2005 Dodge RAM SRT-10 First Drive
As it turned out, dropping a Dodge Viper's engine and six-speed manual
into a truck was an excellent idea.
If you fire a 12-gauge shotgun packed with 00 buck, you'll get a sense of what it's like to pull
the trigger on a Ram SRT-10: a loud roar, followed by a cloud of smoke, and, suddenly, heavy
metal flying through space. The only difference is that this truck's Viper-sourced V-10 firepower,
good for a 5.2-second 0-to-60 run, surges smoothly at your back and not abruptly against
your shoulder.
Dodge's Performance Vehicle Operations group has created more than just a Pirelli-melting,
500-horse cargo bed in search of a chassis. The Ram SRT-10 is a comprehensively well-matched
5150-pound performance recipe that turns a short-bed, standard-cab Ram
into a sport-truck-cum-Trans-Am racer.
Installing the Viper's 8.3-liter, OHV, aluminum V-10 into the Ram's platform is philosophically
straightforward, as the truck is factory-offered with a 300-horsepower, iron-block V-10
in HD form. Getting the job done, however, required numerous detail changes, including a
revised intake system, oil pan, mounts, and cooling revisions. The only transmission offered
is the same Tremec T56 six-speed manual used in the Viper.
And does this thing go. Our only complaint about the Ram SRT-10's iron-fisted powertrain
is occasionally notchy shift action, due to the long, truck-style shift lever employed; it feels
a bit remote during rushed, dragstrip shifts.
We'd also enjoy a bit more auditory personality: The V-10's voice is almost too muffled, although
some will feel that's an asset. Only under a properly mashed throttle does the Viper motor
really bellow.
Steering-rack response is crisp, and there's braking muscle to spare in the form of
15-inch front rotors and 14-inchers in the rear. Viper power requires a massive tire-contact
patch to be remotely useful. So, in the interest of "usefulness," Dodge fitted the SRT-10 with
steamroller-like 305/40ZR22 Pirelli Scorpions.
We were prepared for the shaking and chassis booming often associated with oversized rolling
stock and its barely manageable unsprung mass. But the suspension tuners at PVO have
worked some magic. The ride, although not luxo-car smooth, is firm and not at all uncomfortable
on good road surfaces. The only serious suspension-related edge is some rubbery chassis
shudder on bumpy roads, where the laws of physics regarding minimal wheel travel and big-tire
inertia won't be denied. Key to the truck's surprisingly obedient behavior: Bilstein shocks,
shorter and stiffer springs, a rear anti-roll bar, a new front knuckle design, a one-inch
ride-height drop in front, a 2.5-inch rear drop, and an effective traction-bar system. The result is
a big, fast hunk that does what it's told.
The SRT-10 spent some valuable aero time in the company's wind tunnel and learned a few
lessons from Dodge's NASCAR Craftsman Truck program, too. Up front, a deep fascia with a
splitter reduces lift. Out back, a rear wing reduces drag and adds up to 165 pounds of downforce
at track speeds. When you need the bed, you can easily remove the wing and stow it on top of
the bedrails. The bulging hood, nonfunctional scoop, and rear fascia with dual exhaust cutouts
are unique to this sporting variant. Colors are simple: black, red, or silver.
Inside, you'll find softly stuffed but sharply contoured black leather buckets with "SRT-10" logos
stitched across the backrests. The seat cushions and a deeply padded center-console lid are flat
enough to accommodate a third, belted passenger. Looking sports-car sharp is a carbon-fiber
leather-trimmed steering wheel. Behind the wheel is a full complement of large and
easy-to-read, silver-faced gauges including a 160-mph speedo and a 7000-rpm tach. Dodge
claims the truck will do 150, so that speedo's none too optimistic. Given that the V-10 delivers
90 percent of its 525 pound-feet at just 1500 rpm, a large portion of the tach face is likely to go
unused.
For now, the Ram SRT-10 stands confidently alone as king of the muscletruck hill. The 380-horse
Ford SVT Lightning remains a player, but Dodge has it covered by 120 horses, and the
current-generation F-Series platform is on its way out. The new, give-or-take-500-horse
next-gen Lightning is as much as two years away. The nice but pricey Chevy Silverado SS,
with a 7.0-second 0-to-60 and a 15.2/89.4-mph quarter runs a distant third. The Big Bad Dodge
is a monster hauler that packs suspension, brakes, manners, visual attitude,
and one heck of a kick to match.
By Matt Stone. Photos by the Manufacturer.
If you fire a 12-
Dodge's Performance Vehicle Operations group has created more than just a Pirelli-
Installing the Viper's 8.3-
revised intake system, oil pan, mounts, and cooling revisions. The only transmission offered
is the same Tremec T56 six-
And does this thing go. Our only complaint about the Ram SRT-
We'd also enjoy a bit more auditory personality: The V-
really bellow.
Steering-
We were prepared for the shaking and chassis booming often associated with oversized rolling
stock and its barely manageable unsprung mass. But the suspension tuners at PVO have
worked some magic. The ride, although not luxo-
shorter and stiffer springs, a rear anti-
The SRT-
splitter reduces lift. Out back, a rear wing reduces drag and adds up to 165 pounds of downforce
at track speeds. When you need the bed, you can easily remove the wing and stow it on top of
the bedrails. The bulging hood, nonfunctional scoop, and rear fascia with dual exhaust cutouts
are unique to this sporting variant. Colors are simple: black, red, or silver.
Inside, you'll find softly stuffed but sharply contoured black leather buckets with "SRT-
For now, the Ram SRT-
current-
and one heck of a kick to match.
By Matt Stone. Photos by the Manufacturer.
