I had an 83 with the 225 under the hood. It had the lockup torque converter automatic for economy. About the only option was intermittent wipers. Fully loaded pulling a trailer over the pass between California and Oregon, 13.2 miles per gallon, top speed of 45 with that load. Unloaded it routinely got 19 mpg on the highway. Good truck!
I like the truck. It was far behind its competition by this point, but still likable. It would go on like this another *five* years. The '94 Ram was in the beginning of the design phase.
As always Zack youve brought back memories for me! My dad had a 1990 Dodge D350 with the 318! It was his work truck he used for his business. It felt very 70s but not in a bad way! Great trucks! Thanks for todays dose of nostalgia🤙
Love to see a video showing an old Dodge truck some love. I’ve got an ‘89 W250 4WD with a 360. Aside from a broken door lock actuator, broken power window switch, and a slight oil leak, it hasn’t given me any problems. These older trucks may be simple and lack some creature comforts, but they get the job done and look good doing it
It always seemed like Dodge was the last one to make any kind of changes. I always thought it was because they were cheap, and I guess that's somewhat true.
Don't care how basic this truck is, I would be thrilled to own it. We need to get back to building these types of trucks and build them to a lower cost for the everyday person who needs a pick up to do pick up things. Thanks for the review Zack always dip into your channel
The only thing I wish about this review is that you had a longer part where you just drove it down the road and let the engine to the talking. This is my favorite truck. Thanks for the review.
My uncle had an '86 dodge ram that he got a good deal on since it was a demo model used in parades and rodeos. It was a truck but since it was the shortbed dodge ram, it was titled as a Ramcharger. It was an automatic and had the large v8 in it.
That's a nice-looking truck with the exception of the Mexican taillights. It's always nice to see one of these old Dodges on the road. These sold poorly in comparison to the GM trucks (that were sold almost as long) and the Ford F-Series. Of note, these trucks were infamous for the ammeter. That's not a voltage gauge in the gauge cluster, that's an old-fashioned ammeter and the alternator's entire output runs through it.
I would love to have this pickup as a 2WD pickup for driving on the street. It would make a great truck to put a Hemi V8 crate motor and aftermarket 8-speed automatic in. I would definitely put air conditioning in this truck.
This model is a continuation of the '61 to '71 D Series. The front frame was modified for IFS and of course totally new sheet metal - but it's a D Series. The '72 to '80 was called "Lifestyle". I think these are equivalent to the '73 to '87 GM "Squarebody". These trucks should be more popular because they are fundamentally a solid design that has nostalgia - can be an affordable "hot rod with a box", or a dependable work truck. Aftermarket parts support from LMC is decent.
They both even had a '81 restyle. They made these for so much longer that by '93 they old sold like 90,000 truck period. My dad had a '93 w150 with the 360 and it was great. They just got drowned out in everyone's memory by the '94s.
In 2008, I purchased a 1991 W150 for just $1500 with only 67k miles. I wish I had it now. After driving it for 5 years and 50k miles it started rusting out really bad.
I was 17 when that Ram was new. Trucks like that Ram and every other truck of that time was a farm vehicle. Utilitarian. It was not comfortable or had ANYTHING extra. The height of fancy was a Chevy Stepside bed.
This is a friggin' TRUCK. It gets you from point a to b with your PAYLOAD. That's all it was for. A large enough, reliable (in theory) tough vehicle that could get the job done.
My grandpa had a 89 D150 with the 318. Live most of its life as a diesel service truck. Was still running great when it was sold with over 400,000 miles. Wish Ram still made a decent reasonably priced 1/2 ton truck with a V8 option but looks like they’re headed for another bankruptcy with Stellantis making terrible decisions.
I used to own a 1985 Dodge D350 with the 360 in it. Nice truck but a base model with no frills or even a radio. Just an automatic transmission with 2WD. BTW, the base engine was a Slant 6, not a straight 6.
I enjoy vid, like this generation RAM, interesting difference with Australian utes as Holden had WB square shape from 81 to 85 there no new ute until 91 with VG Commodore ute which had modern car features but only 2 models. Ford on other hand like F100 the XD from 79 to XH 98 was same bed but face lift front end n interior upgrades. Ford offer few models but it wasn't until XG 93 come with sporty XR6 model, XH had Splash extra features, XR6 n XR8.
