{"id":25523,"date":"2020-06-11T14:49:51","date_gmt":"2020-06-11T18:49:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=25523"},"modified":"2020-06-11T15:00:36","modified_gmt":"2020-06-11T19:00:36","slug":"payne-the-mighty-ram-2500-power-wagon-is-a-beast-on-road-and-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2020\/06\/payne-the-mighty-ram-2500-power-wagon-is-a-beast-on-road-and-off","title":{"rendered":"Payne: The mighty Ram 2500 Power Wagon is a beast, on-road and off"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/d62b8354-8e43-45ff-890d-2de385754824-ram_fr3-4.JPG?width=520&amp;height=390&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Positioned above light duty variants like the Ram Rebel and Ford Raptor, the 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon is a heavy-duty beast.\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div><p><span class=\"js-caption\">Positioned above light duty variants like the Ram Rebel and Ford Raptor, the 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon is a heavy-duty beast.<\/span><span class=\"credit gallery-viewport-credit\">\u00a0Henry Payne, The Detroit News<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-1 p-text\">You want a monster\u00a0Hemi V-8-powered, stump-pulling Ram 1500 pickup truck? You wimp.<\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-2 p-text\">Real men and women drive Ram 2500 Power Wagons.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The heavy-duty version of Ram\u2019s light-duty\u00a0truck that arrived in my driveway could pull my house off its foundation \u2014 assuming I can get in it. I walked out into my driveway and looked up.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Dressed entirely in black and an alleged 6-foot-7 tall (it seemed taller than that next to my mere 6-foot-5 frame), the Power Wagon loomed over me with a face that would make Thanos flinch. It\u2019s a beast. I think the designers took their inspiration from a humpback whale swallowing an ocean of krill.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">I stepped up on the rocker rail, then hoisted myself into the passenger seat with the A-pillar handle. On the passenger side, the 5-foot-5\u00a0Mrs. Payne needed our roof ladder to get in.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The 2500 reminded me of an older\u00a0off-road Ram pickup \u2014\u00a0mega-modified with five-inch suspension lift and 38-inch tires\u00a0\u2014 that dragged our Jeep Wrangler out of a ditch at the Mounds off-road park a few years back. But this beast doesn\u2019t need after-market mods.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The Power Wagon comes from the manufacturer fully equipped to take on the outback. That\u2019s the badge\u2019s calling card, having carved out a new heavy-duty segment above and beyond famed light-duty performance trucks like the Ford Raptor, Chevy Silverado Z71\u00a0and sibling Ram Rebel. When a hammer isn\u2019t enough, the Power Wagon offers a sledgehammer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Ram\u2019s crosstown rivals have followed suit with their own truncheons, the\u00a0GMC Sierra AT4 and the Ford Super Duty Tremor.<\/p>\n<div id=\"module-position-SxsSXbgXGSU\" class=\"story-asset image-asset\">\n<aside class=\"wide single-photo\"><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/d44bfd2a-2d2d-4936-bd05-33f2aa9aad82-ram_wheels.JPG?width=540&amp;height=&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Big 33-inch tires help take the 7,000-pound 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon off asphalt.\" width=\"540\" data-mycapture-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/d44bfd2a-2d2d-4936-bd05-33f2aa9aad82-ram_wheels.JPG\" data-mycapture-sm-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/d44bfd2a-2d2d-4936-bd05-33f2aa9aad82-ram_wheels.JPG\" \/>Big 33-inch tires help take the 7,000-pound 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon off asphalt.\u00a0<span class=\"credit\">(Photo: Henry Payne, The Detroit News)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/aside>\n<div class=\"clearfix\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The Power Wagon stands tall with massive\u00a033-inch\u00a0Goodyear Wrangler DuraTrac tires inside swollen fender wells. They add additional ground clearance over the usual 30-inchers for a total of 14.2 inches. Armed with armadillo-like skid plates, the Power Wagon has a ridiculous front approach angle of 29 degrees (the iconic Jeep Wrangler Rubicon is 33) and is rated for wading through 30 inches of water.<\/p>\n<div id=\"module-position-SxsSXbgKSew\" class=\"story-asset image-asset\">\n<aside class=\"wide single-photo\"><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/d95f2f7a-e851-40ad-8cc3-e769094873d9-ram_steering.JPG?width=540&amp;height=&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"The 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon is full of goodies like 12-inch screen, rotary shifter, and adaptive cruise control on the steering wheel.\" width=\"540\" data-mycapture-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/d95f2f7a-e851-40ad-8cc3-e769094873d9-ram_steering.JPG\" data-mycapture-sm-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/d95f2f7a-e851-40ad-8cc3-e769094873d9-ram_steering.JPG\" \/>The 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon is full of goodies like 12-inch screen, rotary shifter, and adaptive cruise control on the steering wheel.