Nowhere are the new diesel's subdued decibels more apparent than from inside the cabin. Truly, it's even quieter than the constant exhaust burble of the Hemi - no complaints as I love the muscle car music. It's a roomy cab as well, with more head, shoulder and legroom than any of its competitors. It's obvious that the Dodge interior designers weren't satisfied with the current pickup truck status quo when it came to the look and feel of materials. The quality of plastics and overall design surpass all of its heavy-duty competitors, even in bone stock trim. Move up to the SLT or Laramie and luxury features, such as aluminum wheels, adjustable pedals, leather seats and dual zone climate control add an up-market ambience. A 4-speaker AM/FM cassette with changer controls comes standard while a 6-disc dash-mounted CD audio system with seven Infinity speakers and 240-watts of digital power controlled by steering wheel mounted buttons would be my personal choice. All models, even 4x4s, are easy to climb in and out of due to lower front door sills and rear doors that open to 90 degrees. In actual effect, there are no significant interior changes from the current ½ ton 1500 to the new heavy-duty trucks. Why change something that was already best in class.
The Dodge heavy-duties are the first available with side-curtain airbags. The side-impact airbags on standard cab models can be switched off to accommodate child safety seats. Other safety features include pretensioning seatbelts and standard ABS with electronic variable brake proportioning (EVBP) in the rear, to balance front-to-rear braking and make better use of the rear brakes when under a light load.
There are eight cab/box configurations available, including an all-new single rear-wheel 3500 model, GM and Ford only offer dual rear-wheels in the 1-ton class. The Regular Cab 2500 has increased its base price by $800 over last year's truck, to $28,950. After that a 2500 Quad Cab starts at $31,985, 2500 Regular Cab 4x4 at $32,270 and 2500 Quad Cab 4x4 at $35,270. The 3500 Regular Cab begins at $30,620 while adding 4WD moves it up to $34,320. A 2WD Quad Cab costs $38,635 while tacking on 4WD causes the sticker to climb to $42,580, with options taking the price well into the $50's when fully-dressed. That's a lot of coin but well in line with its competitors.