If you stop and think about it, 60 mph is pretty damn fast, at least at human scales. I’m not talking like interstellar travel here, I mean real, day-to-day, sandwiches-and-soap life. It’s a nice speed to think about because it lines up so nicely with how we measure time: 60 minutes to an hour, so 60 miles per hour means that you’re moving at a mile-a-minute, which is easy to understand; every minute, a mile!
We live in an era where cars can go from stationary to 60 mph in shockingly short spans of time, and I think it’s starting to affect our minds. I say this because a recent review of the 2025 Ram 1500 Big Horn V6 that appeared in Motor Trend spends much of its time trying to convince everyone that a truck that takes 8.1 seconds to get from stopped to 60 mph is somehow unacceptable. That, I think, is nuts. Getting from 0-60 in 8.1 seconds is just fine.
I realize this is a drum I’ve banged before, but seeing as how articles like this are still appearing in big-time outlets like Motor Trend, I think that drum still needs some further spanking. I’m not even sure if this is a pervasive way that people now think or if this is just a symptom of the weird, distorted ways that we auto-journos can think, but the general concept that somehow anything that takes longer than, say, six seconds to get to 60 mph is slow seems to be part of the general discussion, and, again, it’s ridiculous.
Let’s look at some of what was said in this review so you can see what I mean. First, though, let’s go over the specs on this truck so we know what we’re talking about. The version reviewed here has a mild hybrid setup (basically an integrated starter/motor in place of the alternator that helps with stop/start and provides a bit of extra power at lower speeds), with a 3.5-liter V6 making 305 horsepower and 269 pound-feet of torque. This engine is bolted to an 8-speed auto. Nothing amazing, but those numbers are just fine.
The truck is a chonker, with a curb weight of 5,082 pounds, giving a not-that-unreasonable 16.6 pounds per horsepower. That’s nearly the exact same power-to-weight ratio as a 2010 Ford Mustang V6, which used 210 horses to motivate its approximately 3,400 pounds of heft, for a ratio of 16.2 pounds per horsepower. That wasn’t the fastest Mustang, but I don’t recall anyone praying they wouldn’t get stuck behind one on the freeway.
Anyway, let’s get into some quotes from the article:
“Paying the extra $2,695 for the 2025 Ram 1500’s next-level-up (and all-new) twin-turbo Hurricane I-6 engine and its 420 hp is therefore nearly a requirement, not a consideration, for anyone keen on their truck not being a rolling roadblock.”
The part that gets me here is, of course, describing a truck that goes to 60 in 8.1 seconds as a “rolling roadblock.” No, man, just no. What about this is a roadblock? Where the fuck are you driving this? Is this what you picked for a track car?
Maybe he’s having some fun with hyperbole, which I get, because being hyperbolic is more fun than playing video games while having sex on a roller coaster with a mouthful of cake, sure, but at the same time, this concept is at the core of the review: this truck is too slow.
Here’s another quote:
“In the Ram, when you step on the gas, you’ll watch the tach needle twist and hear the engine snarl through its powerband. Acceleration follows tepidly, even as the V-6 revs to its high-rpm power peak. A stoplight drag against a 30-year-old Miata is effectively a draw; by the time the Ram gets to the speed limit, the Miata is still on its quarter panel. Reaching 60 mph takes a long 8.1 seconds, well beyond base-engine-equipped competitors; even Chevy’s four-cylinder Silverado is a full second quicker to 60 mph.”
First, a draw with a Miata is impressive! The truck is like five times the size and weight of the Miata, and it’s still managing to race it to a draw? That’s incredible! And, it’s not like anyone was thinking about Miatas, even with their little 116 hp engines, as “roadblocks.” Because they’re not.
