2025 Ram 1500 Limited review

It’s a tried and true formula. Take one big American full-size pick-up truck and cram as much V8 under the bonnet as you can muster. It’s a recipe as old as pick-up trucks themselves, and one that has served the segment for decades.

So what happens when Ram ditches its hero V8 engine and transplants a lusty inline six-cylinder under the bonnet instead?

Ram Trucks Australia can be credited with the pick-up revolution in Australia. As the first to remanufacture American-imported metal from left- to right-hand drive at any kind of meaningful scale, Ram tapped into the pick-up market like never before.

A lot of the credit must go to local importer Ateco and its tie-up with Walkinshaw Automotive, a marriage that has seen some 25,000 of the big American trucks walk down the aisle with buyers in Australia.

Controversially, Ram ditched the Hemi V8 from its line-up in the US around 18 months ago, and in its place is a turbocharged inline six with more power and more torque than the outgoing 5.7-litre V8.

It’s the engine now serving the Australian market, and while Ram in the US has confirmed it will bring back the V8, admitting that it “screwed up” in ditching the hero engine, there are no guarantees that Australia will get the reborn powertrain in the future.

That leaves the ‘Hurricane’ straight six on its own to fly the Ram flag in Australia. And it does so with a highly specified, three-variant range.

Things get underway with the $141,950 (before on-road costs) Laramie Sport. It’s powered by a ‘Standard Output’ Hurricane inline six developing 313kW/635Nm, some 22kW/79Nm more than the old Hemi V8.

The same Standard Output engine does the heavy lifting in the newest addition to the Ram 1500 line-up, the $141,950 Ram 1500 Rebel, an off-road-focused variant with bigger tyres, lifted suspension, Bilstein off-road shocks and an increased payload capacity. Think Ford Ranger Raptor, but bigger.

Then there’s the truck we have on test here, the flagship Ram 1500 Limited, priced from $159,500 before on-road costs. It brings not just extra equipment befitting a range-topper, but also a more powerful ‘High Output’ inline-six making 403kW and 707Nm.

The cylinder count might be down over the older model, but this new Hurricane six in High Output trim makes an astonishing 112kW and 151Nm more than the Hemi V8 it replaces.

All three variants are generously equipped with a 14.4-inch infotainment touchscreen with wireless and wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 12-inch digital instrument display, heated and ventilated front seats, heated outer rear seats, a 19-speaker Harman Kardon sound system, dual-pane panoramic sunroof, heated steering wheel, LED head- and tail-lights, spray-in tub liner, and a powered tailgate.

The Laramie Sport adds black leather seat upholstery, powered side steps, the RamBox cargo management system, tri-folding tonneau cover, LED ambient lighting and body-coloured door handles.

But it’s the flagship Ram 1500 Limited we have here and, as well as the higher-output turbo six, stepping into the range-topper brings a swathe of creature comforts and refinements.

Sitting on 22-inch alloy wheels (the Laramie wears 20s, and the Rebel 18s), the Limited is fitted with three-mode (normal, aero and off-road) air suspension, an electronic rear differential, a bigger 125-litre fuel tank (both the Laramie and Rebel feature a 98-litre tank), animated-on-unlock LED head- and tail-lights, massaging front seats, ventilated outer rear seats, and a surround-view camera.

Certainly, park any notions of American style pick-up trucks serving purely as utilitarian vehicles in Australia. Make no mistake, these are primed for family and lifestyle duties.

Rivals are obvious, and growing in scope by the month it seems.

Of its competitive set in Australia, only the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 continues with V8 petrol power. It’s priced from $130,500 to $138,000, while the Silverado 2500 and its stonking 6.6-litre diesel V8 starts from $166,500.

The Ford F-150 range is underpinned by the Blue Oval’s 3.5-litre Ecoboost V6 and starts from $106,950, topping out at $140,945.

The Toyota Tundra, the newest local entrant to the pick-up truck segment, brings the Japanese brand’s famed hybrid technology to its 3.5-litre V6 petrol but it comes at a premium, with the most affordable Tundra starting from $155,990 before maxing out at $172,990.

