SRT-10 Ram priced at $46,000
AUSTIN, Texas -- Wolfgang Bernhard's voice is filled with excitement as he chews a piece of brisket and talks about the burble coming from the twin exhaust pipes of the Viper-powered Ram SRT-10 pickup nearby.
That exhaust rumble "is an acoustic, ahhhh, an emotional pleasure point that you put into the truck," says the Chrysler group COO as he sits at a picnic table in an open air Texas barbecue outside of Austin.
To gearheads, the loud rumbling recalls the big V-8s of the 1960s. It is the sound that lasts a few seconds, created when the driver takes his foot off the accelerator quickly and a few gasoline droplets briefly fall into the engine's cylinders, creating a rumbling noise.
It is a sound made obsolete by computerized engine controls that precisely measure air and gasoline before they mix in the cylinders.
"This is what PVO is all about," says a beaming Bernhard, referring to the Chrysler group's Performance Vehicle Operations, which develops high-performance niche vehicles such as the Ram SRT-10 for Dodge.
"It is about making this whole thing a great, beautiful, pleasurable package that people are excited about."
Sticker price: $46,000
Dodge will build approximately 2,500 SRT-10 Rams annually. The V-10 powered truck goes on sale early next year at a sticker price around $46,000.
For Bernhard, who formerly headed Mercedes-Benz's AMG-brand performance operation, the burbling noise was a performance note that the SRT-10 Ram had to have. The engine controller was modified so that when the accelerator is released at 4,000 rpm, "tiny tidbits of fuel are injected into the engine" for five seconds to create the burble.
The heart of the Ram SRT-10 is the powertrain its shares with the Viper SRT-10. With its 500 hp and 525 pounds-feet of torque, the automaker promises 0-to-60 mph acceleration in just over five seconds and a top speed just over 150 mph. It is a hot rod: The quarter-mile is estimated at just under 14 seconds.
Although the V-10 comes from the Dodge Viper, the Ram gets its own exhaust manifold, throttle linkage and oil pan. The radiator is borrowed from the heavy-duty Ram pickup. A Hurst linkage is added to the Tremec T56 six-speed manual transmission, and a Dana 60 rear axle handles the huge torque load.
To create a sporty, car-like ride, the front and rear shocks and springs have been replaced with Bilstein mono-tube shock absorbers.
An issue with any rear-drive, high horsepower vehicle, especially a pickup, is getting the rear wheels to stick to the pavement.
Chrysler engineers say they eliminated what is commonly called axle hop by attaching a Bilstein shock absorber from a cross member in the frame to the differential. The design exerts downward force on the rear tires.
'King of the hill'
To manage the additional performance over the standard Ram, 15-inch rotors were added to the front disc brakes and 14-inch in the rear. Dodge estimates 60-to-0-mph braking distance of less than 120 feet.
Asked why the SRT-10 Ram was developed, Bernhard points to the intensifying slugfest in the full-sized pickup segment.
The Ram needs to "establish itself as the king of the hill," Bernhard says. "You want to say this is where the top starts and this was established by a Dodge Ram pickup truck. This is a very important marketing message."
