Lets see those power wagons

[Great White North Eh]

Now I see…definitely cool .

 

[Andersen24]

Rugged Radios needed a Ram to test fit some new products they are releasing for the trucks, so I cruised by to be the Guinea pig for them. Was awesome, got to get a tour in their R&D shop and also of their toys and the back story to them. Awesome people!

 

[Shocktrooper392]

Rugged Radios needed a Ram to test fit some new products they are releasing for the trucks, so I cruised by to be the Guinea pig for them. Was awesome, got to get a tour in their R&D shop and also of their toys and the back story to them. Awesome people!

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Very cool! GMR radios are very new to me as back in the day when I was into off-roading everyone just ran CB Radio's. Would be interested to see how you like the Ram kit they're working on!

 

[Crusty old shellback]

Spill the beans.

I have a kenwood with a remote head in my truck. Built a bracket to mount the base under the back passenger seat up next to the back of the cab. Used a Bullet Proof Diesel 3rd brake light antenna mount for the antenna. Pricey but it works great with no cutting or drilling.
Built a small wooden block to sit in the center console and mounted the remote head to it. Have a cable long enough so I can set the remote head and aux speaker out thru the back window and on the tail gate while sitting in the pit
Are the Rugged radios capable of being programed by the owner/user like the kenwood is?

 

[Andersen24]

Spill the beans.

I have a kenwood with a remote head in my truck. Built a bracket to mount the base under the back passenger seat up next to the back of the cab. Used a Bullet Proof Diesel 3rd brake light antenna mount for the antenna. Pricey but it works great with no cutting or drilling.
Built a small wooden block to sit in the center console and mounted the remote head to it. Have a cable long enough so I can set the remote head and aux speaker out thru the back window and on the tail gate while sitting in the pit
Are the Rugged radios capable of being programed by the owner/user like the kenwood is?

What I ended up doing is buying the TYT TH-8600, which is the exact same as the Rugged Radios ABM25, BUT the TYT is an unlocked dual band 25 watt mobile radio that you can buy software to fully program it. I DO know they are working at getting brackets made for the 2500 and the TRX for their products.…….

 

[Crusty old shellback]

OK, nothing exciting then.
Thought they may be working on a in dash setup or something.
I had the radio in my '01 F250. Took out the cup holder built into the dash and mounted the remote head there. Dressed it up so it looked factory. Under it was a panel with a hood, for a trash bag I guess. Cut out the center and glued in a speaker mesh. Mounted the speaker behind it and painted it to match the dash. It all looked like a factory install.

I tried to find a place on my PW to do the same, but couldn't find a good spot that I was willing to cut up.
And now that I'm moving to Northeren nevada and will probably retire from racing for the most part, I'll probably sell the setup.

 

[Arvid]

Hello hello, traded in my 2021 eco diesel with 106,000 miles for this.

 

[Kauffmj1]

Great looking PW! How did it feel jumping from your half ton to this? I drive an 09 GMC 1500 now and I almost laughed when I saw how much bigger the PW was when I did a test drive. The GMC looked like a Chevy Colorado parked next to it. Be curious to see if the PW fits in my garage and what its like to drive daily when it hopefully arrives later this month.

 

[Arvid]

Great looking PW! How did it feel jumping from your half ton to this? I drive an 09 GMC 1500 now and I almost laughed when I saw how much bigger the PW was when I did a test drive. The GMC looked like a Chevy Colorado parked next to it. Be curious to see if the PW fits in my garage and what its like to drive daily when it hopefully arrives later this month.

