The 2025 Ram 1500 RHO which was announced on Tuesday as the (indirect) replacement for the 1500 TRX has been spotted testing.
The prototype in the video from Car Spy Media features the pumped fenders and wide rubber of the current TRX, but the noise it makes when accelerating away from a turn, starting at 25 seconds into the clip, is definitely not the sound of a V-8.
Ram in August announced that the current TRX bows out after the 2024 model year, since parent company Stellantis will pull the plug on its Hellcat supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 later this year. To mark the end of the run, Ram will offer a special 1500 TRX 6.2L Supercharged V8 - Final Edition, limited to 4,000 units worldwide.
However, instead of exiting the segment altogether, the new RHO will take over, albeit with a 6-cylinder engine nestled under the hood. The engine is the HO (High Output) version of Stellantis' twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-6 known as the Hurricane. Output in the RHO is confirmed at 540 hp.
The Hellcat-endowed TRX has 702 hp, or enough for 0-60 mph acceleration in 4.5 seconds, a quarter-mile time of 12.9 seconds (at 108 mph), and a top speed of 118 mph. Downsizing to the inline-6 will likely improve fuel economy and possibly dynamics due to less weight being up front, though will almost certainly hurt performance.
There will also be a lower starting price than the TRX's base sticker which for 2024 was bumped up to $97,485, or about $10,000 more than 2023's pricing and way up on the $71,690 starting price the TRX had when it arrived for 2021.
A reveal for the RHO will likely take place early next year. It will form part of an updated 2025 Ram 1500 range that starts sales next year and will also include an electric 1500 REV and a series plug-in hybrid 1500 Ramcharger.
Production will take place at Stellantis's plant in Sterling Heights, Michigan.