The last good Dodge Ram Truck before they ruined everything. Also, it was available with not just an inline 6, but the "Leaning Tower of Power," the 225 ci. Slant 6.
I don't think any truck or car manufacturer can get away with producing the exact same car or truck for that long these days. The second generation ToyotaTundra/Sequioa and the Nissan Frontier came quite close though.
Interesting that it doesn't have a high level centre brake light beside the cargo lamp! Were pick-ups initially exempt from the 1986 US & Canada mandate for vehicles to have a third,high level brake light??
@@Vicky-Hugh-Martini interesting! That's around the time that vehicles were mandated to have them in Europe,although some brands,namely Saab & Volvo,sold here had them in the 80s.
A/c was a VERY expensive option in those days. My dealership wanted $1,200.00 American to install it in my new 1991 Escort Pony. In 1991! That was like 5 car notes ($251.73 @ 7.9%). I was in college. I said No thank you, I'll open the winders & crank up da fan.🥵
The 90s and 80s fords were completely different from the 70s fords. They were only subtly similar in cosmetics and nothing more. You just pulled that straight out of your a$$.
Smog stuff was added and some little features for “luxury”. He’s right, engine blocks, basic underbody parts were the same. I’ve heard guys talk about how you can rip a 302 from a 94 ford and throw it in a 74 ford because they were so similar on the bones.
love these trucks my dad has had one since 1999 360 727 torqueflite. most simplistic and dead reliable truck unfortuntely my dads orange 250 "jack needs a timing chain" that damn second hand engine lasted from 04 idk , . both 318 and 360 LA engines evolved to magnum as well as the new magnum dong 3.9 v6 beautiful truck! don't see any black ones Love zacks walk around feels like im ok playing a fps
This is the kind of reviews that people actually watch and are interested about, So huge thanks my buddy Zack, Really appreciate the efforts ❤.
I had an 83 with the 225 under the hood. It had the lockup torque converter automatic for economy. About the only option was intermittent wipers. Fully loaded pulling a trailer over the pass between California and Oregon, 13.2 miles per gallon, top speed of 45 with that load. Unloaded it routinely got 19 mpg on the highway. Good truck!
I had an 88 short bed ram . Very reliable and durable truck.
That steering wheel design came out in 1989 and was used until 1991. Enjoy some useless Chrysler knowledge.
It seems like they had a different steering wheel on almost every truck
Useless Chrysler fact of the day, lol.
There's no such thing as useless knowledge.
Let's not get into the ram van
A real truck engineered and designed for work! Not an over priced/over rated "toy" like most of today's. 👍👍👍
Or, like he said, freaking wifi in the bed of the truck and all nonsense 😂
My dad had an 85 model. It did have electric locks and ac
@@jeremiahallyn4603which was a weird thing to say since wifi is in the cab
My father had an '88 Dodge Ram Charger for 15 years. Great truck.
The slantsix wasn't available at this time. It was replaced by the 3.9 v6 in 1987.
I like the truck. It was far behind its competition by this point, but still likable. It would go on like this another *five* years. The '94 Ram was in the beginning of the design phase.
The Cummins 5.9 gave this chassis a second wind.
For the love of God, do not drive this truck through Alabama while having “Man love rules OK” painted on it.
Get rid of the ebay taillights
Actually those look pretty close to what the factory lights looked like, or oem. I HATE the ones that don't look ANYTHING like oem!
I’m getting there. It’s stupid hard to find good condition taillights that aren’t 300 bucks for some reason.
@@Astronautdudz You rebuilding a vehicle or what? Junkyard junkyard junkyard. Or FB MarketPlace. You'd be Surprised what peeps are Selling!!
@@Astronautdudz have you tried rockauto? i got some for my 84 on there for about 25 dollars
My older friend has this truck 85 or so with MT. His dad got it for him when he finished HS and he's still driving it today.
He forgot to mention you can get the Cummins diesel also.
yes but in 3/4 ton
@@Dankcatvacs nontheless still forgot lol
My mothers 1989 Dodge Aries LE coupe had the same exact steering wheel LOL!
Classy
Again, one of my favorite reviews. Totally NOT because it’s my truck.
I would love to own a first generation Ram Truck one day. Preferably from 1991-1993. If not, the second generation will be my top choice.
