New Ram 1500 pick-up truck goes on sale in Australia
Australians love their utes, and a tough new American pick-up truck has arrived in Australia and is ready to conquer the road.
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Australia has a new tough truck.
The all-new Ram 1500 pick-up truck has rolled off the assembly line and straight on to Aussie roads.
Ram Trucks are imported from the US and converted to right-hand drive in the local importer’s Melbourne factory.
The big US-style ute has undergone extensive testing overseas and locally, including a 20,000km vehicle durability test at Victoria’s Anglesea Proving Ground.
The company also took the vehicles on an around Australia trip with one of the vehicles towing its maximum weight for the entire 30,000km journey.
Ram Trucks Australia manager Jeff Barber is excited for the arrival of the new 1500 on Aussie roads.
“The all-new 1500 DT marks the culmination of a detailed planning, development, remanufacturing and testing program with our local and global partners, including Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (US),” says Barber.
“With the all-new 2500 and 3500 also arriving later this year – and some other exciting developments – 2021 looks set to be a record year for RAM Trucks Australia.”
Prices for the Ram 1500 start at $114,950 (before on-road costs) for the Laramie version and the Limited and Limited Launch Edition versions each cost $139,950.
It is a big asking price compared to smaller utes such as the Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger, but the new 1500 is well equipped.
Power comes from a 5.7-litre Hemi V8 engine making 291kW and 556Nm. The latest version is equipped with a 48-volt mild hybrid set-up, which powers several electrical features to slightly lower fuel use.
The engine also has a cylinder deactivation technology, which switches off cylinders when they aren’t needed, which again helps reduce fuel use. Ram has not revealed the 1500’s fuel use.
Towing is one of its strengths, it has a 4500kg maximum braked towing capacity.
The new 1500 comes with standard features such as a 900-watt Harman Kardon stereo with a subwoofer and active noise cancellation.
A 12-inch central display is compatible with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. There is a bird’s eye view camera to make it easier to negotiate tight spaces.
The 1500 comes with luxury items such as a panoramic sunroof and heated and cooled leather seats.
But if this doesn’t sound radical enough, there is a beefed-up TRX version on its way.
The 1500 TRX uses the giant 6.2-litre supercharged V8 engine borrowed from the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, which makes a whopping 520kW and 881Nm.
This monstrous engine can propel the big Grand Cherokee from 0-100km/h in 4.5 seconds.
The TRX is also boosted for off-roading with a 30cm increased ride height, boosted suspension and big off-road focused tyres.
Originally published as New Ram 1500 pick-up truck goes on sale in Australia
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