Saturday, 2 September 2017
Review 2015 RAM ProMaster City with video
Please welcome back Alex Dykes as our editor road test. Alex will contribute video review and relaunched our YouTube channel. Click here to subscribe
Everybody talked about the Dodge Caravan sent to pasture soon, but there is a third position Chrysler badge engineering in the sun and minivan :. 2015 Ram C / V Here replacement: 2015 RAM ProMaster City. With boffins industry calculated that the 1 cargo carrier class segment will explode to more than 300% over the next few years, Chrysler gets into commercial action with another model Euro. While most ProMaster van is based on the Fiat Ducato, more ProMaster City is an Americanization of the Fiat Doblo. Does the conglomerate Fiat Chrysler recently formed with have what it takes to compete with the all-new, all-sexy Transit Connect?
Exter ior
outside it is difficult to say the Doblo and the City ProMaster outside. Both have sliding doors and 60/40 rear barn doors that open nearly 180 degrees, but most of the sheetmetal is shared. New DOT compliant lamps and rear lights have been equipped and logo of RAM and crosshair grille were grafted with a long nose. Frankly, the City ProMaster is not as attractive as the new Transit Connect bringing strong lines and new corporate grille of Ford. ProMaster the other hand goes for rounded corners and a front end function over form. RAM has the unpainted black bumpers can be easily replaced without a quote from the paint shop. Shoppers should note that the high-end models this gap repair savings for parts of the body color. The style is generally a low priority for most commercial buyers and funky looks of the PMC are unlikely to be a turn off. The wagon version may be another matter.
Interior
Speaking of cars, the City ProMaster Wagon primarily exists as a declaration You see why not ?. each PMC starts life as a car passenger built by TOFAS (a kind of contract-manufacturer) in Turkey. completed vans are then shipped to Maryland for the conversio n where trucks "cargo" lose their rear seats and earn a load floor. This is basically the same Ford process used to bring the Transit Connect to our shores and avoid paying the dreaded "chicken tax." Because vans are imported with 5-seat, why not sell some of the side? thats the version I had for a week.
It is best to think of the car as utilities and freight transport people to the ATV family eager for a replacement for the mini- American van. The difference between the PMC and Sedona, Sienna, Caravan and Odyssey is striking. You will not find a third row folding seats INT0-the-floor, spongy plastics, entertainment systems behind the snazzy audio systems and rear leather poufs with characters captains. Instead, we cast an inside Euro-funk commercial quality in shades of black and gray. The dashboard and the hard plastic doors will withstand years of abuse and are easy to clean, but not as pleasant to touch than what you find in redesigned Ford Transit Connect.
Most of the dashboard of the PMC is lifted directly from the Doblo, except for a new steering wheel with audio controls in the rear, a new lever speed and touch infotainment system. The gauge cluster is easy to read, but the onboard computer is un intuitive. Similarly also the release of door handles function as door locks and electric door lock commands. It took some getting used to. Storage pockets abound, but the number of two cupholder is decidedly European.
Ford is more comfortable as a people carrier, because it has a dual mission. You see, the PMC does not need to compete with the Sedona or Sienna, because thats what the Caravan and Chrysler Town & Country for. You want a minivan? Go to the Chrysler. Want to carry your laptop poodle washing system? Visit RAM dealer. Ford on the other hand uses the Transit Connect to compete in both worlds, for better or for worse.
Cargo Hauling
For commercial carriers and "working families" manufacturers are courting, the loading capacity is king. This is the RAM area where the baby starts to shine. With 131.7 cubic feet of space moving widgets on the back beats it easily the Nissan NV0 and Chevy Express and City Eeks a victory in the long wheelbase Transit Connect barely. RAM also manages to carry longer items through a slightly swallow Articles 11 of the windshield foot box for the rear doors, Articles 9 feet from the dashboard to the do or (after removing the front passenger seat) and Articles 7 feet of the front seatbacks for rear doors. Youll notice something missing, there is no measuring 8 feet, and that is the area where every vehicle in this segment not let me down, you can not put a sheet of anything in these vans 4 × 8. If you want to transport plywood, you will need a trailer for that once RAM C / V dies next year.
Loading a widget that is 4 feet by 4 feet by 5 feet long with a forklift is a breeze thanks to folding doors, something the larger C / V has failed for a certain time. Unfortunately, you will find the payload, although the class leading to 1,883 pounds, is no higher in real terms than the Caravan. This leaves a huge gap between the City payload ProMaster and payload of 3922 pounds ProMaster base model. In an interesting twist, the PMC uses an independent rear suspension and coil springs, while offering high load capacity to more rear end of the truck as the NV0.
