2025 Ram 1500 adds 'unlimited' range Ramcharger EV and Hurricane I6 power
The Ram 1500 has gone from being the newest (and nicest) pickup on the market to the oldest in the space of just a few short years. The Stellantis truck build is looking to leapfrog the competition yet again for the 2025 model year, bringing new turbocharged, six-cylinder engines in place of the old iron-block Hemis and introducing a range-extended electric model with a bladder-busting 690 miles of total theoretical range — and you never have to visit a charging station if you don’t want to.
Put another way (and Ram did in its announcement, multiple times): the range on the 2025 Ram 1500 Ramcharger is effectively unlimited. Thanks to its onboard generator (which looks like, sounds like and in fact is simply a 3.6-liter Pentastar V6), there’s no such thing as a dead drive battery unless you run out of gas. In the words of Ram brand CEO Tim Kuniskis: “Range anxiety, gone.”
As for the standard battery-powered Ram REV, we’ve already seen the details.
The Ramcharger should be able to dismiss just about any performance anxiety, in fact. On top of its 690-mile effective range, Ram says the new electric truck will produce 663 horsepower and 615 lb.-ft of torque. That should be good enough to propel it to 60 mph in just 4.4 seconds — just 2/10ths slower than a Dodge Challenger Scat Pack. Power comes from dual motors. The front unit produces 250 kW (335 horsepower) and the rear another 238 kW (320 hp). They’re fed by that Pentastar V6, which serves as a 130-kilowatt generator mated to the 92-kWh battery pack.
Most important, this is not a hybrid. Sure, it has both gasoline and electric motivators under all that sheetmetal, but only the electric motors can drive the axles. The 3.6-liter Pentastar is exclusively fitted to act as a generator for the battery pack, and there is no physical output from the engine that can turn the Ramcharger’s wheels. For all intents and purposes (and importantly, compliance with government mandates), this is battery EV.
But don’t worry, it’s still a truck. In fact, with a max tow rating of 14,000 pounds (class V), it even out-pulls the outgoing gasoline-powered Ram 1500, which offers max trailering of just 12,750 pounds. That’s paired with a 2,625-pound payload capacity. Even with that huge, heavy battery pack, this thing can haul a lot of mulch.
While that may be the biggest news for the 2025 Ram lineup, that’s not the end of it. In any other year, the death of the Hemi V8 would be a headline-dominating piece of information, but ironically drowned out by the silent Ramcharger. That the 5.7- and 6.4-liter Hemi V8s are being thrown out in favor of Ram’s new Hurricane inline-six engine is certainly significant, but it’s just not that much of a surprise. The rollout of the Hurricane I6 started with the volume-driven Jeep Grand Cherokee and the upmarket Jeep Wagoneer. We’ll get both variants in the Ram, in addition to the returning 3.6-liter Hemi V6. No V8 or diesel will be offered in the 1500 for 2025. That’s right; no V8, TRX included. For now, that sub-model is “shelved,” in Ram’s words.
The 3.0-liter Hurricane engine is rated at 420 horsepower and 469 lb.-ft. of torque, while the High Output engine is rated at 540 hp and 521 lb.-ft. of torque. Ram says the 2025 Ram 1500 maxes out at 11,580 pounds of towing capacity and a maximum payload of 2,300 pounds — both less than what you get from the Ramcharger, but still quite respectable. Ram offered no specs on the 3.6-liter Pentastar as an actual engine (as opposed to a generator), but it’s safe to assume it carries over its 305 hp and 269 lb-ft of torque. If not, it should at least be in the ballpark. All three engines will be offered exclusively with the company’s TorqueFlite eight-speed automatic.
Ram says the 1500 is also getting a new rear axle for 2025. It’ll be offered in 3.21, 3.55 or 3.92:1 variants depending on your engine and towing selections; the electronic locking rear differential option also returns, which should go without saying.
Also new for 2025 is an ultra-premium trim dubbed “Tungsten,” which should help Ram nudge the 1500 into six-figure territory without help from the TRX’s supercharged 6.2-liter V8. Ram’s description reads like something out of an old Bentley brochure; in fact, you really need to read this for yourself. Check it out:
Tungsten’s Indigo/Sea Salt interior includes new platinum patina/semi-bright dual-textured metal accents featuring diamond knurling, suede-wrapped headliner, A- and B-pillars and visors, and heated and ventilated premium quilted Natura Plus leather driver and front passenger seats with 24-way power, including memory settings and a massage function, power lumbar support and four-way powered headrests. Other features that give Tungsten a well-crafted, high-quality feel and appearance include a Tungsten badge on the center console featuring inlaid metal lettering and diamond knurling, which also proudly displays the vehicle identification number (or VIN), brushed platinum patina aluminum litho bezels, a unique crystal-effect shifter center cap, an ultra-premium Klipsch Reference Premiere audio system with 23 speakers, all-new class exclusive dual wireless chargers and a metal pedal kit.
Catch all that? Good. Because we’re moving on. Other interior upgrades include revamped touchscreens (12-inch standard, 14.-5 inch configurable and 10.25-inch available on the passenger side, a la Grand Cherokee). The 2025 Ram 1500 utilizes the company’s new “Atlas” electrical architecture, which enables both all of the battery-electric shenanigans and the latest gadgets integrated into Uconnect 5, including level 2 and level 2-“plus” semi-autonomous driving suites. Ram has also integrated a customizable, full-color HUD that can display turn-by-turn navigation, current speed, current gear and speed limit along with safety alerts for Lane Departure, Lane Keep Assist and the adaptive cruise control. A 12.3-inch cluster display sits on the far side of the steering wheel.
There’s also a 1.8-kilowatt onboard inverter to power both in-cabin and in-bed accessories (similar to the low-output version of Ford’s Pro Power Onboard) and the digital rearview mirror returns with more integration into the truck’s tow/haul modes. As we learned recently, having a digital backup for such things can come in handy.
The 2025 Ram 1500 will go on sale starting next year, with the Ramcharger arriving in showrooms sometime in late Q3 or early Q4. Look for pricing and packaging details as we get closer to its on-sale date. Stay tuned.
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