We recently had the exclusive opportunity to test drive Ram’s new TRX truck around Lake Tahoe and at Reno’s Wild West Motorsports Park, where we took the truck around the same short course track used for LOORRS and Ultra4 racing. First introduced as a concept vehicle at the Texas State Fair four years ago, Ram called the TRX (think “T-Rex”) the “apex predator” in a claim squarely aimed at the Ford Raptor. The TRX was designed for the dirt but is no slouch on the road, clicking off the quarter mile in 12.9 seconds and accelerating from 0-60 in 4.5 seconds.
This is the most powerful pickup truck on the market, and it is also the fastest with a top speed of 118 miles per hour and quickest from 0-60, 0-100, and in the quarter mile. The power comes from a 6.2L V8 Hemi engine topped with a twin screw supercharger pumping out 11 pounds of boost. The result in a completely flat torque curve with gobs of power at any RPM in any gear. Power is routed through an eight speed automatic and a Borg Warner transfer case that can bias the power output front and rear depending on the drive mode.
The Dynamic Drive Modes alter more than just the transfer case bias. There are seven modes, and you can even make a custom mode that allows the driver to personalize the vehicle’s performance with a selectable driving experience, offering a multitude of vehicle system combinations. We loved the Sport Mode on the street and mainly used Baja Mode on the track, with the torque split and the transmission shifting being the most obvious changes.
The front suspension is three inches wider per side than the standard Ram 1500 and uses forged upper and lower control arms to maximize strength, along with plunging axles that allow for 13 inches of front wheel travel. The front diff is the aluminum ZF unit used in the normal Ram 1500 and is only offered with an open differential. Time will tell if this differential is strong enough to stand up to the abuse TRX owners are certain to dish out, but we had no issues with our test truck despite repeatedly jumping it and even taking it through a rockcrawling course. Out back, Ram’s unique five-link suspension was tweaked to cycle 13 inches of suspension travel, up from nine inches on a standard Ram 1500. engineers even used huge 3/4-ton control arm bushings for maximum strength and durability. The rear suspension does curiously use a shock from the top of the rear axle that is claimed to reduce wheel hop and shudder but quite frankly looks out of place on the TRX. The rear suspension locates a full floating Dana 60 rear axle that comes with 3.55 gears and either an open diff, limited slip, or electronic selectable locker. We think the 3.55 gears are a little tall with 35-inch tall tires, but they were likely a concession to fuel mileage standards.
Rather than just adding bypass shocks like found on other production trucks designed for the desert, Ram knew that they had to up the ante and offer something better than what was already on the market. They worked with Bilstein to develop the Black Hawk e2 adaptive shock absorbers. Using a three-piston design, the Black Hawk e2 shocks use dual electronic proportional valves that continuously and infinitely adjustable damping forces on both the compression and rebound circuits. This technology is similar to the Fox Live Valve found on the new Polaris RZR, but those shocks only adjust the compression damping. Not a bypass shock in the traditional sense, the e2 shocks adjust both compression and rebound throughout the suspension travel as quickly as 20 milliseconds based on a variety of sensors at each corner.
What are your thoughts about the TRX? Does it have what it takes to beat the Raptor? Like and comment below with your opinion, and let us know what you want to see next from Harry Situations.
