Ram executives are having some fun. Making their own action movies. Teasing the faithful a little. And why shouldn’t they? They’ve had a strong 2024.
The company released an updated version of its best-selling Ram 1500 that seems likely to compete for awards and solidify its place on the podium of America’s top three best-selling vehicles. The remake includes a new luxury truck, the Ram Tungsten, and a unique plug-in hybrid Ramcharger that steals a page from train technology to out-tow other electrified trucks.
Then, they showed off a garage full of off-road variants, including a tenth-anniversary Rebel, a new Warlock, and an updated Power Wagon. They sadly announced the demise of the TRX supertruck, complete with a “final edition.”
But they showed off a nice, less-expensive alternative they called the new range-topper. Advertising its incredible “horsepower per dollar,” they gave us the impressive Ram RHO.
I believed them. Some, however, didn’t buy it. Here, I must particularly credit KBB Senior Editor Matt Degen. He edited my story on the RHO and encouraged me to call it not a TRX replacement but a “placeholder.”
Matt was right. The TRX is coming back. How do we know? Thanks to the weirdest set of sources we’ve ever had the chance to cite — a mock action movie and LinkedIn. We’ll explain.
Ram Studios’ Latest Blockbuster
Ram capped off its big truck announcements with a cheeky YouTube video edited like an installment in an action movie franchise. It’s called “The Convoy.”
CEO Tim Kuniskis – more game for a bit of fun than any other auto industry leader – stars as the grizzled leader of some shadowy automotive intelligence squad in the desert.
He handles a radio, guiding a team of drivers, including actor Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) and rally racer Tanner Foust, as they deliver some trucks. The movie’s a little short on bad guys.
But, at one point, a pair of motorcycles appears. One wears the race number 540. The other is unlabeled.
LinkedIn Clarification
The reference might be too subtle for some, so Ram Head of Advertising Jeff Summers took to LinkedIn to ensure we wouldn’t miss it. In a lengthy post, he explained the film. 540, he wrote, was a reference to the 540 horsepower of the RHO’s turbocharged inline-6-cylinder engine.
That other bike? That one was “intentionally left blank for the next Ram High HP vehicle with three letters.”
We’re willing to bet that means a TRX is on the way.
When Kuniskis announced the RHO, he told me the TRX name wasn’t gone; it was just “on the shelf for a while.”
Nobody ever seems to know what a while is. But, with Ram dropping hints just days after revealing the RHO, we’re guessing the wait for a new TRX will be a short while.
