RAM 1500 Rebel 2025 Review

At $141,950 before on-roads, the 2025 RAM 1500 Rebel wears the exact same sticker price as the existing RAM 1500 entry point, the Laramie Sport.

Sure, there’s some trading of equipment going on (the Rebel doesn’t come with the powered side steps, ventilated front seats or the RamBox storage system of the Laramie, for example). However, when it comes to the headline items, like the 14.4-inch infotainment display, driving aids, dual-zone climate control and integrated trailer brakes, the Rebel still has plenty of kit for driver and occupants to play with.

While the Rebel is fitted with the engorged Sport Performance bonnet of the more powerful 1500 Limited, it shares its powertrain and driveline with the 1500 Laramie Sport – the 313kW/635Nm Standard Output (SO) 3.0-litre twin-turbo petrol Hurricane straight-six, hooked up to an eight-speed auto with dual-range 4WD transfer case.

So, what separates the Rebel from the Laramie Sport? Besides a brawnier look courtesy of chubby 32-inch all-terrains mounted on black 18-inch alloys (the Laramie Sport gets highway terrains on polished 20-inch alloys), a unique grille and some tasteful Rebel stickers, inside the wheel wells you’ll find a quartet of Bilstein offroad dampers. They have been tuned to handle dirt roads and rocky trails but also providing a one-inch lift.

Underneath, there’s additional armour cladding across the front cross member, transfer case and fuel tank, while the rear axle is equipped with a locking differential.

Measuring 5.9 metres long and 2.1 metres wide, parking is aided by a rear camera as well as front and rear sensors – a 360-degree camera array would be more useful, but RAM reserves that for the top-shelf 1500 Limited. Other safety equipment includes adaptive cruise control, Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) with pedestrian and cyclist detection, blind-spot monitoring, lane-keep assist, and trailer sway control.

It’s also worth noting that unlike many dual-cab utes, the RAM 1500 Rebel comes equipped with three child-seat anchorages on its rear bench, rather than just two.

Australians have a strong appetite for burly-looking utes with off-road chops and plenty of pulling power, so it’s not hard to imagine the 2025 RAM 1500 Rebel quickly becoming the brand’s mainstay model.

Its off-road suspension, chunky tyres and additional body armour put it in the same realm as other tough-tune utes like the Ford Ranger Tremor, Toyota Hilux GR Sport and Nissan Navara Warrior. Yet, the Rebel also boasts a colossal 4.5-tonne towing capacity and heaps more interior space, adding greatly to its appeal as a kilometre-crushing tow rig for nomads of all persuasions.

Refreshingly, it’s far, far more than a sticker pack. At the local launch, it easily walked over a moderate off-road trail, its extra lift and meaty tyres giving it both the clearance and grip to get through some mild mudding, too.

Many off-road enthusiasts look down on American full-size pickups as being pavement queens rather than legitimate bush-bashers, largely due to super-long wheelbases that give them a propensity for getting beached, as well as overall dimensions that are too unwieldy for serious trails. However, while the Rebel sits across a gigantic 3.7-metre wheelbase, we only contacted the dirt twice when traversing sharp breakovers, and even then, the bash plates were only just kissing the deck.

The 32-inch Falken Wildpeak all-terrains also work a treat, and with eight ratios in play, we didn’t even find the need to engage low range nor the lockable rear diff. On higher-speed stuff, it also shines. Hitting big compressions lead to a swift recovery on rebound with the Bilstein shocks adeptly nullifying any porpoising, while it coped with corrugations just as easily. Clearly, we need to point the Rebel at more challenging stuff. Stay tuned.

It must be said that for a ute, the cabin feels like the inside of a JB Hi-Fi. There are loads of technology and creature comforts, with the passenger-side video screen being a unique feature in the segment. There are also no less than 10 USB ports to keep your devices charged up (plus a HDMI for extra media input, in case you wanted to plug in a PlayStation).

The centre console is also super-deep and contains twin phone chargers, while there’s decent under-seat storage under the back seat (which has more than enough leg and shoulder room to comfortably seat three adults), as well as under-floor lidded compartments for muddy gear.

Considering the colossal size of it, the 2025 RAM 1500 Rebel’s 893kg payload may seem a little underwhelming given most mid-size dual cabs can tote more. However, with the Rebel being the lightest member of the 1500 family, it has the best payload of the lot.

However, as with the rest of the 1500 range, there’s no more throbbing V8 up front. Is that a bad thing though, considering the Hurricane inline six had more than enough muscle to roast the rears all the way to 70km/h on a damp day at the closed proving ground? We think the only aspect of the V8 that you’ll miss will be the sound.

Yet, though that twin-turbo six-cylinder is more efficient than the HEMI V8 it replaced, there’s no hiding the Rebel’s thirst. The factory claim is 10.74L/100km, but that only seems realistic if all you’re doing is highway cruising. Out in the wild, we were seeing averages in the high teens.

Unfortunately, the convenient RamBox compartments that are standard issue on the 1500 Laramie Sport and 1500 Limited aren’t fitted to the Rebel, with RAM instead deciding a wider tub would be more desirable for owners who want to haul big toys like dirt or quad bikes.

There are no side steps either, so there’s a bit of a jump up into the cab – the logic here is that buyers would rather fit their own rock sliders or off-road steps instead.

Bringing the 2025 RAM 1500 Rebel to our shores is probably going to turn out to be a very savvy move on the part of RAM Trucks Australia.

The package is solid, the Bilstein suspension hardware appears to work great on the rough stuff, there’s no compromise to towing capacity, its payload is the best out of any 1500 variant, and it only has one real rival – the Chevrolet Silverado ZR2. Although the Chevy can only tow 4200kg, versus the RAM’s 4500kg.

If you’re stepping up from something like a Ford Ranger Raptor or Nissan Navara Warrior and can stomach the $141K price tag, the Rebel is probably going to be right up your alley.

2025 RAM 1500 Rebel at a glance:

Price: $141,950 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder twin-turbo petrol
Output: 313kW/635Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 10.7L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: Not available
Safety rating: Not tested

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