[1]America loves pickup trucks, so much so that the Big Three’s full-size truck offerings are among the best-selling vehicles in the world, every year. The truck culture has so permeated America that we no longer just use them for work, but as performance vehicles and status symbols as well. Automakers are only too happy to cater to those wanting a fancier truck to park in their driveway.
[2]In a bid to bring these status seekers back to the Ram brand, Chrysler has announced that it will debut an all-new “Rumble Bee” Ram 1500 pickup this weekend at the annual Woodward Dream Cruise.
At least that is the assumption being passed around the blogosphere, judging from two teaser pics Chrysler released this week. The yellow and black color scheme is the first hint that we’ll be seeing the return of the Rumble Bee, as are the five-spoke blacked-out rims, twin hood scoops, and color-matching bumper. We weren’t at all disappointed the last time Mopar released sketches [3], turned out they were right on the money [4].
But what really got our attention is on the inside; a dial-like gear selector for the 8-speed automatic transmission, below which are two “rumble” buttons. The graphics on the buttons indicate a low and high volume, which coule mean that you can adjust the amount of “rumble” that you hear, from mild to wild. What engine sits in front of this transmission is anyone’s guess, though the most likely offering is either the 5.7 liter HEMI V8 or, more daringly, the 6.4 liter HEMI from the SRT lineup.
The original Rumble Bee debuted in 2004 with the 5.7 liter HEMI, but got such performance enhancements like a 3:92 rear end gear ratio. Mostly though, it was an exterior package, and we’re hoping for a little more out of Chrysler this time around. We’ll find out for sure this weekend.