2006 Laramie questions

[PCowan]

Well, I found a dealer with 3 or 4 Megacab Laramie 3500s for sale.

Fullest load possible.

One thing it came with, that I am curious about is the Navigation system.



Is this thing junk or worthwhile.....

The other question is the shortage of Laramie trim level trucks. They all seem to be SLTs. Is this because of a leather shortage? Or poor leather quality? That was what the salesman told me... .



Going to look at it next weekend, and hope to swap the Chrome Clad wheels for the forged ones... .

 

[jelag]

I have a fully loaded Jeep with leather and the nav system... . I like the nav system except it won't tell you your speed or alitude..... The heated seats are great. . MY BIL has the same 3500 as my SLT as a Laramie... . he loves it... I personally don't believe there is either a shortage or quality problem... .



I think your getting salesman hype... . that's it... you don't say where your from... if your close contact either Dave Smith in Kellogg ID or Dishman Dodge in Spokane, (rob crosswhite). . both will give you a quote 1000 back of invoice and all rebates through the fax... . I've done business with both... and would go back no problems... .



Hope this helps. .

 

[mwhals]

I think the SLT outsells the Laramie due to price, so that is why there are less Laramies on the lots. Dealers will mostly stock the trims that sell the most.



Mark H

 

[cbou340]

2006 Dodge Megacab 3500 4x4 Laramie

Hi,

I recently flew up to Spokane and Dave Smith Motors picked me up and took me to the dealership on April 26. My 06 Megacab came with the navigation system,powered sunroof,48RE Auto. . This was my second time in buying a Dodge from this dealership and I'm very happy with they're service. So far the navigation has worked very well and I have purposely tried to confuse it taking wrong turns and it tells me to make a U-turn then re-calculates itself and keeps me going in the right direction, lol My leather interior is the light gray and the quality is nice,heated seats work well. I went with the Mineral gray metallic this time, my 2003 Dodge Quadcab 4x4 was white & silver two-tone. Dave Smith had a few Megacab diesels with the Laramie package but were going fast. Good luck in your search.



Ken

Granite Bay,Calif.

 

[polarbull]

Talked with a friend who manages a dealership for jaguar & volvo, was telling him about my garmin C-330 navigation unit & he was very impressed by the fact that you can update it by the internet. He said most factory installed units are out of date within a year or so because of changes & contruction to the road system.

 

[phloop]

I was told by a guy at the local dealership when I ordered my '06 Laramie the reason that they do not stock the Laramie trim levels is that when some one wants one they will usually order it so they can get the exact options that they want. Not a lot of us out here that get the Laramie as compared to those that are happy with the lower trim levels like the SLT. I believe that is one of the reasons for options like the Big Horn edition, they get the most popular options without the rest of the bells and whistles.

 

[PCowan]

Thanks everyone for the input.

In the lower mainland of BC, there are 3. Up in the interior of BC, there are 20 to choose from, so, I just have to sell my truck, and then take my pick. Going to use the family plan deal. I have had my 96 12 valve since new, and need the extra doors and the extra room. Can't wait!

 

[HOODWINK]

Talked with a friend who manages a dealership for jaguar & volvo, was telling him about my garmin C-330 navigation unit & he was very impressed by the fact that you can update it by the internet. He said most factory installed units are out of date within a year or so because of changes & contruction to the road system.

im sure thats why all DCX vehicles come w/a dvd for the nav system

 

[BClevenger]

I just swapped in a factory NAV unit into my truck(for a less than it would have cost me to get it originally) So far it's awesome, being able to type in a telephone number and boom... . mapped!

I put in the laramie grill inserts, and the bezel for the nav, but I just didn't want some of the other stuff that came with it. I definitely did not want leather(cause I was going to cover any seat with neoprene covers... the truck works hard daily)

The NAV has a cd/dvd disc, that can be upgraded yearly for $145 factory or $65 e-bay/black market... ... but frankly, I'm still using a 2002 Rand Atlas, and seem to get where I'm going up til now, so mabe you only have to upgrade every 3-4 years. They are building new roads here in the east... . but not that fast!



