The King Of All Pick Up Trucks: Dodge Ram 1500

Dodge Beats Out Five Other Competitors For Award

Texans love their pickup trucks so much that for many drivers a quad cab truck is their family car of choice. Who needs a sedan when your burly truck with four doors can carry the family, haul cargo, and pull a trailer?

To underscore the importance of pick up trucks in the Lone Star state, members of the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) recently held a vote to determine the best “Full-Size Pickup Truck of Texas” and gave that award to the all-new 2009 Dodge Ram 1500. Dodge beat out trucks from a number of manufacturers including Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Ford, Chevrolet, and GMC.

“This is quite an honor,” said Mike Accavitti, Director, Dodge Marketing. “In a head-to-head competition, our game-changing all-new 2009 Dodge Ram unseated the new Ford F-150, long considered the leader in the market. This is not only the best pickup truck we’ve ever built, it’s the best pickup on the market, period.”

Measuring Utility, Value, and Fuel Efficiency

Besides naming the best full size pick up truck, TAWA also used the occasion to name the best SUV of Texas and the best Crossover model. Beyond the three main categories, the association named twelve sub-category winners. More than 40 TAWA members spent over two full days of on- and off-road evaluation to determine the winners. Consideration was given to everything from exterior styling and off-road capability to the entrant’s overall utility, value and fuel efficiency.

“The TAWA Truck Rodeo is the most comprehensive evaluation of new trucks and SUVs in the country and manufacturers consider it a great honor to win their category,” said Harold Gunn, President of TAWA. “This was an especially tight competition because several manufacturers are building great product. We’re proud that the Texas truck rodeo is considered the most important competition of its type in the nation.”

What The New Dodge Ram Has To Offer

The 2009 Dodge Ram is new to the market, offering significant improvements over the previous generation model. These changes include the model’s first ever crew-cab configuration; new 5.7L V8 HEMI engine; RamBox cargo management system; store-in-the floor bins; standard front and rear side curtain airbags; anti-lock brake system; electronic stability control; and more.

Starting price for the 2009 Dodge Ram is $22,170, but with cash incentives being offered immediately, consumers can expect to shave thousands of dollars off of the price of their truck.

(Source: Chrysler LLC)