The large headline right here must be: The V8 is useless. Ram’s now legendary “Hemi” V8, part of the Dodge/Ram pickup-truck engine household since 2003, is being retired for 2025. More on that in a second…
There are loads of extra headlines, too. Significantly up to date for 2025, the Ram 1500 lineup boasts new tech options, a brand new high trim degree, and new styling. And, because of the adjustments below the hood, the Ram TRX, a hyper-powerful off-road-ready model of the truck, retires after the 2024 mannequin yr.
New to the Ram for 2025 are two variations of the Stellantis “Hurricane” twin-turbocharged inline 6-cylinder engine. Already in service below the hood of the Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer, the Hurricane engine displaces 3.0-liters, and boasts some spectacular energy numbers.
And whereas some dyed-in-the-wool V8 adherents could decry the absence of an 8-cylinder engine within the Ram 1500 lineup, needless to say Ford has been promoting turbocharged “EcoBoost” V6 engines within the model’s F-150 pickup for greater than a decade.
By the numbers, the High Output (a standard-output variant can also be supplied) inline-6 Hurricane engine delivers 145 extra horsepower and 111 pound-feet extra torque than the outgoing 5.7-liter Hemi. So, is the Hurricane a greater truck engine than the Hemi? Yes. And no.
The Hurricane’s torque output definitely helps severe towing. That mentioned, most Ram towing capability for 2025 falls to 11,580 kilos, considerably in need of the 12,750 score of final yr’s Ram. Of course, there’s extra to towing-capacity rankings than simply the engine. But, the Hurricane powerplant is topic to a situation the previous Hemi by no means fell prey to: turbo lag.
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For these not within the know, turbo lag is a short delay in energy supply. Because turbocharged engines depend on air compressed by a turbine within the exhaust system, they could be topic to a interval of low energy supply prompted by the point it takes compressed air to journey from the turbine to the engine itself. The delay is normally transient, however can hinder acceleration, with the end result being less-than-satisfactory throttle response.
We discovered the Ram’s around-town acceleration—even from a cease—simply effective, with loads of energy for fast getaways. Where we observed lag was underway. For instance, once we had been touring 55 mph and wanted to achieve 70 mph so as to cross slow-moving site visitors, we took observe of a protracted pause between the second we “hit the gas,” and when the engine lastly responded to our request for extra energy.
We discovered this attention-grabbing as Alan Falkowski, director of the Propulsion Component Product Release Center for Ram, made it some extent to say throughout his press presentation that every turbocharger is fed by three cylinders. This splits the work between the 2 turbos, thereby eliminating turbo lag.
It’s doable Ram engineers are nonetheless tweaking the engine, and this was an aberration distinctive to pre-production fashions. So, for those who’re apprehensive about turbo lag, and also you’re inquisitive about a 2025 Ram 1500, be sure you do some freeway passing/acceleration runs throughout your check drive, and see for your self the way it feels.
In addition to the 540-horsepower, High Output Hurricane, the 2025 Ram 1500 is obtainable with two different powerplants: the tried-and-true 3.6-liter “Pentastar” V6 (which options Ram’s eTorque mild-hybrid system), and the usual Hurricane—additionally a 3.0-liter inline 6–that delivers 420 horsepower and 469 pound-feet of torque.
With the largest elephant within the room out of the way in which, what else is new for Ram’s well-liked pickup?
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Well-heeled consumers can be to study that for 2025, the Ram mannequin vary is capped by an all-new topline Tungsten trim degree. Slotted above the earlier top-tier, and nonetheless accessible, Limited within the Ram steady, the Tungsten options an much more luxurious cabin, and a fair longer roster of ordinary options.
Think giant luxurious sedan, and also you’ll be near what the Tungsten is all about. The new extra-regal Ram consists of such premium touches as a suede headliner, 24-way massaging energy entrance seats, a 14.5-inch infotainment display screen, and an ultra-premium 23-speaker Klipsch-brand audio system. For probably the most half, the Tungsten appears high notch, however there are a pair misses that make us query the $12,000 improve over the already luxurious Limited.
