2005 Dodge Ram Power Wagon Preview

World's Most Capable Factory 4x4 Pickup?

How can one pickup truck model be the world's fastest on the racetrack and also the best off-road? Dodge has the former

Chrysler Group CEO Dieter Zetsche has dubbed the new Dodge Ram Power Wagon "the most capable off-road pickup ever built." (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press)

claim recorded in the books, the Guinness Book of World Records that is. The domestic brand proved its point unequivocally during a speed test at its Chelsea Proving Grounds in February, by registering a 250 km/h (155 mph) top speed in a Ram SRT-10.

And what about the second claim? While no third party statistics organization was on hand to verify Chrysler Group CEO Dieter Zetsche when he named the new Ram Power Wagon as "the most capable off-road pickup ever built," a quick look at the 2005 model's spec sheet should put to rest any rival

The new Power Wagon came charging out from "beneath" a makeshift pile of dirt. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press)

disagreement; at least regarding production based pickup trucks.

Dusting off and buffing up a quarter century old badge once synonymous with off-road dominance, the domestic automaker's new Power Wagon came charging out from "beneath" a makeshift pile of dirt, taking center stage with a shovel wielding Zetsche, standing within a few minutes walking distance of the same high-speed oval where the first record was set.

Like the truck's world debut, the brand that builds the Power Wagon never goes about anything halfheartedly, with Zetsche proclaiming this first entry of the day to be part of a "big, bad and incredibly powerful expansion of the Dodge Ram model lineup."