The review says getting to 60 takes “a long 8.1 seconds,” but I just can’t abide this. In reality, out of the weird bizarro world of car reviews, 8.1 seconds is not “long.” In fact, for a long, long time, 8.1 seconds was fast! You know what took about 8 seconds to get to 60 mph? One of these:
A Ferrari! A Ferrari Dino GTS! Nobody thinks of this thing as a “roadblock,” do they? Sure, it’s from 1973, but who cares? Has the length of a mile changed since 1973? Have we re-constructed and dramatically shortened all of our on- and off-ramps to our highways since the 1970s? Did we switch to metric time and seconds mean something different? The answer is no, to all of these silly questions, of course.
Yes, traffic was a bit slower in the past, but not that much slower; and, more importantly, modern traffic just isn’t so blindingly fast that a car that accelerates to 60 in just over 8 seconds would be a liability, anywhere.
I guarantee you that nobody driving the V6 Ram 1500 is going to cause massive traffic slowdowns, anywhere. I can say this confidently because I drive a 52 horsepower car that takes about twice as long to get to 60, and I have yet to have a line of angry cars behind me, honking horns and screaming threats as I merge onto a highway. Somehow, I can merge on almost any on-ramp I’ve ever encountered at about the same general pace as everyone else, because most normal human drivers don’t bother driving at a full 10/10 of their cars’ performance envelopes when they’re just commuting to work.
Sure, there may be some hyper-intense motherfuckers who white-knuckle every on-ramp, foot-pinning that gas pedal into the carpet until it either yields or moans in pleasure, and maybe those tightly-wound velocity junkies may find eight seconds too glacial. They probably exist. But I’ve never impeded the progress of one, even in my 0.9-liter, 52 hp gumdrop.
You know what accelerates way, way slower than 8.1 seconds to 60? Trucks. Big trucks. Fully leaden, the average 18-wheeler semi requires about a minute to reach 60mph. Considering the weight they’re hauling, that’s incredible. And, even with those slow speeds, millions of them are on the roads at any moment, and somehow everything keeps running smoothly.
Fast cars are fun. There’s no question about that! Stomping on the gas and finding you’re at that magic mile-a-minute in less than a handful of seconds is of course a thrill. It’s great. It’s also not how people drive, day-to-day, and the implication that a truck that goes from 0 to 60 in 8.1 seconds is somehow inadequate or even has the potential to impede other drivers is, frankly, ridiculous.
I don’t know what kind of collective madness we’re all saturated by when it comes to how we see 0-60 speeds, but enough already. If your main criteria in buying a new car is acceleration, then I suspect maybe you already know that a huge pickup truck shaped like a shipping container possibly isn’t your ideal option. I also suspect that deep down, you also know that an 8-second-to-60 vehicle is going to be absolutely, totally fine for daily driving in almost every situation, and you will never have to bear the stigma of being a “rolling roadblock.”
What’s wrong with us? We’re such absurd creatures, sometimes.
Any 0-60 Time Under, Say, 7 Seconds Is Good Enough For Most Of Us: Prove Me Wrong
You Only Need 50 HP To Get By Even In Modern Traffic
The Tesla Roadster Getting To 60 In One Second With Rockets May Be Possible But What The Hell Will You Do With It
“ being hyperbolic is more fun than playing video games while having sex on a roller coaster with a mouthful of cake, ”
I don’t know about that, video games are kind of a distraction and don’t really add anything.
Have you tried a variety? There’s some amazing story-rich experiences out there. A few have made me cry, even.
At a minimum, maybe redundant. Video games are usually for when there’s an absence of those other options.
My e39 525 does 0-60 in 8.3 as per vintage test data. Now it achieves the same fate in “no one actually cares.” It ain’t fast, but no one has ever called it a rolling road block. Ever.
Huh so my Ferrari is faster than a Dino, and it’s cheaper.
Check and mate.
“If your main criteria in buying a new car is acceleration… a huge pickup truck… isn’t your ideal option.”
To be fair, a 2024 F250 with the high output 6.7 powerstroke goes 0-60 in 5.5 seconds, per a car and driver test. I’m not necessarily saying an 8,000 lb. truck with that kind of acceleration a good thing, but rolling shipping containers aren’t necessarily slow in 2024.
