Ram 1500 TRX Runs a 9.9-second Quarter-Mile

Ram 1500 TRX with pulleys, nitrous, drag radials and minor weight reduction is the first in the 9s.

The Ram 1500 TRX is the quickest, fastest and most powerful production truck ever. In stock form, the supercharged Hemi offers 702 horsepower and 650 lb-ft of torque, an electronically governed top speed of 118 and the ability to run a quarter mile in the mid-12-second range. More importantly, the supercharged “Hellcat” Hemi easily makes gobs more power with simple upgrades, allowing owners to quickly get into the 11-second quarter mile range.

Since the Ram brand began delivering the TRX to owners, there have been a few who immediately hit the drag strip. It didn’t take long for the first TRX owner to run 11s and then 10s with relatively simple modifications, but with better air and more seat time, these trucks keep getting quicker. As a result, this past weekend TRX owner Billy Weber became the first to run a 9-second quarter mile and he did so without any big changes.

With the same modifications that most modified Hellcat Hemi-powered vehicles have installed, this Ram 1500 TRX is a 9-second daily driver.

Billy Weber’s Ram 1500 TRX

As you likely know, it takes some significant upgrades to get a Ram 1500 TRX into the 9-second quarter mile range, but this truck has a long list of stock, untouched components.

The factory IHI supercharger has a snout that has been ported by Kong Performance, along with a 108 millimeter throttle body and a 2.65-inch upper pulley. Next, the supercharged Hemi has a set of ID1700 fuel injectors, a 10% lower pulley, a custom cold air intake, a 180-degree thermostat, a nitrous oxide system and a tune by Meesh-Tuned to run on E85 ethanol blend. The physically upgrades were performed by Labworx.

Next, Weber has removed some basic items that are not needed for a trip down the drag strip, including the tailgate, the spare tire, the underbody skid plates and the running boards.

Finally, Weber removed the stock 18-inch beadlock wheels and off-road tires and replaced them with a set of 18-inch Hoosier drag radials on lightweight wheels. He had previous gotten down to a 10.33 at 133.92 miles per hour on the off-road tires, which have a maximum speed rating of 118 miles per hour. These Hoosier tires offer far more grip under power, but they are also safer at higher speeds.

First in the 9s

Weber’s record-setting day at the drag strip with his Ram 1500 TRX began with a pair of blower-only (no nitrous) runs that resulted in a pair of 10.43s at 127 and 130 miles per hour. For his third pass at Cecil County Dragway, he turned on the nitrous system with a 150-horsepower shot and that made the difference to blast into the 9-second range.

On this third pass, the Ram TRX hit the rev limiter during the 1-2 shift, which cut the power output for a split second, but more importantly, it delayed the activation of the nitrous system. Even with that hesitation on the first shift, Weber got to the 60-foot mark in just 1.53 seconds while the eighth mile took 6.369 seconds at 111.79 miles per hour. On the big end, he stopped the timers with a 9.901 at 136.86 miles per hour – after hitting the rev limiter at the top of first gear. You can watch the video of the run below from the Labworx Development YouTube channel.

Weber believes that with better air and without that hesitation on the first shift, his Ram 1500 TRX can run in the 9.70s with a speed over 140 miles per hour. That is from a daily driven truck which was used for daycare duty the morning after becoming the first in the 9s. Weber put the stock off-road tires back on and took the kids to daycare with the worlds quickest Ram TRX.

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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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