2025 Ram 1500 Big Horn/lone Star on 2040-cars

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2021 Ram 1500 TRX First Drive | King of the Jurassic parking lot

Looking over the spec sheet of the 2021 Ram 1500 TRX, it’s hard not to think America has hit peak pickup truck. Everything about the TRX is bigger, better and badder than any truck thatÂ’s come before, including its one obvious bogey, the Ford F-150 Raptor. For starters, the Ram has a 252-horsepower and 140-pound-foot advantage on the Ford. That means the TRX is quicker and faster, and it can haul and tow marginally more. The TRX has a nicer interior and its supercharged V8 engine sounds a heck of a lot better than the RaptorÂ’s turbocharged V6. Altogether, that ought to equal a truck thatÂ’s more fun to drive. The TRX certainly doesnÂ’t hide its off-road-performance intentions under subtle bodywork. Big, burly fenders with thick black flares cover massive 35-inch Goodyear Wrangler All Territory tires. Those body sides blend in nicely with an equally swollen hood that features a huge blacked-out air intake nostril at its leading edge and matte black gills on either side. A trio of government-mandated running lights sit inside the scoop, echoing the marker lights attached to ultra-wide dually pickups. Naturally, huge RAM scripting features front and rear, and thereÂ’s plenty more badging to make sure everyone knows this T-Rex sits at the top of the dino food chain. More important than the muscular styling is what that bodywork encases, starting with a frame that Ram says shares just 25% with lesser 1500s. ItÂ’s designed to be stiff and durable enough to withstand off-road terrain at speeds of 100 mph. The TRX boasts 11.8 inches of ground clearance, and can ford water up to 32 inches deep. Bilstein Black Hawk e2 adaptive shocks with nitrogen-charged remote reservoirs continuously adjust to handle current demands, whether that means taking the edge off a bumpy road or absorbing much larger impacts, like when landing a jump. There's 13 inches of wheel travel up front and 14 inches out back, allowing for a huge amount of articulation.  All that heavy-duty equipment adds weight. Ram says the TRX gains about 600 pounds of burly mass in the transition from regular Hemi-powered 1500 to Beast Mode off-roader, leading to a truck that tips the scales at over 6,350 pounds. For perspective, a Ram Rebel 4x4 weighs a little less than 5,400 pounds and the Ford Raptor SuperCrew weighs less than 5,700. 2021 Ram TRX View 61 Photos Good thing about that massively powerful engine, then.

2017 Ram Model Year Preview and Updates

Launched as its own division in 2009, FCA's Ram Truck line has ridden the wave of post-recession growth with significant sales upticks throughout its brief, independent history (it was spun off from Dodge) within the Fiat Chrysler ranks. Although the 'new' news for 2017 is limited, Ram continues to focus on efficiency, with the Ram 1500 offering both a 3.0-liter EcoDiesel V6 and 3.6-liter Pentastar V6, achieving an estimated 29 and 25 miles per gallon highway, respectively. RAM 1500: All 1500s receive a list of revisions laden with value-added standard features. The most visible example is the recently launched Rebel, which receives more than its share of standard updates, including Uconnect 8.4 and media hub; automatic dual-zone temperature control; security alarm; remote start; rear backup camera and rear park assist. Newly announced at the Chicago Auto Show in February was the Copper Sport edition, built in limited volume and offering a host of 'custom' upgrades. The 1500 is sold in eleven different models. 2500/3500: Ram's Heavy Duty offerings include a new-for-2017 Power Wagon and an also-new 4X4 Off-road package, with the Power Wagon taking its design cues from the '79-'80 Macho Power Wagon. Announced at the Chicago Auto Show is a new Night package for the heavy duty lineup. Also for 2017, product planners have made the 6.4-liter HEMI standard on Laramie, Laramie Longhorn and Limited trims. PROMASTER CITY: Essentially unchanged, the compact commercial and passenger van has been updated for 2017 with brighter shifter illumination, rear door reflectors for better visibility when opened, and what is now best-in-class fuel economy.

There's an impending shortage of new trucks in America's heartland

URBANDALE, Iowa — Jerry Bill is worried the novel coronavirus could hurt business at the Des Moines auto dealership he runs, but not because of a shortage of buyers for the big Ram pickups on his lot. "Our biggest issue will be if we don't get more inventory," said Bill, general sales manager of Stew Hansen Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, which sells around 2,700 new vehicles a year in Urbandale, a suburb of Iowa's capital Des Moines. After a drop in sales in April when consumers stayed home, Bill expects pickup truck sales to end May similar to where they were a year earlier. And if demand remains strong, Bill said he will run out of popular models in June. Fiat Chrysler began slowly restarting Ram truck assembly lines on Monday after a two-month shutdown. The U.S. economy contracted in the first quarter at its sharpest pace since the Great Recession of 2007-2009 because of lockdown measures aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus. Economists warn the second quarter will be much worse. Still, far from the lockdowns of states like New York, Michigan or Ohio, dealerships like Stew Hansen have provided FCA and Detroit rivals General Motors and Ford a rare bright spot: strong sales of pickup trucks in America's heartland. Overall U.S. sales of cars and light trucks crashed to the weakest pace in 50 years last month. But sales of big Detroit brand pickups, particularly in southern and western states less affected by the outbreak, significantly outperformed the market, industry executives and analysts said. Pickup trucks are one of the most profitable automotive segments in the world. They account for a huge portion of the Detroit automakers' profits and formed a huge lure for Peugeot, which expects to merge with FCA by early 2021. The pressure is now on to boost pickup truck production and send vehicles to dealers in parts of the country with dwindling supplies. That is particularly true for GM, which is running short of certain truck models after losing 40 days of production to a strike last fall. "If you don't have what someone wants, they can choose to go to another brand," said Cox Automotive analyst Michelle Krebs. 'Easiest swap ever' Detroit automakers in March rolled out large discounts — such as interest-free loans for seven years — to keep vehicles rolling off dealer lots.