Sunday Drive: Traveling in style with the new Ram 1500 Limited
For the 2019 model year, Ram completely redesigned its ever-popular 1500 pickup truck by adding creature comforts and abilities that then and now are way ahead of their time. It was then that we first had the opportunity to drive a fully loaded Longhorn version of the truck and were so enamored that we eventually bought one for an everyday driver — well, more for Craig to drive and pull trailers with.
We have always enjoyed having a truck as part of our personal fleet as it makes weekend projects that much easier and comes in pretty handy moving dirt, getting wood and such. Plus, with Craig having to pull trailers that weigh upwards of 10,000 pounds, full of gear and lights in them, trucks are a necessary summer vehicle for him.
On the Saturday of our test drive, we awoke with not much on the docket for the day. With the weather continuing to be overcast and gloomy, we thought, “Hey, maybe if we head south to St. George, things may improve, and we might, just maybe see some sun.”
Deanne had a friend who we planned to visit on Sunday anyway, so off we headed in hopes of finding temperatures over 40 degrees.
The new Limited edition of the Ram is top of the line in every sense of the word and came equipped with every feature we could have wanted or really thought of. In perfect combination, they made the 3.5-hour drive enjoyable and, more importantly, kept us extremely comfortable on the ride.
We did indeed hit some stormy weather, mostly in the form of rain — and sometimes even driving rain at that. The adaptive cruise control functioned perfectly. Even when the weather got really bad, it continued to work. We have had systems from other manufacturers turn off when the rain or snow got as bad as it did during our quick trip south.
The Limited Ram has air shocks that will adjust to the ride, or if a heavy trailer is attached the truck will self-level, which made for some very impressive gas mileage. We managed a very nice 19.8 mpg on the highway and a good 17.8 mpg for our week with the truck.
Another new feature in 2022 is trailer reverse steering that will steer a trailer in the proper direction when put into action. All this system takes is hooking up a trailer and making a couple of 90-degree turns with the trailer attached so the truck can figure out the length of the trailer, and bam, it’s ready to go.
This could actually be a marriage saver in some instances, like with Craig’s little sister Marci. He taught her how to tow and back trailers at the early age of 14 and she was out soloing soon after getting her license at 16. Otherwise, what good would she be at the time in helping with a DJ business that relied on trailers every weekend?
To this day, she can back her camping trailer, her toy trailer and any other trailer hooked to a truck way better than her husband. So the new Ram system would be priceless for them, as when put into use, all one has to do is manage the acceleration and brake along with turning the dial on the dashboard in the direction the trailer needs to go — much easier than trying to use mirrors and understand that a trailer does the opposite of the steering input from the wheel. Ford has a similar trailering system, but this one seemed much easier to get set up and use.
Another fine addition is the blind spot monitoring system that will adjust to the length of a trailer, as we were able to find out with a quick trip around town with a trailer attached. The new truck will tow up to 12,750 pounds. Also included was a trailer-sway damping control that will help in the event a trailer starts to sway.
If that were not enough safety features, the new Ram Longhorn also came with forward collision warning and brake intervention if it seems a collision is imminent. Lane departure warning and lane keep assist that would nudge the truck back into the correct lane were also part of the package.
Inside, the Limited was designed more like a high-end luxury sedan, with beautiful leather all around and soft touch points wherever our hands landed. The seats were beyond comfortable, and we enjoyed every minute sitting inside the new truck on our short trip. The rear seats would slide and recline to keep those in the back even more comfortable as well. Not only were the front seats heated and cooled but the rear were also heated and cooled in the new 2022 edition.
We love the technology that comes with a Ram, especially the extra large 12-inch display that connected wirelessly to two phones at once. It allowed us to have endless choices in the entertainment department on the trip. They have also now added a wireless charge point to the Limited truck that kept one phone charged all the time. This also came in handy as we forgot our charging cables when we left home!
The center console in the Ram has also been reimagined so that there are now countless ways to adjust it and use the space. We loved the way it functioned and was so versatile and proved to be a great place to put various things as we traveled to St. George. Deanne only wishes that manufacturers would make the cup holders larger so her water flask will fit into them.
Was the weather better in St. George? Why yes it was. When we stopped at Costco to add some fuel, it was almost like arriving on another planet after such a long and gloomy stretch of weather. It was 64 degrees and had to take our coats off to really feel the warm sun and get a shot of vitamin D! It was a fantastic trip and we were glad to have the Ram along for the ride.
Base price: $65,985
Destination charge: $1,795
Price as driven: $78,779
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- Deanne with the Ram 1500 Limited on a bright Sunday morning in the warmer climes of Southern Utah. What a great ride the truck turned out to be.
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- We had to make the required stop at the Creamery in Beaver, if for nothing else than to get some squeaky cheese for the road.
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- The 2022 Ram 1500 Limited 10th Edition.
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- Inside the 2022 Ram 1500 Limited 10th Edition.
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- Inside the 2022 Ram 1500 Limited 10th Edition.