Ram Wants You to Rebel With the 2021 TRX
Oh, it’s really official now. The supercharged, off-road-ready sport truck previewed by a concept vehicle four years ago is almost here, and Ram now has a landing page for it.
Appearing for the 2021 model year, the Ram Rebel TRX is a full-size 1500 with a heart transplant from a Dodge Hellcat donor. Squarely in its sights is the Ford F-150 Raptor, a model that’s dominated the niche it carved out for itself for too long.
There’s plenty of action in the extra-burly midsize field, but full-size truck buyers who really want to kick up dust are left with either the Raptor or a bunch of rivals that don’t come close to its performance. Ram aims to change that.
The TRX debuts in late summer, the brand announced Thursday. Is it a coincidence that this news came on the same day Ford plans to launch its next-generation F-150? Doubtful!
Spy photos and a plethora of rumors made Ram’s announcement far from shocking. It was known last year that the TRX was a go.
It’s not a mirage. https://t.co/CZSAFgLBZZ
Ram TRX | Late Summer 2020 pic.twitter.com/Ck2fT1rRII
— Ram Trucks (@RamTrucks) June 25, 2020
Nothing to see in the above teaser, sadly.
Back in 2016, Ram unleashed the Rebel TRX Concept on attendees of the Texas State Fair, tempting them with a supercharged 6.2-liter V8 borrowed from Dodge’s muscle car family, aggressive handling, muscular suspension, and thrill ride-worthy harnesses for the truck’s occupants. Bulging fenders cast shade on oversized all-terrain rubber spaced half a foot further apart, thanks to a wider track.
That concept carried a 575-horse version of the supercharged 6.2L. It’s believed that, for the production model, Fiat Chrysler will reach into the parts bin and source a 707 hp (and 650 lb-ft) mill from the “lesser” of the Hellcats, mating it to an eight speed automatic.
With this kind of power on tap, Ram would be able to kick sand in Ford’s face, which is something Ram very much wants to do. The Raptor boasts an extra potent version of the brand’s 3.5-liter Ecoboost V6, generating 450 hp and 510 lb-ft.
Alas, at this point there’s little to share in terms of details. The TRX’s recipe is well known; whether it emerges from Ram’s oven fully baked remains to be seen.
[Image: Matthew Guy/TTAC]
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TRX?? I associate that name with an odd-sized Michelin tire that's so hard to find you end up on ebay searching for a set of standard rims. What was wrong with Warlock, Ramcharger, or even Li'l Red Truck? I'm kind of surprised FCA didn't resurrect an old Mopar name for this one.
Why would anyone compare this to the Raptor? The Raptor has good suspension. The Ram Rebel "air ride" freezes up in the cold and overheats when run hard. The "hellcat Rebel" is going to be a 4x4 version of the V12 SRT pickup. It is rumored that Ford is already planning to put a version of the GT500 V8 in the Raptor. I'd rather see a Raptor Ranger and Raptor Bronco anyways.