2016 Ram 1500 Rebel review – Roadshow

The Good Off-road-minded alterations don’t wreck the fantastic ride quality of this Ram’s air suspension system. Rebel styling changes add a lot of visual attitude. The available Hemi V-8 engine is powerful, and features a seamless cylinder shut-off system to help deliver respectable fuel economy.

The Bad The Rebel’s tailgate doesn’t have a soft-opening feature. Its otherwise solid Uconnect infotainment system isn’t Apple CarPlay- or Android Auto-compatible.

The Bottom Line The Ram 1500 Rebel delivers better off-road capability without sacrificing on-road comfort, while offering aggressive looks to boot.

I’m not particularly a truck guy, but every now and then, saddling up in one is a lot of fun. In particular, special higher-performance pickups like the Ford F-150 SVT Raptor are undeniably entertaining, and I can now add the Ram 1500 Rebel to my personal list of cool trucks.

Rebel yell

Why is the Rebel one of my favorite trucks? No, it’s not because its name gets a certain Billy Idol song stuck in my head (and now yours; sorry about that). It’s not even the flashback images of then-long-haired tennis star Andre Agassi from ’90s Canon camera commercials. It’s because it checks all the boxes necessary for being a really good all-around truck. Oh, and the fact that it looks badass doesn’t hurt, either.

The Rebel’s meaner look is most apparent up front, with the Ram having ditched its traditional crosshair grille, replacing it with a blacked-out grille with a large badge. Additional styling elements visually popping against my test truck’s arresting Flame Red paint job including black powder-coated bumpers, silver front skid plate, black wheel-arch moldings and billboard-sized “RAM” letters stamped into the tailgate. The 17-inch aluminum wheels with matte-black insets and twin-snorkel hood also add to the Rebel’s more aggressive appearance.

The blacked-out grille gives the Rebel a meaner, more aggressive appearance.

Nick Miotke/Roadshow

Before you dismiss the Rebel as just a cosmetic package for the Ram 1500, think again. While this isn’t a full menu of modifications, there’s been some purposeful tinkering to make this truck more off-road worthy. These changes start with a recalibrated air suspension that gives the truck a 1-inch increase in ride height over other similarly suspended 1500 models. Other changes include unique Bilstein shocks, a unique steering calibration and meaty, 33-inch Toyo Open Country A/T tires. No, the changes aren’t as extensive as Ford’s Raptor, but they give the Rebel better approach and departure angles to up its mud-plugging credibility a smidge.

Capable everywhere

The standard Ram 1500 with the air suspension system is without question the best riding half-ton pickup truck on the market. The fact that the Ram has an independent rear suspension also helps, while competitors like the class-ruling Ford F-150, Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra, Toyota Tundra and Nissan Titan all work with traditional solid rear axles.

Does the Rebel’s higher ride height and large, knobby tires change the Ram’s ride behavior? Surprisingly, no. This Big Red Machine still gets around town and hurtles down expressways in impressive comfort. What’s more, the tires don’t make a huge racket, nor do they squeal when thrown quickly around a turn — something that can’t always be said about the Raptor.

2016
Ram
1500
Rebel
boasts
more
attitude…

See full gallery

1 – 6 of 49

Next
Prev

Instead, the Rebel takes corners with composure similar to a normal Ram 1500. There’s no excessive body roll, and it’s easy to navigate surface streets with responsive steering that features a satisfying amount of heft tuned into it. Brake performance is stout and easily slows the Rebel down in a confident manner.

On washboard dirt roads, the Ram’s suspension takes all the dips and ruts in stride, letting the truck continue down the road in a brisk manner without rattling the living daylights out of those in the cabin. A trip to an off-road park to tackle some trails is on the docket in the future to better assess the Rebel’s off-road chops. Simply put, a regular dirt road isn’t going to truly test this truck’s four-wheel-drive system, nor its optional anti-spin rear differential, both of which are undoubtedly capable of so much more.

Hemi or Pentastar power

Power isn’t a problem on pavement or dirt roads with the optional 5.7-liter Hemi V-8, as it brings 395 horsepower and 410 pound-feet of torque to the party. From a standstill, the Rebel gets moving without breaking a sweat, and mid-range pull is strong, for easy expressway merging and passing. Through it all, the eight-speed automatic transmission cracks off crisp and quick shifts, and it also helps the big V-8 return respectable fuel economy. Aided by the Hemi’s seamlessly undetectable cylinder shut-off system, the Ram nets reasonable EPA fuel economy ratings of 15 miles per gallon in the city and 21 mpg highway.

If a Hemi under the hood isn’t necessary, or if spending the additional $1,650 on top of the model’s $45,200 base price isn’t in the cards, the Rebel comes standard with the Fiat Chrysler’s Pentastar 3.6-liter V-6 workhorse, tuned for 305 horsepower and 269 pound-feet of torque. The smaller engine yields slightly better fuel economy ratings of 17 mpg city and 25 mpg highway.

Of course, if you’re looking for the most affordable way to get into a Rebel, seek out the 4×2 model wearing a base price that’s nearly $2,000 less than the 4×4 V-6. The two-wheel-drive Rebel starts at $43,270, but the kicker is that it’s only available with the Hemi V-8 engine. So, the cheapest Rebel gets the bigger engine as standard equipment…sounds good to me!