The Hemi V8 is disappearing from the local Ram 1500 lineup, but its return isn’t completely off the cards.
Powering the updated 1500 is Ram’s new ‘Hurricane’ engine, a 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged inline six offered in two tunes and which produces as much as 38.5 per cent more power and 27 per cent more torque than the Hemi.
Naturally, diehard pickup fans are ruing the loss of the 1500’s V8 burble, which leaves the Chevrolet Silverado as the sole American pickup offered in Australia with V8 power – apart from leftover examples of the pre-update 1500 at local Ram dealers.
Despite the Hurricane’s superior outputs, an outcry from V8 fans led to Ram announcing the return of the Hemi to the 1500 in the US market for 2026. However, its return to Australia – where Rams are imported in left-hand drive and locally remanufactured in right-hand drive by Walkinshaw Automotive – has yet to be announced.
“The inline-six, or the Hurricane, is going incredibly well; we see that as the future,” said Ram Trucks Australia general manager Jeff Barber at the local launch for the new Ram 1500 Rebel.
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“If at some point in the future we are offered [it], and there is consumer demand for it, and there’s a solid business case, we’ll have a look at it.
“No guarantees, but any decision like that takes a long time to consider and bring to market, so nothing in the next couple of years, that’s for sure.”
Ram Trucks Australia has previously indicated it takes 12-18 months to complete a local engineering program for a new model variant that will be remanufactured locally in right-hand drive.
That would make a Hemi V8-equipped 1500 a late 2026 or early 2027 proposition, should it be approved for our market. The 2025 facelift comprised more than just aesthetic tweaks, with other changes including upgraded infotainment, so this isn’t as simple as just figuratively flicking a switch.
“Everyone makes mistakes, but how you handle them defines you. Ram screwed up when we dropped the Hemi — we own it and we fixed it,” Ram’s global CEO Tim Kuniskis said in announcing the return of the Hemi back in June.
While Ram is returning the 5.7-litre Hemi to the 1500 in the US, it has yet to confirm the rumoured return of the supercharged 6.2-litre ‘Hellcat’ V8-powered TRX.
When Ram rolled out the Ford F-150 Raptor-humbling TRX locally, customer demand surprised the brand, even at home in the United States, despite the pickup’s similarly monstrous price tag of $224,950 before on-roads.
“TRX did incredibly well here. We thought the air was incredibly thin up there, but we sold 983 units between Australia and New Zealand, and that’s just ridiculous – even the US can’t believe we sold that many, we still can’t believe it,” Mr Barber said.
“So yes, it was a very significant model to us. There is speculation around the world as to what might happen with that – I don’t want to talk to that speculation; it’s up to the US to determine what they’re going to do with that.”
Its indirect replacement is the Ram 1500 RHO, again fitted with the Hurricane six, and Mr Barber says there may be “potential room” for it in Australia – even if it’ll be similarly expensive.
MORE: Ram 1500 revives Hemi V8 as brand fixes “mistake”, Australian return unconfirmed
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