Wait, that's not a Jeep! We're mixing it up a bit, but still sticking with the Chrysler brand.
The 2ifbyOverland Team is upsizing! We recently placed a deposit on a 2022 Ram 1500 Rebel Quad Cab to serve as our home on wheels once we hit the road for our long-term adventures. Much thought was put into this decision and the factors that pushed us to this direction are as follows:
Payload, payload, payload! The increased load capacity afforded by the Ram 1500 meant that we could option for a larger habitat for our life on the road. The extra square footage will be clutch for living daily out of the truck.
Higher tow capacity. The Ram 1500 can serve double duty as a tow rig when needed to haul our other four legged equine critter, Donner.
Offroad capability. The Rebel trim line is the offroad package of the Ram line-up. From the factory, it comes standard with a rear axle locker with 3.92 ratio, increased suspension height, underbody skid plates/protection, a front skid plate, Goodyear Duratrec Tires, and front recovery points. This makes it the ideal vehicle to explore and adventure further out in the wild.
Did I mention payload? In addition to affording a larger living area, the increase payload will allow us to carry extra water, fuel, and food to stay in the wild for longer periods of time.
Interior comfort. We are going to be putting in some serious seat time, and the Ram 1500 is a comfortable place to log all of those miles. When Jeepy was in the shop, the dealership gave us a Ram 1500 Quad Cab as a loaner and we had a chance to experience this first hand. The interior of the Ram 1500 competes with the luxury car makers in our opinion and will make slogging through DC traffic bearable until retire in a few years.
In addition to the standard features, we optioned our 2022 Ram 1500 Rebel with 5.7L Hemi V8 with eTorque, the larger 33 gallon fuel tank, the advanced safety group, blind spot monitoring/cross path detection. For comfort and Josh's entertainment, we also added the ginormous 12" Uconnect audio/navigation system, the comfort and convenience group (this includes the goodness of heated seats and steering wheel), and a power sunroof (bummer there's no panoramic sunroof on the Quad Cab!).
Why the Quad Cab?! This was the question the salesman at the dealer immediately asked us. In fact, he automatically selected the Crew Cab on the order sheet.....he was surprised when we had him change it to the Quad Cab. The majority of customers opt for the larger interior....however, we are not your typical customer! We tend to select options most people scoff at.....like manual transmissions. Unfortunately, a manual transmission is not an option on the Ram 1500.....bummer! The reason we went with the Quad Cab, vice the Crew Cab, was that it allowed us to have the full size 6.5 foot truck bed. This platform suits our future plans, of eventually swapping to a utility tray to fit something along the lines of a Hawk Flatbed Four Wheel Pop Up Camper. For us, it is all about that extra living space! Additionally, the Quad Cab has a 4 inch shorter wheel base (140.5" vs 144.5") then the Crew Cab which will make it slightly more maneuverable off road.
Other things that baffled the salesman....our decision to forgo the side steps and opt for the larger fuel tank. The side steps get in the way of our offroad plans for this vehicle and the larger fuel tank will allow us to go further into the wilderness between fuel ups.
Future plans for the truck...nothing major as the truck is well equipped from the factory. Priority is definitely going to be rock sliders, as there is a lot of unprotected real estate along the lower body of the truck. Second is a winch mount from Vice Designs to mount a Warn Zeon 12-S Platinum winch for recovery duties. Later on down the road, once we get closer to moving to full-time travel around 2025, we'll see what is available for a flatbed tray and pop up campers! Many great things to come for this truck and our plans for living on the road!
Now if only someone could send some microchips to Chrysler so they could build out this vehicle, we'd appreciate it :-)
