2026 Ram 1500 Warlock Proves You Don’t Have to Pay Crazy Prices To Get a Great 4x4 Full-Size Pickup

The prices of new vehicles can be hard to fathom. Consider that the average transaction price for a full-size pickup in America in January 2026 is $66,386. Or that RAM’s average product price is $64,607. Those numbers boggle our minds. What makes it even more surreal for those of us lucky enough to test vehicles is that we nearly always end up testing full-loaded top trims with every possible package. That means the trucks we usually test are priced way above the ATP, and are often closer to $100K. Not this one. The 2026 RAM 1500 Warlock is more than 10% under the ATP and also under the average price for a RAM truck. It's $57,395 before dealer Doc Fees.

What You Don’t Get When Your Truck is 10% Below the Average Truck Price
The first thing we noticed our truck lacked was heated seats and a steering wheel. It’s been frigid here, and we simply assumed that a vehicle with a $57K price would have them. Nope. Next, we missed the power seat adjustments that virtually every vehicle priced above $35K comes with. The Warlock has manual seats. Also, the truck didn’t have any type of moonroof. Just metal. Finally, the truck didn’t have a massive single screen in the middle, but more of a normal screen and buttons combo, which we loved. The HVAC controls are truly manual. Loved it. The tailgate seemed to be one piece as well. No flips and tricks. Up or down.

What You DO Get For 10% Below the Average Truck Price
This truck had a fantastic engine and transmission. One of the packages was the 3.0-liter I6 SO Hurricane Twin Turbo engine. In the SO version (Standard Output), this engine produces 469 lb.-ft of torque. And it feels like it does so from idle. Fabulous thrust. The 8-speed auto transmission was also about as good as we’ve ever tested. Smooth, never hunted for a gear, always in the power band. Perfect.

The seats were covered in a great clothlike material we’d take over leather any day. The audio system was awesome. I loved the infotainment. Android Auto was wireless, loaded instantly, and never glitched. The screen is a bit smaller than you’d expect for $57K, but it did the job well. I really dug the buttons. So many great buttons.

There is what I’d call a traditional 4X4 system with a locking axle and also a sort of crawl mode. I’m not a fan of 4X4. In my world, all-wheel drive is so much better at everything I do. I’ll have to refer you to the tuck bros to hear about what the 4X4 system can do for you. I used 2H almost entirely, except in a snowstorm, when I had to use 4H for a bit. You also get big all-terrain tires. 275/70/18s. The truck would look funny without them, and I am sure many customers want them.

The Pros
The Ram 1500 Warlock we tested had 6,000 miles on the odometer, but was absolutely squeak and rattle-free. It drove like a luxury car. Smooth and enjoyable around town, and OK on the highway. I find many trucks to have what I call jigglesquirm. They are flexy and goofy over bumps. This truck had about 50% less jigglesquirm based on my gut feel. Great.

The Cons
I hesitate to call any of the things on my list cons because they all sort of go along with driving a pickup, but here we go. 16 MPG. The tires hum over 30 MPH and really sing at highway speeds. My wife could barely climb into the passenger seat. No heated seats and a heated steering wheel at $57K would stop me in my tracks if I were shopping for a vehicle in this price range. The same goes for the manual seat.

Another con for me is that I have three all-wheel drive crossovers with severe-snow duty tires. Back to backing them in snow against this 4X4 truck with all-terrain tires really highlighted the divide between what a good all-wheel drive system provides and what a traditional 4X4 can do on snow-covered pavement. Suffice it to say, AWD crossovers with severe snow duty-rated tires simply blow away a truck on A/T tires. If winter capability is your priority, RAM’s sister brand Jeep, has some great AWD vehicles.

We’ve included RAM’s $2,595 Destination charge in our $57,395 as-tested price, but seeing that huge $2,595 number on top of the MSRP would really rub us the wrong way if we were shopping.

2026 Ram 1500 Warlock Value
I liked that the Warlock cost well below the ATP for pickups. However, I’d certainly pay another $2K for heated seats, a heated steering wheel, and a power seat. I can live without the sunroof. I prefer not to have the one giant screen. Whether the Warlock is for you or not will depend on your priorities. Why not tell us your thoughts in the comments below? Is this a good truck deal for $57K?

Images by John Goreham.
 

John Goreham is the Vice President of the New England Motor Press Association and an expert vehicle tester. John completed an engineering program with a focus on electric vehicles, followed by two decades of work in high-tech, biopharma, and the automotive supply chain before becoming a news contributor. He is a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE int). In addition to his fourteen years of work at Torque News, John has published thousands of articles and reviews at American news outlets. He is known for offering unfiltered opinions on vehicle topics. You can connect with John on LinkedIn and follow his work on his personal X channel or on our X channel. John employs grammar and punctuation software when proofreading, and he sometimes uses image generation tools.