Interestingly, despite giving away displacement and cylinder count to the Silverado’s V8, the inline six in this Limited spec is more powerful and with more torque. It also bests the V6 in the F-150, while the Toyota’s hybrid V6 gives way to the Ram 1500 Limited in power but trumps it in the torque department.

Big pick-ups need big horses, and on paper the Ram’s High Output inline six is up there near the top of the pecking order.

Big and comfortable are the best words to describe the Ram 1500’s interior, which impresses at first sight and continues to impress once you’ve navigated the standard-fit powered side steps to gain access to the cabin.

Make no mistake, this is a big pick-up truck by Australian standards and that size pays big dividends inside. It is, in a word, huge, and that plays out most visibly with the centre console, akin to a small table rather than just a place to rest your elbows.

The conversion from left- to right-hand drive is a testament to the investment that both Ateco (Ram’s Australian distributor) and Walkinshaw Automotive (the engineering team behind the conversion) have made. Build quality is excellent, with no hint that this pick-up once started life designed for driving on the left side of the road.

The materials are top-notch too, with acres of leather, miles of contrast stitching and piping, adding to a general feeling of plushness and quality throughout.

The front seats are power adjustable, heated and cooled and with massage functions, are supremely comfortable and ideal for the kinds of long-distance touring that some (many?) of these pick-ups will be required to undertake.

Woodgrain inlays are plentiful throughout, and while sometimes these types of accents can stray into chintzy territory, in this application they just work, adding to the overall premium experience in the cabin.

Amenities are plentiful. After all, Americans demand practicality from their daily drivers and the Ram 1500 is no different.

Aside from that massive centre console, which reveals a shallow storage area, ideal for wallets, keys and phones, there are plenty of cupholders, big door pockets that can accommodate even larger drink bottles, a pair of wireless smartphone charging pads, and the obligatory glovebox.

The second row mirrors the first in many ways, with a commanding amount of space for back-seat occupants. Three adults across is not a stretch, with those not quick enough on the ‘shotgun’ call able to console themselves with reclining seatbacks, heated and cooled outboard seats, and a general feeling of roominess that’s hard to match in any segment.

Amenities in row two include cupholders at the rear of the centre console, with two additional cupholders in the fold-down armrest. The doors, like they do up front, can take larger bottles, while an additional, albeit small, storage area higher up on the door cards is perfect for wallets and phones.

Interestingly, despite its range-topping positioning, second-row passengers in the Limited are only treated to air vents, with no separate climate controls on offer.

Highlighting the Ram 1500’s utility, lifting the rubber floor mats in the second row reveals tie-down hooks as well as two lidded cubbies located in the floor. Lilting the lid reveals a shallow but serviceable storage area for smaller items and valuables.

Additionally, the rear bench folds upwards to free up more storage space, complete with a moveable divider that keeps bulky items secure.

The useful RamBox storage system brings a total of 210 litres of capacity across both sides, which is ideal for tradies looking to secure smaller tools and the like. It does come at cost in tray width, however, stopping the tape at 1270mm against 1295mm for variants, such as the Rebel, not fitted with the clever storage solution.

The 543mm deep tray remains useful, though, while nice touches such as the spray-in bedliner, tri-fold tonneau cover, and powered tailgate, along with the moveable divider and a series of hooks and tie-down points add to the utility.

A big, portrait-oriented 14.4-inch touchscreen hosts the infotainment system. It runs Ram’s native Uconnect 5 operating system. There’s native satellite navigation as well as wireless and wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

The native system is easy to navigate and responsive to inputs. An array of shortcut buttons across the bottom of the screen bring up the most commonly used features.

Helpfully, climate controls are accessed via a series of physical buttons on either side of the screen, which are much more useful than today’s predilection for hiding them within menus and submenus in the infotainment system.

Physical volume and tuning dials are also a welcome inclusion.

The 19-speaker Harman Kardon audio system is a ripper with big, crystal clear sound that fills the cabin with concert-like acoustics.

I used Apple CarPlay, both wirelessly and via a USB cable, for most of my time with the big pick-up and found it faultless throughout, quick to pair, quicker still to re-connect and with a stable connection. That’s not always a given in today’s new car landscape.

