In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Silverado Limited are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Ram 1500 Classic doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.
The Silverado Limited WT/Custom/LTZ/High Country offers optional Automatic Emergency Braking, which use forward mounted sensors to warn the driver of a possible collision ahead. If the driver doesn’t react and the system determines a collision is imminent, it automatically applies the brakes at full-force in order to reduce the force of the crash or avoid it altogether. The Ram 1500 Classic doesn't offer collision warning or crash mitigation brakes.
When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Silverado Limited’s optional Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Ram 1500 Classic doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.
The Chevrolet Silverado Limited has Daytime Running Lights to help keep it more visible under all conditions. Canadian government studies show that driving with lights during the day reduces accidents by 11% by making vehicles more conspicuous. The Ram 1500 Classic doesn’t offer Daytime Running Lights.
The Silverado Limited LTZ/High Country’s optional lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. The Ram 1500 Classic doesn’t offer a lane departure warning system.
The Silverado Limited LTZ/High Country offers an optional Surround Vision to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Ram 1500 Classic only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Silverado Limited (except Custom)’s optional rear cross-path warning system uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. The Ram 1500 Classic doesn’t offer a cross-path warning system.
Both the Silverado Limited and the Ram 1500 Classic have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, rearview cameras and available blind spot warning systems.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Chevrolet Silverado Limited is safer than the Ram 1500 Classic:
|
Silverado Limited |
Ram 1500 Classic |
|
Driver |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
4 Stars |
HIC |
116 |
254 |
Neck Injury Risk |
27% |
27% |
Neck Stress |
275 lbs. |
353 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
13 lbs. |
33 lbs. |
Leg Forces (l/r) |
301/359 lbs. |
751/404 lbs. |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
4 Stars |
4 Stars |
HIC |
219 |
306 |
Neck Stress |
204 lbs. |
224 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
36 lbs. |
93 lbs. |
Leg Forces (l/r) |
321/499 lbs. |
597/346 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
A significantly tougher test than their original offset frontal crash test, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH small overlap frontal offset crash tests. In this test, where only 25% of the total width of the vehicle is struck, results indicate that the Chevrolet Silverado Limited Crew Cab is safer than the Ram 1500 Classic Crew Cab:
|
Silverado Limited |
1500 Classic |
Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
Restraints |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Head Neck Evaluation |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Head injury index |
95 |
139 |
Peak Head Forces |
0 G’s |
0 G’s |
Steering Column Movement Rearward |
2 cm |
27 cm |
Chest Evaluation |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Max Chest Compression |
20 cm |
26 cm |
Hip & Thigh Evaluation |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Femur Force R/L |
2.1/1 kN |
4.6/1.8 kN |
Hip & Thigh Injury Risk R/L |
0%/0% |
2%/0% |
Lower Leg Evaluation |
ACCEPTABLE |
POOR |
Tibia index R/L |
1.14/.48 |
1.33/.59 |
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Chevrolet Silverado Limited is safer than the Ram 1500 Classic:
|
Silverado Limited |
Ram 1500 Classic |
|
Front Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Chest Movement |
.7 inches |
1 inches |
Abdominal Force |
110 lbs. |
147 lbs. |
|
Into Pole |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Max Damage Depth |
15 inches |
24 inches |
HIC |
255 |
483 |
Spine Acceleration |
47 G’s |
48 G’s |
Hip Force |
473 lbs. |
681 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) performs roof strength tests. In that test the Silverado Limited earned the top rating of “Good” because its roof supported over four times the Silverado Limited’s weight before being crushed five inches. The Ram 1500 Classic was rated two rankings lower at “Marginal.”
For its top level performance in all IIHS frontal, side, rear impact and roof-crush tests, and with its optional front crash prevention system, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Silverado Limited the rating of “Top Pick” for 2016, a rating granted to only 219 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Ram 1500 Classic is not a “Top Pick” for 2016.