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A blue 2021 Shelby F-150 Super Snake Sport next to a white 2021 Ram 1500 TRX

Which Is Faster: The Ram 1500 TRX or the Shelby F-150 Super Snake Sport?

With the 1500 TRX, Ram has neatly overthrown the Ford Raptor for the position of ‘crazy-fast truck.’ At least until the Blue Oval releases an even more powerful model. However, the Raptor isn’t the only speedy Ford pickup. Last year, Shelby announced it was putting the F-150 Super Snake concept into production. But does it …

With the 1500 TRX, Ram has neatly overthrown the Ford Raptor for the position of ‘crazy-fast truck.’ At least until the Blue Oval releases an even more powerful model. However, the Raptor isn’t the only speedy Ford pickup. Last year, Shelby announced it was putting the F-150 Super Snake concept into production. But does it have the grunt to stand up to the Ram 1500 TRX? YouTube team Throttle House decided to find out.

The 2021 Ram 1500 TRX and Shelby F-150 Super Snake Sport are 700-plus-hp sledgehammers

The 2021 Ram 1500 TRX and Shelby F-150 Super Snake Sport have similar approaches to speed. Namely, supercharged engines and four-wheel drive. But when it comes to output, the TRX may be slightly out-gunned.

A red 2021 Ram 1500 TRX slides through the desert in a big dust cloud
2021 Ram 1500 TRX | Ram

The 2021 Ram 1500 TRX has a 6.2-liter supercharged V8 tuned to 702 hp and 650 lb-ft linked to an 8-speed automatic. Because of its off-road modifications, the TRX is fairly heavy. On Car and Driver’s scales, it weighs 6866 pounds. But it’s still the fastest production pickup truck MotorTrend has ever tested. In MT’s hands, it went 0-60 mph in 4.1 seconds and ran the ¼-mile in 12.7 seconds. But Car and Driver beat that with a 3.7-second 0-60 mph run and a 12.3-second ¼-mile run.

Silver-with-black-stripes 2020 Shelby F-150 Super Snake on a racetrack
2020 Shelby F-150 Super Snake | Shelby

However, while the Ram 1500 TRX beat the Raptor in Car and Driver’s testing, it might have a harder time with the Shelby F-150 Super Snake Sport. The ‘standard’ model has the same 395-hp 5.0-liter V8 as the production F-150, TruckTrend reports, albeit with some intake and exhaust mods. But there’s a more potent version with a supercharger, a carbon-fiber air intake, a heat exchanger, and an upgraded intake manifold and throttle body, MT reports. As a result, it has 770 hp. And Shelby America claims the F-150 Super Snake Sport has a 0-60 mph time of 3.45 seconds.

While the Ram 1500 TRX is built for off-roading, the Shelby F-150 Super Snake Sport is designed for paved tracks and roads. It has upgraded disc brakes and performance tires, Roadshow reports, and a lower ride height. The Super Snake also has sportier, fully-adjustable suspension, an adjustable rear sway bar, a body kit with a functional front splitter, and a functional vented hood.

How Throttle House tested these trucks

Throttle House already drove the Shelby F-150 Super Snake Sport on a racetrack. And while it’s not exactly an ideal track vehicle, it definitely delivers riotous fun. On-track handling, though, isn’t really the Ram 1500 TRX’s purview, Road & Track reports. But going around corners isn’t the point of Throttle House’s latest test.

Instead, the two trucks went head-to-head in a series of ¼-mile drag races. The first was from a standing start and the second from a rolling start. The rolling start focuses purely on transmission and engine capability, while the standing start factors in traction and launch control.

On paper, this seems like the Ram 1500 TRX’s race to lose. Its 0-100 mph time, for example, is also slower than the Shelby F-150 Super Snake Sport’s time. Car and Driver recorded a 9.7-second time for the TRX. And while that’s fast for a near-3.5-ton truck, Shelby claims its pickup can do it in 8.3 seconds. However, unlike the Shelby, the TRX has launch control.

Did the Ram 1500 TRX pull ahead of the Shelby F-150 Super Snake Sport?

Unfortunately, the Ram 1500 TRX couldn’t overcome the power or weight disadvantage. Although it nearly took the Shelby F-150 Super Snake Sport in the standing-start race, the Shelby won both races. Plus, slowing down from the rolling race heated the TRX’s brakes up to the point of smoke.

The 2021 Ram 1500 TRX's red-and-black interior
2021 Ram 1500 TRX interior | Ram

However, between the two trucks, both Throttle House hosts prefer the TRX. It has a nicer interior, for one. And while it’s not a track truck, it can handle itself on more surfaces than the street-oriented Super Snake can. Plus, although the pickups have similar price tags, the Ram 1500 TRX will likely be easier to obtain. Shelby only plans to make 250 F-150 Super Snake Sports.

Still, if straight-line speed’s the goal, the Shelby beats out the TRX.

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