2020 Ram Promaster Tradesman on 2040-cars

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2019 Ram 1500 spy shots further hint at a trick tailgate for the Chicago Auto Show

It seems all but guaranteed that the 2019 Ram 1500 is going to get some kind of fancy tailgate for the 1500. The latest evidence comes from our spy shooters who just caught an extremely suspicious truck running around with the whole bed and tailgate area covered. Everything other than the bed is ours to see, so Ram is obviously trying to hide something out back. We reported this morning about some Twitter shenanigans between Ram and GMC during the Super Bowl last night. The back and forth between the two companies resulted in Ram hinting that we'll see something new at the Chicago Auto Show this Thursday. Here's the Tweet thread below: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. In dissecting these spy shots, there isn't a whole lot to tear apart. We've got a normal Ram 1500 with a secret or two in the rear. As we zoom into the small patch of white we see through the camouflage, the normal outline of a recessed handle is somewhat visible. It's hard to determine exactly what is under there, because the recessed area is black and doesn't define itself next to the black camouflage. We can say there might be a grab handle in the normal spot you'd find one. There seem to be countless forms for this tailgate to take shape in. Spy photos of a Ram over a year ago with a strange 60/40 split caught our eyes that would probably have the option of opening in a barn-door style. Fiat-Chrysler has experience with split tailgates with its foreign-market Fiat Toro pickup, plus the company filed a patent on split tailgates a few years ago. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. A split design is most likely, but if we let the speculative parts of our brains run amok, we could even see a swing-out style tailgate similar to the Honda Ridgeline as possible. A major benefit to Ridgeline's swinging tailgate is easy access to the bed itself, as well as the in-bed trunk. None of the competition has such a useful area under the bed. But it would be hard to see Ram introducing its own trunk, especially when it offers the RamBox bedside storage system. Still, speculation can run wild on this one. The nice part about this mystery is that we won't have to wait long for the solution, since Ram has indicated it'll be solved at the Chicago Auto Show. We'll be on the ground there to try out whatever new-fangled tailgate Ram has to offer. Related video:

2020 Ram 1500 and heavy-duty trucks get Night and Black Edition packages

Ram traveled to the Texas State Fair to introduce a pair of pickups you might not be able to see in the dark. The murdered-out trucks are called Black Edition and Night Edition, respectively. The Black Edition is based on the range-topping Limited variant of the 2020 Ram 1500. It receives -- you guessed it -- a wide panoply of black accents on the grille, tow hooks, bumpers, door handles, and door mirrors. Ram also added black 22-inch alloy wheels and a tonneau cover. The Limited is only offered with a 5-foot-7 cargo box and four doors, but Black Edition buyers can choose two- or four-wheel drive. Engine options include the base gasoline-burning 3.6-liter V6, 3.0-liter EcoDiesel V6, and the mighty 5.7-liter Hemi V8. Rest assured if you plan to work on your own truck, none of the engines receive a coat of black paint, so you'll be able to see what you're doing.  Note that the 2019 Ram 1500 Big Horn and Laramie trim levels is already available with a Black Appearance package, which we reviewed this year. Effectively, the Black Edition extends that darkened courtesy to the range-topping Limited.  The Night Edition package is for the Heavy Duty line of trucks, but it looks a lot like the aforementioned Black Edition trim. It adds a black grille with a body-colored frame, black emblems, and black bezels around the lights, and black wheels. Single-axle trucks get 20-inch wheels, while dually models ride on 17-inch alloys with machined pockets.  The Night Edition package is available on the Big Horn and Laramie variants of the 2500 and 3500 models. Ram noted it can only be paired with a Crew Cab or a Mega Cab. Engine options include the 6.4-liter Hemi V8 and the 6.7-liter Cummins straight-six turbodiesel with 1,000 pound-feet of torque. FCA says the Ram 1500 Limited Black Edition will be reaching dealers late third quarter 2019, which would be any day now. Buyers who want the Heavy Duty-based model will need to wait until "later fourth quarter." The Black Edition starts at $55,385, including destination, a figure that represents a modest $75 premium over the more colorful model. The Night Edition model carries a base price of $39,690, including destination. Pricing for the standard 2020 Heavy Duty hasn't been announced yet, so we don't know how much the package adds to the truck's bottom line.

Chrysler says its 8-speed transmissions will save 700 million gallons

Chrysler Group's TorqueFlite eight-speed transmission could be earning some serious green bragging rights if the company's projections are correct. The recently widely proliferated automatic gearbox, which is now in more than a million vehicles around the world, is poised to save drivers an estimated 700+ million gallons of fuel over the vehicles' lifetimes (an expected cost savings of $2.5 billion). In addition, Chrysler expects a reduction in CO2 emissions by more than six million metric tons. According to Chrysler, and depending on the vehicle, the TorqueFlite can improve fuel economy. The TorqueFlite autobox features particularly close ratios from fifth to eighth gear (see the press release below for the specific numbers), and uses low-viscosity fluid that doesn't need to be replaced. Transmission software adapts to the driving situation to optimize efficiency based on driver behavior, temperature, grade, stability control, and longitudinal and lateral acceleration. The TorqueFlite is capable of handling a variety of duties. As evidenced by the wide range of vehicles Chrysler Group has seen fit to equip with the eight-speed transmission, the TorqueFlite is capable of handling a variety of duties. Since its 2012 introduction, the TorqueFlite has gone from performing cog-swapping duties in Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300 models equipped with the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 to changing gears in vehicles such as the Pentastar- and Hemi-powered Dodge Durango, Jeep Grand Cherokee and even the Ram 1500 EcoDiesel. For the 2015 model year, the eight-speed is finding its way into even more vehicles with the addition of a third version. In addition to the American-made TorqueFlite 845RE and 8HP70, the new 8HP90 will be manufactured in Saarbrucken, Germany. The 8HP90 is designed for higher torque loads, making it ideal for high-performance vehicles like the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat. The already-in-use 8HP70 will expand its duties to be used in 2015 Hemi models such as the Dodge Charger, Challenger, and Challenger SRT8. You can see the list of those benchmarks in Chrysler's press release below.