Review: 2016 Ram 1500 Rebel
The Popular Ram Off-Roader is a Rebel We Support
American pickups have been symbols of independence for decades. They’ve stood as monuments to it outside of campfires. They’ve transported groups of friends who just wanted to get away from it all to places without corners, where the only alarm clock was the silent rising of the sun, where the lighting above was from the stars, not fluorescent tubes. They’ve remained daily drivers for many people through hikes in gas prices and the popularity of fuel-efficient cars and hybrids. Despite what may be financially sensible or popular, those vehicle owners do things differently.
The Truck
That’s what Ram did with a special version of its 1500 truck back in 2015. They basically made a dealership-modified truck right at the source, the Warren Truck Assembly Plant. It looks more aggressive than other Ram 1500s inside and out, and is equipped with off-road goodies, such as a multi-level air suspension, a one-inch lift, and 33-inch all-terrain tires.
A while ago, Ram was kind enough to loan us a 2016 model – $53,895 as tested – for a week. While we didn’t get the chance to drive it past the horizon line into unknown adventures, we did get the opportunity to learn about its on-road manners back and forth between Austin and Dallas, Texas.
On the Outside
The designers of the Rebel didn’t use a ram’s head badge or even the cross-hair grille everyone was used to seeing on the automaker’s trucks. Instead, they shouted to the world in one plain, simple, billet silver word who made the Rebel: RAM.
Then they added a powder-coated off-road front bumper, billet silver skid plate, and new tow hooks and LED fog lights. The projector headlamp bezels are darkened and sit below a muscular, twin-vent hood (if only those vents were functional).
More black covers the wheel-arch moldings, mirrors, and in the pockets of the 17-inch wheels. Those are wrapped in 33 inches of Toyo Open Country A/T all-terrain grip.
If the front of the Rebel shouts RAM, the announcement made by the giant black letters on the tailgate is deafening. Like its front counterpart, the rear bumper is powder coated. It’s also black, of course – just like the bezels for the tail lights.
We found it be a well balanced visual package. It wasn’t jacked up to the sky and covered with ridiculous graphics or cosmetic add-ons. At the same time, we would never mistake the Rebel for a regular 1500. It’s a shame about those faux hood vents, though…
On the Inside
The Ram Rebel cabin is fitted with Radar Red and Black vinyl/fabric seats. If their fabric sections look familiar, it’s because they’re embossed with the same tread pattern as the Toyos outside. Sure, it’s a gimmick, but it’s a cool gimmick. We give Ram’s designers kudos; the Rebel is an off-road truck and it reminds you of that inside and out.
Ther rest of the interior is a mixture of black, grey, and red. The instrument panel, door armrests, and center console cover are black and trimmed with Radar Red and Light Gray accent stitching. Iron Gray Metallic paint gives the center stack and console an industrial cast-iron look. Radar Red anodized accents are spread throughout, making the cockpit look more colorful and durable.
Our test vehicle came with the Uconnect 8.4 system with navigation, an Alpine audio setup, a back-up camera, and a rear park assist system. Those last two features were especially useful when we were driving the packed city streets and parking lots of downtown Dallas.
Under the Hood
Just as rebels are not like most people, not all Ram Rebels are the same. They’re available with a 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 or 5.7-liter Hemi V8 paired with an eight-speed automatic and two- or four-wheel drive. The Rebel that Ram loaned us was all in for the cause of truck badassery with the 395-horsepower/410-lb.-ft Hemi and 4WD.
Driving Impressions
One thing that struck us about driving the Rebel early on was how unexpectedly composed its ride quality was. The day before we drove back to Austin, we climbed ladders and swung a hammer as part of a Habitat for Humanity build sponsored by Nissan. Our trip back to the capital city left us relaxed and ache-free. Wind noise was surprisingly low, too. That was especially good because we loved the roar of the Hemi through the dual rear pipes.
Over time, we discovered something else about driving the Rebel. It was a bad influence, like the cool kid in high school that you wanted to hang out with. We found our right foot was heavier when we were behind the wheel of the Rebel. If someone was going just one mph slower than we liked, we ripped the wheel to the left and stepped on the gas. Power was abundant and effective at getting us far away from less enthusiastic drivers in a hurry. Our truck was Flame Red and we were trying to put it out with gas. We didn’t give a damn about how little sense that made or that our combined mpg was lower than the EPA’s official rating of 17 mpg.
It was the same when we drove a Rebel at the Texas Auto Writers Association’s 2015 Texas Truck Rodeo. We knew that a lot of off-roading is going slow and letting the suspension and the gearing do the work, but we just raised the air suspension to its max height and charged through every stream we could find. The bigger the splash, the better. The hardest thing about going up and down rocky, uneven passes wasn’t getting or maintaining traction. It was seeing over that monstrous hood. Once we did, though, we knew that what we saw wasn’t going to be a problem.
We learned a lot about the Ram 1500 Rebel in seven days. It looks the part that its name implies and even brought out some of our rebellious side. All rebels do things differently, but the most effective ones inspire other people to do things differently, too. Ram makes one of them.
Chime in with your thoughts on the forum. >>
