Ask Merriam-Webster to explain the word “truck” and you’ll find this: “a wheeled vehicle for moving heavy articles, such as a strong horse-drawn or automotive vehicle (such as a pickup) for hauling.” Trucks are, by definition, made for work. However, that doesn’t mean they can’t be luxurious inside or improve their fuel efficiency, or even go with an all-electric powertrain.
Truck builder Ram is checking all those boxes with its newest iteration of its Ram 1500 pickup as a 2025 model. The 2025 Ram 1500 is offered in a choice of seven different trim levels: starting with the basic Tradesman featuring the brand’s tried-and-true V6 Pentastar engine to the top-of-the-line Tungsten with a new inline-six engine bolstered by two turbochargers, a 23-speaker Klipsch audio system, and more. Across the lineup, the new Ram 1500 includes an updated electrical architecture that communicates and responds faster, improving everything from the infotainment setup to the safety system.
And plug-in hybrid and all-electric versions of this truck are just around the corner.
Replacing the legacy V8
This generation of the Ram 1500 launched in 2019 with a brand new body style, and the brand kept the exterior mostly the same for 2025. It has a new grille and the word “Ram” is higher up on the grille, giving it a slightly taller impression. The real difference is under the hood, though. Ram dropped its traditional V8 powerplant, which is a big deal for this brand. Ford and Chevrolet still offer a V8 in their half-ton pickups, while Toyota ditched its V8 for a turbocharged V6 in 2022.
In place of the stalwart eight-cylinder engine, Ram launched its much-anticipated Hurricane. The Hurricane is an inline-six with two turbochargers in two flavors, standard and high-output, with a difference of 120 horsepower (420 hp versus 540 hp) and 52 pound-feet of torque (469 lb-ft versus 521 lb-ft) between them.
Ram isn’t rushing to replace its…
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