Still, the idea that 0-60 in 8.1 seconds is unsafely slow (as implied by “rolling roadblock”) is asinine.
The base Subaru Impreza Crosstrek is standing awkwardly in the corner, hoping no one will notice him.
It’d do a better job hiding if it wasn’t orange lol
Foolishness. My mom’s 99 Eddie Bauer Expedition with the 5.4 would do 0-60 in ten seconds flat, but for an 8-seater SUV, it felt pleeennnty quick for the street. My mom loved it during the test drive because of how much “get-up-and-go” she said it had. It would take the whole family of 5 and 5 days of camping gear up the hill to Tahoe from Sac, in the fast lane, no sweat. I think it had about 260hp.
I can see ordering the bigger engine for towing or hauling a lot of cargo, but to drop a 0-60 from 8.1 seconds in a truck? But that’s the level of writing we get these days from Motor Trend (and have for a while now).
WTF Kristen?!
Nothing tells you how much BS you have been fed regarding horsepower than the KW meter on an EV.
“I am using 20 kW to go 65 mph. How many HP is that? 29 hp!? Why the heck did I pay for the other 271 hp then?”
You should watch Jay Leno’s video on the old Briggs and Stratton hybrid car. It was built under the premise that a small car requires just 18hp to maintain 55mph, and Briggs and Stratton made an 18hp lawnmower engine.
I wish any of my vehicles were that quick. My 25 year old Explorer can barely do 0-60mph in under 12 seconds and even it feels mostly sufficient everywhere except a short highway on-ramp. My quickest vehicle is the family minivan which does it in 8.5 seconds, which feels unnecessarily quick for a family hauler.
Completely agree. I have owned a 54hp Peugeot 504D. It was entirely adequate in acceleration despite a 0-60 time in the very high teens. Could have used a 5th gear on the highway though.
Most people can’t find full throttle with a GPS, and too many of those that do tend to get in trouble.
> I have owned a 54hp Peugeot 504D
Oh lordy.
My grandmother had one. Extremely comfortable and well appointed, very attractive lines, and as fast as she needed it to be. She was an evil witch, but I remember car rides fondly.
I haven’t met a full-sized truck from the past 20 years that has been a rolling roadblock, unless of course it was being piloted by an octogenarian. If anything even the most modestly powered pickups are being driven so aggressively, I’d prefer they had LESS power to work with.
I drive a van (that’s admittedly somehow a bit quicker than this Ram) but even using just a fraction of the available power, I’m typically one of the quicker vehicles off the line around here. Most people seem to drive like there’s a yellow jackets nest in the car and the doors won’t unlock until arriving at their destination, or like sloths post Freaky Friday body-swap.
Point being, if you’re a rolling roadblock, it’s due to user eror.
It’s funny, I remember our 2000 Honda odyssey doing 0-60 in about 9.5 seconds, which was BLISTERING compared to our 88 subaru. Even still, most of my rigs today don’t even break the under 10 second mark, and I’ve never really held up traffic. Only one I’d consider actually slow would be my 01 Tracker, and thats only going up mountain passes. If I’m not above 65 before hitting the main grade, I’m stuck at whatever speed I started at.
How interesting – I just read this as a counterpoint to the entire concept of Olympic-Class trucks:
https://www.insidehook.com/lifestyle/americans-obsessed-wrong-trucks-ford-maverick?lid=10xun30gxjlk&eref=46f2d4b6dcea3d2d2d9f8545614525ca&icid=5701296224b2d6a51f8b4b22&utm_source=InsideHook&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=nation
Torch you nailed it.
I remember when a sub 10 seconds to 60 mph was like lightning.
https://www.automobile-catalog.com/performance/1959/2581145/porsche_356_a1600_gs_carrera_gt_coupe.html#gsc.tab=0
MT is pretty crap in general these days. But this type of auto journalism in general is a significant factor why cars are so unaffordable these days. Years spent convincing ourselves that things have to get faster all the time is part of the problem.
