Dodge is jumping on the bikini band wagon, but can you blame them? There’s no denying that sex sells, especially with most of the pickup truck crowd.

That’s why Ram pairing up with Sports Illustrated and releasing a teaser ad just makes sense. The 37-second spot features a slender woman clad in diving gear and a black bikini walking out of the ocean and pulling a cloth from a Ram pickup. Nearly all the footage focuses directly on the model. The ad actually cuts out before you see more than a silhouette, but it’s got us wondering what’s up the shirt sleeves over at the Ram division.

You can watch the video after the jump.

Continue Reading…

While the majority of candidates on the campaign trail for the Republican presidential nomination are traveling in giant buses, Rick Santorum has decided to take a down-to-earth American approach, crisscrossing the state of Iowa in his Dodge Ram 1500 pickup.

The “Chuck Truck” as it has become nicknamed, after Santorum’s campaign aide Chuck Laudner, has become the center of attention as Santorum campaigned across Iowa’s 99 counties. The four-door pickup was originally purchased in 2006 and has over 178,000-miles on it. Santorum has also admitted to owning a second Ram, that one with more than 300,000-miles on it.

Whether or not it was intentional, the Dodge Ram has become a symbol for Santorum to prove that he’s hardworking and has spent the time to travel across the state.

This isn’t the first time a truck has garnered attention for a candidate as Fred Thompson, former US Tennessee senator got plenty of attention from his red pickup as did Janet Reno when running for Florida’s governor position.

Santorum came runner up to Rick Perry in last night’s Iowa caucuses vote.

[Source: Bloomberg]

The upcoming 2013 Dodge Ram 1500 refresh will also be getting some new tweaks to its suspension, employing the services of Jeep‘s Grand Cherokee.

The new truck will be getting the air suspension setup found in the Jeep Grand Cherokee, giving the truck a whole new level of riding comfort. The 2013 Ram 1500 will be getting plenty of new goodies with Dodge looking to enhance the trucks’ luxury department as well as some new tech toys. It’ll be making its debut at the 2012 New York Auto Show.

[Source: Auto Evolution]

What’s better than a 2011 Dodge Ram R/T? Mopar Underground’s Ram 392 Quick Silver of course. The 392 6.4L HEMI V8-powered Dodge Ram made its presence known in the Mopar booth, tossing out the factory 5.7L V8 for the 470-hp counterpart. Boosting performance is a cold air intake, headers and a cat-back exhaust system courtesy of Mopar.

The bright silver pickup has been contrasted by bright red wheels, mirrors and a matching front grille. Smoked headlights and taillights further enhances the already menacing appearance while a subtle Mopar body kit really sets the Ram off.

Massive 15-inch rotors and six-piston calipers from Brembo gives the Ram plenty of stopping power, which is needed with the 22-inch wheels that are seen on each corner of the pickup. Clearly those looking for the perfect garage-mate for their Dodge Viper should be knocking on Mopar’s door to produce the Ram 392 Quick Silver.

GALLERY: Dodge Ram 392 Quick Silver

For all the Dodge Ram enthusiasts out there, Chrysler has something for you at this year’s SEMA Show. Based on a 2011 Ram R/T, the team at Mopar Underground outfitted the Ram with a collection of modifications, enhancing performance while giving the truck some good looks. Powering the Ram 392 Quick Silver is a 392 HEMI V8 from Dodge’s SRT lineup packing 470-hp. The motor was mated to the R/T’s 4.10 gear set with a high-stall converter. Additional performance comes from Mopar’s cold-air intake kit, headers, and cat-back dual exhaust.

Braking performance has been upgraded thanks to a Brembo big brake kit, featuring 15-inch rotors and six-piston calipers. Everything on the truck besides the gloss black roof has been finished in a three-stage bright silver. Contrasting it all are anodized red wheels, grille inserts, mirrors and select interior trim components. All the exterior lighting has been smoked while a reverse deep-down aluminum hood adorns the front of the truck. Suspension modifications lowers the truck by 2-inches, further accented by a Mopar body kit.

Though the wheels on the render looks to be from HRE, the release only specifies that Mopar Underground added 22-inch pieces wrapped with 275/45/22 and 305/40/22 tires. On the inside, high-bolster SRT seats are covered in Katzkin leather with red stitching and accents to match the steering wheel, instrument panel and Laramie Longhorn inspired leather shift knob, door panels and center console trim. Kicker speakers add additional audio to the cabin while woofers in the doors add plenty of bass.

See AutoGuide’s complete 2011 SEMA Preview here

The Japanese earthquake disaster and the resulting supply disruption mixed up the Top 10 best-selling vehicles in June, allowing the Chevrolet Cruze compact to top the chart in the US, a spot usually reserved for the Toyota Camry.

The Camry did make the Top 10 and was the only Japanese vehicle to do so but as number eight, with sales down 27.7 percent from last June. Toyota has regained strength and production is almost back to normal so expect the Camry to move back up. Honda also took a tumble and fell to 15th place with the Civic, down 34 percent compared to this time last year. The Altima was Nissan’s top seller coming in at 11th place with sales up 22.7 percent.

Coming in first place was Ford’s F-series which improved over last year by 6.7 percent. Second place was awarded to the Chevrolet Silverado which improved by 5.1% over last year.

The Top Ten Sellers For June are the Ford F-Series, Chevrolet Silverado, Chevrolet Cruze, Chevrolet Malibu, Ford Escape, Ford Focus, Ram Pickups, Toyota Camry, Ford Fusion, and Hyundai Elantra.

[Source: USA Today]

Chrysler has announced that heavy-duty pickups in the company’s lineup will be available with a new six-speed automatic transmission for the 2012 model year.

The Ram 2500 and 3500 HD models will receive the six-speed coupled with an available 6.7-liter Cummins High Output Turbo Diesel engine with 800 lb-ft of torque at 1,500 rpm and 350-hp and 3,000 rpm. The 3500 truck can tow up to 22,750 pounds if equipped with an optional Max Tow package. Interestingly, the Cummins oil burner manages to meet EPA emissions standards without the annoyance of having to use Diesel Exhaust Fluid.

Fuel economy ratings have not been posted for the Dodge with the six-speed nor have prices been released. More details will become available closer to 2012.

Chrysler is delivering  10 Ram 1500 Hybrids to the U.S Department of Energy for testing within the next week. The pickups will be delivered to Yuma, Arizona, as part of a $100 million research project. The program with the U.S Department of Energy will run through June 2014.

140 Ram 1500 pickups will be delivered by Oct. 1 across the U.S. These plug-in hybrid trucks we be put through grueling testing including extreme temperature testing with fluctuations from 25 below zero to 125 degrees.

The Ram trucks utilize 5.7-liter V8s making 345-hp. The engine is mated to a two-mode hybrid transmission manufactured by GM and a 12.9-kilowatt-hour lithium ion battery. These trucks will be capable of traveling 20 miles on electric-power alone with a total range coming in at 655 miles. The Ram is capable of towing 6,000 pounds and has a 1,000 pound payload capacity.

[Source: egm Car Tech]

Ford is claiming that the new 2011 F-150 will get best in class fuel economy despite no EPA verified mileage figures. Ford states that the 3.7L V6 model will return 16 mpg in town and 23 mpg on the highway. By comparison a 2011 Ram with a 3.7L V6 will get 14 mpg in the city and 20 mpg on the highway.

According to Ford, the company is touting the F-Series’ fuel economy because “70 percent of F-150 customers said better fuel economy is what they’d like improved most in their truck.” What Ford did mention is that their numbers aren’t worth much until they’re independently verified.

[Source: Inside Line]