Looks like Ram is on a roll..

Ram has almost doubled the growth of other competitors. Impressive! They've come a long way!

Love Ram trucks. I will be buying a new one soon. My 03 Hemi has done everything i ask of it hauling and towing. Been very powerful and dependable. Can't wait for a new Power wagon Laramie,Sun roof, Ram box, 6.4 Hemi, 500 watt Alpine, cargo camera, and trailer camera. MDS fuel saving. Good to see the hard work by Chrysler being rewarded.

Hopefully they have some impressive Cummins upgrades for 2015. I think they have the best looking HD truck inside and out. I am a huge fan of the Big Horn package. I also love the 500 W Alpine system. Sure beats the POS Bose system in the GM trucks. Bose: Buy Other Sound Equipment! I think Ford's Sony system is good too.

I have to admit I was wondering if Fiat was going to pay attention to this segment (trucks) when they took Chrysler over. They have and the sales show it. Leading in innovation has the competition on it's toes.
Diesel 1/2 tons, coil springs all around, 8-speed trans, ram box etc.

It is good to see any company in the auto business doing better. It means more money to be put back into R&D which improves the breed and makes competitors work harder.

Still sitting on the fence about that rear coil spring suspension, and that dial up gear shift selector mounted on the dash, but what I do like is the interior room and its an American Truck.
My F-150 feels solid, like when I'm inside with the windows rolled up I can't hear or feel what's going on outside, or I can't feel it when driving on a rough road, its like I'm protected in my own private world, like my safe zone,,,,,,, sorry, but don't have that same feeling inside a Ram or a Chevy.

@ Lou BC

I couldn't have said it better myself! I think it is great to see a company work so hard to make a better product, which makes the competition bring out something better. We all win.

That's what is so confusing about GM doing so little on their new trucks. I guess they had to put that money into the Colorado instead of the 1500 & HD's. I wonder if their gamble is going to pay off in the long run because it seems to be hurting them at the moment with two consecutive months of double digit sales losses where Ram has enjoyed two months of 24% sale increases! The Ram's are well thought out and everything seems to flow inside and out where the GM trucks seemed to be thrown together with very little thought. The new F150 looks well thought out and seems to want to up the competition, will Chevy figure it out or fall further behind???

@Tom#3
My Mazda BT50 is the same. I can hardly hear any noise from outside.

It sits on a hydraulic mounting system. It's extremely quite at highways speeds. It's been compared to a CX-9.

I know how you feel with your F-150;)

Always did love my Ram but I hope they have the rust problem over the rear tire wells resolved. Every 02 and later truck I have looked at rusts badly there after a couple of years

@brandon507

Their growth is worthy of notice, however their sales are only half of the GM twins, ditto Ford.

Finishing the race in top spot gets you the pretty girl and the huge bottle of champagne. Number two gets you an interview on some Tier Two cable news show. Number 3 gets you a nice set of steak knives.

They still need to knock off Ford or GM if they're to be taken seriously on the asphalt.

@papa jim. I disagree. I have owned them all in the last 10 years. Ford, Chevrolet, and Ram. And by FAR without doubt the Rams have spent the least time in the shop and have been the best overall trucks I've ever owned.

I think that being #3 and trying to catch up is the very thing that gives Ram the drive and motivation to keep making a better product. I think when you're #1 you tend to get lazy. My Dad has a '05 F-150 that was a one owner truck from Florida and has just over 100K on the clock and it's a piece of garbage. It rattles, creaks, moans, shifts hard and is just not a quality piece of hardware.

Ram being in the spot they are in is good for them and it's good for the consumer because it gives them something to strive for and it is why they keep churning out the best trucks on the road.

With Ford ditching the Cummins for the native Powerstroke in the class 6 and 7, I'd like to see a Ram 6500 and 7500 being built with the Cummins and/or possibly an Iveco diesel.

The Mexican market Ram 6500 of the '90s
http://www.thedieselgarage.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=25183&d=1268685777

It's almost like the new Ford F650 except the Ford uses the E-series van's headlamps (broad and white-out middle section) instead of the 2008-10 F-Super Duty's headlamps (narrow and amber middle section).

@ papa Jim
I think that seeing their numbers means they are stealing sales somewhere? Not implying that they're the end all be all just that they have come a long way. I have some friends who have the new 13's with the Cummins/aison combos. They're pretty damn nice trucks! I'm definitely going to look at them when its time my 12' needs to be traded.

