Ram Has Resurrected a V8-Powered Flying Dinosaur

The Ram 1500 TRX was the king of the monster trucks when it arrived in 2021, but its reign was brief.The model nicknamed “T. rex” had a 702-horsepower supercharged V8 that made it the world’s most powerful pickup, but it was discontinued in early 2024 as Ram eliminated V8 engines in response to ever-tightening fuel efficiency and emissions standards.The situation shifted into reverse soon after, however, when Donald Trump was elected president and began rolling back the regulations that led to the TRX’s demise. Ram reintroduced its mainstream V8 engines last year, and now the TRX has been resurrected like a Jurassic Park dinosaur.The TRX’s supercharged 6.2-liter V8 is rated at 777 hp. RamRam had kept the TRX’s DNA alive in a six-cylinder model called the RHO that shared its widebody styling and off-road suspension, but it wasn’t satisfied with simply bringing back the old V8. Its engineers upgraded the 6.2-liter engine to produce 777 horsepower. It will beat most cars in a drag race and can reach an electronically limited top speed of 118 mph. Take it off that leash, and it would run much faster.The TRX rides on 35-inch-tall all-terrain tires tucked inside bulging fenders that make the truck so broad that it is equipped with the three amber identification lights the federal government requires for the widest vehicles on the road. They are located inside the prominent vent on its hood, through which it breathes the copious amounts of air it needs to burn fuel, which it does at a rate of 12 mpg.Climb up into it – quite literally – and you find an interior that would put some luxury cars to shame. This is a good thing, because the TRX lists for $102,290. That price includes leather and suede upholstery, heated and ventilated seats for the four outboard passengers, a massage function for the front seats and a 19-speaker Harman Kardon audio system. A digital instrument cluster and a giant 14.5-inch touchscreen provide the tech interface.The $102,290 model is outfitted with luxury features and driver aid technology. RamThe TRX has a full-time four-wheel-drive system that can be locked into a low-range gear setting for extreme rock climbing, but it prefers flying. Many TRX owners actually take their trucks off-road, and it is a thrill ride in the dirt. It can cruise over large bumps at highway speeds and easily leap several feet into the air. The suspension provides more than a foot of wheel travel and is designed not to bottom out, while computer-controlled shocks keep it from bouncing into oblivion upon landing. I spent hours on wilderness trails in it and was no worse for wear at the end of the day.The long highway ride back to civilization was just as pleasant. Everything that makes the TRX great on rough roads also pays off on smooth paved highways, where you can use its hands-free, lane-centering adaptive cruise control. A facial scanner ensures that you are paying attention and keeping your eyes on the road, and it will vibrate the seat bottom like a joy buzzer if you aren’t.Filling up the tank at current gas prices is just as shocking. Automotive product development is a years-long process, and no one could have seen this state of affairs coming a couple of years ago, but the timing for the TRX’s resurrection could not have been much worse. Unless, of course, the government were to change direction again and bring back those strict fuel-efficiency standards. Oops.An asteroid may have killed the dinosaurs, but the TRX might have to survive a blue wave.

Ram Has Resurrected a V8-Powered Flying Dinosaur

Ram Has Resurrected a V8-Powered Flying Dinosaur

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