Finally,
the production design was determined. "We went with the
one we felt was the most provocative, sporty, and luxurious," says
Mr. Gilles.
But
the design process didn't stop there. Style and aesthetics
started to give way to practical considerations, like aerodynamics. "We
don’t concern ourselves with aero too much when we’re doing
theme searching. The thing that concerned senior management most was
the grille. I wanted the cant-forward grille but management looked at
it and thought it wouldn't work. So we went and built a second
version with the grille leaning back but it didn't make a difference
(in aerodynamics). By the time we were done we beat the aerodynamic stretch
goal for (the new Ram)," recounts Mr. Gilles. Even though it’s
prominent, the new Ram actually has less frontal grille area exposed
to the wind than the exiting truck.
In contrast
to the exterior design, the interior design was limited to only two
themes and was locked down very early in the 2009 Ram’s
design process, according to Mr. Gilles. "We did that to allow
ourselves a lot of time to execute on the interior. We found in the past
this had been our downfall because we didn't give ourselves enough
time to understand all of the interior joins and how to have materials
coexist," he says. A great deal of attention was also paid to ergonomics,
like button sizes and controls placement moved closer to the driver.
The selected
interior theme is truck-like while the other theme that was considered
was more car-like, with softer organic shapes. "We
wanted an interior that told the story of power and substance," says
Mr. Gilles.
After three
years of work and many tough choices, the end result is the next-generation
2009 Dodge Ram that carries forward the truck’s big rig looks
but with a design that’s
the most subtle and refined since its iconic shaped first appeared almost
fifteen years ago.