Infotainment
Although uConnect 5.0 sounds like it would be a smaller version of uConnect 8.4 (systems found in most Dodge and Ram models), it is actually a completely different system. Ba sed on a Microsoft O / S and not the QNX UNIX that runs the largest system, this software was designed almost entirely by Fiat. It started life in 06 as Fiat Blue & Me system found in Europe, but Fiat re-designed to resemble the whole uConnect system in 2013 and we start to see offered as Chrysler basic infotainment unit . Available with TomTom navigation, Bluetooth speaker phone integration and USB / support iDevice, uConnect 5.0 is a perfectly usable head unit. It lacks the smartphone control functionality and voice that you find in most uConnect and next revision of MyFord Touch, but it is catchy and easy to use.
Base models PMC skip Touch infotainment system for a basic AM / FM unit with four speakers and a USB port. Jumping SLT trim adds the touch screen as standard equipment and is a pack of 6 speakers available. This limitation is for the truck model and, as a base that you get the speaker grilles, but no speakers in the cargo area.
Powertrain
Fortunately RAM has chosen not the compact Dodge sedan raid for the powertrain as Nissan did with NV0, instead opting for the same engine 2.4L "Tigershark" found in the Chrysler 0. mill four-cylinder produces 178 horsepower and 172 lb-ft of twist that easily outperforms the NV0 and compares well with the Ford 2.5 The naturally aspirated and 1.6L turbo engine. Unfortunately, this does not compare well with the average American minivan as own Chrysler Town & Country in 283 horsepower. Certainly, the Town & Country is heavier, but the power to weight ratio is always better to the Chrysler.
Helping to offset some of the power failure is a ZF-designed, Chrysler built, 9-speed automatic. (If you want to know more about the 9HP and why he behaves as he does, check 9HP Transmission ZF clutches puts dog on the leash. ) Self 9 speeds PMC gives the starting report the lowest in the segment and the highest final drive by the RAM bulbous fastest to 30 MPH and most effective at 75 MPH. The result is an EPA rating of 21/29/24 mpg (city / highway / combined). If you live in a state with a higher speed limit the 9th top speed is a serious advantage. I averaged an impressive 31 MPG on a 70-mile one-way trip with the A / C blowing, cruise control set at 76 MPH and 800 lbs of cement bloc ks at the rear. However, if you move is in the city, expect that number to drop adolescents.
player
When comparing the ProMaster City and the great Caravan, you will notice that the baby-RAM 850lbs trades weight vacuum and 105 horsepower to 50% speed in the transmission. The trade means more fuel economy as I said, but slower acceleration especially with RAM takes 9.55 seconds to buzz its way to 60 MPH. It is the Prius territory. Add a thousand pounds and one of these "Class 1" vehicles feel slow, but the turbocharger on Fords 1.6L engine helps scoot to 60 nearly a second faster. RAM bests even the 2.5L Ford and Nissan and Chevrolet.
If youre after the exciting dynamic, youre looking inside the white box evil. The RAM has a better idea behind the steering wheel of the Ford, but raw is better grip on the Blue Oval. NV0 leaf springs and wheezing 2.0L engine are the least exciting of the bunch, but trade is really the best fuel economy in the city. The best dynamics in the Transit Connect are not surprising because it is competing in both the freight carrier and minivan segments. The exciting RAM? No Are there management feel? No. Can he manage out the trailer in the left lane? No, but it can handle a Prius on your mountain bagel delivery route.
And now, we must address the glaring problem that struck me when I looked at the price tag. At $ 23.130 trim Trader city is $ 1,735 more 2015 Grand Caravan AVP, aka the cheapest mini van in America. The Caravan is not the coolest minivan on the market, but the inside is still several steps above the city ProMaster. Dodge gives you a standard 283 horsepower V6, it can swallow a plywood sheet 4 x 8, the payload of the plant is less than 154lbs and just tow 1,0lbs more. FCA made the plan on fixing, but the fix is ​​killing AVP instead of lowering the price of the City ProMaster. This value problem is unique to the RAM but as the Transit is also more expensive than the AVP. Certainly suggesting the passenger version of the caravan city ProMaster is "missing the point" a little, but the wagon variant we tested the gap widens to nearly $ 3,000. If your money is on the line, my best advice is to skip both the city and the ProMaster Transit Connect and get a Caravan AVP while you can. As long as you do not need the barn doors in the back or do not mind a DIY conversion, Dodge discount is the most convincing option.
Chrysler provided the vehicle, insurance and a review of gas
Specifications as tested
0-30: 3.8 seconds
0-60: 9,55 seconds
average savings: 24.3 MPG over 486 miles
