Dodge Ram MI Takes on Tough Competitor Toyota Tundra in MI Auto Times Battle
Dodge Ram MI Takes on Tough Competitor Toyota Tundra in MI Auto Times Battle
DETROIT, M.I. Dodge Ram MI vehicle owners will be interested in a recent round of competition held by MI Auto Times for its May the Best Truck Win competition. The Dodge Ram MI truck was faced by the Toyota Tundra regular cab in the second round of the MI Auto Times contest, and it wasn't a shutout by any means.
The Dodge Ram MI truck featured in the comparison was the 1500 SLT, also a regular cab, and MI Auto Times staff spent many days deciding which truck, the Dodge Ram or the Toyota Tundra, would advance to the next round of competition.
The comparison awards star ratings based on four categories which include warranty, value, comfort and power, and the top score possible is four stars in each category. The warranty category measures how well automakers back their vehicles. Comfort includes all the interior amenities. Power judges for payload, towing capacity, torque and horsepower. And value takes MSRP, national incentives and gas mileage into account.
When it came to power, MI Auto Times awarded a tie giving both the Dodge Ram MI truck and the Toyota Tundra 3 stars. Both trucks had a V8 engine but the Dodge Ram slightly edged out the Toyota Tundra because of its extra liter of size, therefore giving it more displacement and power. The Toyota Tundra did have more towing power with a 7,500 capacity and a larger payload of 1,795. Both vehicles had the same torque and horsepower of 310.
Value determined the Toyota Tundra to be the better option with 3 stars whereas the Dodge Ram MI truck earned 3 stars. The Dodge Ram does have GMAC bonus cash of $1,000 but that still makes it $100 more than the Toyota Tundra's base MSRP. The Toyota Tundra also had better combined gas mileage of 17 mpg against 15 combined mpg for the Dodge Ram. Estimated total fuel cost savings for the Toyota Tundra is $323 cheaper.
Comfort ruled the winner to be the Dodge Ram MI truck with 3 stars versus the Toyota Tundra 3 star net. More standard features such as power windows, power sliding rear window, cruise control, power door locks and heated mirrors were some of the items the Toyota Tundra lacked as standard. The Toyota Tundra also required customers to purchase a satellite radio subscription for $449 but the Dodge Ram MI Truck gave customers an entire year subscription at no charge.
Warranty takes care of customers long after they've left the dealership and the Dodge Ram warranty is supreme. Earning 3 stars, the Dodge Ram gives customers a five year/100,000-mile power train limited warranty, and a three year/36,000 mile basic warranty. The 3-star rated Toyota Tundra also shares a three year/36,000 mile basic warranty but only a 60-month/60,000 mile powertrain warranty. Also, the Dodge Ram gives better rust coverage of five years or 100,000 miles while the Toyota Tundra only provides unlimited miles at 60 months.
The winner of the second round: The most awarded truck ever, the Dodge Ram 1500 SLT.
The second round winner is: Dodge Ram 1500 SLT, The most awarded Ram truck ever.
Detroit Trucks owners who want to find the full details of the MI Auto Times competition can visit http://www.miautotimes.com to read more or watch the video.
MI Auto Times covers all Michigan automotive news all the time, featuring newly released vehicle recall information, relevant Michigan automaker news, vehicle ratings and comparisons, and everything else auto-related Michigan and world readers need to know.
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1Information from www.fueleconomy.gov
2Dodge Ram 330 pound-feet torque at 4,000 RPM. Toyota Tundra 327 pound-feet torque at 3,400 RPM.