The updated Ram 1500 switches from a good-old V8 to a straight-six, in part for better fuel economy.

Since the automaker launched the latest 3.0-liter Hurricane engine, it’s spent a lot of time emphasizing its power, emissions and fuel economy advantage over many naturally aspirated V8, including the tried-and-true 5.7-liter Hemi. While Andre finally had an opportunity to test the new turbocharged straight-six powertrain last month, including a towing review, official EPA numbers have been a missing piece of the puzzle. Now, those numbers have officially published: So, did all the hubbub give us better fuel mileage than the old V8 Ram 1500?

In two words: Yes…just. In fact, the rear-wheel drive Ram 1500 Standard Output delivers 19 City / 25 Highway / 21 Combined mpg. Or, to put it another way, that’s 1-2 mpg better than the 5.7-liter V8-equipped 2024 Ram 1500 (18 City / 23 Highway / 20 Combined mpg), depending on which cycle you’re looking at.

Four-wheel drive 2025 Ram 1500 models similarly compare to the outgoing truck. Getting a 4×4 loses you 1-2 mpg (for 17 City / 24 Highway / 19 Combined mpg). The city cycle is actually 1 mpg down on the old Hemi, while the highway mileage is 2 mpg better, according to the EPA ratings.

All those figures are for the base engine with 420 horsepower and 469 lb-ft of torque. You do get more grunt than the old 5.7 managed (395 horsepower and 410 lb-ft), but most buyers may well look at the fuel economy difference as a wash. At least, that’s the case on paper — your results may vary depending on your use case. The Hurricane is also available with a beefier 540 horsepower/521 lb-ft High Output variant, but that predictably gets you worse fuel mileage. For that engine, expect something like 15 City / 21 Highway / 17 Combined mpg.

Weirdly, if you’re looking for efficiency above all else, the old 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 is still where it’s at. The 2WD HFE trim manages 20 City / 26 Highway / 23 Combined mpg, though you do lose a considerable amount of power in the process. Here, you only get 305 horsepower and 269 lb-ft of torque, and that ranges from underwhelming to downright gutless depending on where and how you plan to use your truck. That 3.21 rear axle ratio helps maintain better fuel economy if you’re looking for a daily driver or occasional workhorse, but if you’re planning to tow, I’d wager the 3.0-liter Hurricane is a better option. (You can get the 3.6-liter V6 with a 3.55 on non-HFE trims, but then you diminish that fuel economy advantage…and you can spec the Hurricane with a 3.21, 3.55 or 3.92 rear axle ratio.)

How does the Ram 1500 Hurricane stack up to the competition?

With the TRX’s demise, at least we aren’t talking about a truck that gets a paltry 12 mpg combined — and good luck even getting that. You do have to make some sacrifice in the process, though, since we’re also not talking about getting 702 horsepower either (Ram may have some tricks up its sleeve with the new RHO, but we’ll have to wait and see on that one).

Among all half-ton trucks, the 2025 Ram 1500 with the Hurricane engine manages a middling to good score against the competition. It beats other V8s like Ford’s 5.0-liter Coyote and GM’s 5.3-liter and 6.2-liter EcoTec3 engines, but both of Ram’s cross-town rivals offer more efficient powerplants in their lineups, too. Class leaders in this segment are still the Ford F-150 PowerBoost (23 Combined mpg) and the Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra 1500 with the 3.0-liter Duramax turbo-diesel (26 Combined mpg).