So, I did a thing

Now, this was a badass car.

280px-Vega_Chevrolet.jpg
It definitely put the "Ass" in Badass.
 
Sticker should say "Bailed out by USA". FCA- FIAT Chrysler Automobiles.
We bailed out Chrysler and GM.

Chrysler repaid all of it. I presume GM did as well, but I didn't check. Obama did his best to kill off Chrysler because he was pandering to GM being partially union owned now, and that's what drove Chrysler to start selling off some of it's stock and kill the Plymouth name.

FCA is now Stelantis, which is globally owned. Yes, the Chinese have a piece of it too. While I'm not particularly happy about that, all the car companies are doing some manufacturing overseas and collaborating with brands in other countries. The Ford Mach-E is made in china, as well as the Focus, Escape, and Fusion. The batteries and electronics for the Lightning come from Korea.

GM produced 2.9 million cars in China in 2021.

Many "American" vehicles come from Mexico as well.

No, I don't like all this global stuff, but all the carmakers are doing it. So if we're going to hate on one, let's hate on all of them.

Back to Stelantis...something seems to be working for them. The latest gen of RAM 1500 is the number one rated full sized truck, and their overall ratings as a brand is improving considerably. And frankly, they needed that.
 
We bailed out Chrysler and GM.

Chrysler repaid all of it. I presume GM did as well, but I didn't check. Obama did his best to kill off Chrysler because he was pandering to GM being partially union owned now, and that's what drove Chrysler to start selling off some of it's stock and kill the Plymouth name.

FCA is now Stelantis, which is globally owned. Yes, the Chinese have a piece of it too. While I'm not particularly happy about that, all the car companies are doing some manufacturing overseas and collaborating with brands in other countries. The Ford Mach-E is made in china, as well as the Focus, Escape, and Fusion. The batteries and electronics for the Lightning come from Korea.

GM produced 2.9 million cars in China in 2021.

Many "American" vehicles come from Mexico as well.

No, I don't like all this global stuff, but all the carmakers are doing it. So if we're going to hate on one, let's hate on all of them.

Back to Stelantis...something seems to be working for them. The latest gen of RAM 1500 is the number one rated full sized truck, and their overall ratings as a brand is improving considerably. And frankly, they needed that.
Michigan loaned more money to Chrysler while Lee Iacocca was CEO than the federal government did. He saw to it Chrysler paid back every dime. That can't be said for GM.
 
Looks like RAM has the best and worst rated trucks. The new RAM is the best rated, the RAM Classic (previous version) is the worst rated.

Interesting that the Tundra is number 2. I still bet it will be the most reliable though.

 
I had a 2002 Ram I traded in for the Mustang in 2010. I loved that truck. The only issue I had with it, was when the heater coil went out a month before I traded it in. It was going to cost $800 in labor to install a $45 dollar part because the entire dash would have to be removed.
 
I've always loved Dodge trucks, but they have had their share of quality issues over the years. I had a '97 Dodge that was a beautiful truck, and loaded for the time. It was a pretty good truck overall, but the Dana rear end in it was problematic.

I had an '86 dodge with the venerable 318. wasn't fast, but couldn't kill that engine. I put about 200k on the clock, sold it to a guy and he was still driving it with over 400k last I talked to him.
 
I've always loved Dodge trucks, but they have had their share of quality issues over the years. I had a '97 Dodge that was a beautiful truck, and loaded for the time. It was a pretty good truck overall, but the Dana rear end in it was problematic.

I had an '86 dodge with the venerable 318. wasn't fast, but couldn't kill that engine. I put about 200k on the clock, sold it to a guy and he was still driving it with over 400k last I talked to him.
Love that 318. Tough engine. Dad took several way over 100K miles without issue
 
I had a 2002 Ram I traded in for the Mustang in 2010. I loved that truck. The only issue I had with it, was when the heater coil went out a month before I traded it in. It was going to cost $800 in labor to install a $45 dollar part because the entire dash would have to be removed.
yeah, my ford truck had a similar issue, the shaft that turned the damper that controlled the air flow from A/C to Heat failed. had to remove the dash to replace it. I installed a valve on the heater line in the engine compartment to turn off the heat in the summer.
 
Drove the new truck to the mountains this week. Got over 20 mpg overall, that includes some idling time and the stop and go traffic in Pigeon Forge. It did 24-25 on continuous hwy driving.

That's pretty dang good for a vehicle that big and powerful.

Truck drives like a dream, handles the curves well and climbs the mountain like it's nothing.
 
Drove the new truck to the mountains this week. Got over 20 mpg overall, that includes some idling time and the stop and go traffic in Pigeon Forge. It did 24-25 on continuous hwy driving.

That's pretty dang good for a vehicle that big and powerful.

Truck drives like a dream, handles the curves well and climbs the mountain like it's nothing.
You must have taken the interstate to US 441. I wonder what you would have gotten if you drove through the mountains of northeast GA to get there?

I bet you went to Dollywood.
 
Drove the new truck to the mountains this week. Got over 20 mpg overall, that includes some idling time and the stop and go traffic in Pigeon Forge. It did 24-25 on continuous hwy driving.

That's pretty dang good for a vehicle that big and powerful.

Truck drives like a dream, handles the curves well and climbs the mountain like it's nothing.

Awesome.

Good Stuff.

Great to hear that you're enjoying the sled.




..... that's also quite the testament to superior Mexican Engineering and Production.
 
You must have taken the interstate to US 441. I wonder what you would have gotten if you drove through the mountains of northeast GA to get there?

I bet you went to Dollywood.
We took I-75 to Sweetwater, then went 411. Wrong time of the day to go through Knoxville.


Didn't do Dollywood, just went for a couple of days of shopping and good food.
 
This comes as a surprise, my previous gen Tundra was a dream of a truck! Most reliable vehicle I ever owned.

Toyota Tundra is the only pickup truck not recommended by Consumer Reports


It seems Toyota got off to a rough start with the new Tundra, they've had numerous issues and the truck hasn't quite lived up to the hype that preceded it. The twin-turbo V-6 makes good power, but the fuel mileage hasn't really proved better than some V-8s. The styling is controversial sales are not what was expected.

Meanwhile, the 2022 RAM 1500 (latest gen, not the classic) is still rating most reliable of all half ton trucks this year. The only gripe I has was the UConnect system, and it seems like just maybe they fixed it on the last firmware update (fingers crossed).

This truck will do 0-60 in just over 6 seconds, quarter mile in 14, and will get 24-25 MPG on the open road. Pretty impressive!

Ford just recalled almost a half million 2022 F-150s, and GM is still having lifter problems in their V-8s.

So I think I made the right decision. Time will tell.​

 
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