2026 Ram 1500 Rebel review

The Ram 1500 full-size pickup was updated earlier this year, and the range is already expanding.

Joining the V8-less dual-cab lineup is the Ram 1500 Rebel, an off-road-focussed variant that has long been touted for Australian release but has never been sold here by official importer Ram Trucks Australia – until now.

As with the rest of the US-sourced Ram 1500 range, the Rebel is subjected to an extensive remanufacturing process by Walkinshaw Automotive in Melbourne, where it’s converted from left- to right-hand drive.

This doesn’t just involve swapping the steering wheel from one side of the cabin to the other. Instead, hundreds of new components are designed and engineered for RHD vehicles by companies including those that supply parts for the original pickup, following an extensive Australian development program.

That means you not only get a factory-backed and warranted vehicle, but a Ram that’s built to what are effectively the same standards as the original, and you won’t be able to tell that everything’s been taken apart to swap it all over – including ‘de-marrying’ the cabin from the chassis entirely.

Watch: Paul’s video review of the Ram 1500 Rebel

Beyond all that, the Rebel adds some unique gear to the already well-equipped 1500. This includes a one-inch (25.4mm) suspension lift, Bilstein shocks, 32-inch all-terrain tyres, and a revised front bumper, all of which are intended to make it more capable off-road.

Inside, you’ll find bespoke red upholstery and a plethora of ‘Rebel’ badges, and just for good measure you also get a huge Rebel decal on the sides of the tub. Underneath, there are underbody skid plates for improved protection, and a full range of 2WD and 4WD drive modes.

Power comes from the ‘Standard Output’ (SO) version of Ram’s new downsized Hurricane petrol engine, a twin-turbo inline-six that replaced the long-running 5.7-litre Hemi V8 in the facelifted MY25 Ram 1500 range. The V8 has since been reintroduced in the US, but there’s no confirmation of that happening in Australia yet.

Is the Rebel a worthy addition to Australia’s official Ram 1500 lineup?

How much does the Ram 1500 cost?

Despite adding a range of worthwhile off-road hardware to the Ram 1500 Laramie Sport on which it’s based, the Rebel is priced the same at $141,950 before on-roads. That isn’t cheap, but it is nearly $20,000 less than the top-spec Limited – enough change to buy a Kia Picanto, for example.

It’s also on par with the similarly off-road-focussed Chevrolet Silverado 1500 ZR2, which is priced at $141,500 before on-roads and remains the only full-size pickup still available via factory channels with a petrol V8.

Both are dearer than the Ford F-150, which tops out at $140,945 before on-roads for the flagship Lariat LWB, but both are still more affordable than the Toyota Tundra.

There are two variants of the Tundra: the Limited at $155,990 before on-roads, and the Platinum at a whopping $172,990 plus on-roads.

Ram Trucks Australia is expected to further expand its Hurricane-powered Ram 1500 lineup with new variants including a cheaper Big Horn range-opener by the end of this year.

To see how the Ram 1500 stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

What is the Ram 1500 like on the inside?

It might look even tougher on the outside, but the Ram 1500 Rebel is as luxurious as ever inside.

There’s more than enough room to swing a cat, as one would expect in a vehicle this size, which makes for a supremely comfortable space. It feels like your passenger is sitting in another postcode, and some extra personal space isn’t a bad thing these days.

And then there’s the tech. The photos you see here don’t do justice to it in this expansive cabin. It’s remarkable that any car can make a big 14.4-inch infotainment display look small, but in the metal you’ll find the portrait-style touchscreen dominates most of the free space on the enormous dashboard.

There are loads of menus and icons here, too many to detail in this review. Practically all of the car’s settings are adjusted here, while you also have the advantage of wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivety, though the latter only takes up half of the screen.

There’s native satellite navigation too, which can be also programmed via the passenger-side touchscreen. As with most passenger displays, the 1500’s unit is more of a novelty, and it’s coated in a special film that completely blocks it from the driver’s view to prevent distraction.

It’s disappointing that this screen lacks more functionality, as it appears to have no Apple or Android integration. Still, this and the car’s central infotainment system look nice and are responsive, and they’re clearly labelled to help you figure everything out.

