{"id":3838,"date":"2026-01-06T04:01:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T12:01:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/max2voyages.com\/?p=3838"},"modified":"2026-01-06T04:01:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T12:01:10","slug":"hemi-vs-hurricane-which-ram-1500-engine-is-the-best-choice-for-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/max2voyages.com\/?p=3838","title":{"rendered":"Hemi vs. Hurricane: Which Ram 1500 Engine Is the Best Choice for You?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Hemi is back, baby! After a year off for reasons we\u2019ll get to, the 5.7-liter V-8 is back<\/u> in the 2026 Ram 1500<\/u>. The engine that replaced it, the 3.0-liter twin-turbo Hurricane I-6, is still around, so which one is right for you?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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That Thing Got a Hemi?<\/strong> <\/h2>\n

If you missed the news, Ram took the Hemi out of the new Ram 1500 last year only to put it back this year. Why? A decade of product planning decisions at parent company Stellantis that painted it into a corner. Ram (and Dodge) were happy to crank out V-8 engines and pay fines to the government or buy credits from competing automakers for failing to meet corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards for years, but former CEO Carlos Tavares decided that wasn\u2019t financially responsible anymore. The V-8 went, and fans were big mad.<\/p>\n

Tavares then also went, and new CEO Antonio Filosa reversed course and brought the V-8 back. He also got lucky, because right around the same time, the second Trump administration came to power and earlier this year cut those pesky fines to zero dollars<\/u>. Hemis for all!<\/p>\n

Of course, it\u2019s not like the Ram 1500 didn\u2019t have an engine for the past year. The rather old Hemi was replaced with the all-new Hurricane 3.0-liter twin-turbo I-6 in two flavors, standard output and high output. Turbocharged six-cylinder trucks are nothing new, of course; Ford has been doing them for 15 years. We thought the Hurricane and the truck it\u2019s bolted to were good enough to be our 2025 Truck of the Year<\/u>. Now that you have the choice, though, which one should you get?<\/p>\n

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Bench Racing<\/strong> <\/h2>\n

On paper, it\u2019s no contest. The Hurricane I-6 (in the red truck) makes more power and torque, weighs less, and gets better fuel economy than the Hemi V-8 (in the white truck). By the numbers, the standard-output I-6 makes 420 hp and 469 lb-ft to the V-8\u2019s 395 hp and 410 lb-ft. The V-8 is equipped with Ram\u2019s e-Torque mild hybrid system, which can contribute up to 130 lb-ft of additional torque but does not change the engine\u2019s peak output.<\/p>\n

Of course, if you buy a top trim level, you\u2019ll get the high-output Hurricane, which makes 540 hp and 521 lb-ft. There is no V-8 equivalent.<\/p>\n

Ram doesn\u2019t list engine weight in its specs, but we can see from the payload and gross vehicle weight ratings the all-aluminum twin-turbo I-6 is somewhere between 160 and 210 pounds lighter than the mild hybrid cast-iron V-8. In our nearly identical trucks, the weight difference after options was just 64 pounds.<\/p>\n

Optioning the heavier engine means payload goes down, so the Hemi can haul less weight in the cab and bed. (Passengers and cargo both count toward payload, not to mention trailer tongue weight.) Across trims, the Hurricane can haul 160 to 210 pounds more. The weight of the Hemi also counts against its max tow rating, which is 170 to 1,610 pounds lower than the Hurricane depending on rear axle ratio and whether it\u2019s 2WD or 4WD.<\/p>\n

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The V-8 is currently only available in 4WD, which nets EPA ratings of 16\/20\/18 mpg city\/highway\/combined. The standard-output I-6 4WD for 2025 got 17\/24\/19 mpg city\/highway\/combined (that\u2019s up slightly to 18\/24\/20 this year). Per EPA estimates, our I-6 will cost $2,350 per year in gas money while the V-8 will run you $3,100 a year. Individual fill-ups will also be more expensive with the V-8 because it automatically comes paired with a 33-gallon fuel tank, up from 26 gallons standard.<\/p>\n

Actual Racing<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Unsurprisingly, the lighter engine with more power and torque is quicker in a straight line. The truck with the Hurricane needed just 5.3 seconds to hit 60 mph and ran a quarter mile in 14 seconds flat at 95.1 mph. The V-8 roared to 60 mph in 6.1 seconds and needed 14.6 seconds at 94.6 mph for the quarter. Passing is similarly quicker for the Hurricane, taking 2.9 seconds to accelerate from 45 mph to 65 mph compared to 3.2 seconds for the V-8.<\/p>\n

Those are differences you feel behind the wheel. Give it a little gas, and the V-8 feels more responsive, its torque not dependent on waiting for turbos to spool. Put your foot down, though, and those turbochargers spin up quickly, and the Hurricane surges forward in a way the Hemi can\u2019t. Yeah, the Hemi sounds badass doing it thanks to the standard Mopar performance exhaust, but it\u2019s still slower and working harder at being slower. The Hurricane is a tempest in a teapot, acoustically speaking, but it\u2019s got it where it counts. Mopar offers a performance exhaust for the RHO, but other trims have to wait a while longer before one becomes available.<\/p>\n

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Towing<\/strong> <\/h2>\n

You\u2019ll spend most of your time driving around with an empty bed, but sooner or later, you\u2019ll want to do truck stuff, so we hooked up a 6,900-pound boat and trailer to each truck to see whether turbos or pushrod torque are better for towing.<\/p>\n

