2021 Ram 3500 Boasts 1,075 lb-ft Torque Boost

Chris Chase

2020-12-01 · 2 min read

2021 Ram 3500 Boasts 1,075 lb-ft Torque Boost

Big truck tug

In what seems to have become an annual tradition, Ram has once again one-upped its heavy-duty pickup truck competitors in the torque department with 1,075 lb-ft from its 3500 model, which the company claims is the highest-ever torque rating for a diesel pickup.

Ram was the first truck maker to break the 1,000-lb-ft barrier in 2019 when it introduced its current lineup of heavy-duty trucks at that year’s Detroit auto show. Ford answered early in 2020 with a new Super Duty lineup with as much as 1,050 lb-ft, only to be leapfrogged by Ram’s over-the-top offering for the 2021 model year.

Ram says it coaxed the extra 75 lb-ft from the 3500’s 6.7L Cummins straight-six turbodiesel by raising the engine’s fuel flow rate and the turbocharger’s boost level.

Those changes also let Ram keep its title of a segment-best towing capacity of 16,828 kg (37,100 lb) for 3500 models fitted with a fifth-wheel hitch – enough, says Ram, to allow the 3500 to haul the RV industry’s heaviest travel trailers. A Ram 3500 with a conventional hitch will tow up to 10,433 kg (23,000 lb).

The other addition to Ram’s 2021 heavy-duty pickup range is an optional camera-based rearview mirror.

Ram’s powered-up 3500 follows the brand’s recently launched 1500 TRX model, whose 702-hp supercharged V8 makes that truck the most-powerful light-duty pickup you can buy today.

The torqued-up 2021 Ram 3500 will reach the brand’s showrooms across Canada later this month.

Chris Chase

As a child, Chris spent most of his time playing with toy cars in his parents’ basement or making car sounds while riding his bicycle. Now he's an award-winning Algonquin College Journalism grad who has been playing with real cars that make their own noises since the early 2000s.