Ram’s firing shots clear across the bow of the and its “best in class” towing claim by juicing the 2016 Ram 3500’s 6.7 Cummins diesel to 900 lb-ft of torque and rating it for 31,210 pounds of towing. That’s about three coconuts over the biggest “comparable” Ford.

Last summer Ford trotted out the 2015 F-450 pickup truck: basically a reinforced version of the old F-350, so Ford reckons they can squeeze it into the (total weight max under 14,000 pounds) and then dominate said class with the truck’s 31,200 pound towing capacity.

Drive free or die.

You may recall that Ram, refusing to acknowledge that the F-450 was indeed a Class III truck, kept calling their 3500’s 30,000 pound towing max “best in class.”

Since all these “bests” are a bunch of bullshit anyway, neither company successfully sued the other about it last time I checked. As of right now, both companies still say “best in class towing” on their consumer websites.

Ram obviously recognized that Ford wasn’t going to back down, so they’re taking the title “back” the old fashioned way: by dumping more fuel and air into their biggest engine to beat the F-450’s 31,200 pound maximum towing capacity. The 2016 Ram 3500 will be rated tow 31,210 pounds. In certain extreme variations, of course.

Just to add a little extra spit to the soda they’re serving; Ram’s also still refusing to recognize the F-450 as a direct competitor to their 3500 by saying “2016 Ram 3500 crushes the competition with up to 31,210 pounds of , beating the closest competitor by more than two tons” (emphasis mine) referring to the Ford F-350 and Silverado 3500.

The maximum-claimed towing capacity of most pickup trucks is bullshit. Those numbers are created by

To hit the higher number Ram’s rear axle ring gear hardware has been upgraded from 12 to 16 bolts on all trucks equipped with the 11.8” axle. Ram says the additional hardened bolts and stronger material are used in the differential case to assure long-term durability.

As for the engine, it really is as simple as cranking up the fuel delivery and turbo boost. It is a Cummins, after all. The 6.7 I6 was already insane in the tune you got on last year’s Ram, hitting 900 only took an extra 35 lb.-ft. of torque. But holy crap does it sound cool.

Meanwhile the Ram 3500 with the 6.4 Hemi V8 still has that 7,390 pound payload claim. So if you want to make a , there’s your rig.

Image via Ram

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