2010 Dodge Ram 2500/3500 Heavy Duty and 3500/4500/5500 Chassis Cab Introduction

Chrysler moved the introduction of the new Heavy Duty trucks back to their traditional location at the Chicago Auto Show this year.  Below are links to a video of the entire press introduction as well as a gallery of pictures that I took at the show itself and photographs supplied by Dodge.

First a little background information.  I spoke with Joe Veltri about how the Dodge Ram has been doing in the market.  The full size truck market typically represents 12-14% of industry sales.  Last summer that percentage was down because of the extraordinarily high fuel prices but has since gone back to its normal level.  Dodge's share of the 3/4 and 1 ton market was at 22% in 2003.  It hit a high point of 26% and is at 24% currently, so in the market as it stands, it has been selling well.  Now in the diesel 3/4 and 1 ton market, Dodge currently holds a 32% market share.  While industry wide sales are down, within the market segment the trucks are doing well.

I also asked how the introduction of the 2009 1/2 ton has gone since the 2010 HD 2500/3500 trucks share many of its features.  He said that it has been gaining market share and some of their sales data shows that on an '09 to '09 model comparison it actually outsold the F150 in a number of periods which is a very big deal.

2500/3500 Heavy Duty Trucks

Interior and Body

There really isn't much new information to report here.  The HD trucks share most of the body and interior features with the 1500 introduced last year.  See TDR Issue number 60 page 120 for my thoughts on the 1500 and page 124 for Andy Mikonis' write up. 

What is news is that they are keeping the Mega Cab.  If you compare the Crew Cab short bed overall length at 237.4 inches and the Mega Cab short bed at 248.4 inches, you find that the cab is 11 inches longer.  When I looked at the back seats there didn't seem to be much difference in the rear seat leg room between the two.  I was told there is 2.5" more leg room in the back seat of the Mega Cab.  The rest of the space is devoted to storage space behind the rear seats and also allows the rear seats to recline from 22 to 37 degrees.  The rear doors are identical between the Crew Cab and Mega Cab with the C pillar being larger on the Mega Cab.  One of the complaints we have heard from TDR members was that the HVAC system was inadequate for the Mega Cab.  It has been upgraded in the new trucks.  There are now vents under the driver and passenger seats blowing rearwards and there are also vents in the back of the center console.  The blower has been increased in size to accommodate these additional vents.

There are going to be four different wheelbase trucks offered - a Regular Cab long bed (8') at 140.5" wheelbase; a Crew Cab short bed (6'4") at 149.5" wheelbase; a Crew Cab long bed (8') at 169.5"; and the Mega Cab short bed (6'4") at 160.5".  They will not be offering a Mega Cab long bed.  The 3500 will be available as a dual rear wheel truck in the Regular Cab long bed, Crew Cab long bed, and Mega Cab short bed.  It will be available as a single rear wheel truck in the Crew Cab short bed, Crew Cab long bed, and Mega Cab short bed.

There are new larger 7" x 11" trailer tow mirrors with integrated turn signals, memory function, and puddle lamps.  They flip up and out in a vertical configuration for improved visibility around wide trailers.  Trailer tow mirrors are now standard on the 3500.

There was quite a bit of talk about the styling of the heavy duty trucks being "set apart" from the 1500 stating, "the 'big-rig' styling is even more pronounced, with the classic Dodge look that conveys bold, powerful and capable."  Honestly, I don't think that the styling is all that different.  The grill is larger which necessitated a taller hood.  There are also non functional louvers in the top of the hood.  Then, of course, there are the fenders on the DRW model trucks which I think look great!  However, they are all metal and a very complex shape which is going to be expensive to repair when you wipe one out on the post at the drive thru window.

The trucks all look better in person than they do in pictures.  Check out the picture gallery below for pictures from a number of angles.  I did my best to try to capture the truck.  Outside of those subtle differences, look back at the articles covering the 1500 introduction for discussion about the features of the truck's new interior cabin.