\u00a0<span class=\"credit\">(Photo: Henry Payne, The Detroit News)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/aside>\n<div class=\"clearfix\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Power Wagon is a truck nerd\u2019s dream. Behold the twin locking-differentials, like a Jeep Rubicon&#8217;s. There&#8217;s a separate\u00a0floor-mounted\u00a0four-wheel-drive transfer case for low-speed rock crawling. And for when the going really gets tough, the 2500 adds an extra link to its upper axle mount \u2014 call it Articulink \u2014 which combines with electronically disconnecting front anti-roll bars to give the monster 26 inches of front-wheel articulation for crawling over rocks. Dude!<\/p>\n<div id=\"ad-position-76\" class=\"partner-placement partner-spike partner-placement-visible\" data-ad-placement=\"native-article_link\" data-ad-sizes=\"[&quot;fluid&quot;,[3,3], [2,6], [300,250]]\" data-monetization-id=\"native-article_link\" data-monetization-sizes=\"fluid,300,250,3,3,2,6\">But all my wife and I needed to do was get some mulch, a basic pickup task.<\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\">That\u2019s the quandary of the auto enthusiast. How much is enough? A sportscar-holic myself, I find a $30,000\u00a0Mazda MX-5 Miata plenty of enjoyment for a two-seat sports car. But if I had the coin to buy an $80,000, 495-horse Corvette C8? I\u2019d buy even if I never took the thing to a track. I\u2019d buy it because it exists.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">When I drove up to English Gardens in the Power Wagon, a staffer\u2019s jaw dropped.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">\u201cThat\u2019s a killer truck,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<div id=\"module-position-SxsSXbgMYs0\" class=\"story-asset image-asset\">\n<aside class=\"wide single-photo\"><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/1ed1c070-cd38-48ca-a3e4-d33490aaf017-ram_box.JPG?width=540&amp;height=&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"The side boxes on the 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon bed are great for storing tools.\" width=\"540\" data-mycapture-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/1ed1c070-cd38-48ca-a3e4-d33490aaf017-ram_box.JPG\" data-mycapture-sm-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/1ed1c070-cd38-48ca-a3e4-d33490aaf017-ram_box.JPG\" \/>The side boxes on the 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon bed are great for storing tools.\u00a0<span class=\"credit\">(Photo: Henry Payne, The Detroit News)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/aside>\n<div class=\"clearfix\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\">We motorheads live or an invitation to talk power, which we did while loading 10 bags of mulch into the 6-foot-4 box. That\u2019s right, this beast is taller than its bed is long.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Power Wagon shrugged off the added weight as we hustled back home. It can shoulder a payload of 1,510 pounds and tow 10,580 pounds. That tow number, however, isn\u2019t anywhere close to the 2500 Heavy Duty\u2019s 19,780-pound\u00a0capability since Power Wagon has softer springs for playing off-road.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">If you want mega-towing, get the Ram diesel. The Power Wagon\u2019s more playful character means a 6.4-liter Hemi V-8 under the hood and a tailpipe the size of Alaskan pipeline. The big V-8 loves to run, and I was more than happy to give it the gas \u2014 WAUUUUUGHHH! \u2014 through Oakland County while drinking half the oil reserves of Texas. There\u2019s a glut of crude during the coronavirus crisis so I did my part to draw it down.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Back at the ranch \u2014 well, cul-de-sac \u2014 we unloaded the mulch into a wheelbarrow\u00a0that exposed one of the Power Wagon\u2019s rare flaws: How to climb into the bed easily?<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Chevy and GMC offer the best solution \u2014 a corner bumper-step. But this being the truck wars, it would be sacrilege to follow GM\u2019s lead. Nossir. Ford has invented a sort of Noah\u2019s staff that sprouts from the bumper to help owners into the bed. Cool, but wouldn\u2019t a bumper step be easier? The Tesla Cybertruck will allegedly kneel in back to allow access.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Ram just ignores the idea altogether. Which means you\u2019ll have to clamber\u00a0up into this thing like your childhood bunk bed. The good news is the side-bed toolboxes remind you how clever Ram can be. They provide a place for tools so they don\u2019t bounce around.<\/p>\n<div id=\"module-position-SxsSXbhkB3k\" class=\"story-asset image-asset\">\n<aside class=\"wide single-photo\"><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/a8148845-6ada-4297-84cc-6d0c45e9a700-ram_int.JPG?width=540&amp;height=&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"The posh interior of the 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon is the best in the business.