First up, the one inside shade possibility is an Indigo/Sea Salt mixture that appears beautiful, however we fear that the Sea Salt seat bottoms will shortly turn out to be dingy with put on. And, for those who’ve acquired any spillers in your loved ones, neglect about it.
We had been additionally upset by a number of the dashboard supplies. While in combination the cabin appears implausible, some items of the sprint had been disappointingly widespread trying, and lower than our practically $100,000 expectations. Note that for 2025, the Tungsten can be supplied solely in crew-cab configuration, and comes solely with a 5-foot, 7-inch “short bed.”
That mentioned, there’s plenty of actually cool new know-how available on the 2025 Ram 1500. During the media preview, we drove solely Limited and Tungsten fashions, and had the chance to mess around with the newly accessible 10.25-inch passenger-side display screen that accesses leisure, navigation, and digicam performance. The secondary touchscreen is just not seen to the motive force, however is completely sized and positioned to be used by the front-seat passenger.
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New to the 2025 1500 is Ram’s semi-autonomous Hands-Free Active Driving Assist function. While it’s not as strong as General Motors’ Super Cruise system (no automated lane-change function), it felt extra steady than Ford’s Blue Cruise, which tends to bobble the automobile between the lane strains.
Also new for 2025 is a twin wi-fi cellphone charger, a sooner Uconnect 5 infotainment working system, a digital inside rear-camera mirror, and a giant 10-inch configurable head-up show. And within the mattress, 110-volt retailers which offer as much as 2 kW of energy.
I do know what you’re pondering: That’s plenty of tech for a truck. I’ve heard plenty of complaints on social media currently about pickup-truck pricing, and the way the common truck man is being squeezed out of the market. Why, some guys have requested, can’t there be a base truck with crank home windows and no infotainment system? I hear you, however it appears that evidently ship has sailed, my pals.
The common transaction value of a brand new automobile in 2024 is about $47,000, and whereas there are nonetheless two fashions within the 2025 Ram lineup that are available in below that determine, they will be extra tech ahead than some truck guys need. We had been in a position to do a stroll round of the value-oriented Ram 1500 Big Horn, for instance, and whereas it’s fitted with every-man material seats, it was geared up with an accessible 12-inch vertical infotainment display screen, and a small digital driver-information show between the analog speedometer and tachometer. Kinda techy for an entry-level pickup. Both the Tradesman and Big Horn come customary with an 8.4-inch data display screen–however it’s nonetheless a display screen. And, no, there are not any hand crank home windows wherever.
OK, so we now have plenty of tech, the TRX is useless, and also you solely have two trim ranges that fall beneath the typical transaction value of a brand new automobile. What is the 2025 Ram 1500 lineup, and the way does it value out? Including the $1,995 vacation spot charges, it appears like this:
- Tradesman: $42,270
- Big Horn/Lone Star: $46,930
- Laramie: $62,025
- Rebel: $66,190
- Limited: $77,150
- Limited Longhorn: $77,645
- Tungsten: $89,150
Overall, the 2025 Ram 1500 stays an excellent truck. It’s comfy on the freeway, and the tech options work the way in which they need to. Note, we did take a brief drive off street within the ruggedly geared up Rebel, which appears as prepared as ever to depart the pavement. We anticipate to spend extra time with the Rebel at a later date.
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As a petite driver, I did have some forward-facing visibility points, however that’s par for the course with a full-size truck. There are nonetheless some extra primary choices accessible, however the high-end lux-level Tungsten trim is a delight, with its seat massagers and extremely adjustable headrests.
With Ram’s improved reliability rankings–it at the moment tops Consumer Reports’ predicted-reliability listing for full-size vans–the 2025 Ram 1500 simply could be the truck to purchase this yr.
Note: The up to date Ram 1500 is barely a part of the Ram pickup information for 2025. In the works, and due fairly quickly, are the RAM 1500 REV all-electric pickup, and the 1500 Ramcharger plug-in hybrid electrical pickup. Stay tuned!
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2025 Ram 1500 Gallery
(Click beneath for enlarged photographs)
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Source: weblog.consumerguide.com