Does anybody know that if their RAM 1500 was built before July it's not as safe as newer ones?

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fotomatt1

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This is on the IIHS website. My truck was built before July 2019 (May to be exact) and I'm very concerned that my truck might not be safe for my family in the event of an accident. I've been on the phone with FCA trying to find out how they can retrofit my truck to bring it inline with currently made vehicles, but they're telling me they can't and it's just as safe as trucks made after July. That's not the way this reads. Anybody else concerned?

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stimpy433

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God, you just got to love the internet..... makes everyone paranoid!!!! It just says they improved it, doesn't say that they were death traps and then after July 2018 they decided to make them safe....
 
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fotomatt1

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It says improved occupant safety. Clearly there was a reason for that. I want to know how much less safe pre July vehicles are. Companies don't reengineer something at their expense for something minor.
 

chrisbh17

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It says improved occupant safety. Clearly there was a reason for that. I want to know how much less safe pre July vehicles are. Companies don't reengineer something at their expense for something minor.

They've done it once before....I forget what year added it, but there is a brace under the drivers front floor panel that will interfere with running boards that were meant for pre-change build dates.

IIRC they only added that bracing to improve grades on a crash test that did not exist when the truck was first designed.
 

Dodge City Dude

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I would sure hope they do not stop improving.....but improving does not mean there was a problem before. If that was the case, there would be a recall.
 
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fotomatt1

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I would sure hope they do not stop improving.....but improving does not mean there was a problem before. If that was the case, there would be a recall.

There's nothing they can fix from what they're telling me, so nothing they can do for a recall.
 

iLLeStEyECoN

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It says improved occupant safety. Clearly there was a reason for that. I want to know how much less safe pre July vehicles are. Companies don't reengineer something at their expense for something minor.

By this logic, nothing has ever been safe or worthy of our purchase in the history of life. Improvement doesn’t mean something was broken or unsafe. With that being said, I love when companies keep working on current iterations of something instead of saving those changes for the next model.


2019 RAM 1500 Laramie 4x4

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steven_sbs

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Is this about the all new 2019 model, or the 2019 Classic that's basically the 2018 model that they continue to build? When did the all new 2019 start to be built?

EDIT: bad attempt at a humorous comment removed.
 
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iLLeStEyECoN

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I say sell your 1500 right away. Don't delay. Buy a new 2019 with the improved safety design. No one wants to own a vehicle that's unsafe at any speed.

I pray this is a troll.


2019 RAM 1500 Laramie 4x4

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fotomatt1

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Is this about the all new 2019 model, or the 2019 Classic that's basically the 2018 model that they continue to build? When did the all new 2019 start to be built?

I say sell your 1500 right away. Don't delay. Buy a new 2019 with the improved safety design. No one wants to own a vehicle that's unsafe at any speed.

This is the All New 2019.


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fotomatt1

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By this logic, nothing has ever been safe or worthy of our purchase in the history of life. Improvement doesn’t mean something was broken or unsafe. With that being said, I love when companies keep working on current iterations of something instead of saving those changes for the next model.


2019 RAM 1500 Laramie 4x4

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That’s fine...but provide the crash test data on the one made before the change so I know it’s safety capabilities.


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steven_sbs

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I pray this is a troll.


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Not a troll. Just trying to be funny. If you remember your automotive history, you will recognize the "unsafe at any speed" line as a reference to Ralph Nader's book from the 1960's and his issue with the Chevy Corvair, which was a whole lot of nonsense about a non-issue.
 

stimpy433

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Top secret crash testing video just released!!!!

 

iLLeStEyECoN

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That’s fine...but provide the crash test data on the one made before the change so I know it’s safety capabilities.


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You don’t think the new RAM improved safety features over the old models? By this logic, everything built before July 2018 is unsafe and should immediately be torched on the side of the road. You’ll never have the newest features. As soon as you buy your truck, new features will be released. You’ll drive yourself mad trying to keep up with this stuff.


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fotomatt1

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You don’t think the new RAM improved safety features over the old models? By this logic, everything built before July 2018 is unsafe and should immediately be torched on the side of the road. You’ll never have the newest features. As soon as you buy your truck, new features will be released. You’ll drive yourself mad trying to keep up with this stuff.


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It's not a new "feature" it's that they corrected a structural issue (specifically strengthened the cab mounts at the frame) that likely didn't test well initially so they made a running change. Again, the change MAY be negligible, but likely is not which is why crash test data is not released on all new 2019 models made prior to July.
 

hotrod45

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The article cites potential injury to the (outboard) ankle and lower leg, so that is what the improvement was aimed at "in a small overlap frontal collision." In an environment where many drivers are going too fast, slowing down "more" gives you more time to avoid many things, but probably not all. In any event, the improvement made to the trucks after that particular build date is designed mainly to protect ***you*** the driver, in general, and your lower left leg specifically. The "and my family" part is much less likely to be involved, even if the small overlap frontal collision occurred on the passenger side, which isn't as likely anyway.
 

JD Martin

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I'm all for having safe vehicles, and being safe, but I think you're blowing this out of proportion in your mind. It may be that Ram found that there was some issue that could be improved without a lot of effort, based on crash tests or other things, and thus did so. But that happens on a lot of vehicles. I doubt this version of the truck is less safe than the last version, and I'm sure this version will be less safe than the one coming after it.

I'm guessing it's right that there's nothing they can/will/want to do to change your vehicle to what they're making now, just like they're not going to give me the split tailgate that's on the same model because it came out later. The exception might be if someone like NHTSA finds that there's something seriously wrong that can be easily corrected and either mandates a repair or comes into agreement with FCA on a voluntary recall.

If the whole thing bothers you that much, your best bet then would be to trade in your truck on one made much later, past the due date. I'm guessing you don't want to do that because of depreciation, but that's really just the way life is. You have to decide if you think the perceived danger to you and your family is worth the $5k/$10k/whatever depreciation hit you'll take. For me, the choice would be obvious. If I thought something was truly unsafe for myself or my family, then I would trade the vehicle in, take the hit and get something safe. If you feel like it's that dangerous, but want someone else to pay for your peace of mind, good luck with that. Whether it's fair or unfair, that's the way life is, and you're talking about first world problems - people paying $40k or more for new vehicles and then being unwilling to spend $10k on their family's safety.

Me, I don't think either vehicle is unsafe for myself or my family. But I'm a guy that drove around for a long time without a collapsible steering column, crumple hood, side door beams, or any of the other safety features. Hell, some of my vehicles had 4 wheel single-MC manual drum brakes! :)
 

iLLeStEyECoN

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It's not a new "feature" it's that they corrected a structural issue (specifically strengthened the cab mounts at the frame) that likely didn't test well initially so they made a running change. Again, the change MAY be negligible, but likely is not which is why crash test data is not released on all new 2019 models made prior to July.

It’s absolutely a safety feature and a redesign. This happens every generation on every product ever created. That being said, you do what you believe is best.


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JoeCo

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Me, I don't think either vehicle is unsafe for myself or my family. But I'm a guy that drove around for a long time without a collapsible steering column, crumple hood, side door beams, or any of the other safety features. Hell, some of my vehicles had 4 wheel single-MC manual drum brakes! :)

I still drive one like that! Really got to put some leg into it.
 
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