Here again, the Hemi makes a better noise but is noticeably worse at getting the job done. Whether accelerating gently or quickly, the Hemi would run up to 4,000 rpm in the first four of its eight gears, sometimes all the way to 5,000. The Hurricane never broke 3,500 rpm and didn\u2019t need to downshift nearly as aggressively to overtake or maintain speed up small hills.<\/p>\n

We also noticed the Hemi running a gear lower while cruising than the Hurricane, spinning anywhere from 300 to 1,000 rpm faster and burning more gas. In our test, it was always working harder to achieve slightly less.<\/p>\n

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On the other hand, we found the Hemi far more aggressive under braking in Tow\/Haul mode, dropping gears and running up the engine speed to help slow the more than 12,000 pounds of combined vehicle weight. The Hurricane, by contrast, was only slightly more aggressive with its engine braking when towing than when driving around empty.<\/p>\n

Minor braking difference aside, the Hurricane was noticeably more relaxed and confident than the Hemi while pulling 61 percent of its max tow rating. As it happens, the Hurricane-equipped red truck also has the optional air suspension, whereas the white truck does not, and we found the air springs handled the trailer better, in case you\u2019re deciding whether they\u2019re worth it.<\/p>\n

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Hauling<\/strong> <\/h2>\n

What\u2019s true for towing is often true for hauling, and this case is no exception. We put a 1,000-pound payload in the back of each truck and took them for a spin. As is typical, the weight settled each truck\u2019s rear end and improved ride quality noticeably.<\/p>\n

When it came to actually moving the weight, the difference was less stark than while towing but still apparent. Here again the Hurricane was calmer yet stronger, advancing like a train. The Hemi made a lot more (beautiful) noise and felt more aggressive off the line, but it had to work harder to keep the momentum going. The Hurricane just pulled and kept pulling, no drama.<\/p>\n

Similarly, when accelerating in gear to pass or climb a hill, the Hurricane didn\u2019t need to drop as many gears or rev up as high to get the job done. When braking, the Hemi was again more aggressive with its downshifts.<\/p>\n

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Availability<\/strong> <\/h2>\n

As much as Ram marketing has tried to tie the Hemi V-8 to freedom and protest, it\u2019s not actually that easy to get one.<\/u> The V-8 can be optioned in eight out of the 10 Ram 1500 trim levels, but don\u2019t let that fool you. It\u2019s only available with the larger Crew Cab and only when paired with the shorter 5-foot, 7-inch bed and 4WD. (2WD will be an option in the future.) No Quad Cab, no long bed.<\/p>\n

In the four lowest trim levels (Tradesman, Express, Warlock, Big Horn), the Hemi is also a $2,875 upcharge over the standard 3.6-liter V-6 and $1,200 more than the optional Hurricane. For the next two trim levels up (Laramie and Rebel, the latter of which isn\u2019t available yet), the Hurricane is standard, and the Hemi is a $1,200 upcharge. On the two highest trim levels where it\u2019s available (Limited and Limited Longhorn), it\u2019s a no-cost option, but in that case, you\u2019d be downgrading from the high-output Hurricane. The V-8 isn\u2019t available at all in the off-road RHO or luxurious Tungsten trims.<\/p>\n

The Hurricane, meanwhile, is available in every trim level and every bed and body configuration. In the cases where it\u2019s not the standard engine, it\u2019s only a $1,695 option.<\/p>\n

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Which Engine to Buy?<\/strong> <\/h2>\n

To recap, the Hurricane I-6 has more power and torque, gets better fuel economy, tows better, hauls better, and is quicker. The Hemi V-8 sounds better. There\u2019s potentially an argument to be entertained that the Hurricane is unproven, as it\u2019s a new engine, but we haven\u2019t seen any serious issues crop up yet in other products, and the idea that turbo engines don\u2019t last is outdated.<\/p>\n

Look, if you want the V-8 primarily so you can drive a cool-sounding truck, go for it.<\/u> It sounds great and goes well enough. If you\u2019re serious about doing truck stuff, though, pick the six. That\u2019s what we\u2019re doing<\/u>.<\/p>\n

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2nd Place: 2026 Ram 1500 Hemi V-8<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Pros:<\/h2>\n

-Sounds badass<\/p>\n

Cons:<\/strong><\/h2>\n

-Slower<\/p>\n

-Doesn\u2019t tow or haul well<\/p>\n

-Worst fuel economy<\/p>\n

Verdict:<\/strong> What to buy if you mostly just want to drive a cool-sounding truck.<\/p>\n

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1st Place: 2026 Ram 1500 Hurricane I-6<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Pros:<\/h2>\n

-Quicker<\/p>\n

-Tows and hauls better<\/p>\n

-Better fuel economy<\/p>\n

Cons:<\/h2>\n

-Too quiet<\/p>\n

Verdict:<\/strong> The engine for getting truck stuff done.<\/p>\n

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The Hemi is back, baby! After a year off for reasons we\u2019ll get to, the 5.7-liter V-8 is<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3839,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[153],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-comparison-tests"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/max2voyages.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3838","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/max2voyages.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/max2voyages.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/max2voyages.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/max2voyages.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3838"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/max2voyages.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3838\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/max2voyages.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/max2voyages.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/max2voyages.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/max2voyages.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}