck hierarchy. Ram considers this the fourth-generation truck, with the first model debuting in 1981. The current truck first hit the streets back in 2009, with a number of updates and facelifts keeping things fresh since then. Despite its age, it still competes strongly with the Chevrolet Silverado 2500 and the Ford F-250 Super Duty. While Ram heavy duty trucks may be known for packing wonderful Cummins inline-six diesel engines, this particular model has a 6.4-liter Hemi V8 under the hood. The Laramie trim sits dead in the middle of the Ram lineup, just below the much-beloved Power Wagon. While it may not pack all the off-road capabilities of the Power Wagon, it has a few more comfort and convenience features that make it better to live with day-to-day. Senior Editor, Green, John Beltz Snyder: The first thing that struck me besides the towering ride height of the Ram 2500 Laramie was the firmness of the ride. Despite bouncing around quite a bit on our uneven city road surfaces, I kind of enjoyed the joyful feeling of the stiff suspension. I could see myself growing tired of it, though, after a long day of driving. Still, this truck was pretty fun Í— and surprisingly easy Í— to drive in traffic, which is not something I usually say or feel about pickups. The brake effort when coming up on highway jams was the only thing that really shook my confidence in the Ram. It's a beefy machine, too. It garners attention and a wide berth on the road. My 2-year-old son was instantly impressed with it, of course (though a little sad he couldn't fit in the center console storage bin like he could in the Ford F-150). A friend of mine who'd never before struck me as the pickup type ­(though now that I think about it ...) saw photos I posted on Twitter and commented, "I'd drive that truck, dang." Then, later in our conversation, she summed up in just a few characters the conflicted feelings that this particular pickup had been stirring up in me all night: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. I'm not likely to own a truck, let alone an HD. This Ram, though, did what other pickups haven't in a long time. It provided me with guilty pleasure, instead of just guilt. Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore: What's better than a Ram 1500? How about a 2500. Call it the Power Wagon syndrome: Suddenly I feel like I need a 2500 to do anything.

Ram Rebel TRX concept is a Hellcat-powered Raptor-fighter

Ford has proven that fast off-road trucks are awesome. Dodge has proven that ridiculously powerful supercharged V8s are awesome. Combining the two would theoretically be even more awesome. The Ram Rebel TRX, which was unveiled at the Texas State Fair, proves that theory. As you may have guessed from the intro, the Rebel TRX uses a supercharged V8. A version of the supercharged 6.2-liter V8 from the Hellcat twins (and, we suspect, the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk). Because of some new calibrations to make the engine more suited for off-road driving, it doesn't make the full 707 horsepower of the Charger and Challenger. But the TRX engine still cranks out 575 horsepower, which is a full 125 more than the new SVT Raptor. That's enough to propel the mega-sized truck to 100 mph in its off road terrain mode. Power is transferred through an 8-speed automatic transmission to all four wheels. At the back, the Rebel TRX has an electronic locking differential. The TRX also gets an updated version of the Ram's 4x4 Performance Control System featuring Normal, Wet/Snow, Off-road and - best of all - Baja modes. The latter mode is the one that will do triple digits through the desert. Of course a sweet powertrain needs chassis and tire upgrades to round out the package, and the Rebel TRX has plenty of improvements. The standard Ram 1500 frame is unchanged, but bolted to it are custom front control arms, internal bypass shocks at each corner and new springs. The changes bring suspension travel to a full 13 inches all around. It also provides enough space to fit massive 37 x 13.5-inch tires. Ram also added six-piston calipers with 15-inch discs at the front and 14-inch discs at the back. Finally, Ram gave all this heavy duty equipment a big, burly wrapper. The body is a full six-inches wider than the standard 1500 with large composite fenders to cover the aforementioned tires. The truck also has a vented and scooped hood based on the Ram HD. This was necessary to help cool the engine and provide vertical clearance for the supercharger. A large sport bar was added to the back and has provisions for carrying a pair of spare tires, plus an LED light bar on top. The truck also has a big steel skid plate up front, and a sweet integrated side-exit exhaust behind the doors. Inside, the truck gets plenty of leather, suede and carbon fiber. The front seats also have racing harnesses attached to a harness bar that spans the B-pillars.

Say goodbye to the Dodge Dart and Chrysler 200

Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne outlined an update to the company's five-year business plan Wednesday, and among the changes, the Dodge Dart and Chrysler 200 sedans will soon be phased out. The company's presentation to investors states that the "market shift from cars to trucks and UVs [utility vehicles is] now seen as permanent shift in demand," and FCA wants to respond as quickly as possible. Killing the 200 and Dart will allow FCA to build more Jeep and Ram models at the Sterling Heights, MI, and Belvidere, IL, plants where the sedans were produced. We already knew FCA was planning to shift 200 and Dart production to Mexico, to free up the Sterling Heights facility for Ram 1500 production, and the Belivdere site for Jeep Cherokee output. The Cherokee will move from its current home in Toledo, OH, to allow for increased Wrangler production. It's no shock that FCA wants to shift its focus to crossovers and trucks. In December 2015, for example, combined sales of the Dodge Dart and Chrysler 200 were 15,310. The Jeep Cherokee, which uses the same platform as the Dart and 200, outsold both models combined, with 24,049 sales. Both the Dart and 200 had troubles from the beginning. Marchionne recently blamed designers for the 200 not receiving a Consumer Reports 'recommended' rating, and the Dart was one of the lowest-scoring cars in a CR reliability study. Featured Gallery 2013 Dodge Dart: Review View 27 Photos Related Gallery 2015 Chrysler 200 View 43 Photos Image Credit: Copyright 2016 Drew Phillips / AOL Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM FCA confirmed