Where are the factory hot rod trucks?

Those 1st gen lightning pictures keep making me consider old F150s, but then I remember the twin I-beam and go back to wanting another Dodge or a GMC. I don't even know why I'm turned off buy it but I am.

Huckleberry wrote: No. Actually I'm a little surprised that I don't care. I like too much power. I like trucks. This should be a Reese's Cup for me... but I'm really bored by the idea of a 700hp Ram.

As a lover of performance trucks, I can kind of relate. Modern full size trucks are so large that even with all of their power and impressive acceleration, there's no sporting pretense. There's no desire to toss it into a turn.

One of these days, I do want to find a 2wd 3.5EB F-150 that's been crashed and just build a giant Exocet type thing out of it... Frame, ghetto body, 335s all around and we're good to go.

BlueInGreen44 wrote: Then Dodge put a Viper engine in a pickup and called it the SRT-10.

Technically, they put a Ram engine into the Viper first...

Shaun wrote: I only read the title of the thread- sorry if this is a repost, 2017 factory hot rod truck from Ford.

Yeah, the Raptor takes the idea of a performance pickup and moves it in a more logical direction.

pinchvalve wrote:

BlueInGreen44 wrote: Then Dodge put a Viper engine in a pickup and called it the SRT-10.

Technically, they put a Ram engine into the Viper first...

Not quite. The Viper V10 isn't the same engine as the pickup truck V10. They're vaguely related, but the Viper engine is all aluminum instead of all cast iron, has different internals, different heads, etc.

I think part of the reason that you don't see hot rod trucks is that years ago, trucks were utilitarian and came with a straight-6. People only drove them if they needed to haul stuff. Dropping in a hotter motor and dropping it made it appeal to a wider audience.

The original Factory Hot Rod Truck had 230 NET HP and 295 lb/torque, not too shabby in 1978 and in fact, it was the fastest 0-60 vehicle of the day in the US.

The 2016 V6 Ram has 305hp /269tq and the V8 has 395hp /410tq, they are all muscle trucks. But yeah, a package seems pretty easy to do.

STM317 wrote: There's no desire to toss it into a turn.

i dont know about that. with stock suspension that may be the case but with a simple 3/5 drop and decent tires the difference in handling on my buddies silverado (the red truck) was night and day. Although still a big heavy truck it handled 10x better and would be something fun to toss around in an autocross/track. Competitive? probably not but still a good time

In reply to edizzle89: They can certainly be improved upon. And I'm a firm advocate for having fun in whatever vehicle. But, they're still super wide, and that excess material gets heavy. My Ranger feels like a Miata compared to any of the full sized stuff. It's 1000lbs lighter, and dwarfed in every dimension by even current "mid size" trucks.

I'm not against hot rodding big trucks, but if I were to hot rod a truck, I wouldn't be starting with a full size, primarily because the scale makes it difficult to "place" where you want it. If it's difficult to fit into a parking space, it's going to be difficult to feel confident when you're pushing it in any kind of tight space.

STM317 wrote: super wide

This is not a problem from a handling perspective. Might be less than optimal for a tight autocross course, but for other stuff...

The Tahoe PPV can get pretty rowdy

The Tacoma X-Runner is also pretty sweet

Wheelbase is a bigger issue than width for driving dynamics and parking lot maneuverability.

F150 Tremor

In reply to Storz:

They should remake the Tremor with the Ecoboost 6 and 10 speed from the new Raptor. It would be tire meltingly cool.

mazdeuce wrote: In reply to Storz: They should remake the Tremor with the Ecoboost 6 and 10 speed from the new Raptor. It would be tire meltingly cool.

The Tremor already had the 3.5 EB, although the new 3.5 makes more power than that version did.

The FX2 package was kind of sport as well

Explorer SportTrac Adrenaline

Ram Rumble Bee

rslifkin wrote:

mazdeuce wrote: In reply to Storz: They should remake the Tremor with the Ecoboost 6 and 10 speed from the new Raptor. It would be tire meltingly cool.

The Tremor already had the 3.5 EB, although the new 3.5 makes more power than that version did.

And you can sort of build one now with the regular Ecoboost and the regular transmission. As usual, I want them to package the best motor/transmission in the lightest truck. I want to stand back and say "holy crap I can't believe they did that". I want the truck version of the R63.

Incidentally, I think Dodge did the best bonkers truck with the origional 6sp V10 single cab truck. I'm crossing my fingers that they take the same path with a Hellcat truck and introduce a truly stupid version first before selling the crew cab version that they will sell more of.

STM317 wrote:

sesto elemento wrote: What's faster than the figures I posted for the tundra? Also keep in mind that those figures are for a 4x4, that truck is available as a 2wd as well, which is probably faster in every measured test.

Any of the V8 trucks with superchargers would probably be just as fast or faster. The Tundra is nearly 5000lbs in it's lightest configuration. Roush makes bolt on superchargers for the F-150 Coyote that take it over 600hp, and that would be in a truck that's several hundred lbs lighter. I'd wager that EcoBoost trucks with minor bolt ons and a good tune would be right there with the Tundra, and for far less money too. Edelbrock/Lingenfelter/etc make superchargers for the GM twins. An Edelbrock on top of a 5.3 brings 445/421, while putting it onto the 6.2L gets 528hp/496tq. Again, in lighter trucks.

The thread was about "factory" hotrod trucks. My thinking is that the aftermarket will always be able to make a faster version and probably cheaper too. Some people prefer to have factory fit and finish, factory reliability, all with a factory warranty, on some vehicles the oem options help resale. Also I think it's important to give credit (and loyalty) to manufacturers that go the extra mile to bring cool products to market for enthusiasts.

5.3L Chevy Colorado This only came in auto but I always thought it would be fun (and if I remember it was dirt cheap at the time, but that's because it was also a Colorado). 0-60 in 6.9 1/4 in 15.2 Shows an original sticker of $30k but at the time with rebates I think you could get it for closer to $25k.

sesto elemento wrote: The thread was about "factory" hotrod trucks. My thinking is that the aftermarket will always be able to make a faster version and probably cheaper too. Some people prefer to have factory fit and finish, factory reliability, all with a factory warranty, on some vehicles the oem options help resale. Also I think it's important to give credit (and loyalty) to manufacturers that go the extra mile to bring cool products to market for enthusiasts.

There is a reason that the Tundra supercharger says TRD, instead of Toyota. Can you order a new Tundra from Toyota with the supercharger installed at the factory, or is it a dealer option? Usually, automakers market performance products like that through their performance divisions, which are a separate company. Typically, installing these parts voids the original warranty, and replaces it with a less comprehensive warranty from the performance division. Ford does it with Ford Racing. GM does it through GM Performance parts. I'm assumeing Toyota does it through TRD too.

Also,Roush is considered an OEM, so I can go to my Ford dealer and order their aftermarket parts, and have them installed by the dealer. Or I can purchase an entire Roush vehicle. In this case, their supercharger is 50 state emissions compliant, and comes with a 3 year/36,000 mile warranty.