New RAM 1500 Big Horn to replace aging DS-series pick-up

The DS-series RAM 1500’s time Down Under is coming to an end, drawing the curtain on the venerable fourth-generation RAM pick-up that dates back to 2009, but helped make RAM Trucks Australia the biggest seller of full-size US pick-ups locally, with about 20,000 trucks converted to right-hand drive for Australia and New Zealand since 2015.

Officially released here in 2017 with a starting price of about $80,000, the DS-series RAM 1500 – which continues to be available in the US, badged as the RAM Classic – was joined by the fifth-generation DT-series RAM 1500 in May 2021 but last year still accounted for about 40 per cent of RAM Trucks Australia’s 6150 sales.

But the DS is now in run-out with a low-interest finance offer and dealers have been told to place their final orders now before production ends in late 2023, effectively eliminating the budget end of the RAM 1500 model range.

However, RAM dealers were also told there may be a new cut-price variant of the latest DT RAM 1500, which is currently priced from $127,950 plus on-road costs – $6950 more than the cheapest Silverado 1500 ($121,000 plus ORCs) and $21,000 more than the most affordable version of Ford Australia’s upcoming F-150 ($106,950 plus ORCs).

But they were also told it won’t be as cheap as the old DS RAM line-up, which comprises four variants across the Express and Warlock grades and presently starts from just $85,950 plus ORCs.

RAM Trucks Australia will therefore need a new RAM 1500 price-leader and odds are the upcoming DT-series entry variant will carry the ‘Big Horn’ nameplate, a local trademark for which was uncovered by carsales in October last year.

Our dealer sources haven’t made it clear whether there’ll be a reshuffle of the existing DT-series portfolio once the DS goes out of production, but the Big Horn will likely slot in below the $128K Laramie with a sub-$110,000 starting price.

That would be consistent with the Big Horn’s market positioning in the US, where it’s long been one of the lower-tier offerings in RAM’s North American portfolio, but it’s unclear exactly when the new variant will materialise Down Under given there’s a major facelift on the cards for the RAM 1500 next year.

The facelift will see RAM ditch the 1500’s aging 5.7-litre petrol V8 in favour of Stellantis’ new twin-turbo 3.0-litre ‘Hurricane’ straight-six petrol engine, revealed last year with up to 373kW/644Nm on tap in ‘high output’ guise.

Even the ‘standard output’ version churns out 298kW/610Nm – more than enough to outclass the V8’s peakier 291kW/556Nm.

The force-fed inline petrol six will make the RAM 1500 more competitive with the upcoming F-150’s 3.5-litre twin-turbo petrol V6 (298kW/678Nm), but it would mark the end of the RAM 1500 V8 and could make six-cylinder petrol power the only option for buyers of both the RAM 1500 and Ford F-150 in Australia.

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