It’s a similar story with the 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, which sports unique ‘Rebel’ branding along its top border and during its startup animation. It boasts sharp resolution, and while there isn’t much customisation available here, there’s enough going on to keep you interested.

The Rebel’s bespoke interior accents have a similar effect, with plenty of red splashed around to differentiate it from the other 1500 variants, in the form of metallic bits on the steering wheel and dash, as well as red seat upholstery with ‘Rebel’ stitching.

It all looks fairly tasteful, with the right amount of red highlights to prevent it appearing tacky.

Our only complaints with the cabin relate to ergonomics. For one, the Rebel misses out on side steps, which makes it a fair climb to get inside – there are at least large grab handles and generous door openings to gives you plenty of space to pull yourself in.

Then there’s the massive steering wheel. Although it’s leather-wrapped and feels nice in the hands, it’s colossal, making it difficult to reach the drive mode and gear selector buttons in the middle. There are no paddle shifters either; the buttons behind the wheel are for audio instead.

There’s only one stalk and the climate system is mostly digital, except for a couple of shortcut buttons on either side. None of these are dealbreakers, just a little unintuitive. Everything feels rock-solid and you’d never know it’s all been taken apart and swapped from left- to right-hand drive.

You won’t have any issues with storage or connectivity either, as there’s a massive centre console with loads of room, including a sliding and removeable tray. Nearby are no fewers than 10 USB-A and USB-C outlets, an HDMI port, dual wireless phone chargers, and a 12V outlet in a small tray above the infotainment display.

The second row is no less palatial. There is an unbelievable amount of leg and head room, more than you’re likely to find in most limousines.

You can comfortably fit three fully grown adults back here, but it’s no less of a hike to get in than it is up front. The floor is completely flat too, which means passengers in the middle seat won’t have any issues with driveline tunnels robbing room from their feet.

You’ll also notice the full effect of the new red/black upholstery, the massive panoramic sunroof, and the rubber floor covering, all included as standard. That rubber hides a pair of storage holes in the floor, which are perfect for anything you want to keep secret – more space can be unlocked by lifting the seat bench up too.

The back of the wide centre console houses dual air vents, an additional four (yes four) USB-A and USB-C ports, and buttons for the outboard seat heaters. It’s all supremely comfortable, even without the rear seat ventilation or massaging front seats of the 1500 Limited.

And of course the tub is massive too. To put it in the context of Australia’s most popular dual-cab utes, the Rebel’s tray is more than 200mm longer than that of the Ford Ranger’s, and it’s easier to access via a tailgate that features both power opening and closing.

A spray-in bedliner is also standard, but Ram’s trademark RamBox storage containers are nowhere to be seen. The American brand says this is because it wanted to maximise tub space in the Rebel for typical weekend activities, which is why you see a full-size dirt bike in the press images here.

The removal of those boxes allows for such cargo to be loaded with the tailgate closed, which makes everything more secure when on the move. You get four tie-down points as standard, but a tonneau cover is only available as an option rather than being standard as it is with other Ram 1500s.

Rounding it all off is a heavy-duty tow bar, standard across all Ram 1500s, and a full-size steel spare wheel. Oh, and those black ‘Rebel’ stickers on the back are standard too, even if they’re optional in the US.

To see how the Ram 1500 stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

What’s under the bonnet?

The Rebel gets the ‘Standard Output’ tune of Ram’s new 3.0-litre twin-turbo straight-six Hurricane engine, which means it produces 313kW of power and 635Nm of torque. Only the Limited gets the circa-400kW ‘High Output’ version.

We didn’t get enough time in any one Rebel to record a representative fuel economy figure, but after a 30-minute drive we saw a figure of 13.3L/100km on one vehicle’s trip computer.

To see how the Ram 1500 stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

How does the Ram 1500 drive?

Most of the Rebel’s mechanical enhancements relate to ride and handling, which means it’s just as quick as before.

It may only be available with the low-output Hurricane turbo-six, but the Rebel can certainly still boogie. We didn’t get the chance to conduct performance testing at the Rebel launch, but we did manage a best 0-100km/h time of 5.8 seconds with the SO engine at the launch of the MY25 Ram 1500 Laramie Sport and Limited earlier this year.

