Photo: Abimelec Arellano on Instagram
The predecessor of the Durango, Ramcharger was Dodge’s idea of a full-size SUV for 27 years. Twinned with the Plymouth Trail Duster, the body-on-frame utility vehicle was always related to the Ram line of trucks.
Also known as the Rhino during development, the now-classic Ramcharger could be had with anything from an inline-six with 3.7 liters of displacement to the RB series 440 engine with 7.2 liters and a cast-iron block. As the years passed, engine options whittled down to the 5.2- and a 5.9-liter Magnum V8.
Even though the latest incarnation – built from 1999 to 2001 in Mexico – started life as a Quad Cab pickup truck, the Ramcharger’s days were numbered. Two-door sport utility vehicles were no longer popular, and the antiquated underpinnings were no match for the first-gen Durango.
However, take a look through the classifieds at the price points of the K5 Blazer and original Bronco. The Ramcharger is one of those no-nonsense SUVs, and slowly but steadily, it’s coming back in fashion like its siblings.
Automotive concepts and design artist Abimelec Arellano likes the oldtimer so much that he reimagined the Ramcharger “with racing tires, center-lock wheels, a roll cage, side pipes, and all the unnecessary trim off.” The pro-touring restomod before your eyes is a proper racing machine, a rendering that begs to be morphed into the real deal.
“I still have to dream up a drivetrain for this, perhaps a big, old-school 440 would be the right soundtrack for this look.” The 7.2-liter RB churns out up to 390 horsepower (395 PS) and 490 pound-feet (664 Nm) of torque.
The 440 soldiers on as a small-block stroker – the Super Commando. Based on a 340 and priced at $13,800 or thereabouts, the crate motor is rated at 530 horsepower (537 PS) and 540 pound-feet (732 Nm) of tire-shredding torque.
That should be enough for a stripped-out Ramcharger, don’t you think?
Even though the latest incarnation – built from 1999 to 2001 in Mexico – started life as a Quad Cab pickup truck, the Ramcharger’s days were numbered. Two-door sport utility vehicles were no longer popular, and the antiquated underpinnings were no match for the first-gen Durango.
However, take a look through the classifieds at the price points of the K5 Blazer and original Bronco. The Ramcharger is one of those no-nonsense SUVs, and slowly but steadily, it’s coming back in fashion like its siblings.
Automotive concepts and design artist Abimelec Arellano likes the oldtimer so much that he reimagined the Ramcharger “with racing tires, center-lock wheels, a roll cage, side pipes, and all the unnecessary trim off.” The pro-touring restomod before your eyes is a proper racing machine, a rendering that begs to be morphed into the real deal.
“I still have to dream up a drivetrain for this, perhaps a big, old-school 440 would be the right soundtrack for this look.” The 7.2-liter RB churns out up to 390 horsepower (395 PS) and 490 pound-feet (664 Nm) of torque.
The 440 soldiers on as a small-block stroker – the Super Commando. Based on a 340 and priced at $13,800 or thereabouts, the crate motor is rated at 530 horsepower (537 PS) and 540 pound-feet (732 Nm) of tire-shredding torque.
That should be enough for a stripped-out Ramcharger, don’t you think?
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