Motor Trend was always primarily an advertising medium that enthusiasts purchased if that was all that was available for a magazine fix. At one time I thought things were improving in the digital world, but as it played out I was wrong. Always avoid Motor Trend’s “Car of the Year”, it’s the safe pick. (-;
I just timed my 80 series. At 5000 feet with AC running full blast on a very hot day I did 18 seconds to 60. I do not feel like I am encumbering traffic at all. In fact I was easily the quickest off the line in that test and left the other traffic for dead. Yeah, 18 seconds is SLOW. normally I am in the 14 second range at my elevation and its completely fine. I just did a test of the twin turbo GX 550 and at 5500 feet with a load it did 9 seconds which is slower than this rolling road block…it did NOT feel slow.
Yeah 18 is pretty slow. People must drive slower up at your elevation, I’m used to traffic doing it in about 15 seconds where I live.
I have to use a lot of throttle, but I’m never holding someone up that is driving like they normally would.
I guess you don’t have short freeway onramps or big changes in elevation in your part of town, because where I live that would be a serious encumbrance to traffic
Less of an encumbrance than literally any medium or heavy duty truck…….
I mean, I can see the ski resort from my front yard, so elevation changes are a big yes, and no it doesn’t bother traffic at all. I’m usually the one passing. A problem with 0-60 times is that they don’t tell the whole story. Most of that time is from 0-10 and then from 50-60. From 10-50 there is ample power, its just a heavy car with a mediocre 1st gear and a lot of aero drag. Around town I have no problems with any traffic scenario and on the freeways I can maintain 75 or 80 mph all day except on the big climbs up the mountain passes, where I usually dip to around 65.
Same story with that GX. The first few seconds was just the turbos compensating for elevation and getting the mass going from a stop, after that it was booking and it had MORE than ample power even at 9500 feet going uphill.
Even when I tow a 3500 pound trailer with the 80 series I’m rarely holding up traffic except for the big mountain passes and even then the speed limits are low enough that I rarely can’t maintain those speeds.
TLDR: its more than enough for daily driving and not the slowest car I’ve owned.
Local amusement park has a roller coaster accelerated by linear induction motors. It is frankly terrifying and I cannot imagine trying to control a CAR while accelerating that quickly. Maybe I’m getting old…
With cake etc.?
Jason, you did miss one part: They claimed that a drag race against a 30-year old Miata is effectively a draw. Not only is that not actually an insult, it’s also literally a lie.
2024 Ram 1500: 0-60 in 8.1 seconds.
1994 Miata: 0-60 in 8.8 seconds, according to Car and Driver in 1994.
0.7 seconds 0-60 may not be a huge gulf, but nobody would call that a draw if they actually witnessed it in person. Not to mention that 8.8 seconds is NOT for a 30-year-old Miata: that’s for a brand new Miata in 1994. At this point, most 1994 Miatas are noticeably slower than they were when they left the factory.
So Motortrend is not only ridiculous, they’re also dishonest/bad at research. What a combination!
Ram really isn’t having a good day here today. After spending years of development, and weight saving research, they deleted the dip stick, but still couldn’t break the 8 second mark. Mr. Jon Lovitz should just throw in the towel and stop trying to compete with Ford and Chevy.
Who rolls from 0 to 60 on a regular basis for this even to be a relevant statistic?
But, for comparison sake, a Subaru Crosstrek (according to C&D) is 8.1s to 60 in the larger 2.5H4 with the 2.0H4 doing it in 9.5s. Hardly blinding numbers, but quite livable for the large number of people I see driving them.
If you truly start from 0, the opportunities to get to 60 in a single stretch very rarely present themselves. 0 to 25-40 in city or suburban driving, sure. Maybe the occasional on-ramp with a short approach after a light?
0-60 really is practically meaningless.
Exactly, and the number of times that you’d consider 0-whatever full throttle even fewer.
I suspect the problem is a relatively small NA engine powering a heavy vehicle is going to *feel* slower than it is. The 8.1 second figure in itself is less meaningful than the power curve.
