RAM 1500 Express Black Edition 2026 Review

With a retail price of $109,950 plus on-road costs, the 2026 RAM 1500 Express Black Edition is now the most affordable full-size, factory-backed American pickup truck on sale in Australia. Ford’s F-150 XLT comes close, but with $5000 separating it from the RAM, there’s an appreciable air gap between their price tags.

Is there an even cheaper RAM 1500 Express around the corner? Though there’s a ‘Black Edition’ suffix on this one, we’ve no reason to believe a sub-$109K 1500 Express is lurking down the road. For now, this is as cheap as it gets.

The equipment list is a reflection of that price, too. While all other 1500 variants get leather upholstery, heated/ventilated front seats, dual-zone climate control, dual wireless phone charging pads, a big 12-inch digital instrument cluster and a 14.4-inch infotainment display, the Express Black Edition is comparatively spartan.

Instead, there’s a 7.0-inch interface flanked by physical gauges, an 8.4-inch infotainment screen, manual air conditioning, manually front seats and cloth upholstery.

It’s not completely stripped-out though. You still get useful stuff like a sprayed-in bed liner, damped tailgate, cargo rails, fixed side steps, LED headlamps, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, remote engine start, underfloor storage cubbies, four charge ports (2 USB-A, 2 USB-C), adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitoring, lane-keep assist, front and rear parking sensors, a reversing camera and rear cross-traffic alert.

The engine is also anything but low-spec. RAM’s 3.0-litre twin-turbo ‘Hurricane’ inline six produces a stout 313kW/635Nm, is backed by an eight-speed automatic, and takes power to the ground via a part-time 4x4 system.

Probably the most appealing part of the 2026 RAM 1500 Express is the fact you’re not paying for any fluff. The important stuff is all there; mechanically speaking you’ve got a grunty engine, a 4.5-tonne braked towing capacity, and 4x4 with low-range, while the cabin is still roomy and still practical.

In terms of cabin space, in some ways it’s even better than its more expensive siblings – largely due to the elimination of the passenger-side 10.25-inch infotainment screen, replaced instead by a sizable cubby hole that’s perfect for storing your lunch, or even a jacket.

Other useful features, like the enormous centre console with its floating cupholder tray and the under-floor storage compartments in the back row, are still present.

Ride comfort is also great. The 1500 Express steamrolls its way over pockmarked rural backroads, and is ultra-smooth on highways. As a kilometre-crusher, it’s a hell of a thing, its inline six never really breaking a sweat.

As for fuel economy, our average on test of 13.9L/100km appeared decent given the hilly terrain we were travelling, though the 10.74L/100km official claim seems optimistic given fuel burn only gets as low as 9.0L/100km at a highway cruise on level ground.

But payload is probably one of the best reasons to consider the Express Black Edition: it’s the best in the range by a big margin.

With a maximum payload of 1014kg and combined towball/tub weight limit of 520kg, the 1500 Express gives more payload headroom than any of its siblings, meaning putting more passengers and cargo in the cabin and tub can be done without breaching its gross vehicle mass of 3505kg (which is the same as all other 1500 variants), or gross combination mass of 7711kg.

It might tick the utility and cost boxes, but the 2026 RAM 1500 Express Black Edition’s fairly austere fit-out isn’t in keeping with a car demanding six figures. Particularly when you start to notice what’s missing.

There’s no height adjust on the driver’s seat, for one, and the bare urethane steering wheel feels cheap. The single-zone, manually-controlled heating and ventilation has a properly old-school vibe, and if you’re searching for a volume rocker on the steering wheel, it’s not there.

The cut-down 8.4-inch infotainment display is usable, if small, but it looks especially shrunken inside the 1500’s expansive interior and is a bit hard to reach when seated and belted. Material quality also isn’t great, and that’s exacerbated by the door cards which are entirely made of rock-hard black plastic.

The 1500’s fold-up rear bench is handy, but there’s no split, so it’s an all-or-nothing choice between putting passengers or cargo back there. The other 1500 variants all get 60:40 split rear benches.

And while the driving experience is mostly vice-free, the eight-speed’s shift mapping can be a little dozy when you ask for more power or come across a gradual increase in gradient. A surprising amount of pedal travel is needed before the ECU and TCU wake up and give you some beans, and it’s not like doing things manually is an agreeable alternative – for some reason, the transmission manual up/down switches are on the face of the steering wheel in what is probably the least ergonomic position possible, and react very slowly.

Should I buy a RAM 1500 Express Black Edition?

For all of its negatives, we came away from our first experience of the 2026 RAM 1500 Express Black Edition feeling mostly positive.

It is, after all, the most accessible full-size ute around, and as a metal-for-the-money proposition, it’s not bad. For just under $2K more than a Nissan Patrol Ti-L, you get a tonne more towing capacity, more power, more torque, and the utility of a cargo tub. In a lot of ways, it’s the 1500 to get.

No, it’s not a sophisticated machine, and the cabin feels pretty cheap. But it also feels fairly honest about what it is: a big, capable and powerful draughthorse, not a commercial vehicle moonlighting as a luxury car.

Sometimes, less is actually more.

2026 RAM 1500 Express Black Edition at a glance:
Price: $109,950 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 3.0-litre 6-cylinder twin-turbo petrol
Output: 313kW/635Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Fuel: 10.74L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: N/A
Safety rating: ANCAP Gold

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