2009 dodge ram 1500 slt crew cab 4x4 - Car and Driver
T H E N U M BE R S
2009 DODGE RAM 1500 SLT CREW CAB 4X4 front-engine, rear/4-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door truck
V EH ICL E TY PE >
PR ICE AS TESTED > $48,285 (base price: $36,000) ENGI N E TY PE > pushrod 16-valve V-8, iron block and
aluminum heads, port fuel injection DISPL ACEM ENT > 345 cu in, 5654 cc 390 bhp @ 5600 rpm 407 lb-ft @ 4000 rpm TR A NSM ISSION > 5-speed automatic with manumatic shifting W H EEL BASE > 140.6 in L ENGTH > 229.0 in W I DTH > 79.4 in H EIGHT > 75.7 in CU R B W EIGH T > 5680 lb P E R FO R M A N C E ZERO TO 60 M PH > ZERO TO 100 M PH >
QT P E X H AU ST C U TO U T: N E V E R TO O O L D TO M A K E ROUSING NOISE
ROA DHOL DI NG ,
There comes a moment in every gearhead’s life when he (or even she) wonders if his car shouldn’t make more dramatic sounds. Usually logic takes hold, and the driver realizes the car is needed for a daily commute—besides, you’d prefer your neighbors not call the cops on you. The compromise is an exhaust bypass, a device that provides two paths for the exhaust gases: One routes unobtrusively through the mufflers, the way it comes from the factory, and one doesn’t. Turn it on, turn it off. All this requires is a stubby Y-pipe in the exhaust system and a butterfly valve. One arm of the Y leads to the mufflers and the rest of the exhaust system; the other dead-ends at the butterfly. A solenoid on the butterfly valve controls its opening and closing. With the valve closed, you’ve got a normal exhaust system. Push a button mounted in the center console and the butterfly opens, allowing the exhaust gases to tumble out unmuffled at the Y-pipe. Quick Time Performance (www.quicktimeperformance.com) sells bypasses in five diameters as well as Y-pipes (or you can make your own). A setup involving an exhaust three inches in diameter, such as the one we installed on the Ram, is $215 (or $165 if you produce your own Y-pipe). The $120 digital controller allowed us to program two different levels of openness, and, therefore, volume. (We mostly left it all the way open, its loudest setting.) Installation couldn’t be easier: Simply weld in the Y-pipe and connect the wiring. It takes just a few hours. The barbaric roar of the full-on setting is fantastic and encourages full throttle everywhere. Our one complaint: When the Hemi drops into fourcylinder operation, the exhaust goes from rowdy V-8 to dowdy old tractor. But, when you’re just cruising at constant speed, who wants a loud CARAND DRIVER. COM HEA R WH AT QTP DID FOR OUR R A M AT exhaust anyway? Just close it up. CARANDDRIVER.COM/EXHAUSTCUTOUT —JARED GALL
seemed to have a mind of its own at times, refusing to resume route guidance on occasion and simply refusing to function at all on others. There was some dissatisfaction with the function of the Hemi’s cylinder-deactivation system—occasionally slow to resume firing all eight holes—and, on a couple of occasions, the four-wheel-drive system didn’t want to engage. The RamBox bins, providing stowage for small stuff in the cargo-bed walls, were favorably received, but all agreed they annoyingly cut down on the width of the bed. It will still accept a four-by-eight-foot sheet of drywall, but conventional pickup 114
J U LY 2 0 1 0
CD0710_ltram.indd 114
NEW 6.7 sec 19.2 sec 7.2 sec 15.2 sec @ 92 mph 186 ft
40,000 6.4 sec 18.3 sec 6.9 sec 14.9 sec @ 93 mph 186 ft
0.73 g 108 mph
0.74 g
EPA FU EL ECONOM Y, C ITY/H IGH WAY DR I V I NG > OBSERVED FUEL ECONOM Y > 14 mpg U NSCH EDU L ED OI L A DDITIONS > 1 qt
13/18 mpg
WA R R A N T Y 3 years/36,000 miles bumper to bumper, unlimited years/unlimited miles powertrain, 5 years/100,000 miles corrosion protection, 3 years/36,000 miles roadside assistance O P E R AT I N G CO STS (FOR 40,000 MILES) $961 NOR M A L W EA R > $6 R EPA I R > $0 $7631 DA M AG E A N D D E ST R U C T I O N TA I LGATE R EPL ACEM EN T > $922