\" width=\"540\" data-mycapture-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/a8148845-6ada-4297-84cc-6d0c45e9a700-ram_int.JPG\" data-mycapture-sm-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/a8148845-6ada-4297-84cc-6d0c45e9a700-ram_int.JPG\" \/>The posh interior of the 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon is the best in the business.\u00a0<span class=\"credit\">(Photo: Henry Payne, The Detroit News)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/aside>\n<div class=\"clearfix\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\">But the real show is inside, where Ram sports the best interior in truckdom. Like Tesla, the cabin is oriented around a huge\u00a012-inch vertical screen that communicated the cabin\u2019s larger refinement. Gears are accessed not by a steering-mounted stalk, but by a space-saving rotary dial. Back seats are massive \u2014 Lew Alcindor and Walt Chamberlain could play a comfortable game of cards back there \u2014\u00a0and there is more storage beneath the floor if needed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The Ram is festooned with the latest electronics, from adaptive cruise-control to blind-spot assist to 360-degree surround camera.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The latter two are helpful since the Power Wagon is to urban areas what Moby Dick is to a pond. Too big.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">I wandered over to Auto Europe to drop off wheels from one of my sports cars and treaded carefully lest I accidentally crush the odd Lotus Esprit or\u00a0Mercedes Coupe in the parking lot. I picked up fast food from the Clarkston\u00a0Culver\u2019s and the person at the\u00a0window looked up at me.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">But Clarkston felt more comfortable than Birmingham: No gridded streets. No tight parking lots. Just miles of country road for opening up the big V-8, and farms and woods that need stuff loaded into the back.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">When the urge hits and you want to go exploring, off-road parks like the Mounds aren\u2019t too far away. Because you never know when some city slicker in a Jeep Wrangler might need a tow out of the mud with the Power Wagon\u2019s 12,000-pound winch.<\/p>\n<div id=\"module-position-SxsSXbgKZN8\" class=\"story-asset image-asset\">\n<aside class=\"wide single-photo\"><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/d62b8354-8e43-45ff-890d-2de385754824-ram_fr3-4.JPG?width=540&amp;height=&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Positioned above light duty variants like the Ram Rebel and Ford Raptor, the 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon is a heavy-duty beast.\" width=\"540\" data-mycapture-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/d62b8354-8e43-45ff-890d-2de385754824-ram_fr3-4.JPG\" data-mycapture-sm-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2020\/06\/10\/PDTN\/d62b8354-8e43-45ff-890d-2de385754824-ram_fr3-4.JPG\" \/>Positioned above light duty variants like the Ram Rebel and Ford Raptor, the 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon is a heavy-duty beast.\u00a0<span class=\"credit\">(Photo: Henry Payne, The Detroit News)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/aside>\n<div class=\"clearfix\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h3 class=\"presto-h3\">2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon<\/h3>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Vehicle type:<\/strong>\u00a0Front-engine, four-wheel drive, 5-passenger, crew-cab pickup<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Price:<\/strong>\u00a0$55,045, including $1,695\u00a0destination charge ($69,890\u00a0as tested)<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Powerplant:\u00a0<\/strong>6.4-liter Hemi V-8<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Power:\u00a0<\/strong>410 horsepower, 429 pound-feet of torque<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Transmission:<\/strong>\u00a08-speed automatic<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Performance:\u00a0<\/strong>0-60 mph, 8.4 seconds (Car and Driver); towing, 10,580 pounds<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Weight:\u00a0<\/strong>6,996 pounds<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Fuel economy:\u00a0<\/strong>NA<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"presto-h3\">Report card<\/h3>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Highs:<\/strong>\u00a0Rules the road; best interior in truckdom<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Lows:\u00a0<\/strong>Too big for urban America; drinks petrol<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Overall:\u00a0<\/strong>3\u00a0stars<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Positioned above light duty variants like the Ram Rebel and Ford Raptor, the 2020 Ram 2500 Power Wagon is a heavy-duty beast.\u00a0Henry Payne, The Detroit News You want a monster\u00a0Hemi V-8-powered, stump-pulling Ram 1500 pickup truck? You wimp. Real men and women drive Ram 2500 Power Wagons. The heavy-duty version of Ram\u2019s light-duty\u00a0truck that arrived [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25523"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25523"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25523\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25524,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25523\/revisions\/25524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}