I have to say at first it was stiff. But after 2000 miles I actually feel more comfortable in it. On the highway and good roads I like the ride much better then in my 1500 and I feel less tired after a 2-3 hour drive. On crap roads with potholes is the only time I feel it’s rigid and stiff.
Luckily that’s not too often. You’ll notice it at first but I quickly adapted to it being different and like the more solid feeling I have in the road now. Plus coming from a diesel it’s nice to hit the pedal and feel the truck actually take off.
And I wasn’t even in the market but my dealer had this one that looked very close to my 1500 granite night edition I told myself it was meant to be. And I thought the wife wouldn’t notice right away and by myself some time having to explain why I needed this lol

 

[Kauffmj1]

Haha. I think my wife may actually be more excited for the truck than me. She claims she's gonna take it from me to drive.

Luckily, I also drive a lifted Jeep Wrangler. So I know what the solid axle ride is like compared to an IFS one. The more rugged and old school feel of the PW was what drew me to it actually. However, when I test drove one I was pleasantly surprised how good it felt. Even on some rougher roads. My wrangler feels like it can almost launch into the adjacent lane if I hit a big bump. The PW felt nothing like that.

 

[BigSexy 64]

I came from a 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 6.2 with a 6" Rough Country lift. My 2022 PW rides much better. I added 315/70/17 KO2s and still has a smooth ride. Ive had alot of trucks and this one is my first Ram and by far my favorite.

 

[Kauffmj1]

Man, I love that olive green color. It was a toss up between that color and the Hydro blue I ended up going with.

Once I get over the trauma of having a truck payment again for the first time in 6 years, 35s will be on my short list of mods.

My 09 GMC is the predecessor to yours with the 6.0. Awesome truck that has been really good to me, but the salt they throw on our roads all winter have rotted the truck to pieces way before the powertrain would die. The bottom of my cab has fist sized holes and my fenders are completely gone. I had to put fender flares on just to hide how bad it looked. Needless to say, the PW will be getting fluid filmed from the get-go to try and prevent that.

This will be my first Ram too. The only other non-GM truck I've owned was my 96 Ranger back when I was 18yrs old. I was a die hard GM guy, but between the GM quality issues of the past few years and the HORRIBLY UGLY design on the HD trucks, they lost me. Everyone likes to bag on FCA/ Stellantis quality, but we've had flawless performance from our 07 Wrangler that we off-road with and the wife's 2016 Renegade. Fingers crossed the PW carries on that tradition of reliability.

 

[BigSexy 64]

Thanks man, for me it was also the Hydro Blue or Olive Green. I had 15,17 & 19 Sierras (Yeah, I know I have a problem!) all with 6.2s, liked them fine, but when I saw the PW had to have it, just a bad ass looking truck. Im in Mississippi so no salt worries here, you just better have a strong air conditioner! Youll want to get those 35s sooner than later, should have come from the factory with 35's. As far as reliability, Ive had zero issues. Got 16k miles on it and only been back to dealer for oil changes.

 

[Kauffmj1]

Thanks man, for me it was also the Hydro Blue or Olive Green. I had 15,17 & 19 Sierras (Yeah, I know I have a problem!) all with 6.2s, liked them fine, but when I saw the PW had to have it, just a bad ass looking truck. Im in Mississippi so no salt worries here, you just better have a strong air conditioner! Youll want to get those 35s sooner than later, should have come from the factory with 35's. As far as reliability, Ive had zero issues. Got 16k miles on it and only been back to dealer for oil changes.

Glad to hear its been reliable for you. It seems like most of the reliability gripes on the forum here are about the diesels and not the hemis or ZF8 transmissions.

I'm the exact opposite. I buy a vehicle and then have trouble ever letting it go unless its too far gone or a pain in the a$$. The wife and I are actually considering building a second garage/ barn since the car and motorcycle collection is getting a bit out of hand. Haha.

 

[Arvid]

Glad to hear its been reliable for you. It seems like most of the reliability gripes on the forum here are about the diesels and not the hemis or ZF8 transmissions.

I'm the exact opposite. I buy a vehicle and then have trouble ever letting it go unless its too far gone or a pain in the a$$. The wife and I are actually considering building a second garage/ barn since the car and motorcycle collection is getting a bit out of hand. Haha.

