It's been close to six months since the glorious RAM 1500 TRX came out, and it looks as though the enthusiasm around the Hellcat-powered truck hasn't died out at all during this time.
It's a 702 hp supercharged truck, so why should it die? However, the TRX's honeymoon is about to be over as Ford announced a reveal date for its all-new 2021 Ford F-150 Raptor, and an upgrade to a V8 engine is imminent. Oh, you want to know the date: it's February the third, or you can just call it "tomorrow."
It is going to be the day many heartbroken Ford fans have been waiting for ever since the TRX stole the Raptor's thunder. The Ford performance truck has mostly been the only real option in the segment for a long time, and even managed to do it with just a V6 engine lately. Granted, it was one of the better ones: a 3.5-liter EcoBoost unit developing 450 hp and 510 lb-ft (690 Nm) of torque.
However, it was never going to stand a chance against RAM's competitor, considering the latter received an engine that's known mostly for its antics at the drag strip. The 6.2-liter supercharged V8 in the TRX can put out up to 840 hp (in the Dodge Challenger Demon), but in the truck, it had to settle for "just" 702. However, that's still enough to give the behemoth of a vehicle a sub-five-second 0-62 mph (0-100 km/h) sprint time, which is simply ridiculous; especially if you consider that it wouldn't take it much longer to hit the benchmark speed on all kinds of terrains, not just asphalt.
The real question now is whether you should settle for a bird in the hand - that would be the TRX - or wait for the two in the bush - the upcoming Ford F-150 Raptor. Until we know for sure what the newcomer brings to the table, no one can really formulate a clear answer.
It's generally accepted that Ford's V8-powered Raptor will come with more power than the RAM - the whole launch wouldn't make any sense if it didn't. However, it's not all about that. The clip below does a very good job of dissecting the TRX, and if you're interested to know more about the model's off-road capabilities, search our website, and you'll find plenty of information and footage. What you need to know is this: it can take a beating.
Apart from power and performance, two more aspects can swing the balance one way or the other: price and availability. We will know more - if not everything - tomorrow after the 2021 Ford F-150 Raptor presentation will have concluded. For the time being, here's a breakdown of the vehicle you can, theoretically, go out and buy today.
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