The Ram 2500 is a heavy-duty pickup designed to tow and haul heavy loads. As a result, its ride quality isn’t as comfortable as a Ram 1500, which has lower load limits. The difference lies largely in spring rates. Springs designed to accommodate heavier loads will produce a stiffer ride when the truck is empty, and the rear wheels are more likely to hop going over sharp bumps.The ride smooths out once you’ve got a few hundred pounds of cargo in the truck bed. In our test vehicle, that load could be as much as 3285 lb.
Still, even though all-around ride quality has improved in the new Ram truck lineup, we think the Chevrolet/GMC pickup is still tops among full-size trucks in ride comfort.
Like all full-size workhorse trucks, our Ram’s handling was competent but deliberate. It takes almost four turns of the steering wheel to get the front wheels from extreme left to extreme right, and its turning circle is more than 51 ft. It’s not designed for rapid maneuvering and it refuses to be hurried. We were pleased with the performance of its 4-wheel anti-lock brakes, an option on all Ram models.
An aspect of this truck’s performance that was thoroughly impressive was its muscle. Closely related to the Dodge Viper sports car V10, the Ram’s V10 engine feels as though it would be well-suited to transporting entire buildings or towing battle tanks. It hardly seemed to notice the 5000-lb. trailer we hooked on behind.
This is the elemental force in pickup engines today. Although it doesn’t make the kind of gratifying grumble we associate with big American V8s, the Ram V10 is the new king of pickup power.
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