A 3500 with dual wheels tows heavy equipment.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
There’s an unending climb along Union Pass, an 18-kilometre stretch of the Laughlin Highway on the eastern edge of Nevada that provides a merciless test of any vehicle hauling big cargoes. Especially in summer, when temperatures exceed 38 degrees Celsius, overheated vehicles are regularly spotted at the side of the road cooling off before they continue their Sisyphean quest. Transport trucks crawl along in bottom gear in the right lane.
And it is here that the Ram people have me at the wheel of a 2025 Ram 3500 pickup lugging a trailer with a nine-tonne load at the 65-mile-an-hour (105 kilometre-an-hour) speed limit to make a point.
“Look at that temperature gauge,” exclaimed my host, Brant Combs, director of Ram North America sales operations, as he flipped through the nearly two dozen menus on the upgraded 14.5-inch infotainment screen. “It hasn’t moved.”
Indeed, this rig has been rated on this same road to be capable of pulling 15,667 kilograms, making my mere 9,000 kilograms – the equivalent of nearly five average-sized cars – feel like child’s play.
Toyota Prius owners who put the accent on feather lightness may well ask what’s the point of all this pulling power. The answer, said Doug Killian, chief vehicle synthesis manager for the truck segment at Stellantis, is that the people who need them – contractors, farmers and people who own those barn-sized vacation trailers – accept nothing less.
A Ram chassis cab with a third-party carrier on the back.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
“This is ‘the working breed,’” Killian said. “They’re happy when they’re working.”
Enhanced pulling power is one of the biggest improvements to the 2025 remake of Ram Heavy Duty trucks. With a new smooth-shifting eight-speed TorqueFlite HD automatic transmission and heavily revised Cummins diesel engine, it now can tap into 1,075 lb-ft of torque. That’s about 225 lb-ft more than the previous model, just shy of the 1,200 lb-ft maximum in Ford’s Super Duty series, and more than the Silverado/Sierra’s 975 lb-ft
Diesel engine choices have been reduced from two to one, and although the displacement has not changed from the outgoing model, this is a heavily reworked engine. The block and head are now cast iron, the pistons are heavier duty, the intake manifold has been enhanced, the turbocharger revised, intake/exhaust valves enlarged for improved port flow and pressure increased in the fuel system. Contractors and farmers who need to fire the truck up on frigid mornings will also appreciate the addition of glow plugs.
The gasoline engine is Stellantis’s ubiquitous 6.4-litre V8 hemi. Matt Huber, senior vice-president Ram brand product, said more than 80 per cent of buyers upgrade to the diesel engine to tap into the extra pulling power. The upgrade is priced at $12,995, which includes the beefier ZF transmission.
These beasts are not known as fuel misers (consumption figures are not published), but they have what the company calls a “more fuel-efficient” 3.42 rear axle ratio, which slows the engine speed slightly at highway speeds.
Our first drive also introduced us to the more playful side of the heavy-duty line. Stellantis, Ram’s parent company, kept the same seven trim levels found in the outgoing model, ranging from the no-frills Tradesman to the plush Limited Longhorn. Two trims are aimed for rock-crawling off-road adventures. We took the Rebel and Power Wagon into the barren and unforgiving hills just outside Laughlin and found them to be absolute brutes in the rough.
The priciest Power Wagon has an integrated WARN Zeon-12 winch in the front bumper.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
The priciest trim level, the Power Wagon, is a bone-jarring $92,785 in Canada. But that outlay delivers a raft of goodies, including an integrated WARN Zeon-12 winch in the front bumper, disconnecting sway bar to allow for what our guide calls “pothole ballet,” and what has become essential off-road goodies such as descent speed control, 360-degree camera views and Bilstein gas-charged monotube shocks.
Ram has built a reputation as a comfortable and quiet truck, and these new models carry on the tradition. Even at highway speeds, the advanced Cummins engine delivered barely audible sounds, while the eight-speed automatic kept RPMs low until called upon to dig deep. The familiar leather finishes balance with rugged trim accents, just to remind you you’re not driving a luxury sedan.
The ride is smooth by heavy-duty truck standards, but the leaf rear springs on the 3500 and 4500 are less forgiving than the coil springs on the 2500.
The updated Uconnect 5 system includes the enhanced screen, an optional 10.25-inch passenger screen and a neat 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster that lets you choose how much – or how little – you want to know about your vehicle’s performance. Other worthy options include a 360-degree surround-view camera, a digital rearview mirror and dual wireless phone charging pads.
Contractors will no doubt be drawn to the optional on-board power inverter, which can produce up to 2.4 kilowatts of electricity.
You can get lost in all the folders on that digital screen, but basic controls are in familiar places and easy to find. Ram even opted for the column-mounted shift lever (rather than the dial shifter found on some of their vehicles), just so drivers could find it by muscle memory when they get behind the wheel.
Outside, the front grille has been revised with even bolder treatments, in black or chrome, depending on the model. The headlamps have been moved up, and LEDs are standard. The rear taillamps have also been reshaped, but there is no mistaking the brand pedigree.
Safety features have been upgraded. Standard features include adaptive cruise control and forward collision warning. Buyers can choose to add parking assist, drowsy driver detection, traffic sign recognition and active lane management.
The Rebel tackles off-road terrain in Nevada.Doug Firby/The Globe and Mail
The struggle for dominance in the light- and heavy-duty pickup segments continues to be among the most hotly contested of the Detroit Three automakers. In this slugfest of ever-more feature-laden vehicles, consumers are the winners.
The Saltillo, Mexico-built 2025 Ram heavy-duty pickups are arriving in Canadian dealerships now.
Tech specs
2025 RAM Heavy Duty series pickups
- Price range: $64,390 – $92,785 (includes freight, predelivery inspection and dealer charges).
- Engines: 6.4-litre V8 hemi gasoline or 6.7-litre inline-six cylinder Cummins turbo diesel
- Horsepower / torque (lb-ft): 405 / 429 (gas) or 430 /1,075 (diesel)
- Transmission / drive: Eight-speed TorqueFlite HD automatic / on-demand 4WD.
- Fuel consumption: unrated
- Alternatives: Ford F-250 and 350 Super Duty, Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD and 3500HD, GMC Sierra 2500HD and 3500HD
The writer was a guest of the automaker. Content was not subject to approval.
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