SL I DI NG R EA R W I N DOW R EPL AC EM EN T > DA M AGED TI R E R EPL ACEM EN T > $165
$764
L I F E E X P EC TA N C I E S (ESTIMATED FROM 40,000-MILE TEST) TI R ES > 70,000 miles FRON T BR A K E PA DS > more than 100,000 miles R EA R BR A K E PA DS > more than 100,000 miles W H AT B I TS A N D P I EC E S C O ST H EA DL A M P > $240 ENGI N E A I R FI LTER > $45 OI L FI LTER > $7 W H EEL > $635 TI R E > $165 W I PER BL A DES > $62 FRON T BR A K E PA DS > $81 M O D E L-Y E A R C H A N G E S 2010 > lifetime powertrain warranty shortened to 5 years/ 100,000 miles; higher tow rating for 5.7-liter with 3.92 axle; optional folding trailer mirrors, integrated trailer-brake controller, and iPod connector; 22-inch wheels standard on R/T
beds are wider. Add the fact that the locks for both boxes required replacement during the test (one of the many aforementioned recalls), and you have a strong case for saving the $1895 this feature costs. But these were minor grievances compared with the uniformly positive response to the Ram’s spacious cab, its driving experience—even the plaintiffs spoke glowingly on this score—and its performance. For a vehicle weighing in at 5680 pounds, performance started off as formidable in our initial test: 0 to 60 mph in 6.7 seconds, 100 mph in 19.2, and the quarter-mile in 15.2 at 92 mph. Times were even better at the test’s
end: 6.4 to 60, 18.3 to 100, and 14.9 at 93 mph in the quarter. Long-haul travelers—the Ram made voyages to Pennsylvania, Virginia, New Mexico, and California, as well as assorted Midwestern tours—praised the ride quality and the remarkably low noise levels at highway speeds. The boyish few who found it too quiet installed an exhaust cutout to amuse themselves—and fellow travelers—when they got bored [see sidebar]. Dinah Shore died in 1994. But if she were still with us, we think this thoroughly civilized truck is a man she’d be only too happy to have around her house.
CA R A NDDR I V ER .COM
5/5/10 11:04:06 AM
2009 DODGE RAM 1500 SLT CREW CAB 4X4 front-engine, rear/4-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door truck
V EH ICL E TY PE >
PR ICE AS TESTED > $48,285 (base price: $36,000) ENGI N E TY PE > pushrod 16-valve V-8, iron block and
aluminum heads, port fuel injection DISPL ACEM ENT > 345 cu in, 5654 cc 390 bhp @ 5600 rpm 407 lb-ft @ 4000 rpm TR A NSM ISSION > 5-speed automatic with manumatic shifting W H EEL BASE > 140.6 in L ENGTH > 229.0 in W I DTH > 79.4 in H EIGHT > 75.7 in CU R B W EIGH T > 5680 lb P E R FO R M A N C E ZERO TO 60 M PH > ZERO TO 100 M PH >
QT P E X H AU ST C U TO U T: N E V E R TO O O L D TO M A K E ROUSING NOISE
ROA DHOL DI NG ,
There comes a moment in every gearhead’s life when he (or even she) wonders if his car shouldn’t make more dramatic sounds. Usually logic takes hold, and the driver realizes the car is needed for a daily commute—besides, you’d prefer your neighbors not call the cops on you. The compromise is an exhaust bypass, a device that provides two paths for the exhaust gases: One routes unobtrusively through the mufflers, the way it comes from the factory, and one doesn’t. Turn it on, turn it off. All this requires is a stubby Y-pipe in the exhaust system and a butterfly valve. One arm of the Y leads to the mufflers and the rest of the exhaust system; the other dead-ends at the butterfly. A solenoid on the butterfly valve controls its opening and closing. With the valve closed, you’ve got a normal exhaust system. Push a button mounted in the center console and the butterfly opens, allowing the exhaust gases to tumble out unmuffled at the Y-pipe. Quick Time Performance (www.quicktimeperformance.com) sells bypasses in five diameters as well as Y-pipes (or you can make your own). A setup involving an exhaust three inches in diameter, such as the one we installed on the Ram, is $215 (or $165 if you produce your own Y-pipe). The $120 digital