weight Ram 1500 2009 Owner's Guide

•The weight of any other type of cargo or equipment
put in or on your vehicle
•The weight of the driver and all passengers.
NOTE: Remember that everything put into or on the
trailer adds to the load on your vehicle. Also, additional
factory-installed options or dealer-installed options must
be considered as part of the total load on your vehicle.
Refer to the Tire and Loading Information Placard under
“Tire Safety Information” in this section.
Towing Requirements
To promote proper break-in of your new vehicle drive-
train components the following guidelines are recom-
mended:
CAUTION!
•Avoid towing a trailer for the first 500 miles
(805 km) of vehicle operation. Doing so may dam-
age your vehicle.
•During the first 500 miles (805 km) of trailer
towing, limit your speed to 50 mph (80 km/h).
WARNING!
•Improper towing can lead to an injury accident.
Follow these guidelines to make your trailer tow-
ing as safe as possible:
(Continued)
5
STARTING AND OPERATING 405

WARNING! (Continued)
•Make certain that the load is secured in the trailer
and will not shift during travel. When trailering
cargo that is not fully secured, dynamic load shifts
can occur that may be difficult for the driver to
control. You could lose control of your vehicle and
have an accident.
When hauling cargo or towing a trailer, do not overload
your vehicle or trailer. Overloading can cause a loss of
control, poor performance or damage to brakes, axle,
engine, transmission, steering, suspension, chassis struc-
ture or tires.
Safety chains must always be used between your vehicle
and trailer. Always connect the chains to the frame or
hook retainers of the vehicle hitch. Cross the chains
under the trailer tongue and allow enough slack for
turning corners.
Vehicles with trailers should not be parked on a grade.
When parking, apply the parking brake on the tow vehicle.
Put the tow vehicle transmission in PARK. With four-
wheel-drive vehicles, make sure the transfer case is not in
NEUTRAL. Always, block or chockthe trailer wheels.
GCWR must not be exceeded.
Total weight must be distributed between the tow
vehicle and the trailer so that the following four ratings
are not exceeded:
1. GVWR
2. GTW
3. GAWR
4. Tongue weight rating for the trailer hitch utilized (This
requirement may limit the ability to always achieve the
10% to 15% range of tongue weight as a percentage of
total trailer weight).
406 STARTING AND OPERATING

Fuel Saver............................. 251
Fuses ................................ 475
Garage Door Opener (HomeLink) ........... 174
Gas Cap (Fuel Filler Cap) ...............396,444
Gasoline (Fuel) ......................... 386
Conserving ........................ 251,252
Gasoline, Reformulated ................... 387
Gauges ............................... 243
Coolant Temperature ................... 227
Fuel ............................... 227
Oil Pressure .......................... 230
Speedometer ......................... 228
Tachometer .......................... 227
Voltmeter ............................ 235
Gear Ranges ........................ 315,322
General Information ...............17,25,127,385
Glass Cleaning .......................... 473
Grocery Bag Retainer ..................... 198 Gross Axle Weight Rating
.................. 399
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating ................ 399
Guide, Body Builders ...................... 6
GVWR ............................... 397
Hands-Free Phone (uconnect) ............... 99
Hazard Driving Through Flowing, Rising, or
Shallow Standing Water ................. 341
Hazard Warning Flasher ................... 420
Head Restraints ......................... 136
Headlights ............................ 481
Automatic ........................... 147
Cleaning ............................ 473
High Beam .......................... 153
High Beam/Low Beam Select Switch ........ 153
Lights On Reminder .................... 151
Passing ............................. 153
Switch .............................. 147
528 INDEX

Tires ............................84,371,519
Aging (Life of Tires) .................... 376
Air Pressure .......................... 371
Chains .............................. 378
General Information .................... 371
High Speed .......................... 374
Inflation Pressures ..................... 372
Life of Tires .......................... 376
Load Capacity ........................ 367
Pressure Monitor System (TPMS) ........... 381
Pressure Warning Light .................. 237
Quality Grading ....................... 519
Radial .............................. 374
Replacement ......................... 376
Rotation ............................ 379
Safety ........................... 362,371
Sizes ............................... 364
Snow Tires ........................... 379
Spinning ............................ 374 Tread Wear Indicators
................... 375
Wheel Nut Torque ..................... 431
Tongue Weight/Trailer Weight .............. 404
Torque Converter Clutch ................319,325
Tow Hooks, Emergency ................... 437
Towing ............................... 399
24-Hour Towing Assistance ............... 114
Disabled Vehicle ....................... 437
Guide .............................. 404
Recreational .......................... 412
Weight .............................. 404
Towing Assistance ....................... 114
Traction .............................. 340
Traction Control ...................... 230,351
Trailer Sway Control (TSC) ................. 361
Trailer Towing .......................... 399
Cooling System Tips .................... 411
Hitches ............................. 403
Minimum Requirements ................. 405
10
INDEX 537

Trailer and Tongue Weight............... 404
Wiring .............................. 408
Trailer Towing Guide ..................... 404
Trailer Weight .......................... 404
Transfer Case ........................... 466
Electronically Shifted ................. 327,333
Fluid ............................... 490
Transmission ........................... 315
Automatic ...................... 315,320,466
Fluid ............................... 490
Maintenance ......................... 466
Shifting ............................. 312
Transmitter Battery Service
(Remote Keyless Entry) .................... 24
Transmitter, Garage Door Opener
(HomeLink) ........................... 174
Transmitter Programming
(Remote Keyless Entry) .................... 20
Transmitter, Remote Keyless Entry (RKE) ........ 20Tread Wear Indicators
.................... 375
Trip Odometer .......................... 231
Turn Signals ................... 152,227,481,484
uconnect (Hands-Free Phone) ............... 99
Uniform Tire Quality Grades ................ 519
Universal Transmitter ..................... 174
Utility Rails, Rear Cargo Area ............... 214
Variance, Compass ....................... 254
Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) ............ 7
Vehicle Loading ...................... 367,396
Vehicle Modifications/Alterations .............. 7
Vehicle Storage ....................... 303,480
Video Entertainment System™
(Rear Seat Video System) .................. 290
Voice Recognition System (VR) .............. 127
Voltmeter ............................. 235
538 INDEX