That said, it was a very wet day at the proving ground, so getting power to the ground was difficult. We’re confident the Rebel would manage a 0-100 sprint time of around six seconds, which would be much quicker than the old 5.7-litre V8-powered Ram 1500s but slower than the latest HO Limited and slightly off the pace of the SO Laramie Sport due to its less grippy all-terrain rubber.

This would have to be done in the vehicle’s 4WD Auto setting, which manages front-rear power delivery according to road conditions. Trying to accelerate hard from a standing start or even onto a soggy freeway in 2WD mode can be sketchy, and a bootful of throttle saw the Rebel wheel-spinning all the way to 100km/h on the launch drive.

That revealed a fairly primitive traction control system, which waits for the tyres to completely lose traction rather than pre-emptively dulling power. It’s not the end of the world though, and it lets you have some fun amid the comparatively bland note of the Hurricane.

It’s just impossible for a turbo six to match the brutal roar of a naturally aspirated V8, and anyone with some caveman in their DNA will agree the SO Hurricane engine in particular falls well short of the Hemi V8 when it comes to aural rewards. The Hurricane-powered Ram 1500s are faster – albeit not that much more economical – than their Hemi predecessors, but they also lack the soul of the Silverado 1500’s V8.

All that said, the performance of the SO engine is more than you’ll ever need, especially if you’re going to be taking your Ram 1500 off-road. The HO may be an even more brash American pickup, but it’d be far too much to handle on the trails.

Before we delve into that, we’ll touch on the Rebel’s on-road behaviour. The Rebel features off-road-focused Bilstein dampers and a raised ride height, but is otherwise similar to the Laramie Sport’s all-coil suspension arrangement.

It feels composed on the road, as a 2600kg vehicle should. There is some minor chatter and harshness over abrupt holes and bumps, but the ride is pretty plush and probably even more comfortable than the Ram 1500 Limited with its four-corner air suspension.

Its steering is appropriately heavy yet direct, which makes it easy to place the 1500 on the road despite its width of more than two metres. It will still take some getting used to if you haven’t spent much time driving large pickups, especially in tight spaces, but body control is kept well in check around turns and the Rebel shrinks around you on the open road.

Outward visibility is also good, though the Rebel’s bonnet bulge dominates the view out of the windscreen. The mirrors are large, and there’s a substantial array of parking sensors, however, a surround-view camera is a disappointing omission given the price.

But the Rebel starts to make more sense once you hit the trails. It’ll always feel wrong bush-bashing a circa-$150k car, but that isn’t really the point here.

Sure, it’ll take plenty of hardcore off-road abuse if need be, but the Rebel is more intended for the outback trek or to get you to a remote campsite or the start of a dirt bike, mountain bike or hiking trail, for example. Think Ooodnanatta Track rather than Rubicon Trail.

And for those purposes it will be brilliant, with all the enhancements you need for plenty of all-terrain capability.

A full 4.5-tonne towing capacity (with a 70mm tow ball) should make hauling large caravans, boats or horse floats a breeze, while the increased ground clearance and under-body protection should stop you damaging too much over large rocks and ruts.

In fact, a rough and muddy trail at Lang Lang didn’t cause any serious problems for the Rebel, though there were a few minor front-end scrapes when tackling particularly deep holes. We avoided getting stuck at least, thanks in part to the extra off-road traction from the all-terrain tyres.

The only problem is the huge bonnet can block your vision on the trail, making vehicle placement more difficult. Still, it will take a pretty large boghole or a very snotty hillclimb to stop the Rebel in its broad tracks – check out the CarExpert YouTube channel for a detailed look at the Rebel’s off-road performance.

In terms of safety gear we had no issues, with only the passive lane-keep system flaring up when we got too close to the edge of our lane.

To see how the Ram 1500 stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

What do you get?

There are currently three variants in the MY25 Ram 1500 lineup, though more are expected to follow.

