One of the stars of this past weekend’s Woodward Dream Cruise, the Ram 1500 Rumble Bee Concept rolled onto the party scene in Detroit to help celebrate the 10th anniversary of the original then-Dodge Ram 1500 Rumble Bee — a sport truck package inspired by the division’s Super Bee muscle car offerings. Like its production predecessor, this new-gen Ram Rumble Bee Concept is based on a standard cab/rear-drive model. In this case, a Ram 1500 R/T packing a 395-horsepower/5.7-liter Hemi V8 with a cold-air intake mated to an 8-speed automatic transmission that drives the rear wheels via a performance-spec 4.10:1 rear end.
Also: 10 Best Sedans under $25,000 for 2013
The Ram Rumble Bee Concept’s high-profile visuals start with its Drone Yellow paint that features a unique matte finish with pearlescent overtones set off by various gloss black accents on the grille, vented hood and mirror caps as well as a color-keyed engine cover and a full Mopar body kit. In addition to carrying a new iteration of the classic "Speed Bee" logo, the black side stripe on this raucous Ram adds a subtle honeycomb motif that fades in where it kicks up and widens before wrapping over a Mopar hard tonneau. The 22-inch factory alloy wheels are replaced by custom 24-inch Vellano VRH rims – also rendered in gloss black – while a King Suspension lowering kit drops the ride height by two inches and also brings reservoir-type performance shocks.
To remain fully in character, the Rumble Bee’s cabin reprises the black/Drone Yellow exterior color scheme on its leather/sport mesh bucket seats and floor mats while adding embroidered Rumble Bee indicia on the seatback and door panel trim. In addition to its commemorative 10th Anniversary dash plaque, the standard transmission selector knob is replaced by a bespoke backlit alternative that houses an actual amber-encased bee in a honeycomb environment. The final flourish is a two position "Rumble" switch that allows the driver to select from loud and louder levels of aural excitement from the Hemi’s Mopar cat-back exhaust system.
Also: 10 Best Luxury SUVs for 2013
In presenting this latest iteration of the Rumble Bee, Reid Bigland, President and CEO of Ram Truck Brand, Chrysler Group LLC noted: "There’s a lot of energy surrounding concept trucks and buzz models, and the Ram Design Team revels in creating something that is unique for our customers to enjoy." While stopping short of confirming plans to put it into production, division execs admit there’s a real possibility of that happening if Ram fan response proves sufficiently strong.
More Pickup Trucks…
The Ford Atlas Concept hints at what you’ll see in the 2015 F-150 redesign
The 2014 Ram 1500 pickup will offer a turbodiesel option
The 2014 Silverado/Sierra pickups will have the most standard V6 torque
Popular at KBB.com
10 Best SUVs Under $25,000-
Your 12 Midsize Sedan Choices -
First Pics: All-new Cars for 2014
