patchelect
Senior Member
I had been waffling about getting a RAM to replace my '01 Dakota for quite some time, probably a year or more. I recently retired and began looking a bit closer and finally allowed myself to get bit by the bug. I bought a CPO '14 RAM about a week ago. In that time I put close to 800 miles on the truck so I guess my initial impressions have some merit.
Compared to the Dakota, the RAM is huge! Dimensionally not so, but the feeling is much bigger.
The Hemi is a huge improvement over the 3.9 V6 I had as was expected. The 8 speed transmission can be argued either way. Sometimes I feel like it is hunting and others like there is a hole between gears.
The room and comfort in the RAM is magnitudes better than the Dakota, BUT, the Dakota is WAY better handling than the wallowing RAM. Maybe when I have a few more thousand miles on the RAM I'll change my mind, but right now the Dakota wins, hands down, and I still have the Dakota so it's not fading memories.
The HVAC system on the RAM is also much better than the Dakota. They both have the manual systems so it's an apples to apples comparison.
The steering on the RAM is so disconnected to the wheels! I feel like I'm "driving" a video game instead of a vehicle, but I also know that the change is the way things are today.
The information system, while filled with options, is daunting. Too may possibilities that require too much input to read and scanning some readings requires changing screens as they are on different ones.
Getting information from the owners manual is nearly useless although I haven't tried the CD that came with it. (I'm assuming it is identical) I've learned far more from Google and posts by others including youtube posts.
I'll give that the cab is very accommodating for passengers vs my Dakota's Club Cab arrangement, although I could have gotten the Dakota with 4 doors as well.
Overall the RAM is a sweet ride, but the Dakota is a sportier one.
Compared to the Dakota, the RAM is huge! Dimensionally not so, but the feeling is much bigger.
The Hemi is a huge improvement over the 3.9 V6 I had as was expected. The 8 speed transmission can be argued either way. Sometimes I feel like it is hunting and others like there is a hole between gears.
The room and comfort in the RAM is magnitudes better than the Dakota, BUT, the Dakota is WAY better handling than the wallowing RAM. Maybe when I have a few more thousand miles on the RAM I'll change my mind, but right now the Dakota wins, hands down, and I still have the Dakota so it's not fading memories.
The HVAC system on the RAM is also much better than the Dakota. They both have the manual systems so it's an apples to apples comparison.
The steering on the RAM is so disconnected to the wheels! I feel like I'm "driving" a video game instead of a vehicle, but I also know that the change is the way things are today.
The information system, while filled with options, is daunting. Too may possibilities that require too much input to read and scanning some readings requires changing screens as they are on different ones.
Getting information from the owners manual is nearly useless although I haven't tried the CD that came with it. (I'm assuming it is identical) I've learned far more from Google and posts by others including youtube posts.
I'll give that the cab is very accommodating for passengers vs my Dakota's Club Cab arrangement, although I could have gotten the Dakota with 4 doors as well.
Overall the RAM is a sweet ride, but the Dakota is a sportier one.