Is the Ram TRX Eighth-mile Time of 7.28 a Hint?

Ram TRX gauge cluster suggests this supercharged truck could be much quicker than official numbers.

The 2021 Ram 1500 TRX is an engineering masterpiece with its 702-horsepower supercharged Hemi, but it is also packed with high tech goodies. For example, the TRX comes with a 7-inch driver information screen in the gauge cluster which works in conjunction with the 12-inch UConnect screen in the center stack. The two screens share lots of information and the brand made sure to show that off in the huge portfolio of images.

There are many pictures of the Ram TRX gauge cluster, but two in particular caught our eye. They both show the 7-inch screen set to display the on-board timing which is part of the Performance Pages system. One of them shows a time which is very reasonable for a vehicle that is expected to cover the quarter mile in the high-12-second range. The other seems unreasonable for a high-12-second vehicle, leading us to wonder if this quicker time isn’t a hint to the performance potential of the TRX.

Or is it a hint of a hotter, higher performance truck in the pipeline?

TRX Eighth Mile Times

As mentioned above, there are two images showing the timing system of the Ram 1500 TRX. The first shows a time of 8.4 seconds in the center of the screen with a “last” of 8.3 and a “best” of 8.2. If you look at a conversion chart, the mid-to-low 8-second range in the eighth mile is a reasonable time for a truck that should run the quarter mile in the high-12s.

The second screen on the TRX gauge cluster shows a current time of 7.28 with a “last” of 7.32 and a “best” of 7.19. Those times are way too quick for a truck that runs a 12.9 quarter mile. In fact, if you look up the Jeep Trackhawk on the DragTimes website, the quickest stock entry has a 7.212 eighth mile and that resulted in an 11.29 quarter mile at 120 miles per hour.

It is likely that the Ram 1500 TRX covers half of a quarter mile in the mid-8-second range while on its way to a high-12-second quarter mile. So why is the quicker time on the display?

Possible Explanations

There are three likely reasons why the Ram 1500 TRX images include one of the screen showing an eighth mile time in the lower-7-second range.

The first is the least interesting, and that is that the artist who made the image simply picked a random number to put in there. After all, these media images generally aren’t pictures that someone took of an actual cluster. They are usually images created on a computer so that they can show perfect detail without glare and such. Take note of the fact that there is even an artist’s signature in the lower right corner.

The artist may have looked online and found that Trackhawks and Hellcat cars run low-7-second eighth mile times, so they picked those number basically at random. If there was just one set of numbers, we would find this to be the most likely explanation, but the fact that the other picture showing the 8-second run leads us to believe that this wasn’t a random number.

The first interesting explanation is that this quicker time is the result of making some test runs with something other than the huge off-road tires. Realistically, those huge rollers are the furthest thing from a drag racing tire and there is no question that in swapping from the off-road tires to something like a lower profile Mickey Thompson drag radial would lead to dramatically quicker acceleration numbers. However, we know from the Drag Times entry that a Trackhawk with smaller tires ran an 11.29 at 120 miles per hour with a 7.212 eighth mile. It seems unlikely that simply swapping tires would cut 1.6 seconds from the official TRX quarter mile time. More importantly, the TRX is electronically limited to 118, so we know for a fact that it won’t go 120 in the quarter mile.

At the same time, it wouldn’t need to make a full quarter mile run, so it wouldn’t need to go over the speed limiter. The only issue with the idea of a Ram TRX with low profile drag radials running similar eighth mile times to the Trackhawk is that the Ram weighs somewhere in the area of a thousand pounds more than the Jeep. Regardless of the wheels and tires, it is impossible for two vehicles with a similar engine and drive train to run the same numbers if one is 1,000 pounds heavier.

That brings us to the third explanation, which is deserving of its own section.

The Ram TRX High Output

It seems unlikely that simply swapping to drag racing-friendly tires would take the Ram 1500 TRX from 12.9 to 11.3. You would almost surely need more power to get that far into the 11s. So what if the screen showing the 7-second eighth mile times hint to a more powerful pickup?

In addition to the 6.2-liter Hemi in the TRX, which is topped by a 2.4-liter IHI supercharger, FCA also has the supercharged Hemi that is featured in the Dodge Redeye models. Thanks to a 2.7-liter supercharger, that 6.2-liter Hemi makes 797 horsepower in the Challenger and Charger. We think that the extra power from that engine would be enough to help the TRX cover the eighth mile in the 7.1 to 7.3 range, when equipped with proper drag racing tires.

This seems farfetched, but a friend recently sent me some dealership documents pertaining to the TRX which referenced a “high output 6.2-liter Hemi”. Now, the current engine in the TRX is unquestionably a high output engine, offering 702 horsepower and 650 lb-ft of torque. However, when the Ram brand designates an engine as high output, it is usually accompanied by a lower output engine. In other words, these documents could be referring to the current TRX engine or they could refer to a higher output option that is coming in the future.

When we first saw those documents with mention of a high output Hemi, we figured that it was just the regular supercharged Hemi in the 2021 Ram TRX. However, when coupled with this mysterious image showing remarkably quick eighth mile times, we have to wonder if the company doesn’t have something up its sleeve.

There is already talk of Ford putting the GT500 engine in the F-150 Raptor. In the Mustang, that engine offers 760 horsepower, but it will likely have a little less in the pickup. If Ford follows through on those rumors, the F-150 would take the Ram’s claim of the most powerful truck in the world. A TRX high output with the Redeye engine, offering up to 797 horsepower, would take that claim back in a hurry and Ford wouldn’t have any way to counter.

Again, this image showing 7-second eighth mile times could be a random number pulled out of space by the artist who made the image, but many people think that this could be a hint of something more. We hope that they are right.

Hat tip to Rich S. for the heads up on this unusually quick eighth-mile time!

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Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com

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