Trucks are whatever the customer wants them to be. Strictly work/construction? Check. Convenience hauling stuff? Check. Full Zoot luxury vehicles, check there too. People can do whatever they want with them. I love pickups but I'd rather have the enclosed SUV space like in the LX and GMC.

The fact that my trucks get 12-13MPG around town, well I don't lose any sleep over it lol.

 

I used mine to pick up groceries this morning. It's been a great daily driver and for typical light homeowner use during the past quarter century. The ride is smoother than most passenger vehicles, quiet too. Never expected higher MPG than the window sticker but it has always outperformed (about 17mpg avg) those estimates. Most importantly, both my dogs have loved riding shotgun.

 

saw some trucks doing some work the other day…in Toronto

 

the hurricane engine doesnt even make better mpg either, it makes at best the same mpg. Get on the boost though and mpg is going to tank. A tale as old as time for every turbo motor trying to replace a bigger NA motor

 

The hurricane motors are some crazy engines in terms of perform over the hemi, but that family engines is pushing sometimes specific output that outclasses the s58 (the hurricane 4).

not gonna say it, but hopefully they got some good engineers on that program, maybe some from the makers of the s58 or else....

 

yea but check out the crate motor prices for the various engines. Hurricane needs several more years to prove itself. They had issues on the wagoneers and some were fixed when put in the Ram. Hemi is really easy to work on, have fun with all the complexity on a turbo motor.

If you want another example from Dodge MSRP crate engine prices:
3.6 V6 Pentastar - $7645
5.7 V8 Hemi - $7495 (yes its cheaper than the pentastar)
6.4 V8 392 Hemi - $9600
3.0 Hurricane SO - $10495
3.0 Hurricane HO - $13745

Hurricane motor is not cheap

 

As it should be for a brand new motor family for Stellantis. I assume it was the same way when the Hemi was launched back in 2003?

 

Of course a newer more sophisticated engine is going to be more expensive.

 

Was at the dealer yesterday to have the oil changed in the Pacifica. On display was a new '25 Ram crew in Limited trim with an $85,000 sticker - yikes! It had a tag on it touting a $16,000 discount for a net of $69,000.

 

I can buy a lot of gas for $6000, and its not like the hurricane makes better mpg. Then people complain about vehicles are getting more expensive.. I compared limited trims from 2024 to 2025. The only difference was the loss of Hemi. The MSRP went up $5000 just between those years.

 

Well, you aren't buying crate motors. Again, of course the newer more sophisticated engine is more expensive. The Hurricane is also more powerful by a considerable margin. 540 hp in the HO vs 395 in the Hemi. Lets also not pretend the Hemi V8 has a reputation for reliability, it doesn't.

If I were buying one of these trucks, I would have a hard time choosing the Hemi over the Hurricane being used to FI myself.

 

I hope you at least get a 3/4 ton truck for $69k

And it's still too much.

 

This is what I'm talking about with the fools that work for the magazines... like Motor Trend.

They just completely forget that EMOTION is a very real thing that matters to many of us.

Here they are poo-pooing the Hemi... The fact that they have the NERVE to bring up virtue signaling?????

Signaling your virtues is no bad thing, but the phrase “virtue signaling” has taken on a negative connotation in recent years, as it’s come to imply empty posturing. As much as we like our defending Truck of the Year, adding the V-8 back in the manner Stellantis has chosen for the 2026 Ram 1500 feels more like pandering to, and virtue signaling for, truck guys.

In case you haven't been following the saga, here’s the brief backstory. When the second Trump administration cut the fine for failing to meet corporate fleet fuel economy standards to zero, Ram, which had just removed the V-8 from its lineup, made an abrupt about-face.
The result is the return of the 5.7-liter eTorque mild hybrid Hemi V-8 in the 1500. While notable engineering resources and talent were expended to make the old engine play with the new electrical architecture Ram introduced last year, the engine itself is completely unchanged. It makes the same 395 hp and 410 lb-ft of torque and is still assisted by a belt-driven electric motor adding up to 130 lb-ft of direct assistance at low rpm (which does not alter the peak torque figure).

Ram has treated this whole situation as a victory lap, leaning heavily into themes of patriotism, freedom of expression, and nostalgia as it touts the return of the V-8, going so far as to give it a special fender badge (a V-8 engine with a ram’s head) called the “Symbol of Protest.” What, exactly, it’s protesting is a mystery to us. This whole mess was the result of bad decisions that corporate parent Stellantis made, as both Ford and GM figured out how to keep V-8s in their cars and trucks while still meeting fuel economy requirements.

It's not as if Ram is handing V-8s out like candy, either. The Hemi can only be ordered in Crew Cab configuration with a 5-foot-7-inch bed and four-wheel drive, and it isn’t available for the RHO off-road model or the Tungsten luxury trim. In fact, in half of the trim levels it is available for, it’s a $2,895 option. That's $1,200 more than the Ram’s Hurricane twin-turbo I-6, which is more powerful, gets better fuel economy, is quicker, carries more payload, and tows heavier trailers. In two more trims where the I-6 is standard, the V-8 is a $1,200 option. In fact, only the two most expensive trims it’s available in offer the V-8 as a no-cost option.

Add it all up, and you’re paying more for a less capable engine that costs you more in fuel, but in fairness, it sounds absolutely badass. Credit the standard performance exhaust on all V-8 models, and spare a thought for the 33-gallon fuel tank also packaged with the V-8, which will see fewer but more costly fill-ups.

To be sure the specs match the experience, we brought along an I-6 truck and drove both empty, then with 1,000 pounds in each bed, and then towing a 6,900-pound boat and trailer. In every case, the V-8 was working significantly harder, often revving higher and running a gear or two lower to do the same job. On the plus side, the V-8 provided noticeably better engine braking when tow/haul mode was selected than the I-6.

Plain and simple, if you want to do truck stuff, the I-6 is the better engine across the board. Paying more and getting less just so you can say you have a V-8 and hear that admittedly bitchin' soundtrack is, frankly, automotive virtue signaling—and that doesn’t win awards.

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I just don't think so. We want the V8 because we are stubborn Americans and they made a mistake. We don't have to give a legit reason other than "we want it". People are lining up for an engine that's 125hp less powerful.

More V8s are returning as well. Can't they just shut up and pretend they didn't say all the ludicrous things they said? They were wrong.

 

DING DING DING!!

I told myself I would never buy another Tundra with the 5.7 V8 but looking at the issues from the 3rd gen Tundra combined with a nearly $80k price tag I passed and picked up another Tundra with the V8.

However if I got a wild hair to get a 3rd gen Tundra today it would be a used one that has an open recall for engine replacement. 2 engines for the price of 1. From what I’ve read, you can put off getting the engine replaced until you’re ready or need it.

 

You bought another Tundra? How many miles on this one?