During a second-quarter financial call, Stellantis’ CEO shared big news with shareholders (and those of us in the media listening in). The Ram 1500 TRX, the truck’s highest-performance, most off-road-capable, and most importantly, Hemi V8-powered model, is coming back from the grave. The reason? As Mr. Krabs put it: “Money!”
Ram Remembers That V8 Supertrucks Print Money
Unfortunately, it’s not clear when production is going to start. Given that it only just stopped, it probably won’t be long — possibly within a year from now. Ram sent the range-topping 702-horsepower truck into the grave with a Final Edition (or rather Not-So-Final Edition) for the 2024 model year. Only 4,000 of these were made, but regular series production for last year was not capped at a specific number of units. Ram, at the time, said the trucks were “one last chance” to get a hold of their very own Hellcat-powered truck.
The V8 engine on versions, such as the Ram 1500 TRX, will deliver to us additional volumes but also accredited margins per unit.
– Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa
Ram offered the Final Edition with three exclusive colors: Delmonico Red, Night Edge Blue and Harvest Sunrise, in addition to the truck’s usual eight colors. We imagine those will stay exclusive so as to avoid another lawsuit from disgruntled owners believing they got the last ones.
Ram Is Bringing Back The TRX, But There Are Some Unknowns
Right now, the biggest question mark is what’ll be powering the TRX. It makes the most sense, now that Ram has elected to resume production of its Hemi V8 engines, to have the truck’s Hellcat-derived V8 return. Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis is also heading SRT, the Stellantis brand’s Ram and Dodge performance marque, and it’s likely a number of the V8s we bid farewell to just years ago will be returning. The RHO already fills the gap left by the TRX pretty darn well, and the 1500 did just reintroduce the Hemi V8. It stands to reason, a new TRX would stand out, thanks in large part to its V8 powertrain.
TopSpeed’s Take
Recent weakening of fuel economy standards by the Trump Administration means that brands can afford to bring back thirsty motors like the TRX’s supercharged V8. It leaves brands free to produce what they’d like, at least until a later administration changes things. We’re expecting to see Ram and Dodge continue to celebrate their V8s while they can as a result.
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