2014 Ram 2500 Laramie on 2040-cars

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Genesis, Hyundai, Ram win North American Car, Utility, Truck of the Year at NAIAS

DETROIT — The Hyundai Genesis G70, Hyundai Kona/Kona Electric and the Ram pickup have received North American car, sport utility and truck of the year awards. The awards were announced Monday at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. This year's car finalists also included the Honda Insight and Volvo S60/V60. Truck finalists included the Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500. SUV finalists also included the Acura RDX and the Jaguar I-Pace. Last year's winners were the Honda Accord, Lincoln Navigator and the Volvo XC60. About 55 automotive journalists serve as judges. Eligible vehicles must be new or substantially changed. Organizers accept no advertising, though automakers try to capitalize on the marketing value of the awards, which are now in their 25th year. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

2017 Ram EcoDiesel trucks hitting dealerships again, finally

If you've been patiently waiting for 2017 Ram EcoDiesel trucks to hit dealerships near you, you're in luck. According to Automotive News, the diesel-powered pickups are now hitting showroom floors after FCA received approval from the Environmental Protection Agency in late July to begin producing them again. And you may want to get in line now, because the EPA has yet to approve the EcoDiesel for the 2018 model year. The EPA, along with the California Air Resources Board, accused FCA in January of 2017 of using eight undeclared pieces of software code in certain Fiat Chrysler diesel vehicles. That, naturally, led to "substantially" higher than allowable levels of nitrogen oxide emissions. The violation applies to about 104,000 vehicles sold between 2014 and 2016. EcoDiesel production was stopped in late 2016. FCA says it's continuing to cooperate with the EPA and CARB. Assuming the two agencies approve the plan, the automaker will recall 2014-2016 Ram and Jeep Grand Cherokee vehicles to install the new code. We'd assume that same updated software will be used in 2018 EcoDiesels, too, again assuming they get EPA approval. Related Video:

Ram mulling superlux pickup above Laramie Longhorn

Looking at the fullsize pickup landscape, automakers are bringing more and more luxury to the mix. Ford has its King Ranch, GMC has the Denali and now Chevrolet is adding a High Country model, but it sounds like Ram might be looking to make a step up from its already posh Laramie Longhorn trim (shown above). Speaking with new Ram boss Reid Bigland, Automobile is reporting that Chrysler could be looking to reach even higher to add even more premium accoutrements to its truck line.
It's hard to imagine how much higher Ram could get with its luxury especially considering the 2013 Ram 3500 HD Laramie Longhorn used for our recent First Drive carried an as-tested price of $70,285 - even lighter-duty 1500 models start at $45k in LL trim. We wonder if this means we might finally get to see a production version of the Ram Long Hauler that we saw testing earlier in the year. Either way, high-dollar pickups add up to massive profit margins for automakers, so as long as there are customers willing to pay the price, we'll doubtlessly continue to see more premium features inside future trucks.