2024 Ram 1500 Big Horn review

Ram has a new entry point, the Big Horn, and boy is it big! Or should we say long, what with its XL tray and extended cab.

Pick-ups are good for a manufacturer’s bottom line, profit margins being thoroughly decent. And you can milk that success further by continuing to offer old models alongside the new.

That’s what Ram did when it introduced the new ‘DT’ series 1500; the entry-level models were facelifted versions of the older ‘DS’ line.

But now the old girl has been put out to pasture, the DS models finally retired and the new entry point to Ram 1500 life is the DT-based Big Horn.

But where Ram ownership used to start around the $100k mark, it’s now risen somewhat with the Big Horn at $129,999. But wait! Because it’s Fieldays time, there is a big deal on the Big Horn, with 10 big ones knocked off the sticker.

To jog the memory, other Ram models include the mid-spec Laramie at $146,990 while the Limited is now $173k.

The Big Horn is aimed more at the tradie type, someone that might actually turn up to do the work rather than simply lording over the development site as your Limited driver might.

However, if your builder turns up in a $130k work truck, you might feel they’re charging themselves out at a premium.

To ensure they can equip themselves with enough tools, the Big Horn can be had with Ram’s longer 6 foot 4 tray, or tub as they call ‘em. That makes this truck rather lengthy, coming in at just over 6.1m.

And it’s not just a longer tray fitted but rather the wheelbase is extended out to 3898mm. And so that also means the turning circle goes from an unwieldy 14.4m to a nightmarish 15.2.

The larger tub delivers more capacity with a volume of 1.7 cubic metres, 0.2 more than the 5 foot 7 jobbie, while the length at the floor is 1937mm, or just over 200mm longer than the smaller tray.

The Big Horn has the best payload rating of the 1500s, the 5 foot 7 model at 931kg and the 6 foot 4 at 878kg. There’s a liner, tie down points and tray lighting, though the option of the unique Rambox, with its lockable bins down the sides, isn’t available for the Big Horn.

As the entry-level truck, there are other things missing from the spec sheet, some that aren’t especially essential, like the power retracting side steps and oversized alloys, but some that you might deem necessary on a vehicle in this price bracket.

This still has lots of chrome but gets black plastic door handles, ones that are missing the little button for smart key unlocking.

In the cabin there are cloth-trimmed seats, not a biggie, and the adjustment is of the manual kind, though you do get warmers, and a heated steering wheel.

While it leaves the factory in ’Murica as a six seater, during the conversion process in ’Straya, the one in the middle upfront has been locked out of play to comply with their local laws.

A sixth pew might been handy on the odd occasion. While there’s some storage on top of the folded seat, there’s not the cavernous centre console you get in the other models.

There are a couple of USB ports but no charge pad and you make do with analogue dials instead of the 12-inch digital display.

There’s also the smaller touchscreen sans navigation but it has CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity.

The thing you really miss is the 360 degree camera. It’s hard to know what lies beyond the big bonnet line, while it has also been stripped of the driver aids. So there’s no forward collision warning or adaptive cruise.

Neither is there blind spot monitoring, which comes in handy on these rigs given there’s quite a lot of truck behind you and the mirrors aren’t quite big enough; smaller cars can literally disappear in your blind spot.

While the DS entry-level models rolled with the shorter double cab, the Big Horn gets the same extended cab that other 1500 owners enjoy. This gives rear seat passengers simply oodles of room. No one’s ever going to complain about a lack of legroom here. And at 2m wide, everyone has ample shoulder room.

A handy feature is the stadium fold bench, the squab flipping up to the vertical so you can stash stuff in the cab when need be.

Under the hood lies the Hemi, 5.7-litres worth of pushrod V8. Its 291kW of power and 556Nm of pull move this 2.5 tonne mass of metal easily enough.

While that torque total isn’t tapped until 3950rpm, there’s good urge from just above idle thanks to its mild-hybrid tech (an integrated starter generator that also gives near seamless idle-stop functionality).

Not often do you need to push it past 3000rpm, only to hear that V8 play its tune. Despite the electrification and cylinder deactivation (the latter activating whenever it can on light throttle loads) this still drinks a fair amount of juice.

Expect an average of at least 16L/100km with a mix of urban and motorway running, and much more when towing or testing the payload. But with a 98 litre fuel tank there’s at least a decent driving range.

Despite the length, it’s not overly arduous to pilot through the traffic. The steering is light and quick enough but that turning circle and length mean it’s not an easy vehicle to park.

The 18-inch wheels and higher profile rubber, along with the wheelbase, give the Big Horn a plush pick-up ride. This is quite cushy with shaking and rear diff thump kept to a minimum.

Stretch the Hemi toward 6000rpm, and the auto slurs through its ratios. It’s quick to kick down when given some encouragement, no drive modes required here. Instead you get some buttons to lock out taller gears, handy to stop it hunting about when ‘trailering’.

And it has the trailer brake controllers too to make the most of the 4.5 tonne hauling max. You’ll be wanting good trailer brakes as these big rigs never stop in any great rush.

Panic stopping distances are in the 40-45m zone, lengthening as the brakes get warm. It gets going alright, traction assured via its on-demand AWD setting, with regular 2WD and 4WD high and low also at your fingertips.

While more expensive than the old entry point, there’s no real alternative, given GMSV only has the LTZ Premium and ZR2 off roader here in its Silverado 1500 range, both in excess of $140k.

As long as you can do without a few items on the spec front, in the realm of big pick-ups, the Big Horn could be considered the ‘value’ option. Just be aware of the lack of active safety kit.

This story first appeared in the July 2024 issue of NZ Autocar magazine.