2025 Ram 1500 Laramie Sport equipment highlights:

• Standard Output Hurricane engine
• 20-inch alloy wheels
  • 275/55R20 tyres
  • Full-size alloy spare
• Reflector LED headlights
• LED front fog lights
• Rain-sensing wipers
• Panoramic sunroof
• Proximity entry with push-button start
• Power tailgate with one-touch close function
• Power sliding rear window
• Rear privacy glass
• Lockable, drainable and illuminated RamBox storage compartments
• Spray-in tub liner
• Electronic parking brake
• Trailer brake controller
• Automatic lowering and retracting side steps
• Five drive modes (Auto, Sport, Tow, Snow, Off-Road) 
• 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster
• 14.4-inch infotainment screen
• 10.25-inch front passenger infotainment touchscreen
• Wired and wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto
• Satellite navigation
• Dual wireless smartphone chargers
• 19-speaker Harman Kardon sound system
• 5 x USB-C outlets
• 1 x HDMI port
• Power-adjustable pedals
• Electrochromatic rear-view mirror
• Power-adjustable front seats
  • 8-way adjustment
  • Driver’s memory
  • 2-way power lumbar
  • Heating
  • Ventilation
• Heated outboard rear seats
• Second-row in-floor storage bins with removable liners
• Dual-zone climate control

The Rebel adds:

• 18-inch gloss black alloy wheels
  • Full-size steel spare
• 32-inch Falken Wildpeak 275/65/18 all-terrain tyres
• Bilstein off-road dampers
• Underbody skid plates
• Unique grille
• Rebel decals
• Powder-coated front and rear steel bumpers
• Red and black interior

It misses out on RamBox cargo units, power side steps, fold-down rear centre console and ventilated front seats.

Over the Laramie Sport, the Limited adds:

• High Output Hurricane engine
• 22-inch alloy wheels
  • 285/45R22 tyres
• Air suspension with three modes (Normal, Aero and Off-Road)
• Projector LED headlights and tail-lights with unlock animation
• Daytime running lights
• Proximity lighting with Ram logo projection
• Massaging front seats
• Ventilated outboard rear seats
• Digital rear-view mirror

To see how the Ram 1500 stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

Is the Ram 1500 safe?

The Ram 1500 hasn’t been tested by ANCAP.

Standard safety equipment highlights:

• Front, front-side and curtain airbags
• Autonomous emergency braking (AEB)
  • Junction assist
  • Pedestrian and cyclist detection
• Adaptive cruise control
• Blind-spot monitoring
• Driver fatigue monitoring
• Evasive steering assistance
• Front and rear parking sensors
• Lane departure warning
• Lane-keep assist
• Rear cross-traffic alert
• Reversing camera
• Tyre pressure monitoring

The 1500 Limited adds:

• Driver fatigue detection
• Evasive steering assist
• Intersection assist
• Traffic sign recognition
• Surround-view camera
• Front parking sensors

To see how the Ram 1500 stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

How much does the Ram 1500 cost to run?

All Ram vehicles sold in Australia are backed by a three-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty. Servicing for the 1500 is required every 12 months or 12,000km – whichever comes first.

Ram Trucks Australia doesn’t offer capped-price servicing.

To see how the Ram 1500 stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

CarExpert’s Take on the Ram 1500 Rebel

It’s easy to see why the Ram 1500 is Australia’s favourite full-size American pickup, and the Rebel delivers another level of all-terrain capability for those who want it.

But the best part about the Rebel is that it’s no more expensive than the Laramie Sport, the entry-level variant of the facelifted, Hurricane-powered range (so far). We’re used to tougher off-road versions of smaller dual-cab 4×4 utes like the Isuzu D-Max and Toyota HiLux sitting at the top of their respective lineups, often commanding considerably higher price premiums than seems reasonable.

Of course it’s a bit different here, where the MY25 Ram 1500 is already priced from more than $140,000, but the fact you can have a standard Ram or this off-road version without paying any more sits well with us, given the pretty useful kit it brings to the table. And the only real trade-off is slightly less grip on sealed roads.

No, there’s not a lot to dislike about the Rebel, and we’re interested to see where Ram takes the updated 1500 lineup next. We still miss the Hemi V8, though.

CarExpert can save you thousands on a new Ram 1500. Click here to get a great deal.

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MORE: Explore the Ram 1500 showroom