🕑5 min read
Pickup owners have been customizing and lifting their trucks for as long as anyone can remember. Bigger tires, different wheels, suspension work, exhaust upgrades, and plenty of appearance changes are all part of the scene. The problem is that building a truck that way can get expensive and usually means dealing with several different shops, parts suppliers, and installers.
That is where Black Widow comes in.
In this articleâ–¾
6-Inches Changes The Whole Truck
Plenty Of Black Widow Details
Hurricane Power Comes Standard
The Interior Gets Attention Too
A Custom Truck Without Building One Yourself
The Fox Factory Vehicles brand takes a new Ram 1500 and does most of that work before the customer ever takes it home. The result is a truck with the stance and appearance of a heavily modified pickup, but without the owner having to piece the entire build together afterward.
Black Widow takes a typical Ram 1500 Big Horn or Laramie and gives it the kind of treatment many owners would normally add after leaving the dealership. A 6-inch lift, FOX™ shocks, 35-inch all-terrain tires, custom wheels, and wider fender flares completely change the truck’s stance, while several exterior and interior touches help finish off the look.
Instead of buying a stock Ram and modifying it over time, buyers can get the whole package already put together.
Black Widow Ram 1500. (Fox Factory Vehicles).
6-Inches Changes The Whole Truck
Black Widow starts by giving the Ram a 6-inch BDS suspension lift. The setup brings tougher crossmembers, new steering knuckles, and upper control arms, which totally changes the stance of the truck. It also opens up the extra space needed to fit the larger wheels and tires that come with the conversion.
FOX 2.5 Performance Elite reservoir shocks are also part of the package. Rather than simply lifting the truck for appearance, the upgraded dampers are intended to maintain controlled handling both on pavement and when the truck heads off the beaten path.
The standard setup uses 20-inch Black Widow wheels with 35-inch all-terrain tires, which fit the lifted truck well and give it the tougher look buyers expect from the package. For anyone wanting something even more aggressive, Black Widow also offers 37-inch tires along with available 22-inch x 12-inch wheel setups.
The truck’s speedometer is recalibrated for the larger rolling stock as part of the conversion.
Black Widow Ram 1500. (Fox Factory Vehicles).
Plenty Of Black Widow Details
While the suspension and tires grab most of the attention on the street or the dirt, Black Widow adds tons of smaller touches that help separate it from something else sitting on a dealer lot with an aftermarket lift kit.
Each truck comes with body-colored pocket-style fender flares to cover up the wider tire setup. Black wheel-to-wheel side steps also make getting into the raised cab much easier. Small touches like custom hood vents, Black Widow-specific badging, grille accents, tinted front windows, and bright red brake caliper covers add a little more attitude.
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A dual exhaust system with black tips is also standard.
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Customers can take the exterior further with power running boards, a high-clearance bumper, a 10,000-pound winch, rock lighting, a power-retractable tonneau cover, and several custom paint choices.
Black Widow Ram 1500. (Fox Factory Vehicles).
Hurricane Power Comes Standard
Under the hood, the Black Widow comes standard with Ram’s 3.0-liter Hurricane Standard Output (S/O) I6. The twin-turbo engine makes 420 horsepower and 469 lb-ft of torque and is hooked to the 8HP75 8-speed automatic. Four-wheel drive is handled by Ram’s electronic shift-on-the-fly transfer case.
For those who want the HEMI, yes the 5.7-liter HEMI V8 is also available.
The truck is still plenty capable, too. Depending on how the truck is equipped, it can tow up to 9,920 pounds and carry as much as 1,980 pounds of payload.
Black Widow Ram 1500. (Fox Factory Vehicles).
The Interior Gets Attention Too
Now the Black Widow team, didn’t leave the inside alone.
Black Widow gives the Ram a much more custom look with diamond-quilted leather and suede inserts. The cabin also gets embroidered Black Widow headrests, special badging, all-weather floor mats, and a unique gauge cluster to help set it apart from a regular Ram 1500.
Red interior LED lighting and Black Widow puddle projector lights continue the theme at night.
Additional leather and premium stitched upholstery packages are available for buyers wanting an even more personalized cabin.
Black Widow Ram 1500. (Fox Factory Vehicles).
A Custom Truck Without Building One Yourself
That is really where trucks like the Black Widow make sense.
Sure you could buy a Ram 1500 and try to replicate the look through the aftermarket, but that means finding the right parts, installing the parts, correcting the speedometer, dealing with fitment issues, and figuring out how all those modifications affect warranty coverage.
But Black Widow packages the entire build together with a starting price of $88,450.
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Keep in mind that each truck comes as a Crew Cab model with a 5-foot, 7-inch bed.
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Black Widow says the conversion parts meet Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. A 3-year/36,000-mile warranty backs the conversion itself, while Ram’s 5-year/60,000-mile factory powertrain coverage still applies.
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Black Widow is selling the look many truck buyers would eventually build anyway. The difference is that it arrives already lifted, already matched, and ready to turn heads the moment it leaves the dealership.
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Robert S. Miller