Roman picked up our new Ram TRX in Michigan, and he is driving it home to Colorado! FCA factory representatives told us that this is the FIRST customer-delivered TRX in the world. This is very special, but we are not going to baby this truck and put seal it in a plastic bag. This road trip spans over 1,200 miles!
This is the perfect opportunity to find out how the new TRX performs on the long haul and what fuel economy it is capable of with a brand new engine. The engine is a 6.2-liter supercharged V8 with a rating of 702 horsepower and 650 lb-ft of torque. The engine sends the power to a full-time automated 4WD system via an 8-speed automatic transmission.
Naturally, we did not purchase this long-term test truck because of its fuel economy. The EPA rates the truck at 10 MPG city / 14 MPG highway and 12 MPG combined. We purchased the truck because it’s the first super truck, and we want to put it to the ultimate one year test and compare it to many other trucks.
We also owned a 2015 Dodge Challenger Hellcat for about two years, and we have tested every other FCA vehicle with the supercharged Hellcat V8 engine. We agree that the Ram TRX is perhaps the best home for the Hellcat engine. This truck does not feel overpowered or skittish. The truck is simply fun and the powerful engine moves this truck’s 6,500 lbs of curb weight with authority. Yes, this more “basic” TRX TR1 package is still a very heavy truck.
When we configured the truck, we aimed to get one of the more affordable TRXs. In the end, we really wanted a towing package, heated seats, a bed liner, and a couple of other “small” things. In the end, the sticker price on our TRX is $77,095. Ironically, this is basically the identical price that we recently paid for our long-term fully-optioned 2020 Ford Raptor.
The TRX is equipped with a 33-gallon fuel tank, which is not the largest in the segment. The Raptor has a 36-gallon tank, and the current Toyota Tundra offers a 38-gallon behemoth.
Spoiler alert: in the end, Roman measured 10.8 MPG on a 240.8 mile stretch of highway between Iowa and Nebraska. This is going at the 75 MPG speed limit in somewhat windy conditions that are typical for that area. This is not close to the EPA-estimated 14 MPG on the highway, but this is still a brand new truck. Even this 10.8 MPG result allows for a maximum driving range of close to 350 miles, which is reasonable for a truck with this much power.
