2012 Ram 2500 4wd Crew Cab 149" Laramie Diesel Leather/nav/snrf/tow Pkg on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2020 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel Limited Drivers' Notes | Black gold

Ram didn’t have fuel economy numbers for us when we first drove the 1500 EcoDiesel, and because of that, a verdict could not be rendered. Today, thatÂ’s no longer the case. In maximum hypermiling 4x2 form, the EcoDiesel is rated at 22 mpg city, 32 mpg highway and 26 mpg combined. That puts it merely 1 mpg away from the Chevy Silverado Duramax, which achieves 33 mpg on the highway. In our testerÂ’s crew cab 4x4 configuration, it was rated at 24 mpg combined. The impressive efficiency can be attributed to the fully reworked 3.0-liter turbodiesel V6 under the hood. It makes 260 horsepower and 480 pound-feet of torque, with the full brunt of that torque being realized at a low 1,600 rpm. ItÂ’s a good thing, too, because the EcoDiesel redlines at 5,800 rpm. Towing maxes out at 12,560 pounds, and it has a payload rating of 2,040 pounds. ThereÂ’s a whole lot of truck to pull around, too. The crew cab backseat leaves enough space for even the tallest of riders to sprawl out, and the front seat is just as expansive and intimidating. As tested, our Ram 1500 was easily one of the most luxurious, expensive configurations one could possibly spec. It was done up in the highest Limited trim, which means every last premium material and feature is along for the ride. The base price was $58,660, but that doesnÂ’t mean Ram didnÂ’t find plenty of room for options. The most expensive of options happened to be the EcoDiesel engine itself, which comes in at $4,995. Yowza. Our truck also had the $3,995 Black Appearance Package, which adds an array of extras like 22-inch black wheels, a 19-speaker Harman Kardon audio system and black accents throughout the exterior. However, the 22-inch wheels were superseded by our truck's $795 Off-Road Group package that added 20-inch wheels with meatier tires, an electronic locking rear axle, multiple underbody skid plates and hill descent control. A $2,295 driver assistance package added adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping assist, a parking assistant, 360-degree camera and ventilated rear seats among other less notable features. Lesser charges like the $1,495 panoramic sunroof, $995 Multi-Function tailgate and $995 RamBox system all contributed to this truck's $75,610 final price. Senior Editor, Green, John Beltz Snyder: The interior in this Limited is busy.

UAW workers strike at Stellantis casting plant in Indiana

DETROIT — United Auto Workers union members went on strike Saturday at the Stellantis casting plant in Indiana, citing health and safety issues including the company's alleged refusal to repair and replace the plantÂ’s air conditioning and heating systems. The 35-acre plant in Kokomo makes parts used in the powertrains of Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and RAM vehicles and a long-term strike could affect vehicle assembly lines across North America. Stellantis says production had not been scheduled for this weekend and it hoped to resume negotiations as soon as possible on a contract with striking UAW Local 1166. In a statement, Stellantis said it was committed “to providing a safe and healthy work environment for all employees. After bargaining in good faith for two days and presenting an offer we believed addressed the unionÂ’s concerns, we are disappointed by the UAWÂ’s decision to walk out.” The 1,200-worker plant, Kokomo Casting, is the world's largest die cast facility, according to Stellantis. It makes aluminum parts for components including transmissions and engine blocks. The UAW local complained in a statement that Stellantis “claims it has no money to meet its membership's basic needs while ”making record profits and investing billions in a new battery plant across the street." UAW local president David Willis did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment. A person who answered the phone at union offices said he was preparing for a resumption in negotiations. The casting plant is to be retooled to produce engine blocks for hybrid-electric vehicles. In May, Stellantis announced a $2.5 billion joint venture with Samsung to build an electric vehicle battery factory in Kokomo that is to employ 1,400 workers. Stellantis, formed last year with the merger of Fiat Chrysler and FranceÂ’s PSA Peugeot, had said it would build two electric vehicle battery factories in North America. The other is slated for Windsor, Ontario. Plants/Manufacturing UAW/Unions Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM

3-row Jeep Wrangler, V8 Kaiser ambulance, and more from Mopar for SEMA

SEMA is back this year, and as is tradition, the American Stellantis brands Jeep, Ram, Dodge and Mopar are bringing some truly amazing concepts to the show. The brands have come up with seven vehicles, four from Jeep, two from Ram and one from Dodge. Some of them show off the current Mopar catalog and possible future parts, while others are just really cool customs. Let's check them out. Jeep Wrangler Overlook Jeep Wrangler Overlook concept View 8 Photos We're starting off with perhaps the most interesting of the concepts on display, the Jeep Wrangler Overlook. And you'll notice right off the bat that it's longer than your average Wrangler Unlimited. It's actually a full foot longer. And it doesn't just add cargo space, it adds passenger space. There's a third row of seats in the Overlook. Those seats also necessitated the safari-style custom rear roof. It's 5 inches taller than a regular Wrangler roof to provide headroom for rear occupants. It also made room for the extra windows. Front passengers also get a fancy single-piece roof section with a pop-up glass section, and the interior features black leather and bronze accents. Other body changes include a custom hood, a narrower front bumper for improved approach angle and a widened rear bumper to protect the longer tail. It also gets custom front bumper lights, Jeep Performance Parts (JPP) A-pillar lights and tubular side steps. The Overlook also rides on the Jeep Performance Parts (JPP) 2-inch lift kit with Fox shocks and 20-inch wheels with 37-inch tires. We wouldn't have thought a three-row Wrangler would be something that would reach production, and it's still unlikely. But, this looks really good. And when Land Rover already offers a third row in the Defender, and is working on a stretched version, we're starting to wonder if Jeep should think about an even more stretched Wrangler. Kaiser Jeep M725 Kaiser Jeep M725 concept View 11 Photos Next up is this year's resto-mod from the Stellantis crew. They found an old Kaiser Jeep M725 military ambulance and did a few things to make it a more modern, go-anywhere super tailgater. Under the hood is a 485-horsepower 6.4-liter V8 paired to an old-school TorqueFlight 727 automatic transmission, shifted by a B&M shifter housed in a repurposed ammunition box. It's still four-wheel drive and has the old axles, but they're attached via a coil-spring suspension instead of the original leaf packs.