As always Zack youve brought back memories for me! My dad had a 1990 Dodge D350 with the 318! It was his work truck he used for his business. It felt very 70s but not in a bad way! Great trucks! Thanks for todays dose of nostalgia🤙
Love to see a video showing an old Dodge truck some love. I’ve got an ‘89 W250 4WD with a 360. Aside from a broken door lock actuator, broken power window switch, and a slight oil leak, it hasn’t given me any problems. These older trucks may be simple and lack some creature comforts, but they get the job done and look good doing it
I bought one new with the v6 and manual transmission. Drove it for 7 years, never let me down, they are great trucks.
Brother had a ramcharger in the early 90s with the 360. Thing was a beast. Lots of room in it.
It always seemed like Dodge was the last one to make any kind of changes. I always thought it was because they were cheap, and I guess that's somewhat true.
Its also worth noting how small trucks used to be. That "mid size" ranger looks the same size right next to it
Had an 89 Dodge 150 short bed. Great truck. Surprisingly good mpg even with 318 V8. Mine had torqueflite and AC PS PB.
Don't care how basic this truck is, I would be thrilled to own it. We need to get back to building these types of trucks and build them to a lower cost for the everyday person who needs a pick up to do pick up things. Thanks for the review Zack always dip into your channel
The only thing I wish about this review is that you had a longer part where you just drove it down the road and let the engine to the talking. This is my favorite truck. Thanks for the review.
agreed . this truck is aboutly smooth , my dad has one and they were built like tanks.
I like that body style *way* more then the ones that followed.
The OG bringing $$ on the market. Amazing truck. Wow what a Gem
My uncle had an '86 dodge ram that he got a good deal on since it was a demo model used in parades and rodeos. It was a truck but since it was the shortbed dodge ram, it was titled as a Ramcharger. It was an automatic and had the large v8 in it.
That's a nice-looking truck with the exception of the Mexican taillights. It's always nice to see one of these old Dodges on the road. These sold poorly in comparison to the GM trucks (that were sold almost as long) and the Ford F-Series.
Of note, these trucks were infamous for the ammeter. That's not a voltage gauge in the gauge cluster, that's an old-fashioned ammeter and the alternator's entire output runs through it.
I would love to have this pickup as a 2WD pickup for driving on the street. It would make a great truck to put a Hemi V8 crate motor and aftermarket 8-speed automatic in. I would definitely put air conditioning in this truck.
The 5.2L was also a magnum engine starting in 1992 (not just the 5.9L
The Dodge Sportsman van ran even longer than this pickup. It came out in 1971 to continued through 2003! The same basic van was offered for 32 years!!
This model is a continuation of the '61 to '71 D Series. The front frame was modified for IFS and of course totally new sheet metal - but it's a D Series. The '72 to '80 was called "Lifestyle". I think these are equivalent to the '73 to '87 GM "Squarebody". These trucks should be more popular because they are fundamentally a solid design that has nostalgia - can be an affordable "hot rod with a box", or a dependable work truck. Aftermarket parts support from LMC is decent.
They both even had a '81 restyle. They made these for so much longer that by '93 they old sold like 90,000 truck period.
My dad had a '93 w150 with the 360 and it was great. They just got drowned out in everyone's memory by the '94s.
Always liked this body style.
In 2008, I purchased a 1991 W150 for just $1500 with only 67k miles. I wish I had it now. After driving it for 5 years and 50k miles it started rusting out really bad.
I was 17 when that Ram was new. Trucks like that Ram and every other truck of that time was a farm vehicle. Utilitarian. It was not comfortable or had ANYTHING extra. The height of fancy was a Chevy Stepside bed.
I also had a 1988 short bed Dodge D100 dark blue 5.2 V8 auto air
This is a friggin' TRUCK. It gets you from point a to b with your PAYLOAD. That's all it was for. A large enough, reliable (in theory) tough vehicle that could get the job done.
My grandpa had a 89 D150 with the 318. Live most of its life as a diesel service truck. Was still running great when it was sold with over 400,000 miles. Wish Ram still made a decent reasonably priced 1/2 ton truck with a V8 option but looks like they’re headed for another bankruptcy with Stellantis making terrible decisions.
Wow, those are the '90s-est alloy wheels I've seen since the '90s. 😂
Great looking truck.
