My personal review:
I briefly looked at the Rumble Bee being an avid V8 man but for me, the looks of the SRT/10 took the prize, by a country mile. After seeing an SRT/10 Ram, there really is
no better looking pickup made. Period. I'm a V8 man through and through but am lucky enough to have 3 V8s up the drive, so, I was looking for something different, a V10 Viper with 3 5s and a 6-speed manual - what's not to like! But, as I said, the styling just blows me away, I'm still not used to it and always catch myself "checking the mail" more than 5 times a day just to walk back and glare at my SRT/10. What about performance? Seat of the pants in stock form is fantastic. It's 2.3 tonnes of 100% American made beef and is capable of 0-60 times in 5 flat (in some tests 4.9) and the top speed, as we know was/is the fastest production truck made. If people want to get "technical" it's still the fastest from 0-60mph (which to me is more important) any car can go high speeds and the "other vehicle" is far from a truck plus it made it's run on test highway, not an oval bank. The truck truly is pointless in regular cab form, it's gets bad MPG, can't tow much if at all and you have to ask, what were Dodge thinking?! Dropping their wildest engine into a pickup truck? Who cares how it came about, it's a toy, a hot rod, don't get too caught up with "why" or "why nots", it's made for people who like trucks/cars for what they are - big boys toys.
The thing I like about my style of cars (American Muscle) are they're all engine. Sure, some Japanese performance cars are fast, some worthy of fast (Skylines, STI Subaru RAs, Supras) some are not (Mazdas, Hondas Vtecs). What I mean is, it's not really the engine of those cars, it's the light weight and compact sizes. Then you look at a truck like this and appreciate just how good that V10 is. It's pushing a modest 500hp and pushing 2.3 tonnes to 60mph from a standstill in 5 flat, that is a sign of true brute force and pulling a house off it's foundation power. It's not because it's light, it's just plain and simply the engine. Look at Rotary engines (12A, 13B, lawnmowers, etc), they are the size of a dinner plate and rev to 12,000+rpms in a car that weighs 1.4 tonnes fully loaded. People are always saying what a beast of an engine it is and Mazda power when in reality all it's got going for it is it's light weight. Put that engine in a 1.8 tonne let alone a 2.3 tonne machine and watch it go. No where. Like American muscle cars (most), they're big, heavy, 650lb-750lb engines, can't break or steer but still hit 60mph in under 6 seconds, again, just brute muscle. A sign of a well built and stout engine. At the end of the day, to be fair, there are many different ways of running a 12 second 1/4 mile, rotary, V8, V10, V12, V6, /6, 1.3L, 2L, the list is endless, just pick you preference and go with it.
Finally, the looks. That hood scoop, the proportions, the functional but subtle wing and the best part, that in your face oh-so-DODGE front end. There is no mistaking this beast on the road, either passing or rapidly approaching you from behind, it just screams
MOVE or
be eaten. Then there's the handling, surprisingly enough for a pickup, it handles very well, first time uses will know the first few corners were full of over-steer, why? Because you expect the truck to lag behind the initial wheel movement but no. It's a true point and steer machine and although not a performance car, it holds it's own on public roads and the track. Remember, with any stock car/truck little improvements have to be made, nothing from the factory is perfect. Upgrade the clutch & master cylinders to Viper spec, new short shifter, lower it a little and if you want, bolt on some goodies like catback, mids and a CAI and there really is nothing else needed to be done. I truly love my truck and those who have witnessed what I had to do and how long I waited can justify that my passion could be almost beyond some other owners. I will not be selling my truck for as far as I can see into the future. It's something different, unique and just a blast to drive. Hope you end up grabbing the keys to one of these beasts because as someone said, it's an SRT/10 thing, if you have to ask, you wouldn't understand.
Cheers,
Carlwalski
New Zealand
