cgperry
New Member
August 27, 2006
2007 Dodge Ram SRT10: Overpriced, Overpowered and Proud of It
By EZRA DYER
"TIDAL power generators harness the energy of water flowing to and fro
through a channel during each tidal cycle. What does this have to do with
the Dodge Ram SRT10 Quad Cab? Well, if the principle could be applied to a
hybrid generator powered by the body motions of this 5,691-pound truck, a
suitably bumpy road would probably generate enough electricity to power a
parking lot full of Priuses.
As it is, the Ram's vertical kinetic energy is wasted, and I got a
distinctly un-Priuslike 11.5 miles a gallon out of the truck's 8.3-liter
V-10 engine. (The E.P.A. estimate is 9 m.p.g. in the city, 12 on the
highway.) But this truck doesn't care about mileage, or about refinement, or
about not scaring children. This truck could be more politically incorrect
only if it ran on whale oil and panda tears.
And that's why I like it, sort of. The SRT10 is not a truck of half-measures
- it's gleefully over-the-top in just about every way. Its 510-horsepower
engine, borrowed from the Dodge Viper, is a callous brute, rocking the truck
on its suspension even at idle.
At full throttle, the four-speed automatic shifts so hard that you expect to
see it in the rearview mirror, scattered about the pavement. Twin tailpipes
emit a guttural roar pretty much constantly, but you can drown them out with
the 508-watt Infinity stereo.
There's a deep air dam in the front, a hood scoop that wears a "Viper
Powered" badge and a spoiler perched atop the tailgate.
The tailgate spoiler gets my vote as the new reference to complete the
phrase "As American as ..."
We are a people who create downforce-producing aerodynamic devices for
pickup trucks, because our pickup trucks go so fast that they'd otherwise
fly right into the air like the magic car in "Harry Potter and the Chamber
of Secrets."
You listening, Al Qaeda? You may as well just give up right now.
From a practical standpoint, this thing is a tough proposition. On one hand,
it has four practical doors, and it can tow up to 8,150 pounds. Wonderfully
unburdened by a speed limiter, the two-door version does 150 miles an hour,
and this one probably also approaches that distinctly untrucklike velocity.
So it's potentially useful if you like to tow boats down the autobahn.
On the other hand, the sticker on my test truck totaled $57,460, which
included a $1,595 navigation system and a $1,200 rear-seat DVD entertainment
system, among other niceties. For that stack of cash, you could have a
Hemi-powered regular-cab Ram 1500 and a Mercedes-Benz C230 sedan.
Or - I just looked this up - you could buy 20 acres of ranch land in
Montalba, Tex. But I have a feeling that if you're really interested in
buying a $57,000 pickup truck, you might already own Montalba, Tex.
The SRT10's ride-handling balance is tilted in favor of comfort, probably in
deference to the fact that an object this immense is never going to give a
Lotus a run for its money in the twisties, no matter how stiff the
suspension, and like a classic muscle car it gets confused by corners.
I'll wager that if the truck had merely gargantuan wheels (say, 20-inchers),
it would keep its tires in better contact with the pavement. As it is, the
springs and dampers struggle to control the weight of the huge 22-inch
wheels at each corner.
Trying to make a suspension work properly with 22-inch wheels is like
fashioning a yo-yo out of a bowling ball and some string. They do look nice,
though.
The interior is pretty much stock Dodge Ram, with the exception of heavily
bolstered seats with suede inserts, a red starter button à la Viper, and a
boy-racer oil temperature gauge that juts out of the left windshield pillar
like some kind of growth. (Not only did it keep me up to the moment on the
oil temp, it reminded me that I was overdue for my checkup at the
dermatologist.)
The navigation system worked fine, but unlike every other system I've seen -
including this very unit in other Dodges - its display doesn't automatically
dim when the headlights are on. I didn't notice this immediately in the
brightly lighted city, but out in the sticks it occurred to me that the navi
screen's impression of Times Square was causing acute night blindness, which
is a bad thing when you're driving 65 miles an hour in a truck the size of
Djibouti.
Now, I know that thrifty fuel economy isn't a priority here. I also know
that your garden-variety 4x4 pickup will probably never see 20 m.p.g. But
the Ram SRT10 rivals a torched oil well for sheer profligacy - and, oh yes,
it demands premium.
I managed mileage in the double digits only because I made a highway-heavy
road trip. Around town, I was getting 7 or 8 m.p.g. With more than a
quarter-tank of fuel remaining, I gassed up to the tune of $74.28. If I'd
come close to running the 34-gallon tank dry, the big red truck would have
had the dubious distinction of being my first $100 fill-up.
One advantage of the Ram's pavement-crushing weight and cinder-block
aerodynamics is that those are two identifying characteristics of a truck,
and trucks are not subject to the federal gas-guzzler tax. So while the
Viper and its 20 m.p.g. highway rating get hit with the guzzler label, a Ram
SRT10 with the same engine but much worse fuel economy does not. But nobody
ever said life was fair for Viper owners.
The Ram SRT10 Quad Cab may not make fiscal or ecological sense, but I
appreciate the chutzpah it represents. Nobody else was making a four-door
truck with 510 horsepower, so the Dodge people took it upon themselves to
fill the void.
Mission accomplished, it seems: after a three-year run, 2006 is the last
year for the Viper-powered pickup. The SRT10 Quad Cab is the truck to end
all trucks, including itself."
