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I picked up a Lazy Boy recliner during my week in a Dodge pickup. It was a
Ram 2500HD Club Cab 4X4 Laramie SLT--a truck is as big as its name, with the
added length of a six-man cab. I hauled the chair home not in the truck bed, but
wedged beside me in the cavernous front room.
This mammoth machine is made for work, not transportation. Car comparisons car
are almost irrelevant. Still, the rear passenger seat is more spacious than your
typical "two-plus-two" coupe. The front bench features a fold-down console
fitted for a cellular phone and laptop computer. Step-up height exceeds two
feet.
The ingenious six-cylinder Cummins diesel is a $4,142 option. So equipped, the
Ram will tow an 11,900-pound travel trailer or plow away two feet of wet snow.
Yet it earns nearly 18 miles per gallon (of No. 2 diesel). It accelerates well
even at highway speed, and sends smaller vehicles skittering out of its way. But
constant diesel rumble gets old.
In zero-degree weather, a one-minute wait is often necessary before starting. An
engine-block heater is standard. Diesels get testy in winter. But I'm waiting
for summer, when I can install the recliner in the rear and ride around in
style.
1996 Dodge Ram 2500HD Club Cab 4X4 Laramie SLT
Engine: 5.9 liter six-cyl. intercooled diesel
Transmission: 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic
Drive System: RWD/part time 4WD; dual-range transfer case
Wheelbase: 155 inches
Ground clearance: 9.8 inches
Observed MPG: 17.86
Base Price: $$23,743
Copyright © 1996 Snow Country Magazine. All rights reserved.
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