A lower base price and a smoother ride are a couple of the attractive benefits that the new breed of 1/2-ton pickup trucks have over their 3/4- and 1-ton cousins. Unfortunately, these lighter-duty trucks often sport less four-wheel-friendly stats. For instance, the '05 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab shortbox 4x4 has 5.4 degrees less approach angle, 2.2 degrees less departure angle, and 6.1 degrees less ramp breakover angle than the same-model Ram 2500. Further, the Ram 1500 is equipped with IFS and the Ram 2500 has a solid front axle, so this is one of the reasons why the Ram 1500 has 3.3 inches less front ground clearance.
This is where a good aftermarket suspension kit comes in. It allows you to improve your 1/2-ton's vital four-wheeling specs, while still retaining the smooth ride of your IFS rig. To illustrate this, we trucked on over to Attitude Performance in Arlington Heights, Illinois, and installed Fabtech Motorsports' new 6-inch performance suspension system under an '05 Ram 1500. The result of our seven hours of labor is a Ram that's ready for the trail with better approach, departure, and breakover angles than a comparable stock Ram 2500.