If you love connecting your phone via a cable, you won’t be disappointed, with three USB Type A and three USB Type C in the front row, supplemented by another two USB Type C and two Type A connections in row two.

The front row also scores a HDMI to USB Type C connection that allows passengers to hook up their smartphone to the secondary 10.25-inch infotainment screen located on the passenger side. From there they can watch videos, plot route guidance on the native sat-nav (which then projects on the main screen for the driver) as well as an array of other functions. It’s protected by a privacy film, meaning the driver will not be distracted by the contents on the screen.

Adding to the in-car tech, a 12-inch digital instrument display can be configured to show various useful data, including full-screen mapping, a variety of trip and driving data or, if you prefer, traditional-looking dials.

The Ram 1500 range has not been tested by Australia’s independent safety body ANCAP and as such remains unrated.

The 1500 Limited scores Ram’s full suite of active safety and advanced driver assist systems detailed in the table below.

I didn’t experience any overly eager interventions on any of the systems, which provided gentle feedback rather than the urgent tugging of some technologies across multiple brands.

Interestingly, the Ram 1500 Limited is fitted with a choice of cruise-control options – regular and adaptive – offering drivers a greater choice across a broader range of driving scenarios, according to Ram.

Regular cruise control maintains the set speed without any interventions, while adaptive also maintains set speeds but ‘adapts’ to the traffic conditions, automatically adjusting speed to maintain a set distance to traffic ahead.

A suite of six airbags covers both rows of occupants.

Ram Australia warrants the 1500 range with a three-year/100,000km warranty, which is on the skinny side both in terms of time and distance. Chevrolet offers the same warranty on its range of Silverado pick-ups, leaving Ford and Toyota out front with their respective five-year/unlimited-kilometre surety on the F-150 and Tundra.

Service intervals are spaced at 12 months or 12,000km, whichever comes first. Ram Australia does not currently offer any prepaid servicing packages nor is there an assured-price program of any kind with costs calculated at the time of service depending on the scope of service.

Toyota offers a five-year servicing plan for its Tundra pick-up priced at $4500, while Ford remains the most affordable with 12-month/15,000km intervals and the first four visits to the workshop costing $429 each, the fifth slightly less at $365. Ford also sells a pre-paid five-year service pack that costs $1968.

Annual comprehensive insurance premiums run to $5625 based on a comparative quote for a 35-year-old male living in Chatswood, NSW. Insurance estimates may vary based on your location, driving history, and personal circumstances.

For context, the Chevrolet Silverado LTZ asks for $4216 in annual premiums, while the Toyota Tundra will cost $5102 to insure for 12 months.

Ram reckons the Limited 1500 and its ‘high output’ inline six-cylinder will get by on 11.8 litres per 100 kilometres on the combined cycled, which is a blend of urban and highway driving.

My time with the Limited saw an indicated 16.0L/100km achieved over a week of city driving, suburban cruising and long highway lopes. The lowest I saw was 15.2L/100km after a long stretch on Sydney’s motorways.

The fuel tank measures in at 125 litres, which is an increase over the 98-litre tank found in Rebel and Laramie Sport variants.

Based on our testing that gives the Limited a range of around 780km. Ram quotes a theoretical range of 1059km.

All Ram 1500s require 95-octane premium unleaded as a minimum.

It might have dropped two cylinders, but there’s no doubt this new turbocharged six-cylinder Ram 1500 is, at the very least, the equal of its forebear.

As the top dog in the range, the 1500 Limited’s ‘High Output’, or ‘HO’, turbo six – dubbed Hurricane – makes an astonishing 403kW and 707Nm, some 112kW and 151Nm more than the Hemi V8 of its predecessor. Drive is sent to all four wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission.

Sure, the thunderous bellow of the Hemi V8 may no longer play its accompanying soundtrack, but that hasn’t diminished the experience behind the wheel.

More power and more torque equal better performance, and the 1500 Limited excels with a driving experience that’s as lazy as it is powerful.

It feels relaxed around town, the inline six barely ticking over at urban speeds with a distant rumble from the under the bonnet remaining muted.

Acceleration is smooth and powerful, as you’d expect from such a vehicle, even one as big and heavy as the Ram 1500.