Normies don’t like revving out their engines in normal driving; they want effortless acceleration. That goes double for trucks, and triple when towing or hauling. A gas engine screaming at 4-5k RPM towing a load up a mountain irrationally bothers people (the engine is gonna blow for sure!!!111!!!).
I’m convinced at least half of diesel owners bought their trucks to subconsciously avoid high revs.
That is very true, and the Pentastar is well known for having poor low end. But if it is capable of 0-60 in 8.1 seconds, it’s not going to be working very hard to go 0-60 in ~15 seconds like it will in normal driving.
It is absolutely not a very good truck engine, and it likely would feel like it’s working quite hard while towing. But this isn’t a review about towing: it’s about drag racing against a Miata at stoplights. And the absolute drillbit writing this article still called it slow.
Yeah I’m not going to defend Motor Trend whatsoever.
This is a great point! People also don’t like pressing the accelerator very much. I was in a newish trailblazer for the 1st time and was driving it. I remember initially thinking it was remarkably peppy for what it was so I got on the pedal a little more. Nothing happened, they just made the first 20% of pedal travel contain all the throttle input.
My grandmother had a ’95 DeVille with the 4.9, not even the Northstar. That thing had the most sensitive throttle that I’ve ever encountered. It was extremely hard to accelerate off the line without getting something of a jolt. I assume they did that on purpose to make it seem powerful, even though it was quite a slow car by the numbers.
There was once a big write up from a Chrysler engineer about the development of the LH (Intrepid, 300M, Concorde) cars back in the mid 90s. The car in instrumented testing accelerated better than the competing Toyota model at every point – but testers complained that the car felt sluggish.
It turns out Toyota’s throttle cam (the little channel the throttle cable runs in) had a more aggressive profile, so tip-in on pedal was also more aggressive.
Of course these days they just handle that in software instead of physical throttle cams. A lot of modern vehicles have very blunted tip-in response, presumably in the name of emissions, fuel economy and comfort. People will pay good money for “tuners” that plug in between the throttle pedal and computer, and swear up and down how much peppier their truck is. The only thing those pedal tuners do is virtually push the gas pedal a bit more.
That reminds me of when I occasionally drove my mother’s 1992 Town Car, which I think was the first year with the modular V8. I remembered it being mildly dinged by Car and Driver for a 0-60 time of around 10.5 seconds, but when I pulled away from a light at quarter- to half-throttle, it felt as smooth and unruffled as anyone could ask for, especially the large proportion of buyers for whom half-throttle acceleration would have induced whiplash.
And, as all good large American sedans piloted by the other primary buyer demographic of speed-drunk retirees shuttling between their old haunts in the Northeast Corridor and their new haunts in Florida on I-95 could do, it would sustain a steady 90-ish and occasional blip over an indicated 100 mph without much of a fuss at all, which was nice when you’re 170 miles away and decide to meet friends for coffee in DC with a couple of hours’ notice. Theoretically, anyway.
Panther cars are simply incredible on the highway. Mine can cruise in total and extreme comfort at speeds of up to exactly 107mph. It doesn’t even feel truly happy until it’s above 75.
’90s Town Cars and Crown Vics are peak American sedan.
I mean,really, if you aren’t doing 0 – 100 in 1 seconds in an alcohol-fueled funny car aren’t you just holding up traffic?
The top fuel drivers call the funny cars rolling roadblocks.
My current DD goes 0-60 in the 7 second range. If you bumped that up to 10 seconds, it wouldn’t matter 99% of the time to me. I don’t track my small hatchback that I bought for commuting and occasionally moving bulky items/dogs.
It’s terrifying how fast these 5k+ pound trucks are. 4.5-5.0s range for these trucks that in 5-10 years will be be driven by spoiled 17 year olds with 3″ lift kits, meaning they’re going to be hauling ass in something far too heavy and tall for all but other trucks to contend with. It’s fine when its a 15 year old V6 4Runner with a 9.0s 0-60, but a fast truck like this? uh oh.