Ram is one of the top selling pickup truck brands in the US, and Ram 1500 is the most popular in its lineup. Cybertruck is an upcoming electric truck by Tesla that made its debut recently and is expected to roll-off showroom floors by 2021. So, will it be able to make any dent in Ram 1500 market share? Lets find out.
Models
2019 Ram 1500 comes in seven trim levels namely Tradesman, HFE, Big Horn, Rebel, Laramie, Laramie Longhorn and Limited with three engine types 3.6L Pentastar V6 eTorque, 5.7L HEMI V8 and 5.7L HEMI V8 eTorque. While 2021 Cybertruck has three variants namely Single, Dual and Tri. The name represent the number of electric motors in the powertrain. Single has one motor and is rear wheel drive, Dual has two motors and is all wheel drive and Tri is also AWD but with three motors.
Horsepower
All three engines of Ram 1500 produce less than half horsepower compared to Cybertruck’s 800 hp. The 5.7L V8 and its eTorque version produces 395 hp, while 3.6L V6 eTorque does 305 hp. Single and Dual models of Cybertruck have been omitted from below chart as Tesla has kept its horsepower numbers under wraps.
Torque (lb-ft)
Cybertruck is in clear lead in this category as well, with its Tri variant producing 1,000 pound feet of torque. There is no information on Single and Dual variants torque numbers yet. The highest powered engine in Ram 1500 manages to do about half at 545 lb-ft torque.
0-60 mph
Ram does not specify naught to sixty numbers for 1500. But, according to Motortrend who tested latest 2019 model, its most powerful version 5.7L can do 0-60 mph in 6.1 seconds, so we are including it in below comparison.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions (grams/mile)
Yes, its not a fair comparison, but its not pointless. There have been a lot of debate about how electric vehicles are not emission free as it might take higher greenhouse gas emissions and environmental damage to manufacturing EVs, especially due to its batteries. Without going into details, even if EVs take more emissions to make, what we can do is choose lesser of both evils. When we look at total lifetime emissions of a vehicle, including manufacturing emissions, gas and diesel powered vehicles will certainly have a higher emissions bill at the end of their life.
Source of below data: United States Environmental Protection Agency
Towing Capacity (lbs.)
Cybertruck came first with its Tri variant’s towing capacity of 14,000 pounds. It also came last with its Single version’s 7,000 lb. Ram 1500 capacity depends on its engine size and body shape. The highest weight it can tow is 12,750 pounds with its 5.7L eTorque Quad Cab version and the lowest it can tow is 7,520 lb with its 3.6L eTorque Crew Cab variant.
Payload Capacity (lbs.)
The highest payload capacity of Ram 1500 (2,300 lb) is 34 percent less than Cybertruck’s 3,500 lb. As usual, Single and Dual numbers are not known yet. The lowest capacity is 1,780 lbs for RAM 1500 5.7L eTorque Crew Cab.
Cargo Volume (cu. ft.)
Cybertruck has prominently larger cargo capacity of 100 cubic feet as compared to Ram 1500 61.5 cubic feet.
Storage Box Length (in.)
Tesla has slightly higher bed length at 78 inches compared to Ram 1500’s 76.3 inches for its 6’4″ box version trucks.
Vehicle Overall Length (in.)
RAM 1500 Crew Cab 6’4″ variant is about 10 inches longer than Cybertruck, while the Quad Cab is slightly shorter at 228.9 inches total length.
Vehicle Overall Width (in.)
RAM 1500 is about two inches wider as compared to Tesla.
Ground Clearance (inches)
Cybertruck features adaptive air suspension, and its ground clearance is up to 16 inches, which is mighty high when compared to most modern trucks. RAM 1500 has only 8.7 inch ground clearance.
Angle of Approach ( ° )
Cybertruck has 35 degrees approach angle, RAM 1500 Crew Cab 4WD 5’7″ version has 19 degrees and it goes as low as 18 degrees for Crew Cab 2WD 5’7″.
Angle of Departure ( ° )
All RAM 1500 models have almost the same departure angle around 25 degrees, Cybertruck has a little higher angle at 28 degrees.
Price (US Dollars)
The starting price of Cybertruck Tri is about $16,000 more expensive as compared to starting price of RAM 1500’s top trim the Limited edition. But when we factor in all the fuel savings (and better performance), you might save money a few years down the line. The lowest priced variant is Tradesman at $33,440, the lowest priced Cybertruck is Single motor version at $39,900.
Afterthoughts
Cybertruck really can be a game-changer as its outperforming the major competitors, RAM 1500 and also Ford F-150 the best selling pick-up truck for decades, which we compared with Cybertruck a few days ago. Also, factoring in the advanced technologies like Tesla’s famous Autopilot driver assistance system and plethora of modern features, its a no-brainer that Cybertruck is going to be first choice of many.
