2014 Ram 2500 Tradesman on 2040-cars

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2022 Ram 1500 gets reworked options to maintain production

Ram was in the mood to giveth at this year's Chicago Auto Show, unveiling three new special edition trucks for the 2022 model year. Mopar Insiders reports Ram is lately in the mood to taketh away, removing or reworking options and features on nearly every trim with the aim of keeping pickup truck production lines running. The biggest blow to the bank account comes from Ram eliminating the Quad Cab on all but the two base trims, Tradesman and Big Horn (called the "Lone Star" in Texas). Seems most buyers on the Laramie and above go with the larger Crew Cab and aren't worried about spending a couple thousand dollars more; the Crew Cab on the Laramie, for instance, is $2,150 more than the Quad Cab. Truck shoppers watching pennies can forget about saving money up front in order to add certain luxuries, too. Come 2022, the smaller cab style can't be ordered with any kind of sunroof, air suspension, Technology Group, or Power Running Boards. When it comes to trims, starting at the bottom, the 2022 Tradesman won't offer an air suspension with any cab style, nor Ram Box storage, nor the multifunction Tailgate. If there's an EcoDiesel under the hood it will only be the HFE version, the standard EcoDiesel nixed on the Tradesman. The HFE variant makes one more mile per gallon in the city and on the highway than the standard EcoDiesel. The Big Horn/Lone Star loses its multifunction tailgate, and the colors Mountain Brown and Frost Beige. To get the rear underseat storage requires ordering either the Level 1 or Level 2 Equipment Groups, the storage can't be had an a standalone option. One step up, the Ram Rebel drops the luxury Rebel 12A package that added a 12-inch Uconnect screen with navigation, nine-speaker audio, and leather-trimmed bucket seats. The trimmed buckets seats will migrate to the Rebel Night Edition package that now costs $525, but can be expected to increase. And the cloth and vinyl bucket seats that now come in black with either red or silver accent stitching will come only in black and red. The Laramie, Limited Longhorn and Limited all shed the Protection Group that added underbody skid plates on the 4x4 models. The Laramie and Limited Longhorn will go almost entirely without any two-tone paint option, the exception being Ivory White and Walnut Brown solely for the Limited Longhorn. On the Laramie, as on the Tradesman, the rear underseat storage goes from being an individual option to part of a group, in this case the Level 1 Equipment Group.

2015 Ram Promaster City is ready to take a load off [w/videos]

There are a few segments of the auto industry that are growing rapidly. Weirdly, though, one of the most notable is the compact cargo van market. What use to be the sole terrain of the Ford Transit Connect and the occasional Dodge Grand Caravan-based Ram C/V Tradesman is becoming a notable battleground. Nissan has dove headfirst into the market with its NV200, which will also be sold as a Chevrolet City Express and Ford recently released a heavily redesigned, more user friendly Transit Connect. Now, Ram is releasing its entry into the compact cargo segment.
Like the Transit Connect and NV, the all-new Ram ProMaster City is billed as a diet version of the full-sized workhorse van, the ProMaster. Also like its big brother, the 2015 ProMaster City is based off a commercial offering from Fiat Professional, the Doblò (the full-size ProMaster is based on the Fiat Ducato).
But while the ProMaster gets a pair of six-cylinder engines and a wide array of wheelbase and roof heights, the ProMaster City is simpler. The sole engine choice is the familiar 2.4-liter, Tigershark four-cylinder that's found in the vehicles Fiat Chrysler's compact-wide platform, such as the Chrysler 200, Dodge Dart and Jeep Cherokee. Power output sits at 178 horsepower and 174 pound-feet of torque. According to Ram, the ProMaster City boasts class-leading output and can sprint to 60 in 9.8 seconds. Perhaps knowing that's a ridiculous stat in a cargo van, Ram also cites a more useful 3.7-second run from zero to 30 miles per hour. The Tigershark sends its power through a nine-speed automatic transmission to the front wheels.

Ram 'Built to Serve' special editions honor five U.S. military branches

Ram has just announced a series of special-edition trucks that honor the five branches of the U.S. military and the roughly 7% of Americans who currently serve or are veterans. Called the "Built to Serve" editions, five trucks released over the next year will come in exclusive liveries and offer exclusive options to commemorate the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard. Available on every bodystyle and powertrain, a Built to Serve package will add $2,795 to the price. Ram hasn't said which branch the first truck honors, but that pickup will debut tonight — Wednesday, Nov. 6 — at the “Stars and Strings” concert at the Fox Theater in Detroit.  Each of the five comes in one of two special colors chosen to "evoke the spirit, the mission and history of that service," and a limited build number. The colors and quantities are: Gator (1,000) and Diamond Black (1,000) Ceramic Gray (1,000) and Patriot Blue (1,000) Anvil (1,000) and Billet Silver (1,000) Tank (1,000) and Flame Red (1,000) Spitfire (500) and Bright White (500) The interiors are set off with contrasting stitching in either Light Frost, Light Ambassador Blue, Light Diesel Gray, Core Green, or Orange. Built to Serve trucks will be known by their U.S. flag and edition decals on the rear quarter panels. Cosmetic upgrades for all five versions include an all-black grille and surround, black badging, side steps, black four-inch exhaust tips, body-colored wheel arch trim, and 20-inch wheels finished in Technical Gray. The option price adds the Off-Road Group, normally a $795 extra, including features like four underbody skid plates, electronic-locking rear axle, off-road shocks, tow hooks, and all-terrain tires.  Special features in the cabin come in the Black Onyx Chrome trim, Velcro panels on the front and sides of the front seats for service patches, PALS/MOLLE webbing to hang pouches on the front seatbacks, lockable front center tunnel storage, all-weather floor mats, and an instrument panel badge. Ram will use the trucks to help bring more attention to an initiative the automaker has run since 2015, also called Built to Serve, that works to organize grassroots volunteer efforts. Between now and Veteran's Day on Nov. 11, 2020, the Built to Serve program wants to log 1.3 million volunteer hours. That figure represents one hour for each active member of the five services.