First impressions of the all new 2019 Ram 1500 Limited

[#Drennn.]

 

First of all, I have to let you know something.  I’ve been a Chevy guy all of my life.  I own Chevrolet dealership and so I’m in the awesome position to be able to drive any Chevy I want in any color I want.  (I know…my life is tough).  My vehicle of choice has always been the Chevrolet Silverado year after year.  When we bought the Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership, I had to take a deep breath and see how the all new 2019 Ram would stack up against my already heavily biased love for the Silverado.  In the video below you’ll see some of the amazing features in action that I also describe below.  I’m not going to bore you with towing capacity stats or how many pounds of gravel you can dump in the bed.  I’ll leave that stuff for all of the folks who pride themselves on peeing for distance.

Exterior impression

My first impression was one of surprise.  This truck caught my eye immediately with the 22″ aggressive wheels and it’s beautiful face.  The front of the Ram 1500 doesn’t look over bearing as if it’s trying too hard to get noticed.  It has a strong and luxurious appeal that simply works.  The LED lighting is sleek and the cameras and sensors are integrated in a way that doesn’t distract from it’s clean design.  The Power Assist steps deploy out of nowhere in a timely fashion and the doors open and close with the proper feeling of security and quality.  At the rear, the tailgate is Aluminum and this makes it very lightweight.  All you need to do is double click the “tailgate” button on the key fob and it unlatches and opens with smooth landing.  This is a really nice feature especially since the tailgate also locks when you lock the doors.  Another button on the remote changes the trucks right height via the air suspension system.  This is super cool!  I’m grown accustomed to digging in my pocket for my keys to get in the Silverado and with the RAMs proximity sensors, you can leave the fob in your pocket.  You just unlock the door with a small button on the door handle and use the push button start on the dash.  This comes in handy a lot because I always have stuff in my hands.  In all fairness, the 2019 Chevrolet Silverado will also now have this feature in the upper trim levels.  To sum up the exterior, it’s design is clean and luxurious without being loud.

Interior Luxury

The cabin blew my mind.  The leather feels and smells amazing and there are details all over the inside of this Ram that make you feel like you are on top of the world.  The decorative stitching in the leather looks like it was done by a craftsman putting together a gorgeous pair of boots.  I love it!  The trim pieces are gorgeous and feel like they are made in a ultra luxurious fashion while the digital info cluster lights up with full color and 3D graphics.  The next thing I noticed was the gorgeous 12″ Touch Screen on the center stack.  At first I thought it was overkill but when you display the Navigation in full screen mode it makes you feel like you are at mission control for SpaceX.  The screen operates intuitively with familiar gestures like pinch and zoom and the all too familiar swipe.  I was also impressed at the fact that the RAM Limited has more ports than the US Navy!  You can charge up to 5 phones in and around the center console and there is room for a laptop charge while stowed away.  You’ll see some of these features in the video below:

I’m not a fan of the shift knob as I prefer yanking the lever on the column like in the Silverado.  It functions fine but I think it’s just part of a truck’s DNA to have a lever vs a knob.  This is probably the only complaint that you will ever hear about this truck’s interior.  There is so much storage inside the RAMs cabin made possible by the flat load floor in the rear, the under seat storage, the “Ram Bins” that are under the rear floor mats, hidden storage on the dash above the glove box, and the reconfigurable center console that rocks!  I can’t brag enough about the inside of this all new Ram.  You’ll WANT to spend time in there…even if you are riding in the back seat.  There aren’t too many vehicles on the market with such a level of comfort that you’ll actually want to be the rear passenger for the road trip.  The rear seats slide forward giving you a semi-reclined position that is very comfortable and you have tons of leg room.  The Harman Kardon audio system rocks out with 19 speakers spread across the truck cabin.  Yes I said 19.  The speaker covers are the coolest I’ve seen with with their stainless steel speaker grilles.  I especially like the speakers located in the roof above the rear passengers.  Plus they look great!

Ride Quality

America’s love affair with trucks is totally justified.  The all perform so differently in their quest to be comfortable and capable.  It doesn’t seem that way in the car world (at least among affordable cars).  These trucks are designed with big engines that can tow and haul a lot of weight and so the ride qualities can be so very distinct among brands such as Chevrolet, Ford, Ram, and Toyota.  Some prefer a firm ride with a tight suspension and others a softer experience.  The Ram Limited has Active Level Four Corner Air Suspension.  This high tech system will lower the trucks ride height at highway speeds to decrease drag.  I like it because you can lower it with the remote or a button on the interior and make it look like a low rider.  My preference in ride dynamics, however, is a firmer ride.  The RAM 1500 has a much softer feel than the Silverado when driving on pavement.  To me it feels too bouncy on the country roads of Kentucky and I prefer the Silverado’s ride quality over the Ram.  It’s a beautiful thing that the trucks today cater to a unique truck buyer and instill such loyalty.

So all in all, my first impression of the all new 2019 Ram 1500 Limited was great.  I have developed a secret admiration for the truck and appreciate it’s numerous qualities.  The interior is the best in the business and some of the features are game changing.  The all new 2019 Chevrolet Silverado has just been released and so I’ll try to follow this up with a head to head comparison for the normal guy about the real stuff that matters like the number of audio speakers and charge ports.  You can check out listings of the various trim levels on the Ram like the Tradesman, Big Horn, Laramie, here on our site:  2019 Ram Trucks.  You can even check out some listings from our Chevrolet store for the all new 2019 Silverado .