2007 Dodge Ram SRT10: Overpriced, Overpowered and Proud of It
By EZRA DYER
"TIDAL power generators harness the energy of water flowing to and fro
through a channel during each tidal cycle. What does this have to do with
the Dodge Ram SRT10 Quad Cab? Well, if the principle could be applied to a
hybrid generator powered by the body motions of this 5,691-pound truck, a
suitably bumpy road would probably generate enough electricity to power a
parking lot full of Priuses.
As it is, the Ram's vertical kinetic energy is wasted, and I got a
distinctly un-Priuslike 11.5 miles a gallon out of the truck's 8.3-liter
V-10 engine. (The E.P.A. estimate is 9 m.p.g. in the city, 12 on the
highway.) But this truck doesn't care about mileage, or about refinement, or
about not scaring children. This truck could be more politically incorrect
only if it ran on whale oil and panda tears.
And that's why I like it, sort of. The SRT10 is not a truck of half-measures
- it's gleefully over-the-top in just about every way. Its 510-horsepower
engine, borrowed from the Dodge Viper, is a callous brute, rocking the truck
on its suspension even at idle.
At full throttle, the four-speed automatic shifts so hard that you expect to
see it in the rearview mirror, scattered about the pavement. Twin tailpipes
emit a guttural roar pretty much constantly, but you can drown them out with
the 508-watt Infinity stereo.
There's a deep air dam in the front, a hood scoop that wears a "Viper
Powered" badge and a spoiler perched atop the tailgate.
The tailgate spoiler gets my vote as the new reference to complete the
phrase "As American as ..."
We are a people who create downforce-producing aerodynamic devices for
pickup trucks, because our pickup trucks go so fast that they'd otherwise
fly right into the air like the magic car in "Harry Potter and the Chamber
of Secrets."
You listening, Al Qaeda? You may as well just give up right now.
From a practical standpoint, this thing is a tough proposition. On one hand,
it has four practical doors, and it can tow up to 8,150 pounds. Wonderfully
unburdened by a speed limiter, the two-door version does 150 miles an hour,
and this one probably also approaches that distinctly untrucklike velocity.
So it's potentially useful if you like to tow boats down the autobahn.
On the other hand, the sticker on my test truck totaled $57,460, which
included a $1,595 navigation system and a $1,200 rear-seat DVD entertainment
system, among other niceties. For that stack of cash, you could have a
Hemi-powered regular-cab Ram 1500 and a Mercedes-Benz C230 sedan.
Or - I just looked this up - you could buy 20 acres of ranch land in
Montalba, Tex. But I have a feeling that if you're really interested in
buying a $57,000 pickup truck, you might already own Montalba, Tex.
The SRT10's ride-handling balance is tilted in favor of comfort, probably in
deference to the fact that an object this immense is never going to give a
Lotus a run for its money in the twisties, no matter how stiff the
suspension, and like a classic muscle car it gets confused by corners.
I'll wager that if the truck had merely gargantuan wheels (say, 20-inchers),
it would keep its tires in better contact with the pavement. As it is, the
springs and dampers struggle to control the weight of the huge 22-inch
wheels at each corner.
Trying to make a suspension work properly with 22-inch wheels is like
fashioning a yo-yo out of a bowling ball and some string. They do look nice,
though.
The interior is pretty much stock Dodge Ram, with the exception of heavily
bolstered seats with suede inserts, a red starter button à la Viper, and a
boy-racer oil temperature gauge that juts out of the left windshield pillar
like some kind of growth. (Not only did it keep me up to the moment on the
oil temp, it reminded me that I was overdue for my checkup at the
dermatologist.)
The navigation system worked fine, but unlike every other system I've seen -
including this very unit in other Dodges - its display doesn't automatically
dim when the headlights are on. I didn't notice this immediately in the
brightly lighted city, but out in the sticks it occurred to me that the navi
screen's impression of Times Square was causing acute night blindness, which
is a bad thing when you're driving 65 miles an hour in a truck the size of
Djibouti.
Now, I know that thrifty fuel economy isn't a priority here. I also know
that your garden-variety 4x4 pickup will probably never see 20 m.p.g. But
the Ram SRT10 rivals a torched oil well for sheer profligacy - and, oh yes,
it demands premium.
I managed mileage in the double digits only because I made a highway-heavy
road trip. Around town, I was getting 7 or 8 m.p.g. With more than a
quarter-tank of fuel remaining, I gassed up to the tune of $74.28. If I'd
come close to running the 34-gallon tank dry, the big red truck would have
had the dubious distinction of being my first $100 fill-up.
One advantage of the Ram's pavement-crushing weight and cinder-block
aerodynamics is that those are two identifying characteristics of a truck,
and trucks are not subject to the federal gas-guzzler tax. So while the
Viper and its 20 m.p.g. highway rating get hit with the guzzler label, a Ram
SRT10 with the same engine but much worse fuel economy does not. But nobody
ever said life was fair for Viper owners.
The Ram SRT10 Quad Cab may not make fiscal or ecological sense, but I
appreciate the chutzpah it represents. Nobody else was making a four-door
truck with 510 horsepower, so the Dodge people took it upon themselves to
fill the void.
Mission accomplished, it seems: after a three-year run, 2006 is the last
year for the Viper-powered pickup. The SRT10 Quad Cab is the truck to end
all trucks, including itself."