But if you check the on line forums you will see that ecodiesel are indeed not shipping as previously reported. Ram customers on those forums are getting upset. All the units are still on QA hold. Something must be up.

What is good for one company is good for the other. As long as they stay competitive. Just look at the power/towing war that Ram and Ford are in, and i would imagine GM will be next. I've heard some say GM kinda skimped on the latest model, but I know people like consistency, and prefer technology that has stood the test of time, example leaf springs. My dad who is a Dodge/Ram guy is still uneasy about coil springs front or back. So i imagine there are guys/gals that prefer a simpler truck.

03 Dak should change his name to 14 Ram hemi 8 speed sport
:)

Very impressed after 6months of ownership.

The gas mileage is roughly the same has my 3.9 dakota and my new ram has 3.92 : 1 gears crew cab 4x4. If i can keep my foot out of the gobs of easy power the hemi 8 speed combo provides.

WXman!

are you kidding me??? Being in number 3 spot is GOOD?

You can't argue with the facts.

They are not JUST in third, they are way back in third. I happen to think that RAM offers the best $$$ value to half ton buyers today, but being in third sucks out loud.

They have a long way to go to catch the GM twins and Ford.

@WXman - one has to look at problem trucks more in terms of model year or model generation. One cannot extrapolate data from a truck that is 3 generations old and apply it to a current gen truck. My father-in-law has a F150 from that generation and it has been flawless (routine stuff repaired).
With that being said, I wouldn't base my purchase decision on his record alone.

What has the trend been for various companies?

Has there been overall improvements from one generation to the next?

Are problems due to typical first run gremlins?

We have seen a trend to overall improvement.

-Ram has gotten better but still has a way to go.
-Ford has lost some ground due to moving away from traditional drive-trains and electronics.
-GMC trucks are better designed as far as fit and finish but are too new to assess for durability.
- Toyota has had a facelift on an old chassis.
- Nissan is a big question mark.

Ram seems to be the leader in innovation now and offers more features than their competitors. Their interiors are by far the nicest. Some will say that's subjective but if you look and compare side by side ram wins.

Dependability wise I say they are on par with ford and gm.

I have had rams and I have had fords. I've had more problems with the fords. Mainly because the fords I've had are with the new diesel emissions/dpf crap. I also know people who have had issues w/ the emissoned rams. I drive 40-50,000 miles a yr and traded them around 150,000 miles.

@Brandon, @Wxman

I probably sound like a broken record by now but here goes:

RAM dealers where I live are offering a 3 yr lease for a 4 door 2wd hemi 2014. 199 per mo. 3k down.

Nobody else that I know of is competing that way. If I had to get a new half ton today, that would be the one--hands down.

That's just a ton of truck value for the money. It's not about brand or style or anything else--just bang for the buck

Papa Jim

You can lease an 2014 f150 super cab stx 4x4 for $259 a month with 0 down. Every thousand down is about $20 in payment. So if you put 3k down the payment would be $200 a month.

Chevy has lease specials for $269 w/0 down. So that would be around $210 a month.

So what's your point?

Soooooo. Does this mean G.M.C. being out sold by Ram mean G.M.C. Sucks? And Chevy out selling Ram means Ram suck's?

I don't think so. Other than G.M.C. being more expensive, With more options than Chevy aren't they the same truck? Same drive train? If Ram ceased to exist I would buy a G.M.C. And they are fourth in sales. Who goes out and buys a truck simply because they sell more? Does that mean the Toyota Camry is the best car? No it means they are cheap and good on gas.

Chrysler is micro compared to Ford and G.M. in size.

@Brandon My Point????

RAM dealers are bottom-feeding the market and they still can't do better than sell half of what GM or Ford do in half ton trucks.

The RAM trucks they're flushing off the lots with the special pricing are Hemi powered six speed auto, doublecabs.

They want to clear the lots to make room for the new drivetrain models like the 8 speed Hemi and the Pentastar 8 speed. Those models will be selling like hotcakes when the weather warms up a bit.

There, is that easier for you?

