First let's get the trucks themselves out of the way. They drive, look, and feel just like the 11/42-ton Ram that was redesigned for the '02 model year, which is really good. The big differences are that the 4x4 versions use a solid front axle instead of an independent system, and you can get (in addition to the Hemi) either a redesigned Cummins turbodiesel six making (in "high-output" form) a humongoid 555 lb-ft of torque at 1,400 rpm and 305 hp at 2,900 rpm, or the familiar 8.0L V-10 also making 305 hp but peaking at 440 lb-ft of torque. In fact, not a single engine or transmission is currently shared between the 11/42-ton Ram and its Heavy Duty brothers. These are solid trucks with wonderful interiors, sweet chassis, and-with the newly-civilized Cummins-the torquiest engines available in a pickup.
The Hemi though, is something truly special. Except for the dual spark plugs on each cylinder (a trick that's been around for about a century) there's really nothing all that tough to explain about the new Hemi. The block is iron, the heads are aluminum, the combustion chambers are hemispherically shaped, the single cam bumps 16 pushrods that actuate 16 overhead valves, and the 3.92-inch bore and 3.58-inch stroke result in 345 ci of displacement, which translates into 5,654 cc if you're an effete Euro-weenie, or 5.7L if you're marketing the engine to a bunch of Euro-weenies. But for all its untrickness and modest 9.6:1 compression, this engine kicks ass by producing a full 345 hp at 5,400 rpm and a chunky-monkey 375 lb-ft of peak torque at 4,200 rpm. Yup, that's 1 hp per cube in a truck engine using SAE net ratings.
What's the Hemi's power-production secret? Is it the weirdly shaped dished pistons? Something in the sequential-fuel-injection system? Or is it just a well-designed (on computers) engine with ultra-efficient cross-flow cylinder heads? Okay, it's the design, and the potential is awesome.
In the HD Ram, the Hemi is hooked to one of two five-speeds, either manual or automatic. With the manual, which shifts very smoothly, the engine revs with ease and feels like it has torque practically oozing out valve covers. With the automatic, the drop in engine speed barely seems to affect torque production when shifts come-there's no jerkiness and no sensation that the engine is running behind the truck's road speed. With either transmission, the engine is quiet with an appealing growl from the exhaust. In a really good pickup, the Hemi is the best part.
In its current plain-Jane form, the new Hemi closely matches the output of the 6.0L V-8 Cadillac used in the Escalade SUVs (a version of the Vortec 6000), and the other small-block truck engines (discounting the supercharged 5.4L in Ford's F-150 SVT Lightning) don't even come close. Imagine when this engine is cast all in aluminum, has a higher compression ratio, incorporates technologies like a variable intake manifold and nonsynchronous firing of the spark plugs in each cylinder and the mind boggles.
We like having our minds boggled.
Driving the Car That Will Be the Next GTO[Photo 116-0211.SCUP 5A through 5C]This is the car that will be the GTO. Built in Australia by Holden, a GM subsidiary, the Monaro CV8 will be twisted a bit, have the driver moved to the left side, and get some Pontiac styling cues before it goes on sale as the '04 GTO, but at its core, the GTO will be this Monaro. And now we've driven it.
The Monaro is a bit smaller than an '02 Firebird and is more handsome in metal than in photos. It's got a wide road stance (the platform is basically a widened Opel Omega, which was sold here as the Cadillac Catera), a sleek shape, and some character. Bolted to the unibody structure is an all-independent suspension with MacPherson struts up front and trailing arms and coil springs in back. Naturally the brakes are four-wheel discs with the inevitable ABS. An 18-inch wheel wearing a 235/40R18 all-season radial sits at each corner.