SHOT FROM A CANNON
A Hellcat engine stuffed into a Ram 1500 pickup — it's a hellish match made in heaven
So far, aside from the guttural exhaust note filtering into the luxuriously appointed cabin and a few visual cues, such as the bright red accents stitched into the upholstery, it would be easy to think I was driving a Ram 1500 Limited. The ride is plush and mostly quiet, and all of the Limited's creature comforts are available.
However, as I roll into the entrance of the Free Flow Motocross Park, I'm prompted by support staff to engage Launch mode. I'm then told to push hard on the brake pedal, floor the gas pedal, and then immediately release the brake. Well, holy place-your-favourite-expletive-here, this ain't no Limited — this is the 2021 Ram 1500 TRX, and by engaging Launch mode I've just unleashed all of its 702 horsepower and 650 pound-feet of torque through its 35-inch Goodyear Wrangler Territory tires.
I now have a new-found respect for those brave souls being shot out of cannons at the circus. Unprepared for the violence of the forward blast, I almost got whiplash, and I got light-headed — not only
because my brain flattened against the backside of my skull, but also because the 6.2-litre supercharged Hemi V8 probably gulped down most of the surrounding air.
In case you haven't already guessed, those crazy folks at FCA pulled a Hellcat engine from the shelf and stuffed it into a Ram 1500 pickup. And it's a hellish match made in heaven.
Aside from its rated top speed of 190 km/h, which is still outrageously high for a full-size pickup, performance numbers are better suited to a full-blown muscle car:
zero to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds, and a quarter-mile time of 12.9 seconds with a terminal speed of 174 km/h.
The TRX sits 11.7 centimetres taller and is 20.5 cm wider than the Ram Rebel. And there are styling cues that are more than just cosmetic; bulging fenders make room for big off-road tires, and the bigger grille splits air-sucking duties with the functioning hood scoop and houses marker lights, mandated because the TRX is that wide. Small slats by the headlights direct airflow through the composite fenders and out vents just ahead of the doors to improve aerodynamics. The louvres in the aluminum hood draw heat out of the engine compartment. Combine these styling cues with blackout trim, and the TRX looks evil just sitting still.
The engine mates to an eightspeed automatic; you can only get the TRX in a crew cab with a fivefoot-seven bed, and four-wheeldrive is standard. But the TRX isn't only about speed. It's also remarkably comfortable on the road.
Underneath the body you'll find a reworked chassis, which includes a stronger frame that has thicker gauge frame rails. In fact, almost 75 per cent of the frame is new, with only a few minor components being carried over from the existing platform. Control arms are longer and are forged from aluminum. The wheels track approximately 15 cm wider, and the front suspension has been moved 20 millimetres forward to make room for the bigger tires. Bilstein provides the Black Hawk e2 adaptive suspension, which features more than 330 mm of wheel travel.
A first-time feature in a Ram truck is the large, configurable head-up display. Trailer Reverse Steering Control, which uses a dash-mounted dial to control steering when backing up with a trailer, is also standard. A unique feature of this driver assist is that it can identify a trailer without the use of trailer-mounted decals.
There are eight drive modes, as well as a Valet mode. Aside from Sport, Snow, Mud/Sand, Tow and other familiar modes, there's the new Baja mode, which is tailored for high-speed, extreme off-roading. It's this mode in which I jumped the TRX on the closed course at the Free Flow.
This unusual testing format really emphasized how well the suspension works in extreme conditions. I jumped the TRX about a dozen times over a four-foot high ramp and onto almost level ground, at just above 70 km/h. While I initially braced for a hard pounding, the resulting landing was remarkably plush and the suspension didn't bottom out.
The 2021 Ram 1500 TRX should be arriving at dealers in January, available in two trims. The TR1 starts at $93,995, and for $4,995 more, the TR2 gets additional features that include vented front and heated and vented rear seats, a remote starter, ParkSense park assist, and wireless charging.