2023 Ram 3500 Tradesman 4x4 High Output W/aisin Transmission on 2040-cars

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Stellantis aims to eliminate separate inverter, charger to improve EV efficiency

Stellantis has announced that, in collaboration with French battery company Saft and French National Center for Scientific Research, has made significant progress in eliminating two major components of an electric vehicle powertrain: the on-board charger and the power inverter for the motor. The company claims that doing this will allow for better space use in vehicles, as well as improvements in efficiency, cost and reliability of components. As a quick primer, also explained in the below video, the on-board charger and power inverter are sort of translators to get the right current to different parts of the electric powertrain. The on-board charger takes AC power from the grid and converts it to DC to charge the batteries. Then when power goes from the batteries to the electric motor, the power inverter converts that DC power back to AC. These components aren't exactly small. Frequently you'll find them packaged somewhere under the hood. What Stellantis and its cohorts have developed, and have been using on a test vehicle since last summer, are small power inverter boards that can be mounted very closely to the battery packs. They can handle both conversion needs, for charging and discharging, instead of needing two separate devices. The most obvious perk to this is that you can do away with those traditional components and free up more space, either for making smaller vehicles without losing interior volume, or adding space to a vehicle that wouldn't have had it otherwise. There's the additional benefit of reduced weight, something that EVs struggle with. Stellantis also claims improvements in efficiency, reliability, and cost, however, it didn't go into detail as to how this setup would do that exactly. We'll try to get in touch with representatives from Stellantis in order to get more information. We're still a ways out from seeing this technology in production Stellantis vehicles. The company said it aims to apply it to vehicles by the end of the decade. Saft is also looking at using it on stationary battery systems as well. So maybe we'll see it on a 2029 Ram 1500 REV, but for now, we'll be living with traditional chargers and inverters. Related Video: Green Alfa Romeo Chrysler Dodge Fiat RAM Technology Electric

2019 Ram 1500 eTorque Drivers' Notes Review | Filling in the gaps

When the 2019 Ram 1500 debuted earlier this year at the 2018 Detroit Auto Show, the biggest news was arguably the addition of the 48-volt mild hybrid system. Dubbed eTorque, the system is standard on V6-equipped models and a $1,450 option on trucks with the 5.7-liter Hemi V8. It's not a hybrid in the traditional sense. Despite Ram's claim that the system adds up to 130 pound-feet of torque on the V8, it only does so for a fraction of a second and doesn't actually change the engine's total output. You'd be hard pressed to notice a difference if you didn't know the system was there. But that's kind of the point. There's been a lot of confusion about what eTorque is and how the system works. Much of that falls on FCA's shoulders. The automaker didn't do a great job of explaining the whole thing, leaving us to work out much of it for ourselves. This isn't meant to boost performance, towing or payload. The Ram eTorque can't run on battery power, so don't expect a Toyota Prius with a bed and wood trim. It's here to make the truck just a little bit more efficient by improving areas where conventional internal-combustion engine's fall short. The eTorque system replaces the engine's alternator with a small, belt-driven electric motor. On the V6, the motor is part of the water pump assembly and driven by that belt; the V8 uses a dedicated belt that's separate from the other accessories. A small battery pack is mounted upright behind the rear seats inside the truck's cabin. There's also a DC-to-DC converter to charge the battery and convert 48 volts down to 12 to power the truck's normal systems. Visually, the only difference between an eTorque-equipped model and a standard one is a small metal box at the top of the engine. There's no badging and the battery pack can't be seen, even with the rear seats folded up. The system is designed to be as seamless and innocuous as possible. The auto start/stop system spins up the engine a little quicker. Shifts from the eight-speed ZF automatic transmission are a little smoother as the eTorque system smooths out and fills in the gaps. It does so for a fraction of a second, but it works its magic often. Big gains in fuel economy have already been made. It's going to take things like Ram's eTorque system to improve internal combustion engines from here on out. Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore: I'd like to say I noticed a huge difference between the Ram eTorque and the regular Ram, but I didn't. That's how it's supposed to work.

2020 Ram 3500 heavy duty interior spied

The 2020 Ram 2500 and 3500 trucks continue their steady testing regimen, and the engineers are still keeping the trucks under careful wraps. Or at least they are with the outside. As the photos above show, some test drivers got a little sloppy with interior coverings, and our spy photographer took advantage of the situation. And the good news is that the interior will be basically identical to that of the 2019 Ram 1500. We say good news because the Ram's stylish interior and well-thought-out controls are part of why it's our favorite fullsize pickup right now. This particular model has the 8.4-inch UConnect touchscreen infotainment. Since the entire center stack is the same as the 1500, we wouldn't be surprised if the monster 12-inch display were to be available on high-end trims. The small 5-inch infotainment will probably be the standard option. Another interesting detail is that this test truck does not have the rotary shift dial shared with the Ram 1500 and various other Chrysler products. Instead, it has a traditional steering column-mounted shift lever. As for the outside, nothing new is revealed to us. We shouldn't have to wait too long to see the production truck, though. We expect it to be revealed early next year. What we've seen so far seems to indicate that the heavy duty Rams will have styling a little closer to the old model than to the new 1500. Still, expect grilles and other cues from the lighter duty model, just translated to a slightly different shape. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.