The horsepower war also reached trucks a few years ago. But whether it’s sports cars, luxury sedans or SUVs, horsepower wars always run into the same problem. You can always make the engine more powerful. But there comes a point where no one can afford it anymore.
Ram just made a smart tactical decision. They backed down – a little – and built the off-road vehicle with the best price-performance ratio.
Meet the 2025 Ram RHO. In terms of performance, it doesn’t beat the Ford F-150 Raptor R. But it has enough courage to get to work with the Raptor R. And it costs a lot less.
At $71,990 (including the $1,995 shipping fee), it’s not only cheaper than a Raptor R ($112,250 delivered). It’s cheaper than a regular non-R Raptor ($80,325).
All comic trucks
A short story:
Ford introduced the supertruck category in 2010 with the F-150 Raptor – a truck built more for fun than work. The Raptor could carry and haul less than most comparable full-size trucks. But it had enough suspension for two trucks – a high-speed off-road vehicle for the weekends. Horsepower in those early years was in the low 400s.
Ram responded by overpowering the raptor. The Ram TRX introduced in 2021 featured a similar high-speed chassis. But under the hood was a 6.2-liter supercharged V8 engine that made 702 horsepower and 650 pound-feet of torque.
That prompted Ford to respond – the Raptor R. It used a 5.2-liter supercharged V8 engine with 700 horsepower and 640 pound-feet of torque. It’s the same engine found in Ford’s signature muscle car, the Mustang Shelby GT500. It also drove supertruck prices into the six-figure range.
That’s a problem, Ram decided.
Bringing an I6 to the V8 fight
When Ram redesigned its 1500 for 2025 (not a complete redesign, but close to it), the TRX was dropped from the lineup. In its place we get the RHO. Ram doesn’t officially call it “Rhino,” but they wouldn’t mind if you called it that. At launch, executives told us that buyers will find rhinoceros Easter eggs hidden within the design.
The Rhino features a turbocharged inline-six engine that produces 540 horsepower and 521 pound-feet of torque. Power is transmitted via an 8-speed automatic transmission.
Ram says payload is 1,520 pounds and maximum towing capacity is 8,380 pounds. Both numbers are relatively low for a half-ton pickup, but that’s typical of SUVs, which are always a little prima donna when it’s time to do their job.
Sophisticated suspension and off-road equipment
Their strengths are bumps, sand and mud. For these days, the RHO has a BorgWarner 48-13 full-time active transfer case and a low range of 2.64:1 for rock crawling. “An independent front suspension system with active performance damping uses high-strength aluminum to maintain overall strength and durability,” says Ram. Bilstein Black Hawk e2 adaptive performance shock absorbers with “an internal three-stage progressive hydraulic Jounce Control (Jounce Cut-off) to ensure bottom-out control during the most extreme compression events.”
Isn’t it funny to say the word “jump”?
At the rear, “adaptive damping and a five-link coil system ensure comfortable driving characteristics regardless of the road surface.” A Dana 60 rear axle with floating axle shafts is standard. “A rear axle center section ensures balanced performance and a limited-slip differential ensures increased off-road performance.”
With standard 35-inch tires, it achieves a ground clearance of almost a foot (11.8 inches).
Almost luxurious cabin, outstanding appearance
Large composite flares give the RHO what Ram calls an hourglass figure – the first time anyone has said such a thing about a rhinoceros. To make sure no one thinks it’s a regular Ram, the truck gets a unique grille and even a custom hood. “The RAM badge is larger compared to the rest of the Ram 1500 lineup,” says Ram, similar to how every Raptor wears a FORD badge the size of a subcompact car.
Inside, the 12-way power-adjustable leather front seats – heated and ventilated – look too luxurious for a mudder. A VIN-specific badge plate is another touch that seems to have been adopted from high-end luxury cars.
Ram promises “over 50 inches of total available digital screens,” including a 14.5-inch central touchscreen and a 10.25-inch front passenger screen.
HP per $
The RHO is a super truck, just like the others. But instead of horsepower, Ram promotes the idea of “horsepower per dollar.” They point out that the RHO has a performance per $129.60. Your invoice is slightly incorrect because they didn’t take the delivery fee into account. The final number is closer to $133.
But that’s still impressive. Ram didn’t calculate the value of the Raptor R for us, but it comes to about $160. The “normal” Raptor with 450 hp is even higher at around $178.
Ram isn’t the company we would have expected to sacrifice high horsepower. But we believe their affordability argument. So we welcome the rhinoceros.