Ram

Ram Trucks in the US has unveiled the world’s most powerful pick-up – the Ram 1500 TRX powered by a supercharged 6.2-litre V8 – and it could be coming to Australia. The monster truck rival to the Ford F-150 Raptor – which established the desert-racer segment of the pick-up class in the US – is powered by a supercharged 6.2-litre Hemi V8 with an astonishing output of 700 horsepower, which is more than one of Australia’s V8 Supercar racing cars.

American Special Vehicles (ASV) – the Melbourne company responsible for converting US pick-up specialist Ram’s cars to right-hand drive for the Australian market – has issued a recall for 2540 of its 2019-2020 model-year 1500 pick-up trucks due to a defective windshield wiper assembly. The recall notice, lodged with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), says the defect relates to a faulty joint at the head of the wiper arm that may strip.

New-car sales in April 2020 represented the biggest month-to-month slump since records were kept, the weakest result in 26 years, and the 25th month in a row in decline – a longer slowdown than the Global Financial Crisis of 2008 and 2009 – as the coronavirus took its toll. Official figures show a total of 38,926 vehicles reported as sold – versus 75,550 for the same month last year – a decline of 48.5 per cent, versus sharper declines overseas of between 80 and 98 per cent.

The Ram pick-up from the USA has passed a major milestone in Australia, with the 5000th example converted to right-hand drive locally in less than four years. Demand for the Ram 1500 – and its bigger Ram 2500 and 3500 siblings – is so strong the Melbourne facility that remanufactures the trucks to right-hand drive has been operating 24 hours a day since the 1500th example was made in middle of 2019 (pictured below).

American Special Vehicles (ASV) has issued a recall for 1197 units across the 2015-18 model-year Ram 2500 and 3500 pickup truck lines, over concerns the drag link could separate from the adjuster sleeve. The conversion specialist reports: "The drag link jam nut may loosen and may result in the drag link separating from the adjuster sleeve".