That’s been the reason I’ve held off building a pole building. I know I will just fill it with more toys. The three car garage helps keep me grounded.

 

[Desertfox73]

Yes, but there is a very real chance that as the electrical changes were going on, the BCM programming also changed, which means that if you plug in a set of amp steps it may not work, or it may, I don't know.

What I do know, is that currently there is no selection for a 2023 RAM anything on AMPs site. Now that could be because their website hasn't updated yet, or it could be because they haven't verified yet, or it could be because they attempted to verify and realized that the programming changes for the 2023 trucks. All are possible.

Biggest thing to find is the door ajar signal.
Or make your own.
For the older units that dont use the OBD connection, they tap in to the door ajar signal from the door switch.
That's the way it was done on my '04 Chevy and '01 Ford.

I know factory steps are an option on other trim levels, might be standard on Limiteds, but not an option on Power Wagons. I can look at build codes and see. I have access to the build code sheets for any and all Stellantis vehicles. 2023 is goofy, the Rebel and Power Wagon share a build code sheet, and it looked like you could get the steps with a Power Wagon, but my salesman couldn’t add them. Maybe with a paper order? Idk what changes would’ve been made, other than the mirrors and digital cluster. Auto power folding mirrors is now available in the settings, which is cool, they fold when you lock it. My steps just showed up today, and I’m hoping to install them this weekend or next.

Mine are OEM and came from the factory. There is no kit for the dealer to add them to an HD; there hasn’t been for the entire generation. It requires some custom wiring harnesses and programming that most dealers can’t do.

Edit to add: The wiring isn’t that complicated to do yourself. If you want the OEM boards there’s a thread here on how to DIY them.

@Cor86 , were you able to get the AMP steps installed? My dealer finally responded with a clearer explanation of the issue, which is that - according to their shop guys - "the active vibration dampeners are in the way" of the boards. They are claiming it's an issue of fitment and clearance of the part, not electrical. Can you confirm or deny this if you've installed the steps?

Apparently this is a change from MY22. I have no idea if the dampeners got bigger, relocated, or what. Just sharing what I'm being told.

 

[Cor86]

T

@Cor86 , were you able to get the AMP steps installed? My dealer finally responded with a clearer explanation of the issue, which is that - according to their shop guys - "the active vibration dampeners are in the way" of the boards. They are claiming it's an issue of fitment and clearance of the part, not electrical. Can you confirm or deny this if you've installed the steps?

Apparently this is a change from MY22. I have no idea if the dampeners got bigger, relocated, or what. Just sharing what I'm being told.

They’re installed, just not wired up yet. No issues with fitment, just with getting time off work to finish it. There are vibration dampeners, not sure if they’ve been moved for ‘23, but they’re not in the way of the standard single motor steps.

 

[Desertfox73]

T

They’re installed, just not wired up yet. No issues with fitment, just with getting time off work to finish it. There are vibration dampeners, not sure if they’ve been moved for ‘23, but they’re not in the way of the standard single motor steps.

Good to hear - not sure why I'm getting such conflicting info, I would think they would want to sell a set of steps. Or maybe they just don't care.

Keep us posted, I'm anxious to see them when you're done!

 

[DrTron]

Man, I love that olive green color. It was a toss up between that color and the Hydro blue I ended up going with.

Can't share your love with the olive green, but when I ordered mine the Hydro blue was out of stock. But my Patriot blue is nice, too. ;-)

 

[Kauffmj1]

Can't share your love with the olive green, but when I ordered mine the Hydro blue was out of stock. But my Patriot blue is nice, too. ;-)

Patriot is a nice color too, but I wanted something brighter. I actually test drove a patriot blue one and had thoughts about buying it when I was 4-6 months out from seeing my truck arrive. However, after 4 different GM trucks in black, I wanted something bright that hid being dirty much better. Especially this time of year when the salt and crud is everywhere on Ohio roads.