Over on Pickuptrucks.com they have an article about the upcoming 2010 Heavy Duty shootout between the big 3.
First Look: 2010 Dodge Ram 2500 and 3500 Heavy Duty Pickups - PickupTrucks.com Special Reports
What has changed for 2010 is almost everything above the Ram heavy-duty’s carryover frame. The exterior has all-new sheet metal, and the interior is taken directly from the
Dodge Ram 1500 half-ton. The front axle and suspension have also been improved.
“This isn’t an all-new truck,” said Scott Kunselman, Chrysler’s vice-president for the Jeep and Truck Product Team. “The 2010 Dodge Ram 2500 and 3500 are the next steps to improve our heavy-duty pickups. All of the great things in the light-duty (Ram) are here. The driving and towing experience will be much nicer. Our owners will enjoy it more.”
Though they share the aerodynamic styling first seen in the 2009 Ram 1500, the heavy-duty trucks have taller, more-prominent front ends. It’s a case of form following their primary function of towing big loads.
“The light-duty and heavy-duty Rams are significantly separated visually for performance and aesthetic reasons, and for better cooling,” said Ralph Gilles, Chrysler’s vice president of design. “The cooling we’ve gained for the heavy-duty we didn’t have to do for the light-duty, which is why the grille is smaller on the light duty.”
Though Dodge eliminated the Mega Cab option for its half-ton Ram, it’s keeping the Mega Cab heavy-duty model with best-in-class interior space.
The inside features all the high-quality materials and ergonomic and infotainment options the Ram 1500 has, plus it adds a new integrated trailer-brake controller like Ford and GM offer in their HD pickups. The brake controller eliminates the need for an aftermarket kit to control a trailer’s electric brakes for improved towing control.
“The (trailer-brake control) display is the message center, so drivers won’t need to take their eyes off the road to see what’s going on,” Kunselman said.
One objection, though, is the controller's placement. Like GM's trucks, Chrysler has put it on the left side of the driver, near the knee. We think it's more intuitive to place integrated brake controllers on the driver's right side, like Ford does.
The external rearview mirrors have also been revised to better facilitate towing. They can be pivoted horizontally or vertically depending on trailer size, and they have larger convex mirrors for better visibility. Turn signals are integrated.
According to preliminary towing and hauling figures, Dodge has raised the front gross axle weight rating from 5,200 pounds to 5,500 pounds on diesel 4x4 pickups, and from 4,700 pounds to 5,000 pounds on diesel 4x2 pickups. Gross combined weight ratings have been improved from 23,000 pounds to as much as 25,400 pounds on some 3500 models. Accompanying the increase in GCWR, max towing has also improved.
For example, a 2010 Ram 3500 regular cab 2WD long-bed 6.7-liter diesel with a 4.10 rear axle has increased its max towing from 16,200 pounds (goose neck or fifth wheel) in the 2009 model to 18,500 pounds (goose neck or fifth wheel) in the 2010 truck. GCWR also increased from 23,000 pounds to 25,400. However, there is a slight cargo box payload penalty because the truck’s weight has increased. Max payload for 2010 in this configuration is 4,770 pounds, down from 5,070 pounds in the 2009 model.
Conventional trailer towing maxes out at 10,000 pounds.
Also contributing to the improved GCWR are re-tuned suspension components and new fluid-filled hydro-mounts under the cab that help reduce beaming and bounce over rough highways.
The sum of all these changes is a new Dodge Ram heavy-duty pickup that has evolved to better meet the needs of Chrysler’s existing customers, and to take competitive advantage of gains already made meeting 2010’s stricter and more expensive emissions standards. We expect both GM’s and Ford’s responses for 2010 to have significantly more power than the Ram HDs, but they’ll also likely come with higher initial purchase costs relative to the new Ram than their current trucks are to today’s Ram HDs.
I'm sure glad I didn't wait to get my 3500......................