2025 Ram 1500 Bids Farewell to the Hemi and Replaces the TRX
The 2025 Ram 1500 pickup is dropping the Hemi V8 from its order sheet and replacing it with a 3.0-liter turbocharged Hurricane inline six-cylinder.
Ram will still offer the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 with the eTorque mild hybrid system as its base powertrain.
Ram will offer two Hurricane variants for 2025, with the standard Hurricane making 420 hp and 469 lb-ft of torque, and the Hurricane High Output Straight-Six Turbo making 540 hp and 521 lb-ft of torque.
The departure of the Ram TRX makes a lot more sense with the 2025 Ram 1500’s updates. Ram is replacing the beloved Hemi V8 with its latest-and-greatest 3.0-liter I6 Hurricane engine family.
That means, the 6.2-liter Hellcat V8 is also going to the curb, and a new high-performance engine and fitting variant is taking its place. Ram is also adding a new Tungsten trim to the Ram 1500 for ’25, which brings a new front fascia and some luxe upgrades.
The engines are the biggest part of this pickup’s upgrades. While the Hemi is going away, the base powertrain will still be the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 with the eTorque mild hybrid system. Moving up the ranks, Ram will throw a turbocharged 3.0-liter I6 under the hood of your new truck that makes 420 hp and 469 lb-ft of torque.
Topping the range is also a Hurricane I6, but this turbocharged six-cylinder makes 540 hp and 521 lb-ft of torque. Ram is tasking the TorqueFlite eight-speed automatic to handle power from all three of these power units.
Now, you might be wondering if this is better or worse than the Hemi. The base 5.7-liter Hemi V8 soon to be replaced by the lower-performance Hurricane makes 395 hp and 410 lb-ft of torque. For those without a calculator, that’s a bump of 25 hp and a 59 lb-ft of torque. Comparing the higher-output Hurricane to the 6.2-liter supercharged Hemi does bring some bad news.
The outgoing 6.2-liter V8 made 702 hp and 650 lb-ft of torque. That means there’s some space for Ram powertrain engineers to make up a difference at the top level. Considering Dodge is working on its next-generation DragPak engine based on the Hurricane platform, there’s no doubt the company can squeeze absurd power figures out of this engine.
While the engine is the big story of the ’25 Ram, it’s not the only tale to be told. The ’25 Ram will also introduce its ultra-premium Tungsten badge, filling the hole left by the outgoing TRX with the new Ram 1500 RHO. The Ram 1500 Tungsten takes the crown from the Ram 1500 Limited as the best-appointed rig.
This new trim comes with an indigo and sea salt interior that features a microsuede-wrapped headliner, 24-way power and massaging front seats, and a 23-speaker Klipsch sound system, among other upgrades. On the outside, the Ram 1500 Tungsten features a bespoke fascia that makes it look more upscale and less-truck-like.
Taking the place of the Ram 1500 TRX, the Ram 1500 RHO is set to join the Ram truck family in Q3 of 2024. This truck is effectively the TRX without the 6.2-liter Hemi. Ram boss Tim Kuniskis even says, “It’s identical to the TRX, except instead of a supercharged Hemi it’ll have that [Hurricane] powertrain in it.”
While that’s bad news for fans of the TRX’s throaty roar, it’s good news for truck fans who liked how well it performed off-road and might appreciate anticipated better fuel economy.
Outside of the major shakeups, there are still some updates for the ’25 Ram across the board. Ram is upgrading the base 12-inch media system with a higher-resolution touchscreen and is making a 14.5-inch media screen available.
Ram’s also adding a 10.25-inch front passenger media screen that can be used to help navigate, manage connected devices, or watch media. The passenger will also be able to see the view from exterior cameras, which could help you in a pinch.
The ’25 Ram will have the company’s hands-free Driving Assist system available, which should make some commuter lives easier. There’s also an onboard power inverter available that offers 1.8 kilowatts to two covered outlets inside the bed.
This inverter is controlled by the touchscreen and only works with the truck in park with Hurricane-equipped Rams, or could also work in motion with the Pentastar-equipped rigs. A digital rearview mirror with tow mode rounds out the big upgrades.
Ram hasn’t revealed pricing for the 2025 trucks yet, but the base, V6-powered Rams probably won’t stray too far from the current truck’s $40,565 base price. However, it’s likely that trucks equipped with either Hurricane engine will see a shakeup in pricing over current models. The outlier could be the RHO, which could be more affordable than the nearly six-figure TRX. Still, pricing should come sometime in 2024.
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