Good luck..... Brian

 

[TowPro]

Going to look at it next weekend, and hope to swap the Chrome Clad wheels for the forged ones... .

On my truck, the Chrome Clad is still a forged wheel with a chrome covering on it.



I thought about switching the Chrome Clad wheels for the polished ones also but kept the clad ones.



Now that I have them I like them. No Maintaince! Just wash the truck and it shines. No trying to remove brake dust from the Polished Alunimim (but my Centramatics do act like brake dust shields pretty well).



Still not sure why they only put them on the most expensive trim level, maybe it takes more money to make them? or maybe they figure the guys who buy the most expensive trucks hate to wash them?

 

[rjohnson916]

I am a fleet manager for a Dodge dealer, and I can personally tell you guys that it's not a leather shortage or quality problem. To my awareness it is perceived that 75% of Laramie trim Rams were produced for the initial allocation of 2006 model year Ram 1500, 2500 & 3500 trucks. Most dealers have about 2-3 Laramie trucks, which believe it or not makes it still fairly easy to get you what you want, you just have to stick to one dealer to allow them to go out and get it for you. Not to sell you guys a bunch of dealer talk, but imagine how important it is working with one realtor, thus helping you select the right house for your budget and needs. Just for the record, I sold three Laramie trucks last month buy doing a simple dealer trade, and all three of those customers could not be happier. Also I really like the new Nav system a lot, the size of the screen is a huge improvement over the RB1 it replaced in 2005.



-Ryan

 

[JThiessen]

So I have to ask - what would an equivelent handheld GPS system run (aftermarket)? And at 145 per upgrade, what does the aftermarket world charge? I gotta think it would be a ton cheaper than the 1000 buck upgrade.

 

[Heavyweight]

Ryan, I am looking at trading in my 2005 Reg Cab for a quad cab (can be used)... . Any info or recommendations??? Fellow El Dorado er...

 

[rjohnson916]

Ryan, I am looking at trading in my 2005 Reg Cab for a quad cab (can be used)... . Any info or recommendations??? Fellow El Dorado er...

Heavyweight would love to keep business in El Dorado county, and work with a fellow TDR. Surprisingly I get quite a few TDR members in Shingle Springs, but then again there are more CTD's in El Dorado county than nearly any other county in Northern California. I've got a few questions for you, feel free to PM me if you'd like. What kind of milage is on your '05 2500, just curious it doesn't really matter, CTD's hold their value well regardless. I currently have an '04 3500 4x4 Q/C with 315/70/17 tires and custom wheels, 2" level kit, spray liner, it's a 325hp H. O. motor with 48RE,Tow Mirrors also the truck is white looks pretty nice. Let me know if it sounds interesting. Also I've got a lot of great '06 trucks also and Chrysler has given us some rebate money to play with or O% for 36 months if that's an option for you. Oo.



-Ryan

 

[polarbull]

I ordered my Garmin C-330 at www.gpsnow.com They have a good site with details on all their units. Best price I could find when I got mine

 

[Heavyweight]

My truck has 10,200 miles on it... . Perfect condition...

 

[ilovetrains]

my wife has the NAV in her 06 Commander. It is great. Especially with the uConnect. I am thinking of trading my 05 for an 06 to get this.



I currently use a Magellan Roadmate 700. It was 1200 new a few years back, but I think they under a grand now. It works very well, but the larger screen and seemless UConnect make the factory system much nicer. The biggest problem with any aftermarket GPS is the mount, the windshield mount will not stick in cold weather and the dash mounts tend to put it where you do not want it.

 

[cbou340]

I forgot to mention I ordered the U-Connect in my truck and it works very well. When you add names and phone numbers all you do is talk into the system, but will only work when your stopped. When I recieve calls the navigation display changes to the U-connect screen and shows the number calling or who you have stored. Today I recieved my PowerMaxCR back from TST and anxious to hook it up.

 

[abdiver]

Anyone know what options come with the big horn pkg?