Hooniverse Truck Thursday – 1989 Dodge Ram Van B250
Ram rammeth on a Ram.
I first ran into this spectacularly brown box of a Dodge two months ago, and that’s where these detail shots come from. Yesterday, I chanced upon it again and managed to snap more photos of it. According to what info I could sherlock from the plate, it’s a 1989 model with the 3.9-litre/239cid V6 engine. I’m thinking it’s been in the country since new, and for that it looks good – not rusty at all and the paint is fine.
This shot, too, is a December photo as we didn’t have any snow at all then. It took a month until the snow arrived to stay, and two months later we’re experiencing continuous bitter cold.
Even the chrome looks good on this Dodge. I like the big, blocky grille too: it means business but isn’t too busy. Interior is a matching sand brown.
The LA V6 here produced 125hp and 264Nm. I remember somebody having the same engine in his Dodge Dakota and hating its guts as a result, but I’m not knowledgeable enough to start pinpointing any blame around here. Feel free to set me straight on that account.
I’m thinking the side window is exactly the same as can be found on a Starcraft or so.
Looks like there’s a divider in there somewhere, as the rear section of the van is frozen but otherwise it’s warmed up. Or then there’s a garage that’s just too short.
If you’re doing over eighty, the cops’ll come a-hatin’. Note the extra reflector, but the side marker’s painted over. Sense: this legislation makes none.
So, is this copper Ram a wham-bam-thank you ma’am van, or a sheep dressed as a lamb?
Related posts:
- Hooniverse Truck Thursday – Two Dodge Sweptside Pickups
- Hooniverse Truck Thursday – A ’54 Dodge Power Wagon that’ll serve as your support vehicle
- Hooniverse Truck Thursday: The Farm Truck: Dodge Sweptside Edition
- Hooniverse Truck Thursday – A 1966 Dodge D-300 Dually Pickup with only 15,000 Miles!
- Hooniverse Truck Thursday – A Minty Green Dodge D200
It has the ladder, but it's missing the external spare with a big airbrushed photo of a lake on it.
How deep is my shag?
Woah-oh Brown Betty, Ram-a-Van
Interesting that there is no roof rack to go with that ladder. Maybe the owner puts their lawn chairs up there for spectator events.
The shot through the windshield doesn't indicate any sort of partition for the rear section. I think the back is still frozen because the heater output didn't have enough time to fill the whole volume of the van.
What are the black things straddling the border between the grille and headlights?
Headlight washer jets.
Oh that's right, this one is old enough that they used to give you a small tax credit for items like that, but then you were stuck with making sure that the $#!@%$! things work when it was time to inspect the vehicle.
I note with some irony that, after having sucked down so many of them, vans like this are going the way of the dinosaur.
That guy must love going to the beach with his fine lady friends.
Relevant:
<img src="http://hooniverse.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/High-Speed-Molester-Van-2.jpg">
Dajiban!
Like the NSX, the Dajiban is always relevant.
the 3.9 is a pig in the Dakota, just because it doesnt get the MPG to make it useful compared to the 5.2, and they were/are kinda slow. Even worse, they offered a 2.5 4 cyl in the Dakota aswell.
After the Magnum upgrades of 1992 boosted the HP and torque to more respectable levels, the 3.9 became a passable engine. But yes, the fuel economy gains didn't much justify it over the much more capable V8. A pre-magnum 3.9 would be a real dog in a vehicle as heavy as this van. Too bad cheap mopar swaps are hard to do in Finland, as it seems like a prime candidate.