For the third time in a row, the Ram 1500 has been crowned the overall winner of the Canadian Truck King Challenge.
Now in its 10th year, the Canadian Truck King Challenge is a rigorous, multi-day, third-party event that sees pickup trucks and commercial vehicles tested head-to-head in an apples-to-apples series of exercises.
From a base in Kawartha Lakes, Ontario, a group of seven expert judges from across Canada – with over 200 years of combined truck testing experience – put all of the entrants through intensive, real-world evaluations over almost 4,000 km, with a focus on capability, fuel consumption and features. Testing included up to 1,814 kg (4,000 pounds) of payload hauling, 6,803 kg (15,000 pounds) of towing and assessing off-road capability.
The 2017 Ram 1500 earned the ½-ton and overall Canadian Truck King Challenge titles by out-scoring the 10 other entered pickups – from mid-size to one-ton full-size – and including new and refreshed competitors.
Claiming the crown again marks a three-time Truck King win for Ram 1500. In the two previous competitions, Ram 1500s powered by the segment-exclusive 3.0-litre EcoDiesel V-6 engine were entered. For 2017, Ram Truck Canada was asked to enter its volume model: a Ram 1500 Crew Cab Sport 4x4, powered by the 5.7-litre HEMI V-8, a sixtime winner of Ward’s Automotive “10 Best Engines”. This time, the HEMI-powered 1500 overcame a trio of all-new or refreshed light-duty half-ton rivals.
Further, the heavy-duty Ram 2500, powered by the 6.7-litre Cummins Turbo Diesel engine, also earned the number-one spot in the 3/4-ton category of the Canadian Truck King Challenge.
“Seeing Ram 1500 take the overall crown at the Canadian Truck King Challenge for a record third time is an incredible endorsement of its breath of capability and class-exclusive features,” said Reid Bigland, President and CEO, FCA Canada. “The pickup truck segments are incredibly competitive. Truck King’s real-world, seven-person evaluation shows Canadians the best of the breed and we’re honoured that Ram 1500 is again on top, with Ram 2500 winning its category strongly as well.”
Said Howard Elmer, founder and director of the Canadian Truck King Challenge: “The Canadian pickup truck market is very competitive and getting more so… It's this level of fierce competition that results in good trucks and great choices for Canadian buyers. Ram, our 2017 winner, has been one of these constantly improving trucks. Its overall high score, awarded by the panel of automotive journalist judges, speaks to the hard work the engineers at Ram have invested in its pickups. Congratulations again to the 2017 Ram 1500 5.7L Hemi powered pickup.”
