Pickup Review: 2021 Ram 1500 TRX

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The Ram 1500 TRX is basically a supercharged racing truck with cupholders, a lovely stereo system, and a warranty. As an extremely specialized piece of equipment, it’s very expensive, very fast, and very powerful. It takes everything Mopar knows about extreme-performance cars, and puts it into a truck. Then, it adds everything Mopar knows about extreme-performance trucks to the mix as well.

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The result of all of this is a rolling technological gene-pool of go-fast toys, wrapped up with a supercharged V8 engine in a package that clocks in with six-figure pricing, over 700 horsepower, and well over 7 feet wide.

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The heart and soul of the TRX is a Hellcat-based 6.2 litre supercharged V8 that features a few off-road optimizations to the position of its alternator, intake and certain oiling system components, but is otherwise the same unit you’ll find in the tire-liquefying SRT Hellcat models from Dodge and Jeep. With 702 horsepower, drivers get a 300-horsepower advantage over the standard HEMI V8. Out of the hole, you’ll get 0-60 mph in 4.5 seconds, with all four Wrangler Territory tires lit up for the better part of first gear, en route to a sub 13-second quarter-mile pass.

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Performance is monstrous, excessive, and overkill. For instance, passing 18-wheelers on the highway is a bit like firing a rocket launcher—pull the trigger, and in a blink, there’s noise, thrust, fire, and heavy metal hurtling through the air. At full song, the supercharged V8 sounds like the love-child of a jet turbine engine and a machine gun turret. If you’re meeting some friends at a remote ice-fishing hole or cottage, they’ll hear the TRX’s blower slicing through the wintery silence long before you arrive. To be clear, the sound of the TRX’s blower is a major part of the driving experience, and readily capable of drenching its surroundings (and the cabin) with that irritated whine, on command.

Power flows permanently to all four wheels. Start the engine, and an Auto mode is the default, powering all four wheels intelligently, with no driver bandwidth required. If required, drivers can select four-low, four-high, and differential lock at the touch of a button. Nearby? The LAUNCH CONTROL button—literally a drag-strip Christmas Tree button next to the gear shifter, in case a Raptor arrives beside you at a light or in the middle of a desert.

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You don’t need it, though. Just stand on the throttle, and the TRX welds you  to your seat, leaps ahead as if it’s been rear-ended by a speeding cement truck, and nearly feels like it’s going to pull a wheelie. The swell in forward pavement consumption towards the engine’s redline is one of the most remarkable sensations you’ll find in a modern performance vehicle. Be careful though: TRX is capable of reaching demerit point territory in very quick order, and your local police force will hear you coming.

To all of this firepower, engineers added bash plates, extensive suspension and chassis reinforcements, extra damping, and even a special strut that helps stabilize the indestructible Dana 60 axle between the rear wheels for a higher-performing drive. One of the TRX’s engineers says the over-built rear axle was built to stand up to all manner of abuse, up to and including a “direct missile strike”.

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The suspension, frame, wheels, tires, and other running gear are similarly as tough. The TRX is suspended atop an advanced Bilstein terrain dynamics suspension system with computer-controlled shocks that have a nervous system, brain, and  the ability to manage the ride and body motions of the vehicle in real time, with incredible precision. That’s thanks to the dampers that can change how springy they are in a fraction of a second, continuously. Result? This suspension is designed to keep drivers and their passengers comfortable and in control, even when it’s being punished. And though this setup does find the odd unwelcome vibration or jiggle on certain highway surfaces, the highway ride is typically very laid-back, quiet, and forgiving. It’s a suspension designed to laugh in the face of torture, while keeping its occupants comfortable, and its driver in full control. There are even special sensors that detect when the TRX is airborne, triggering the shocks to prep for a softer and more controlled landing (for heaven’s sake!).

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You could literally sip a hot coffee while cranking the sort of pavement-crater that would demolish the front end of a small car.

On one hand, this tech lets drivers benefit from extreme levels of performance, and big-time bragging rights. On the other hand, the same suspension technology provides a very comfortable ride if you’re  just out exploring some new places. Point is, you’re equipped to comfortably tackle even rough terrain at very high speed.

Tough off-road tires help connect it all to the ground, and with two full spares on board my tester, that’s two extra lives if you happen to have a tire-related setback or two while you’re out exploring.

“Don’t worry, you’re covered, just go have fun!” says the Ram TRX.

