Ram 1500 vs. Ram 1500 Rebel: What’s the Difference

Rebel! Rebel! How Could They Know?

While there has been a growing trend to keep producing small, greener more environmentally friendly vehicles for today’s market, there has also been a trend with Chevy, Ford and Dodge to produce aggressive, powerful and large pickup trucks.

Dodge Rams’ 1500 pickup trucks are exactly suitable for the job required of them. They have the force, power and ability to haul, tow and carry heavy loads of whatever you need to put in its bed. Also, it’s a dang good looking truck.

This year, Ram truck dealers welcomed the Rebel onto their lots. The Rebel is the electric guitar to the 1500’s classic piano. It’s your older, cooler cousin who introduced you to fast cars and staying out too late.

It’s the look good, act bad, James Dean of pickups trucks. It’s what impresses teenage girls and intimidates their fathers.

The 1500 lineup may be just as ‘bad’ as the Rebel, but only the 1500 lineup carries a legacy with it. Let’s compare these two and see what each has to offer.

Dodge Ram 1500

For the last two years running, the Dodge Ram has been named Truck of the Year by Motor Trend. This lineup offers 9 different trims, 3 different engine choices as well as two transmission options, three box lengths, three cab styles and in rear or four wheel drive configurations.

Plain and simple, the Dodge Ram is a good looking truck offering a ton of different options. And the base models still comes in a bench seat. Bench seats are pure nostalgia.

Engine

The Ram comes available in a 3.6L V6 engine that delivers 420 lb/ft of torque and 7600 lbs of towing capacity. Also offered is a 5.7L V8 that gives the best towing capacity of 10,650 lbs. There is also a 3.0L turbocharged engine diesel V6.

While it’s only at 240 horsepower, it boasts 420 lb/ft of torque and has a towing capacity of 9,200 lbs. The Ecodiesel engine also provides the best fuel economy of 20 mpgs city and 28 mpgs highway. The other 1500 trims get anywhere from 15 to 17 city mpgs and 21 to 25 highway mpgs.

Exterior

The Ram 1500 lineup offers some of the best looking full size pickup on the market. Its wide stance and bold colors ensure its going to be able to haul, tow or carry just about anything. And you will try.

The 1500’s are not about showing off, but showing up. That’s reflected in its confident design.

Its coil rear suspension that is uniquely Ram offers a more much comfortable ride when driving over broken or off roading, which will inevitable at some point. You own a pickup. You are now the most popular in your group of friends.

Interior

Understanding the 1500 line are all work trucks which needs to be able to take a beating inside and out, the interior has been designed to do just that. Providing quality craftsmanship

leather interior, 8.4 easily manageable controls and 8.4” touchscreen, the cabin of the Ram 1500 is just a shut door away from the opportunity to escape the demanding schedules. Ram wants your cab to be your refuge, even if just for a minute or two or when taking long rides.

Comfort and ease of ride are paramount here.

The Ram Rebel

Even though the Rebel is part of the RAM 1500 lineup, it is unlike any of the other trims on this line. If the look doesn’t immediately give enough away, step inside and take it for a test drive, preferably off road.

Get stuck somewhere and get yourself out with the incredibly powerful torque.

Engines

There are two choices offered for the engine: a 3.6L V6 Pentastar or a 5.7L Hemi V8. The 3.6L has 3.5 horsepower and 269 lb./ft of torque while the V8 consequently has 395 horsepower and pumps out 410 lb/ft of torque.

Should you know you are going to have buddies, or yourself, that will be getting stuck in some pretty gnarly situations, the V8 maybe your better choice.

Making its debut with the Rebel trim is a 3.6L model with 3.92 axle ratio strictly for 4×4 models.

Exterior

Any question about how different the Rebel is from the 1500 lineup is going to be immediately answered just by looking at it. Most of the obvious changes are highlighted on the exterior of the Rebel.

Dispensing of the tried and true grill which Ram has been adorning their trucks with for 30 years, the Rebel replaces the stock unit cross hair design with an all black grill with the letters “RAM” placed directly in the center.

While some may find this as necessary as people who tattoo their own names on their body, it acts more as a friendly reminder of what can occur to the car in front of you, should they continue to stay in your lane driving that slow.

There is a lot of black, not just on the grill, but other very visible parts as well. Almost the entire front end is done in black, the wheels, the wheel arches, the front and back bumpers, the”RAM” logo on the tailgate and all the lower body panels.

The Rebel has only one choice for cab which is “crew” but you do get the choice of a 4×4 or 4×2 for the Hemi. However, the 4×4 is standard on the Rebel.

Interior

Like the exterior of the body of the Rebel, the interior is about making a statement. It’s showy with a lot of flair and makes people notice it. The almost black-grey seats and dash contrast nicely with the red accents that appear everywhere.

A customized interior has a sportier feel that contrasts quite a bit with the luxury refuge that the cabins of the 1500 lineup provides.

Having a heated steering wheel is a wonderful perk for those of you who spend most of the year up to your knees in snow. Yes, we know winter is cold, but this little luxury does a lot to make you appreciate all the Rebel has to offer. Even rebel fingers get cold every now and then.

It’s Ready for Dirt

Sitting on 17” wheels covered by 33” Toyo all terrain tires. The Rebel comes with exclusive air suspension lift kit that raises the ride height to 1”, Bilstein shocks, tow hooks and front skid plate provide any passer by with all the information necessary to assess that this is one bad mother.

The sharply angled hood with matching chrome outlined snorkels give the most intimidating look to any hood in the 1500 lineup. Like the interior of any real offroading vehicle, the material on the seats is made sturdy enough that it can take the abuse of dirt and mud while being easily be wiped clean with a quick water wash.

So, there you have it. The differences between the Rebel and the 1500 lineup are most noticeably aesthetics. While there are simply so many choices made available in the 1500 lineup, the Rebel offers a specific and unique experience that is unlike any of the other.

If you are one who enjoys options and the choice to custom build your pickup then the Ram 1500 lineup is exactly what you need.

If you have a need to revisit the rebel in you, perhaps you should take this for a test drive. Maybe the responsible adult and rebellious teenager can meet somewhere in the middle. Ram’s middle is the Rebel pickup proving its okay for worlds to collide.

Previous Post Why Buying a Used Dodge Truck is a Safe Decision Next Post New From Ram: The Retractable Pickup Bed