The honeymoon period is over, am I still loving the new truck? The short answer is yes, but if you want more details, click below to read more. More importantly, does my toddler still miss the F-150? Let’s dig in and find out, there’s a lot to process here.
Stats:
Time Period: 8/4/2019 – 11/3/2019 Miles Driven: 2,907 / 6,213 (this update / total) (3,305 in previous update)
Average MPG: 17.0 mpg (reported by on-board computer)
Costs:
Maintenance Costs: $0.00 Repairs: $0.00 Total Cost (non-fuel): $0.00
Services Performed:
- 8/10/2019 – Windows tinted and tonneau cover installed.
- 9/2/2019 – Rear-end damage repaired.
- 9/16/2019 – Oil change, tire rotation, occupant restraint system recall performed.
Summary:
OK, so the elephant in the room, if you didn’t scan over it in the Services Performed section, is “rear end damage repaired.” The day after returning home from a road trip, I got rear-ended by a Toyota Camry while on an on-ramp. Yep, they had one job, and failed. Luckily it was a fairly low-speed impact, and damage was limited to tweaks and light scrapes. The rear bumper and exhaust tips were buffed and realigned, as was the driver’s side rear sensor pod. What a welcome home!
Past that, the first oil change came with a recall for the occupant restraint system, which was software. The service was performed quickly by my selling dealer and I was back on the road in a couple of hours. This was after the truck’s first road trip, which necessitated a tonneau cover. I chose a Tyger T3 this time around, since I don’t need the extra security (and let’s face it, cost) of a hard-rolling one like the BAK products I’ve used in the past. At just over $200, it was silly easy to install (under 30 minutes, including adjustments) and can be removed in under 2. I also had the windows tinted, because my toddlers don’t like the sun in their eyes (frankly, neither do I) and it looks nice. The tint job was performed by Frederick Window Tinting, a family owned and operated shop in Frederick, MD. Look them up – they do great work!
The trend also continues of the RAM shining in its finer details. The way the lane keep assist and adaptive cruise control systems mimic human drivers is welcome, as it’s smoother and less obtrusive than I got used to on the F-150. The way the side mirrors show both the next lane (and warn me of objects in said lane) as well as the next 2 lanes over (in the convex spotter mirror) is useful in everyday driving. I’ve become a huge fan of the buttons for the audio system on the back side of the steering wheel, and reach for them whenever I drive my wife’s car, which sadly doesn’t have them there. It’s convenient and safe to have them, as your hands can still firmly grip the wheel while manipulating the buttons.
The air suspension also continues to shine, easing ingress and egress for my mother and kids, and once moving, the smoothness lulls my littlest one to sleep. Speaking of family, I had myself, my wife, my mom, and both children in the truck for our road trip to the beach in August, and everyone had plenty of room, even with bulky child seats flanking my mother. She appreciated the USB ports on the back of the center console, as she tends to spend a lot of time on her phone.
I’ve noticed other little details too. The design of the hood and grille mean that unlike my last two Fords, water doesn’t come splashing up on the windshield while decelerating during a rain storm. It may not sound like much, but it makes a huge difference when approaching a stop light. The windshield wipers seem more effective, too, which may have to do with the curvature of the windshield.
Then there’s the instrument cluster. It features a level of customization that is mind boggling. You can choose from a number of data points to show, for all four corners, the top bar, main screen, and both side bars. Stuff like the oil temperature, pressure, fuel economy, distance to empty, and of course a digital speedometer. This picture shows my current configuration.
This truck garners a lot of looks, and hardly a week went by without having to field questions (and compliments) from passersby.
Not all was great, however. The 12″ touchscreen has experienced 3 hiccups in its first 6 months of my stewardship. The first was an inoperative backup camera, the second was a touch screen that was blank, and the third was an inoperative touch screen. While somewhat frustrating, the parking sensors worked during the first and second failures, and I was able to use the steering wheel controls to change settings on the audio system for the third. In all three cases, a half-hour rest reset the system, returning it to 100% functionality. It hasn’t happened in the last couple of months.
When the ambient air temps were hovering around 100F, the truck’s air conditioning was sub-optimal. It was able to cool the truck down OK, but the air coming out of the vents was not ice-cold like it is in many of today’s automobiles. This is a common complaint on the RAM Forums, but with no solution in sight except for a DIY addition of a valve in the tubing going into the heater core – not something I’m willing to do on a brand-new truck. On especially hot days, the ventilated seats were necessary to keep me cool, funneling the cool air through the seat directly onto my legs and back.
Also, I’m really not a fan of the voice control. While it more readily understands my voice for names of contacts in my phone, as compared to my previous truck, the commands themselves are harder to intuit. On the subject of the infotainment system, having no hard buttons for the heated/ventilated seats has confounded my wife on numerous occasions, and the extra button presses can be tiresome on a long trip. I tend to oscillate every 20 minutes or so between the heat and ventilate function on my seat to keep my back from stiffening up.
As the months rolled on and cooler weather moved into the area, I’ve been using the remote start feature more, and it’s great. When the temperature is below 40F, the heated steering wheel and driver’s seat both come on, with the latter set to High. After a few minutes, it’s too hot and I have to set it to Low. That’s impressive. The Rear Defrost also comes on, which starts clearing up the windows and mirrors before I even get to the truck.
Along with cooler weather, the fall has brought shorter days. This means commuting home during dusk, where I finally got to experience the full brightness of the RAM’s LED headlights. They shame other makes’ LEDs, lighting up the road quite well. The 2019 RAM 1500 almost got the IIHS’s Top Safety Pick+, but missed out due to too much glare for oncoming drivers. FCA adjusted the aim and design of the headlights slightly, minimizing the glare and garnering the coveted TSP+ for 2020 model year 1500s. Pardon the pun, but this highlights another slight shortcoming: the headlights are tied to the dimming of the dash lights, unlike my previous Fords. Coupled with an overly-sensitive ambient light sensor, the headlights come on earlier than I expect and the dash gets darker than I really think it should be. RAM provides a scrolling wheel to adjust the dash light brightness, but there’s a gap between “a little too dark” and “full brightness.” I’ve gotten used to this, but it could still use a tweak in a future model.
At this point in the truck’s life, I expected the fuel economy to rise a little more than it has, but with winter gas and colder temps, it is what it is. The HEMI w/eTorque’s average MPGs are within a tenth of the 3.5-liter EcoBoost twin-turbo V6 in the F-150, at a hand-calculated 16.2 MPGs. This, with shorter (numerically higher) gears and 2 extra cylinders on the RAM. The HEMI really sucks down fuel when cold, and fewer auto stop/start events mean more idling. I’ve been working to maximize the MDS (4-cylinder) mode and AS/S, but even still, mid-grade gas is cheaper than premium so my fill-ups have been cheaper. I’m still able to go over 400 miles between stops at the gas station, so it hasn’t impacted me much there.
I’m continuing the pile on the miles, so look forward to another quarterly update soon!
by John Suit