I used to own a 1985 Dodge D350 with the 360 in it. Nice truck but a base model with no frills or even a radio. Just an automatic transmission with 2WD. BTW, the base engine was a Slant 6, not a straight 6.
Slant 6 is an inline 6 ...only slanted.
Almost bought that truck but went with a chevy clean though.
I enjoy vid, like this generation RAM, interesting difference with Australian utes as Holden had WB square shape from 81 to 85 there no new ute until 91 with VG Commodore ute which had modern car features but only 2 models. Ford on other hand like F100 the XD from 79 to XH 98 was same bed but face lift front end n interior upgrades. Ford offer few models but it wasn't until XG 93 come with sporty XR6 model, XH had Splash extra features, XR6 n XR8.
Single cab/ v8/ 8 foot bed = real truck
I wholeheartedly agree with you.
I just did an '89 S-10 on my channel... older truck rule!
Okay hear me out, that dodge pickup but make it a Kaido build. Drive off into the sunset like the straight gangster you are
The last good Dodge Ram Truck before they ruined everything.
Also, it was available with not just an inline 6, but the "Leaning Tower of Power," the 225 ci. Slant 6.
Was not available with an inline 6. In fact. Chrysler hasn’t had an inline 6 since the 50s
This dude Elijah has some nice cars. I hope he has a 3rd car that gets good gas mileage! :))
Nice, a truck with a decent sized bed. Unlike the glorified family haulers they pass off as trucks today.
Looks more like a well cared for 121437 miles.
Ram van used that same sportsman eggshell design and magnum motor for X years??
I don't think any truck or car manufacturer can get away with producing the exact same car or truck for that long these days. The second generation ToyotaTundra/Sequioa and the Nissan Frontier came quite close though.
Interesting that it doesn't have a high level centre brake light beside the cargo lamp! Were pick-ups initially exempt from the 1986 US & Canada mandate for vehicles to have a third,high level brake light??
Yes! That rule did not apply to light-duty trucks until 1994.
@@Vicky-Hugh-Martini ...or vans. The 1990 Explorer debut year and the redesigned 1992 Econolines had them, though.
@@Vicky-Hugh-Martini interesting! That's around the time that vehicles were mandated to have them in Europe,although some brands,namely Saab & Volvo,sold here had them in the 80s.
It's a shame that someone put euro taillights on that truck.
Horrible horrible taillights. Jeez🤦♂️
Zack, Where can I get a Dodge pickup with an 8 foot bed and 318 V8?
Never. I like it too much, unless you threw 5 numbers at me I won’t consider 😂
Red dash?
Neat
Spit-ometer
No A/C? Yikes.
A/c was a VERY expensive option in those days. My dealership wanted $1,200.00 American to install it in my new 1991 Escort Pony. In 1991! That was like 5 car notes ($251.73 @ 7.9%). I was in college. I said No thank you, I'll open the winders & crank up da fan.🥵
They were so expensive to add. Plus, from the history I know this truck in specific was just a truck. Not anything special.
A/C is nice for sure but it’s expensive not only as an option but there’s many components to break as they age making it $$!
the ram roaster!
We had a baby blue one. My dad had to sell it.
Why??
@@landonbenford8369 for tax reasons I think idk
no ac that's a fail.
Cheapo truck like my 12 valve
Wowww
(1st comment?)
Terrible wheels.
Hey, it’s tryin its hardest to be a sporty truck.
The 90s and 80s fords were completely different from the 70s fords. They were only subtly similar in cosmetics and nothing more. You just pulled that straight out of your a$$.
Smog stuff was added and some little features for “luxury”. He’s right, engine blocks, basic underbody parts were the same. I’ve heard guys talk about how you can rip a 302 from a 94 ford and throw it in a 74 ford because they were so similar on the bones.
love these trucks my dad has had one since 1999 360 727 torqueflite. most simplistic and dead reliable truck
unfortuntely my dads orange 250 "jack needs a timing chain" that damn second hand engine lasted from 04 idk , .
both 318 and 360 LA engines evolved to magnum as well as the new magnum dong 3.9 v6
beautiful truck! don't see any black ones
Love zacks walk around feels like im ok playing a fps
why does the engine sound like its idling at two different rpm speeds ? .... and it sounds like you have a microphone in the tailpipe !!!!