Nevada

Here is the difference.

There is an option called "Leather-Trimmed Bucket Seats" and it is this option that includes ventilation on the front seats AND heaters in the back seats.

This option is NOT available with a manual transmission because it also includes a sizeable console that goes right where the manual-gearshift would be located.

With a manual tranny your only choice is a bench seat.

edc

thks Nevada, kind of obvious once you explained it. I am trying to decide some details prior to placing an order and seats are on the list. From looking at a limited number of trucks so far, haven't seen a Laramie yet, it seems to me that the actual bucket seats for the driver and passenger are the same whether you get the bucket or bench seat option (option price on a STL model is similar also $900 or $925 I think). The only difference is one has the huge console in the middle and the other has the seating surface with the fold down console/storage thing in the middle --- seats and comfort for driver and pass. are the same and they both adjust independently. Do you agree? I am also going to reconsider the Laramie path regardless of the leather issue as it seems that is the only way to get pass. power seats and heated seats. thks, Ed

tombogue99

Thats not how it works...on the 1500's anyway.

You can get bench ventilated leather seats without the center console on a laramie. I almost got a truck with that config. You obviously can't get the center console with a stick shift but it still doesn't explain why you can't have ventilated seats with a stick shift.

tombogue99

Here's something else I don't understand... The HD trucks with center consoles have the shifter on the collar. The only reason I have that thing is to have the shifter more conveniently placed. If I was getting a HD I would not get the center console, it just takes up space and doesn't change the shifter.

tombogue99

Scratch all that stuff I just said about ventilated seats and consoles, Nevada is right. Apparently I wasn't looking too close at the truck.


Anyway Ed.... I got the perfect solution to your seat dilemma. Get a laramie WITHOUT the center console. That way you get a laramie, you don't have that **** console in the way, and you don't get ventilated leather seats but you do get leather.

edc

Sounds like a potential solution, do I lose the pass. seat having power controls and seat heaters? What you suggest is the std Laramie seats without the $500 bucket seat option correct? I am not hung up on cloth vs leather but would like the pass. seat to be as comfortable as possible and would prefer seat heating esp on the pass side -- don't care about seat cooling. If I find a stocked truck that has the critical things I need I can live with any of these seat options -- but if I am going to order the truck and wait 8 wks the details take on new meaning. thks, Ed

Nevada

You do get heated driver and passenger seats no matter what option combination you order. It is standard on a Laramie.

I assume you are correct that even with the "bench" seat you have the fixed center section. I haven't seen it with my own eyes but that is what I am expecting.

The manual transmission is a big deal to me. That is why this dyed in the wool Ford guy drives a Dodge. You can get a stick in a diesel Ford or Chevy if you want a rubber floor mat, vinyl seats and an AM radio. Dodge it the only manufacturer left that will let you get thier top trim-line and most of the "good" options with a stick. God bless 'em.

roger.t

Something else to think about. I recently totaled out my 06 fx4 which had really nice heated leather seats. so in looking for a new truck i wanted heated leather again till i heard the horror stories about the dodge seats. so at the advice of a friend i bought a 2010 loaded slt with the cloth seats which are really comfortable i might add and I am having them covered with real leather for about a grand. as for as the heated part I had remote start put into my truck so i will just heat the whole thing up rather then just the seats before i get into it. just a thought.

tcr

We've had the vented leather seats in our 09 Laramie for well over a year now and no issues at all, I'm 6'5" 275lbs and if I can't tear up the leather than they should be ok. I wonder if the 2010 seats are the exact same material.

Big Ed

I ordered a new 2500 Laramie the other day. I stuck with the standard bench seat which is still leather and has heated front seats but no ventilation.

The perforated seats come when you order the bucket seat option. The bucket option adds heated/ventilated (perforated leather) seats and the rear seats are heated as well (the switches for the rear seat heat is on back of the center console).

Just order your Laramie with the normal bench and you will still have leather, heated front seats, and power adjustable driver and passenger seat.

edc

thks, I agree, for me the Laramie "bench" is the way to go. I have finally concluded that the "bench" is really bucket seats with a seating surface between the two buckets as opposed to the large console thing -- I actually like the "bench" arrangement with the folding console/armrest better than the $500. bucket option. Ed

capt.Ron

I thought the ventilated seat option was available on the bench seat as well as long as you got the Laramie package.
Is this not true?

truckin-on

Nope. buckets+ventilated+rear seat heaters all one option for $500 and only available with the automatic on the Laramie. Strange but true.

I have not done a side-by-side comparison, but from what I can tell, and from what two dealers have told me, the driver and passenger seats are identical in either configuration (with the exception of the ventilated seats). The only change is the center seat vs the console. Can anyone actually confirm this?

-truckin-on

Big Ed

I won't bet you a weeks paycheck but I'm pretty sure that is true. It makes sense for Dodge to do it that way from a money standpoint.

tombogue99

Thats correct. I highly favor the bench set....more space and seats aren't perferated. The only reason I have the console is the floor shifter and that's not available on the HD's

Ed, I agree...... If I found a laramie that I liked with a console then I'd get it but don't burn 500 bucks if your ordering.