The least interesting thing about our 2021 MotorTrend Truck of the Year is that it’s powered by a 702-hp supercharged V-8.
The 2021 Ram 1500 TRX is a truck that resets the standard of what’s possible. It is a game-changer, both on and off-road: a truck equally capable towing and hauling as it is ripping donuts in a field or whipping sports cars in drag races. The TRX is not just the 2021 MotorTrend Truck of the Year— the unprecedented third consecutive time Ram has won—but the new benchmark that all super trucks must beat.
At its core, the Ram 1500 TRX is an engineering exercise, and a remarkably impressive one, at that. Although the TRX shares its 1500 badge with our 2019 Truck of the Year, truthfully it’s easier to point out the few similarities than the differences.
The extensive reimagining that the Ram team did to create the TRX started with its chassis. Although the TRX is nominally related to the 1500, Ram engineers modified 74 percent of the frame in order to meet the ambitious goal of making the TRX the ultimate go-anywhere performance vehicle. The TRX’s frame is thicker, shaped differently, and boxed, and it uses more high-strength steel to ensure this Ram can avoid the fate that befell many early Ford F-150 Raptors—bent frames from off-road jumps.
The new frame also allowed the Ram team to modify the axles and suspension mounting points to support the TRX’s street-legal trophy-truck mission. The front axle shifted forward to help fit 35-inch Goodyear Territory All-Terrain tires (custom specced for the Ram) on 18-inch wheels, and the beefy Dana M250 rear axle is mounted to the chassis via new five-link rear suspension mounting points. Thanks to the new axles and tires, track width increased by 6.0 inches versus the standard 1500.
Denne historien er fra February 2021-utgaven av Motor Trend.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra February 2021-utgaven av Motor Trend.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
2023 GMC Canyon
MC, the luxe-truck division of General Motors, has long struggled to differentiate its products from mechanically similar Chevrolets.
2023 Ford F-Series Super Duty
The heavy-duty truck world moves more slowly than other pickup classes, and progress comes in spurts. Take the Ford F-Series Super Duty, whose recent refresh included softer-edged styling, a new entry-level gas-fed V-8, a new high-output 6.7-liter turbodiesel V-8, and myriad small improvements like new bedside steps. Is it still basically the same truck as before? Absolutely, but it’s also a better Super Duty, however incrementally.
2024 Chevrolet Silverado HD
When Chevrolet unveiled its all-new 2020 Silverado HD lineup, it set the truck world ablaze, and not in a good way.
THE CHEVROLET COLORADO IS THE 2024 MOTORTREND TRUCK OF THE YEAR
A BROAD LINEUP DELIVERS AN IMPRESSIVE RANGE OF OFF-ROAD CAPABILITY WITHOUT COMPROMISE TO EVERYDAY LIVABILITY
HOW MUCH DO YOU LOVE THE 80?!
THE FIRST-GENERATION NISSAN PATHFINDER IS AN SUV THROWBACK TO A TOTALLY RAD TIME, FOR SURE
BAVARIAN ECONS 2002te
THIS ELECTRIC BMW RESTOMOD LOSES ITS ENGINE BUT NOT ITS SOUL
2023 PORSCHE 911 GT3 RS FIRST TEST
PORSCHE'S MOST FOCUSED 911 OF ALL TIME MUST BE EXPERIENCED AT ITS LIMITS TO BE UNDERSTOOD
2024 TRUCK OF THE YEAR MADE IN MICHIGAN
AFTER DECADES IN THE WEST, TRUCK OF THE YEAR MOVES TO MICHIGAN
YOUR ICON OF ICONS: CHEVROLET CORVETTE
Was there ever any doubt? MotorTrend readers are largely American, and as much as we love Jeeps, Mustangs, and F-150s in this country, the Corvette has been “America’s sports car” for nearly as long as this publication has existed. That’s why you chose it via our online vote as the most iconic car of the past 75 years.
MOTORTREND CELEBRATES 75 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE
The 10 Most Iconic Vehicles of Our Time and Much More