Therein lies the big appeal of the RAM TRX to a northerner like yours truly: it’s very powerful, but also, very tough. On many of the roads where I live, that’s important. Most vehicles with performance figures like the TRX would handily lose a tire, wheel, or oil-pan on our backroads, unless you were driving along slowly while spending half your mental bandwidth deciding where to place your wheels. The TRX flies over these surfaces without a care in the world. On board, you hardly feel or hear a thing. You could literally sip a hot coffee while cranking the sort of pavement-crater that would demolish the front end of a small car.

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So, an interesting dynamic: incredible performance moves, without a care in the world about the surface beneath.

With TRX built to take the abuse from just about anything you drive over, a fun new way to deal with tailgaters becomes a possibility. When being tailgated aggressively, just aim for a big enough pothole to destroy the wheel of the car behind you, and drive into it. You won’t feel a thing in the TRX, but nothing stops a pesky tailgater like losing a wheel.  It’s a fun sport that reminds tailgaters to think twice about leaving so little space.

Of course, with such racy intentions, there are some things you’ll need to get used to about your new TRX.

For instance, the cold start in frigid temperatures. You always know the remote start worked, since you can hear the engine fire up from inside your house, and so can all of the neighbours. Nearby creatures flee for cover when the engine fires up. During high idle at 25 below, it sounds like you’re about to board a helicopter. There’s no sneaking around in the TRX.

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At nearly 7.5 feet wide, the TRX is also harder to park, maneuver in tight quarters, or navigate through narrower trails than some drivers will like.

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Getting in and out might be a bit of a challenge, too. The rock rails aren’t wide enough to be a confident step, and the elevated suspension means that smaller or mobility-challenged passengers may need a helping hand to get in and out. It’s a big step into the cabin.

On board, the interior is very nicely done, fully supporting the TRX’s asking price.  The new generation Ram 1500 has an award-winning interior, and TRX makes that its own with unique graphics, colours, stitching, and high-end finishes. There’s loads of at-hand storage to keep your smaller items organized, and passenger space at each seat is generous. On board, the star of the show is likely the Ram TRX’s vertical touch-screen interface, which is easily learned, beautiful whether illuminated or blank, and flaunts crisp graphics and response.

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Using a combination of hard buttons and on-screen menus via the vertical central display, drivers have full access to the to the capabilities of the high-performing hardware they’ve just invested in. With a tap or two, drivers can engage Baja, Snow, Rock or Mud modes, set the preferred launch RPM for the drag strip, finely adjust throttle response, shift-light RPM, transmission characteristics, traction control tolerances, and more. Fully automatic operation, as well as pre-set, individualized modes are possible, too. You’re the boss of the TRX. If your neighbour has a Raptor, be sure to use ‘SPORT’ mode, which makes it easier to say hello with your supercharger as you drive by.

So: a relatively comfortable monster truck with a lovely cabin, and nothing less than every off-road and motor-racing toy an enthusiast would love. It’s tough, fast, heavy, and offers incredible thrust and traction—all without a care in the world about ground clearance, potholes, or rim-smashing road craters. That’s the core of the TRX’s one-of-a-kind driving experience.

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On the basis of offering something new and exciting for hardcore driving enthusiasts to enjoy on virtually any terrain, TRX has you covered. If you’ve ever wanted to own your own horrifyingly-fast racing truck, here it is.

Thing is, the acceleration isn’t the most horrifying part of the TRX experience. The fuel bill takes that honour.

Not to unleash any radical new concepts here or anything, but nothing with 700 horsepower is doing your wallet any favours at the pumps. You’ll be exploding 20 litres of fuel for every 100 kilometres you drive, if you’re being nice. At full throttle with the supercharger blasting compressed air into the cylinders, and the fuel injectors flowing like Niagara Falls, the fuel consumption is incredible. If you have a speedboat, you’ll be, roughly, used to the mileage.

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The perpetual whine of that supercharger, and the fact that it sounds nearly irritated to be working at anything less than full throttle, means you’ll need the self-restraint of a Buddhist monk to keep out of the power, and to keep the TRX from burning through its fuel supply like an orbit-bound rocket-thruster.

That’s the price to pay to run the most extreme factory pickup truck on the scene. The RAM TRX is the silliest vehicle I’ve ever driven, but also, one of the most remarkable.  On one hand, it’s an absolute expert at letting drivers enjoy tremendous performance in virtually any condition. On the other hand, the overkill performance and spectacular fuel consumption mean this is something intended for a very specific and committed shopper.

It’s too much, too big, too fast, and too thirsty—and that’s going to help move a lot of units to the lucky enthusiasts with their chequebooks ready.

With all the goodies, my tester clocked in around $120,000.

LISTEN: Who says you can’t go for long drives in short-range EVs?.

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