Hennessey’s latest is a 1,000PS V8 monster

Texas tuning legend John Hennessey has built his business on making fast cars and trucks go faster and his latest is unlikely to disappoint. It’s the Hennessey Mammoth 1000, a worked-over version of the Ram TRX pick-up that lives up to its primeval name with an epic 1,000PS (735kW) backed up by 1,314Nm (969lb ft) of torque. There’s nothing woolly about the way it goes – or the way it looks.

The stock Dodge Ram TRX is already among the fastest trucks available, the near-3.0-tonne luxury double-cab sprinting from 0-62mph in under four seconds thanks to its supercharged 6.2-litre V8 (it’s amusing to think that, with the newly formed Stellantis global car empire of Fiat Chrysler and PSA, the Ram comes from the same stable as the Citroën Berlingo or Vauxhall Corsa...).

In standard form it’s not fast enough for Hennessey though and with around a third more power the Mammoth 1000 cuts the 0-60 to just 3.2 seconds. And if quarter mile times are important – and they are life and death in the US – know that this all-wheel-drive, eight-speed automatic behemoth will do the distance in 11.4 seconds, crossing the line at 120mph.

Top speed? No mention of that and for obvious reasons it won’t be high – perhaps less than half that of the other Hennessey project for 2021, the Venom F5 hypercar which aims to breach the 300mph mark later this year.

The Mammoth is still right up there for title of world’s fastest pick-up, muscling out the likes of the Shelby Ford F-150 Super Snake, SVE Chevy Silverado, Roush Nitemare and assorted Hennessey Raptor and Venom models in this heavyweight corner of the American performance market. Ironically the one that might be faster, with a claimed 0-62mph in 3.0 seconds, is the only battery electric truck, the Rivian R1T – but that has yet to hit the road.

There’s nothing electric about how Hennessey extracts its performance, just good ol’ bent-eight tuning mastery: bigger supercharger, stainless steel headers, high-flow injectors and better induction and exhaust breathing. Other additions that maketh the Mammoth are an off-road package comprising 2.5-inch body lift, custom front bumper and 20-inch Hennessey 10-spoke wheels – wearing 35-inch off-road tyres. LED lights enhance the not-for-the-faint-hearted looks while a retractable electronic bed cover and electronic fold-out steps make living with a Mammoth a little easier.

And of course in that American way all this comes at a tempting price, in any straight $ to £ comparison at least. An all-up sticker price of $135,350 that includes a two-year, 24,000-mile warranty, does seem to redefine the adage “a lot of bang for your buck”. That’s just shy of £100k if you fancy your own Mammoth on this side of the pond, and in the past plenty of Rams have been imported. Hennessey says it will make 200 of them in 2021 so get in quick before it becomes extinct…