Up the ante for a freeway merge and the 1500 comes alive, surging forward with an accompanying growl at a rate far greater than anyone might rightly expect from a pick-up of this size. Previous testing at Lang Lang’s proving ground in Victoria noted a 0–100km/h time around 5.5 seconds. This is in a pick-up weighing 2722kg (kerb).

Once at cruising speeds, though, everything settles into a comfortable and easy rhythm, with the benefit of that lusty torque on tap never far away.

The eight-speed auto is slick too, rifling through the cogs crisply to provide smooth power delivery and harness the prodigious outputs of the ‘Hurricane’ six.

The 1500 Limited ditches the Laramie Sport’s steel springs for adaptive air suspension, and it pays off on the road with excellent damping, ironing out patchy road surfaces with aplomb.

The Active-Ride Four-Corner Air Suspension serves a variety of masters, adjusting ride height on the go depending on driving conditions. At highway speeds, the 1500’s ride is lowered for improved aerodynamic efficiency (and thus fuel savings).

Hanging a big load off the back will result in the air suspension levelling out the ride height, while off-road running jacks up the suspension for greater ground clearance. Those who choose to do so can manually override the Active-Ride via one pf three selectable suspension modes – normal, aero and off-road.

On the road, there’s no hiding the 1500’s bulk which, at first, feels large and cumbersome. But it doesn't take long for the Ram to shrink around you, and once you become accustomed to its sheer size, things get a lot more comfortable. You do need to adjust your driving style just a little, taking wider lines through corners, for instance, but light and accurate steering brings a surprising level of manoeuvrability to the Ram 1500 party.

I didn’t get the chance to take the Ram 1500 Limited off-road during my time with the big lug. There are goodies like on-demand four-wheel drive, and a lockable electro-mechanical rear differential, not to mention the adaptive air suspension including an off-road mode, which suggest the 1500 Limited is capable. But sitting on 22-inch wheels with slim-walled tyres is probably not the best companion for your next off-road adventure.

The added goodies afforded the top-spec Ram 1500 come at a cost to towing, with this Limited variant quoting a 4200kg braked capacity, down 300kg on both Rebel and Laramie Sport variants (4500kg/750kg).

Its payload has also taken a hit, rated at 782kg against the Laramie’s 863kg and the Rebel’s 893kg. With the Limited tipping the scales at 2722kg (kerb) and with a payload of 782kg, the gross vehicle mass runs to 3505kg.

But arguably, the more important number to consider when towing is the gross combination mass (GCM), which is the maximum allowable weight of the vehicle including people, cargo, and whatever is being towed. Here it is 7285kg.

That means with a maximum allowable 4200kg out back, the remaining payload shrinks to just 363kg that has to accommodate any people and cargo loaded into the Ram.

Realistically, the towing sweet spot isn’t at the upper end of its capacity. Hauling a 3500kg trailer, for instance, doesn’t impact payload and will see the 1500 Limited come in well under its GCM.

For anyone needing to tow regularly or tour this vast nation in effortless comfort, then the Ram 1500 ticks an awful lot of boxes.

But it’s also fair to suggest American pick-up trucks, like the Ram 1500, aren’t for everyone. If you’re an inner-city dweller, then the Ram’s sheer size will prove challenging in navigating your day-to-day life. But as Ram Australia’s research has shown, the majority of buyers don’t live on the streets of Newtown or Fitzroy. Instead, they congregate in the outer suburbs on the urban fringe, or in rural areas – the ideal canvas for the Ram 1500, in other words.

The switch to turbocharged six-cylinder power has improved the breed, with a more powerful driving experience wrapped up in an effortless mien. Sure, the engine isn’t as characterful as the heroic Hemi of old, but it represents a step forward for a pick-up truck that was already near the top of its game.

Rob Margeit is an award-winning Australian motoring journalist and editor who has been writing about cars and motorsport for over 25 years. A former editor of Australian Auto Action, Rob’s work has also appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, Wheels, Motor Magazine, Street Machine and Top Gear Australia. Rob’s current rides include a 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class and a 2000 Honda HR-V Sport.

Read more about Rob Margeit