controller allowed us to program two different levels of openness, and, therefore, volume. (We mostly left it all the way open, its loudest setting.) Installation couldn’t be easier: Simply weld in the Y-pipe and connect the wiring. It takes just a few hours. The barbaric roar of the full-on setting is fantastic and encourages full throttle everywhere. Our one complaint: When the Hemi drops into fourcylinder operation, the exhaust goes from rowdy V-8 to dowdy old tractor. But, when you’re just cruising at constant speed, who wants a loud CARAND DRIVER. COM HEA R WH AT QTP DID FOR OUR R A M AT exhaust anyway? Just close it up. CARANDDRIVER.COM/EXHAUSTCUTOUT —JARED GALL
seemed to have a mind of its own at times, refusing to resume route guidance on occasion and simply refusing to function at all on others. There was some dissatisfaction with the function of the Hemi’s cylinder-deactivation system—occasionally slow to resume firing all eight holes—and, on a couple of occasions, the four-wheel-drive system didn’t want to engage. The RamBox bins, providing stowage for small stuff in the cargo-bed walls, were favorably received, but all agreed they annoyingly cut down on the width of the bed. It will still accept a four-by-eight-foot sheet of drywall, but conventional pickup 114
J U LY 2 0 1 0
CD0710_ltram.indd 114
NEW 6.7 sec 19.2 sec 7.2 sec 15.2 sec @ 92 mph 186 ft
40,000 6.4 sec 18.3 sec 6.9 sec 14.9 sec @ 93 mph 186 ft
0.73 g 108 mph
0.74 g
EPA FU EL ECONOM Y, C ITY/H IGH WAY DR I V I NG > OBSERVED FUEL ECONOM Y > 14 mpg U NSCH EDU L ED OI L A DDITIONS > 1 qt
13/18 mpg
WA R R A N T Y 3 years/36,000 miles bumper to bumper, unlimited years/unlimited miles powertrain, 5 years/100,000 miles corrosion protection, 3 years/36,000 miles roadside assistance O P E R AT I N G CO STS (FOR 40,000 MILES) $961 NOR M A L W EA R > $6 R EPA I R > $0 $7631 DA M AG E A N D D E ST R U C T I O N TA I LGATE R EPL ACEM EN T > $922
SL I DI NG R EA R W I N DOW R EPL AC EM EN T > DA M AGED TI R E R EPL ACEM EN T > $165
$764
L I F E E X P EC TA N C I E S (ESTIMATED FROM 40,000-MILE TEST) TI R ES > 70,000 miles FRON T BR A K E PA DS > more than 100,000 miles R EA R BR A K E PA DS > more than 100,000 miles W H AT B I TS A N D P I EC E S C O ST H EA DL A M P > $240 ENGI N E A I R FI LTER > $45 OI L FI LTER > $7 W H EEL > $635 TI R E > $165 W I PER BL A DES > $62 FRON T BR A K E PA DS > $81 M O D E L-Y E A R C H A N G E S 2010 > lifetime powertrain warranty shortened to 5 years/ 100,000 miles; higher tow rating for 5.7-liter with 3.92 axle; optional folding trailer mirrors, integrated trailer-brake controller, and iPod connector; 22-inch wheels standard on R/T
beds are wider. Add the fact that the locks for both boxes required replacement during the test (one of the many aforementioned recalls), and you have a strong case for saving the $1895 this feature costs. But these were minor grievances compared with the uniformly positive response to the Ram’s spacious cab, its driving experience—even the plaintiffs spoke glowingly on this score—and its performance. For a vehicle weighing in at 5680 pounds, performance started off as formidable in our initial test: 0 to 60 mph in 6.7 seconds, 100 mph in 19.2, and the quarter-mile in 15.2 at 92 mph. Times were even better at the test’s
end: 6.4 to 60, 18.3 to 100, and 14.9 at 93 mph in the quarter. Long-haul travelers—the Ram made voyages to Pennsylvania, Virginia, New Mexico, and California, as well as assorted Midwestern tours—praised the ride quality and the remarkably low noise levels at highway speeds. The boyish few who found it too quiet installed an exhaust cutout to amuse themselves—and fellow travelers—when they got bored [see sidebar]. Dinah Shore died in 1994. But if she were still with us, we think this thoroughly civilized truck is a man she’d be only too happy to have around her house.
CA R A NDDR I V ER .COM
5/5/10 11:04:06 AM
