Cutting room floor: The 2009 Dodge Ram that could've been
Click above to view more high-res sketches of rejected Rams
Chrysler is in the battle of its life to regain its competitiveness here in North America, and there is perhaps no vehicle more important to becoming profitable again than the 2009 Dodge Ram. The Pentastar put in a lot of elbow grease to get this truck just right, and the end result is improved power and efficiency, more storage, and a more refined look than the current truck. We like the design of the new Ram, but the production truck unveiled in Detroit was just one of many designs sketched by Chrysler artists.
Friend of Autoblog Mike Levine at Pickuptruck.com got his hands on many of the designs that led to the Ram we'll see in showrooms this fall, and the sketches range from interesting to bizarre. If you take the photo above, for instance, you can see where Dodge was trying to conceptualize nifty storage solutions. The forward-leaning cross-hair grille and integrated bumper had already taken shape, too. Check out our gallery below that includes some exclusive pictures of rejected Rams, and visit PIckuptruck.com to see even more.
Gallery: Rejected Dodge Rams
[Source: Pickuptruck]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
FThorn 7:48AM (4/18/2008)
You had me (lost) at "Stretch Goal".
I hate that term!
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Paul P. 7:59AM (4/18/2008)
I'm glad they went with the design they did. The trucks in some of those sketches are hideous.
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Brent 6:20PM (4/19/2008)
I agree. One of those looks like the current Dakota. Bad idea.
gstillmilkman 8:25AM (4/18/2008)
The current truck looks pretty good. You can't gamble and go too crazy on your top seller at the risk of alienating too many buyers.
But for the love God, please make the M80 or Rampage!
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MemphisNET 8:50AM (4/18/2008)
We already got the M80. Unfortunately the made it into an SUV (Nitro) instead of a compact pickup.
They really tried to make the 1999 Concept Power Wagon look work on some of those sketches. But what they came up with in the end looks quite good.
PAT 8:39AM (4/18/2008)
Agreed, good call on the new style, these sketches are horrible.
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patrick 9:45AM (4/18/2008)
the new truck is too boring, conservative for me. looks too much like an F150 with a charger grille. it just doesn't have the impact that the original '94 BR rams had. what's the deal with the high beltline/short windows on the sketches? after test driving a charger, I HATE that trend, you get poor visibility, and it makes the cabin feel real small, and makes me claustrophobic. they should have just taken the '99 power wagon concept as is to production for the full sized trucks in '02. visually, that truck was perfect IMHO....
chris 9:25AM (4/18/2008)
Bring it! It's a great design and would definitely give Toyota a run for it's buko bucks.
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AutoXN 9:39AM (4/18/2008)
The black sketch would make a great Dakota. I'm still pissed with the redesign.
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PAT 10:01AM (4/18/2008)
@Patrick
I agree with your comment about this high beltline trend. I am 6' 4" and I love my 03' Ram beacuse I can see everything and I actually don't feel oversized in it, like I do in every other vehicle. I like my windows. Visibility has taken a backseat ins some of these recent designs.
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Eek 10:15AM (4/18/2008)
While I like the final design best, I do like the fourth sketch. Kind've looks like a combination of a pick-up and that new Land Rover concept.
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The Luigiian 11:23AM (4/18/2008)
Put the design on top of a five seat four-cyl crew cab truck that gets 22 mpg and I MIGHT consider a Dodge or Chrysler.
Somehow I doubt this. I'll either have to wait for a Ford Mustang, a Chevy Camaro, and (maybe) an attractive Toyota A-BAT if I'm lucky.
C'mon Ford! Build an Escape Sport Trac! Just add a folding midgate with fold-up walls and it would sell quite a bit.
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pwain 12:34PM (4/18/2008)
Wow. Good call to go with the design they did. Overall these are terrible, though 1-2 look ok for concepts.
Whoever drew up "09DS" needs to find a new career, the last thing their portfolio needs is a nitro-inspired dodge ram"
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MajorGeek 12:11PM (4/18/2008)
The front end, something that is highly recognizeable on most cars, is the best part of that design.
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RPM 12:32PM (4/18/2008)
Does anyone know what program they use to create the computer mock ups?
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fm 12:56PM (4/18/2008)
Yeah I agree that Chrysler couldn't go too crazy with their big seller. That said, I would REALLY like to see in the near future a real production small-midsized pickup that looks like the orange (krugger?) design. Maybe a bit more glass all around to help with visibility but def a modern design. Also a 2.0l-2.5l diesel with a stick would be cool. Ah here I go again into fantasy world. Back in the real world I know it'll never happen.
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spacegravity4me 6:42PM (4/18/2008)
Most of you will probably disagree with me on this but I kinda wish they had gone that direction. I really like weird, futuristic, omg... modern/current designs. I've always loved concept cars and not the insanely watered down, practical, layman crap that the majority of the world accepts. Call me forward thinking, i dunno. I like the new ram, I think they made a handsome vehicle, but I'm not gonna run in fear from it if they make an rt version or try to make it look mean and sporty cause it's not. From an industrial design standpoint they could totally have used all those little cubbies and stuff. I love design with function! But I guess that's not what they wanted. I just want a truck with a powerful engine, crazy awesome transformer type looks, and the compartments and crap/utilities to match. It would be a go anywhere, do anything, haul anything type of truck. Ok... I'm done.
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Blake 6:40PM (4/22/2008)
They should have just built something as close to the Power Wagon concept as they could.
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