The RAM 1500 Express Black Edition pairs a twin-turbo straight-six and 4.5 tonnes of towing with an all-black look, but it’s at its best when you actually use what you’re paying for.
When AC/DC released Back in Black in 1980, it became one of the biggest-selling albums of all time. It’s loud, it’s unapologetic and it doesn’t care whether you think it’s a bit much. Funnily enough, that also sums up the new RAM 1500 Express Black Edition (dammit, now I’ll be humming the riff for the rest of this review).
The Express is the new entry point to RAM’s local 1500 range, and RAM Trucks New Zealand let me take a look at the Black Edition to see whether a full-size American pickup with a darker, meaner wardrobe makes sense on Kiwi roads. Big American pickups bring big American advantages, but they also bring big American compromises. So the real question is whether this one delivers enough muscle, comfort and presence to justify its size and running costs.
Let’s get the obvious out of the way first: it’s black. Very black. The Black Edition package is a big part of the appeal and covers just about every surface that would normally get chrome. There’s a black grille and exterior badging, black door handles and mirror caps, black side steps and dual black exhaust tips. It all sits on black 20-inch alloys, so even the feet are dressed for the occasion.
Upfront is a Mopar sports performance bonnet, which, combined with that darkened grille, gives the nose a deliberately aggressive face. You get the muscular visual attitude without paying for a higher-spec model, and without trawling through aftermarket catalogues to get it. Styling is subjective of course, but if your ideal pickup looks ‘more American muscle car than suburban shopping trolley’, the RAM gets the brief – F### yeah!
Then there’s the size, and boy is it big. It measures about 5,916mm long, 2,017mm wide (about 2,474mm once you include the mirrors) and 1,971mm tall. By New Zealand standards that’s enormous. A conventional ute parked next to it looks miniscule. On the open road all that bulk adds to its commanding presence, but in an older parking building it can quickly become a very different story.
Under the bonnet sits RAM’s 3.0L Hurricane twin-turbo straight-six petrol (313kW/635Nm), which, just quietly, makes more power and torque than the old 5.7L HEMI V8 it replaces. It’s mated to an eight-speed automatic and part-time 4WD (not an on-demand AWD system, so choose the right drive mode for the surface). Claimed maximum braked towing is up to 4,500kg depending on configuration, with a gross vehicle mass of 3,220kg and a gross combination mass of 7,711kg.
Official combined fuel consumption is about 10.7L/100km, which is better than the old HEMI on paper. Still, at an illustrative $3.00/L, 15,000km a year works out at roughly $4,815 at the pump, and that’s before you hook up a heavy caravan or boat, which pushes the figure up considerably. Nobody should be buying a large, powerful petrol pickup expecting hatchback running costs. For the record, I was averaging around 12.7L, so I’ll let you do the math.
That towing figure comes with a Kiwi-sized caveat, though. Maximum towing and payload are two different things. Passengers, luggage, accessories and tow-ball download all eat into what you can actually carry, and a truck that can tow 4.5 tonnes can’t automatically do it with five adults, a full load of luggage and a tray full of gear. My advice is to get the dealer to confirm the permissible towing and payload numbers for your exact setup, tow ball included, before you sign anything. Either way though, to quote an old advert, it eats a 1-Tonner for breakfast.
Inside, the cabin is huge. Sheer interior space is one of the biggest advantages of a full-size American pickup, and the RAM seats five with generous room up front and a roomy rear. The driving position is commanding, and the overall proportions make it feel less like a work ute and more like a large, comfortable touring vehicle. That said, the entry-level positioning shows. You get cloth-trimmed bucket seats with manual adjustment (oh the humanity), a plastic steering wheel and a practical centre console rather than the more luxurious appointments of the pricier grades. Cloth can be handy for work duties and the physical controls have their advantages over touchscreen-only setups, but at this money some buyers will expect leather and electric seats, so it’s worth sitting in the higher-spec cabins before deciding.
It isn’t stripped of modern conveniences either. There’s an 8.4-inch touchscreen (relatively small for the price, just being picky) with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, adaptive cruise, forward collision warning with active braking, rear cross-path detection, front and rear parking sensors and an integrated trailer brake controller. The standout for me is the blind-spot monitoring with trailer detection. Changing lanes with a large trailer behind you demands far more awareness than an ordinary car does, so the extra set of electronic eyes is genuinely valuable.
As with every RAM I’ve driven, the Express Black Edition seriously owns the road. Its sizeable footprint fills the lane and has you looking down on virtually every other road user. That Hurricane has the power to shift all that mass off the mark quickly, yet oddly you find yourself taking things at a more leisurely pace. If you’re buying a RAM for the old-school V8 rumble, the straight-six’s different character might feel a little short on theatre, but there’s no shortage of shove.
Tighter downtown driving and car parks can elevate the heart rate though. The parking sensors help, but they don’t make the truck any smaller. Cruising along the highway is where it all comes good, as the revs drop and the blood pressure follows. Before buying, measure your garage, your driveway and the spaces you park in regularly. It’s much better to discover a problem with a tape measure than with $125,000 worth of American pickup wedged between a concrete pillar and a Toyota Corolla.
It’s also worth remembering that it has 4WD but isn’t an off-road specialist. Gravel roads, rural access tracks and plenty of recreational adventures are fine, but its size and approach/departure angles mean tight bush tracks and deep ruts are better left to something smaller and more purpose-built.
The RAM 1500 Express Black Edition is $124,990 plus ORC, which makes it the most affordable way into a RAM 1500 while still giving you the Hurricane powertrain and the blacked-out styling. It’s still well into six figures, and the warranty is three years/100,000km (whichever comes first), which feels a little short at this price. Servicing is every 12 months/12,000km. I’d ask the dealer about extended warranty options, servicing costs, parts availability and whether capped-price servicing is on offer, rather than assuming running costs will be predictable.
Summing up, the Express Black Edition is at its best when you actually use what you’re paying for. If you’re towing a big boat on Friday and heading away for the weekend, its appeal is obvious. If you’re spending Monday morning circling a crowded supermarket car park looking for a space wide enough for it, that $124,990 might suddenly feel a little less clever. Either way, RAM is well and truly back in black, thanks for the riff Angus!
You might also like: RAM just got bigger – new RAM 1500 Express Crew Cab review · Black Fri-yay – Mahindra XUV700 Black Edition Review · RAMbunctious REX – RAM 1500 TRX review NZ
