Transportation

Saturday Drive: First Drive Of 2021 Ram 1500 TRX Leads To Surprising Conclusion


To say the chance to drive the much-praised, much-vaunted 2021 Ram 1500 TRX was eagerly awaited is putting it mildly. Though a car guy at heart, over the years I have developed a strong affinity for off-road vehicles, having participated in, among other things, both editions of the Land Rover Great Divide Expedition, so the opportunity to get behind the wheel of the high-horsepower super truck that FCA fancies the “Apex Predator of Trucks” had massive appeal. Since the TRX is purpose-built to go fast off-road, getting the opportunity to test it in its element at Wild West Motorsports Park on the edge of Sparks, Nev., seemed just the ticket. Equally important for this vehicle that, Fiat-Chrysler execs say, will be used by many as their only vehicle was the chance to drive it in a variety of on-road situations from residential two-lanes to Interstate highways packed with traffic.

Before we give you our assessment of the Ram 1500 TRX’s performance in all these areas, let us first put the truck in context. (And let me warn you now to hold onto your hat.) Under the hood is a 702-horsepower 6.2-liter supercharged HEMI V-8 engine very similar to the 717-horsepower version of the engine that finds a home in the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat. In its TRX iteration, the engine delivers 650 lb.-ft. of peak torque. With an adept use of the TRX’s launch control (yes, a full-size pickup with launch control) the truck will rocket from zero to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds and whiz through the quarter mile in 12.9 seconds at 108 mph. Try that in your import luxury sports sedan.

Of course, that performance comes on hard pavement, and the TRX was designed for the dirt, so that heady performance is just ancillary to the truck’s stated performance goals. And RAM is very explicit about what those goals are, to whit: “The 2021 Ram 1500 TRX… is engineered to handle the most punishing conditions with extreme capability and durability, significantly outperforming every other truck.” Big claims, but as you’ll note, the TRX has the goods to back it all up.

Beyond the stupendous horsepower and torque, the TRX features a heavily revised and stiffened frame plus a completely new, unique suspension system that features active damping. The suspension is heavily beefed-up to fulfill its intended purpose, incorporating forged aluminum front upper and lower control arms. Special attention has been given to caster and camber angles during suspension cycling, because among its other attributes the TRX offers more than 13 inches of wheel travel at each of its four corners, up 40% over the standard Ram 1500.

Going fast off-road requires very sophisticated shock absorbers, and TRX more than checks that box with its 2.5-inch Bilstein Black Hawk e2 adaptive performance shocks. Not only do they provide the fast reaction time necessary for control over uneven surfaces, but they also are designed for rapid heat dissipation, important when traversing harsh terrain at speeds greater than 100 mph. The Dual Electronic Proportional Valves in the active suspension system continuously adjust damping forces for precise control of compression and rebound damping at each wheel. The system’s nitrogen-charged remote reservoir uses a hot-formed, “zero-leak” tube closure to ensure maximum durability.

Also contributing to the TRX’s dazzling capabilities is its robust Dana M250 rear axle with full-floating axle shafts necessary to accommodate the 650 lb.-ft. of torque. The rear axle uses an axle hop damper for improved traction and axle control on the rough surfaces that TRX was designed to tame. The truck’s BorgWarner 48-13 full-time active transfer case has been upgraded for improved strength and durability. It enables a low range of 2.64:1 for rock crawling, and the truck can be flat-towed while in neutral, although we expect that most of the time it will be doing the towing. Maximum payload is 1,310 pounds and the towing capacity is 8,100 pounds, so this is a truck that can act like a truck.

Driving the TRX

Okay, we could go on like this for a lengthy number of paragraphs outlining all the good stuff the 2021 Ram 1500 TRX brings to the party, but you’d probably like our impressions of how it is to drive, what it is like to be behind the wheel. You have probably heard about more than one vehicle that was filled with terrific equipment only to fall flat in the actual driving experience. The good news is that doesn’t describe the TRX at all.

This is a vehicle with immense off-road capabilities that extend from rock-crawling to high-speed desert-running. With its approach angle of 30.2 degrees, breakover angle of 21.9 degrees, departure angle of 23.5 degrees and ground clearance of 11.8 inches, the TRX proved to me that it can essentially go anywhere by scaling the Wild West Motorsports Park’s famed boulder-strewn uphill torture course with incredible ease. That capability is aided by the specially designed 35-inch Goodyear Wrangler Territory All-Terrain 325/65R/18 tires and the five skid plates including one that doubles as a belly pan. Heavy-duty steel rock sliders are an available option.

The TRX is also equipped with a mind-bending array of electronic driver’s aids, and the positive report on them is that they truly aid the driver. They don’t get in the way of having fun while simultaneously making the driving experience that much better. The truck has five modes – Auto, Sport, Tow, Snow, and Custom – that enable you to select the setting that addresses current conditions…and your innermost desires. (Well some of them at least.) The drive modes control the 4-wheel-drive system, throttle response, transmission, paddle shifters, suspension, and the electric power steering. But that isn’t the end of it.

The Ram TRX also has three off-road modes – Mud/Sand, Rock, and Baja – enabling you to choose a setting that best fits the terrain you find yourself in. Like the on-road modes, the off-road drive modes fine-tune the 4-wheel-drive system, throttle response, transmission, paddle shifters, suspension, and steering to suit the landscape.

Then there is the TRX’s Jump Detection, which uses wheel-speed and ride-height sensors and accelerometers at each corner to figure out when the truck is airborne and intervenes to prevent driveline-damaging power spikes. And we already alluded to the TRX’s standard Launch Control that manages tire slip while you are launching the vehicle to give consistent straight-line acceleration on- and off-road. I used this (under FCA’s watchful eye, of course) as I exited the motorsports park to conclude the stellar off-road portion of my drive on a high note.

The Most Startling

All this being said, the most startling thing I discovered about the 2021 Ram 1500 TRX is not its truly remarkable off-road capabilities, which are immense, but the fact that the vehicle offers all these capabilities while also behaving as a perfectly normal and very pleasant personal-use truck. Despite its purpose-built suspension, the TRX doesn’t beat your up as you drive it, nor does it get weird and wonky when you push it a little on the highway. Instead, it is perfectly controllable, quiet, and comfortable, just like its tamer Ram 1500 versions.

While the truck’s base suggested list price of $69,995 is nothing to sneeze at, there are full-size pickups with far less horsepower and far fewer capabilities that are driving off showroom lots every day at that price. Because of that, and because you could absolutely use the TRX as a “daily driver,” I think the truck is not only special but a special bargain. It made my “Saturday Drive” around Lake Tahoe, to Virginia City and at the Wild West Motorsports Park one of my best ever.



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