‘We Screwed Up,’ Says Ram CEO

The Hemi-powered Ram 1500 is back, and it goes on sale this summer for the 2026 model year. It won’t be the standard engine in the pickup, but if you’re a cylinder counter and can’t live without eight of them, it’ll cost up to $1,200 to upgrade. Order books are open now.

“Everyone makes mistakes, but how you handle it defines you,” said Kuniskis. “Ram screwed up when we dropped the Hemi—we own it and we fixed it.” The brand shifted to a six-cylinder engine lineup for 2025, which buyers didn’t like. 

Photo by: Ram

The engine makes the same 395 horsepower and 410 pound-feet of torque as before. It also features the same eTorque hybrid system, which was “one of the ways to speed the development,” according to Ram brand CEO Tim Kuniskis. “Make it exactly the way it was. That way, we don’t have to do recalibrations, recertifications, and all these other things.”

The 5.7-liter V-8 will be available on the Tradesman, Big Horn, Express, Warlock, Laramie, Rebel (late availability), Limited, and Longhorn trims. However, how much you pay for the V-8 depends on the trim you pick. A new badge—a ram’s head at the front of a Hemi block—will identify pickups with this engine. It’s called the “Symbol of Protest Badge,” and Ram puts it on the front fenders.

Photo by: Ram

The Limited and Longhorn come standard with Ram’s 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six high-output engine, so the V-8 upgrade is free. It’s a $1,200 option on the other trims when they’re equipped with the standard-output engine. The Hemi offers 1,750 pounds of payload capacity and an 11,470-lb maximum tow rating.

2026 Ram 1500 5.7-Liter V-8 Hemi Development

Ram began working to figure out how to put a V-8 into the new truck the day Tim Kuniskis returned to the brand in December. However, the initial timeline suggested it would take Ram 18 months to get a Hemi back into the truck.

One hurdle was the new electrical architecture Ram introduced in the 2025 1500 for the Rev and Ramcharger. The Hemi was not designed for that platform, so Kuniskis created a special team, codenamed F15, that cut that down to just six months.

Photo by: Ram

Leading the group was former SRT chief engineer Daryl Smith.

“That means nothing, or that means everything,” Kuniskis said. “You guys look into that however you want. But Daryl was able to turn that 18 months into six months, and, again, the fact that he was the lead guy on SRT maybe means something, I don’t know.”

Ram 1500’s Future

Back in April, Kuniskis announced that Ram was planning 25 product announcements in the next 18 months, and the return of the Hemi is just the start. A mid-size truck is on the way, but those hoping for the TRX’s return will have to wait for official confirmation from the brand.

Photo by: Ram

When Ram launched the 2025 1500 RHO last year, it was adamant that truck wasn’t a replacement for the TRX. The company said that “when and if” it talks about “those three letters,” it would “have a proper positioning” for them.

While the TRX name is sitting on a shelf for now, the supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 will continue to live in the 2026 Durango Hellcat. We hope Smith and the team can work their magic to get the supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 Hellcat engine back into the 1500. Hopefully, that’s what they’re working on right now.