Also the promaster diesel is set to come out soon and will steal sales in the big van department. I wouldn't trade my 2012 1500 for anything.... Maybe a 2500 diesel

I do not know about anyone else, but for me, if I was going to lease any truck, to me it would not mater which manf. I choose, because the payments would last as long as the warrantee and what would it mater? if you are just going to give it up at the end, the only thing that would mater to me is the bottom line payment, I would go with the lowest price for the most optioned truck! as it does seem to be the vehicle with the most equipment has the lowest price, cause of the highest residual value!

here you go again, papa jim:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/08/us-autos-gm-trucks-idUSBREA170VZ20140208

While you insist that they are giving away Rams, these Chevy All Stars are going pretty cheap. !0K off a 40 K truck! And you know what? After seeing that Ram is probably going to outsell them in March, they are upping the incentives AGAIN! It turns out they can't sell that many based on it being a work truck, because the towing numbers are a number jr high students came up with, the looks haven't really caught on, their v-6 isn't best on gas mileage, and they have no diesel 1500. :)

How many six speeds do you really think there are left? What are you gonna say when the 6 speeds are gone, and Chivy, with all their high incentives on a truck just released 8 months ago, doesn't outsell Ram anymore? That lead is dwindling. The new skin on the HDs won't fix it either. There's a hole in the bucket!

@Brandon My Point????

RAM dealers are bottom-feeding the market and they still can't do better than sell half of what GM or Ford do in half ton trucks.

The RAM trucks they're flushing off the lots with the special pricing are Hemi powered six speed auto, doublecabs.

They want to clear the lots to make room for the new drivetrain models like the 8 speed Hemi and the Pentastar 8 speed. Those models will be selling like hotcakes when the weather warms up a bit.

There, is that easier for you?

So you're telling me that because Ram has leases for pretty much the same price/deal as Ford and GM, that makes Ram the bottom feeders of the market?

I could see if you could buy a Ram a whole lot cheaper than the others but as i have pointed out you can get almost the exact same deal on all of them. Hell the Ford even is a 4x4 for nearly the exact same deal!

You can spin it any way you want to Papa Jim, but Ram is gaining on GM every month.

Mcdonalds sells the most hamburgers. That mean they make the best hamburger?

@TRX

Did you not read the article you posted? The heavy duty GM plant has been in limbo converting over to the new HD line which should be hitting the lots soon. That is about ten thousand sales each month for GM along. Same reason Dodge's numbers look so inflated because of the change over last year to the redesigned 2013.

It will all level out, Dodge will hold on soldly to its third spot. They won't fall yet they won't raise either. Just like the swings of the stock market or housing economy each Company goes through shifts and swings, in the end it all completes its circle and levels out to normal levels. Watch and see what "growth" Dodge has after their inflated numbers comapred to last year month to month, you might be in for a shock when they don't come anywhere near that 30% growth you have been accustomed to for the past few months.

Open your mind a little, look at the broader scaled and not just the few months you want to pick and choose...

Tyler

They also said that all the bad weather kept their sales low. I wonder how ram sold so many in all that bad weather? No one can seem to answer that!

Also they have a 5 month supply of pickups. So I doubt changing a plant over had anything to do with their sales being so low. It might have effected it some.

Oh sure Tyler, as if they are out of 2500 and 3500 GMs to sell! LOL! They AREN'T MOVING the 1500s fast enough, get it?

Oh wait, everybody's waiting on the same truck, new skin makeover, right Tye? Right, right, right....

Lou_BC,
Unfortunately the US economy is still far from any real recovery. The Iconic US Firetrucker maker American LaFrance just closed its doors for good after 180yrs..pretty sad.
http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20140126/PC05/140129667

I see 2014 as a bad year for pickup truck sales of all makes cause the truck market has used up its customers cause they all bought new trucks from 2011 to 2013 and most keep their trucks for at least 4 to 5 years, plus anybody left in the market for a new pickup is either waiting for the Ram 1500 Diesel or the new 2015 F-150.

@Robert Ryan - the economy is a factor and municipalities may be hanging onto their units longer. Another reason is the fact that building codes have reduced the need for firemen. In BC where I live the Vancouver Fire Department has been aggressive towards the BC Ambulance Service because they want to take over the Paramedic service. That is mainly due to reduced call volume. One can see an increase in their response numbers on paper but those increases are primarily due to "First Responder" medical calls where they are layered in with the BCAS.