Chassis and Drivetrain

The frame is the same basic frame as in the Third Generation trucks.  There have been suspension upgrades and there are also larger front axle U-joints.  This has allowed a front axle GAWR increase to 5,500 lbs. (up from 5,200 lbs.) on 4wd trucks and to 5,000 lbs. (up from 4,700 lbs.) on 2wd trucks.  The GVWR on 2500 4wd crew cab and Mega Cab models has increased to 9,600 lbs. (up from 9,000) as well.  GCWR has increased to 25,400 lbs. (up from 24,000 lbs.) on 3500 DRW models equipped with an automatic transmission and the 4.10 rear axle.  GCWR has increased to 24,000 lbs. (up from 23,000 lbs.) on 3500 2wd models.  I've requested a list of the weight ratings of all the different variations of trucks and will post an update here should I receive those.

A new feature that I think is a great addition is an integrated brake controller that is built into the dash board.  Trailer brake control information is conveniently displayed in the Electronic Vehicle Information Center (EVIC) in the center of the dash.  While on the topic of the EVIC display, regeneration messages that were previously displayed on the overhead are now displayed here.

The fuel filter has been changed for the better and is going to feature a quarter turn knob on the top of the fuel filter assembly to allow for draining off water.  This feature wasn't on the display trucks so you won't see it in the pictures, but I was assured it would be on the production trucks.  The fuel filter is also a new two-stage design, as announced in Issue 63 of the magazine, and it can be retrofitted to earlier trucks.

Outside of the above changes, the rest of the chassis and drivetrain are the same as the previous trucks.  This means you have a chassis and drivetrain that have been in the field for a couple of years and a body and interior that have been in the field for a year.  This should be a well sorted out introduction.  These trucks are scheduled to arrive in the marketplace in the fall of 2009.  For more information, you can read the entire official Dodge press release by clicking here.

Chassis Cab trucks

The Chassis Cab trucks have all of the interior features stated above and are available in Regular Cab and Crew Cab models.  The Mega Cab is not available in the Chassis Cab trucks.  They also have four built in upfitter switches integrated into the instrumention panel.  Each of these four switches are linked to an auxiliary Power Distribution Center (PDC) located under the hood which includes one 20 amp battery feed and one fused relay controlled 20 amp ignition feed.

The optional Aisin six-speed automatic transmission now supports the Electronic Range Select that allows you to manually limit the highest available transmission gear.  There are also two significant enhancements to the PTO function on the Aisin.  The torque converter now locks up in PTO mode for better fuel economy and speed control while using aerial lifts and air compressors.  Customers also now have the ability to program a precise engine RPM that is activated immediately when the PTO is engaged.  This eliminates the need to toggle up to the desired engine RPM.

Big news on the Chassis Cab trucks is that the engine is now using urea injection utilizing Selective Catalyst Reduction (SCR) technology.  There are pictures of this in the gallery below.  There is a tank on the underside of the driver’s side of the cab and there is a blue fill cap to the rear of the cab.  I asked about the usage rate of the urea fluid and was told that it burns at 1-2% depending on load conditions.  The SCR system is behind the diesel particulate filter (DPF) on the exhaust and everything forward of this system is the same as before.  The urea injection was necessary to meet the 2010 emissions requirements for the Chassis Cab trucks.

Recent testing has shown best-in-class fuel economy beating the F-550 by 14% and the GMC C5500 by 23%.  Also best-in-class is a standard 24,000 lb. GCWR and an optional 26,000 lb. GCWR on the 3500 Chassis Cab.  These trucks are scheduled to arrive in the marketplace in fall of 2009.  For more information, you can read the entire official Dodge press release below.

-Steve St.Laurent
TDR Webmaster

2010 Dodge Ram 2500/3500 Heavy Duty Press Release

2010 Dodge Ram 3500/4500/5500 Chassis Cab Press Release

Official Dodge Photo Gallery (55 photos)

TDR Photos from 2009 Chicago Auto Show (90 photos)

Video of entire press introduction at 2009 Chicago Auto Show