The number you are looking for depends entirely on which engine is under the hood, and the 2026 Ram 1500 offers four of them. The most efficient combination rated for Canada returns 10.8 L/100 km combined. The thirstiest one in the regular lineup returns 13.8. That is a spread of three litres every hundred kilometres between two trucks that look almost identical on the lot, which is exactly why this is worth ten minutes before you order. If you already know which engine you want, our new Ram 1500 inventory shows what is on the ground in Portage la Prairie right now. If you want the full picture first, including what these ratings do and do not tell you about a Manitoba January, keep reading.

Key Takeaways

• The 3.6 litre Pentastar V6 with eTorque is the efficiency leader. Natural Resources Canada rates it at 10.8 L/100 km combined in two wheel drive and 11.0 combined in four wheel drive, on regular gasoline.
• The 3.0 litre Hurricane SO is the sweet spot for most buyers. 11.7 L/100 km combined in 4x4 while making 420 horsepower and 469 lb ft, which is far more grunt than the V6 for roughly half a litre more per hundred kilometres.
• The returning 5.7 litre HEMI V8 costs you fuel, and everyone knows it. 13.3 L/100 km combined in 4x4. People are buying it anyway, and they are buying it with their eyes open.
• The Hurricane HO and the RHO want premium fuel. 13.8 and 15.9 L/100 km combined respectively, and both are rated on premium, not regular. That is a second cost most shoppers miss.
• Published ratings come from a lab, not from Highway 1 in February. Expect real numbers to run higher in winter, into a prairie headwind, and with anything behind you. That gap is normal and it is not a defect.

The Official 2026 Numbers, Engine by Engine

These are the Natural Resources Canada fuel consumption ratings for the 2026 Ram 1500, published in the federal ratings data. City, highway and combined, in litres per 100 kilometres. Lower is better.

3.6 litre Pentastar V6 with eTorque, 4x2

12.0 city, 9.4 highway, 10.8 combined. Regular gasoline. 305 horsepower and 269 lb ft.

3.6 litre Pentastar V6 with eTorque, 4x4

12.1 city, 9.7 highway, 11.0 combined. Regular gasoline.

3.0 litre Hurricane Standard Output twin turbo six, 4x2

13.1 city, 9.4 highway, 11.5 combined. Regular gasoline. 420 horsepower and 469 lb ft.

3.0 litre Hurricane Standard Output twin turbo six, 4x4

13.2 city, 9.9 highway, 11.7 combined. Regular gasoline.

5.7 litre HEMI V8 with eTorque, 4x2

13.8 city, 10.8 highway, 12.5 combined. Regular gasoline. 395 horsepower and 410 lb ft.

5.7 litre HEMI V8 with eTorque, 4x4

14.7 city, 11.6 highway, 13.3 combined. Regular gasoline.

3.0 litre Hurricane High Output twin turbo six, 4x4

15.7 city, 11.5 highway, 13.8 combined. Premium gasoline. 540 horsepower and 521 lb ft.

Ram 1500 RHO, 4x4

16.7 city, 14.9 highway, 15.9 combined. Premium gasoline.

A note on that last column that shoppers routinely miss. The federal data flags fuel type, and the Hurricane High Output and the RHO are both rated on premium. The Pentastar, the Hurricane Standard Output and the HEMI are all rated on regular. If you are running the math on a monthly fuel bill, the premium premium is real money on top of the higher consumption.

The Engine Most People Should Actually Buy

Look at the Pentastar and the Hurricane Standard Output side by side and the case makes itself. In four wheel drive the V6 is rated at 11.0 combined and the Hurricane SO at 11.7. That is seven tenths of a litre per hundred kilometres. For that seven tenths you get 115 more horsepower, 200 more lb ft, and a truck that does not have to be wrung out to merge onto the Perimeter with a load in the box.

That is the honest recommendation from watching what comes back through here. The V6 is a genuinely good engine and it wins the rating sheet, but a lot of the buyers who chose it on paper end up driving it harder than they planned, and a hard driven V6 does not hold its rating. The Hurricane SO does the same work with the throttle barely open, and in practice the gap between the two closes up on a real driver's fuel bill.

The HEMI is a different conversation. It came back for 2026 because people asked for it, not because a spreadsheet called for it, and if that engine is what you want then the 13.3 combined figure is simply the price of admission. Nobody buying a HEMI is confused about the trade. What matters is that you see the number before you sign, not after your third fill.

What Manitoba Actually Does to These Numbers

Here is where a lab rating meets a prairie winter, and this is the part most fuel economy pages skip.

The federal ratings come from five cycle testing, which puts a vehicle on a chassis dynamometer and runs standard city and highway cycles plus cold weather, air conditioning, and higher speed harder acceleration cycles. It is a far better method than the old two cycle procedure it replaced, and Natural Resources Canada is direct about its limits: your fuel consumption will vary depending on how, where and when you drive, and the published figures are for comparing vehicles rather than predicting your own result.

Out here that gap has specific causes and every one of them is normal.

Cold. A truck sitting outside overnight at 30 below runs rich until it reaches operating temperature, the oil is thick, and the driveline is stiff. Short winter trips in town are the worst case, because the engine never actually warms up. This is the single biggest reason a January tank looks nothing like a July tank.

Idling. Remote start on a cold morning is a comfort worth paying for, and it does cost fuel. A truck idling in the driveway is burning fuel and covering zero kilometres, which the tank average notices immediately.

Wind. A full size pickup is a brick, and the stretch of Highway 1 between here and Winnipeg does not shelter anything. A steady prairie headwind will move a highway average more than most drivers realize, and a crosswind on a windy day does it too.

Winter tires and gravel. Softer winter rubber and gravel roads both raise rolling resistance. Correct for the conditions, worth every penny, and it shows up at the pump.

Load and trailer. Anything in the box or behind the hitch changes the equation completely. Towing consumption is a different number altogether, and it is not one you should ever estimate from a combined rating. If you want the towing side of the story, our guides on Ram 1500 towing capacity and towing in winter in Manitoba go through it properly.

None of this is unique to Ram. Every full size truck on every lot in this province lives with the same physics. The point is that a January number is not a broken truck, and if a salesperson tells you the sticker figure is what you will see year round, they are not being straight with you.

Getting the Best Number Out of the Truck You Own

The maintenance items that actually move a fuel number are boring, which is why they get skipped.

Tire pressure is first and it is not close. Cold weather drops pressure roughly one psi for every five degrees Celsius the temperature falls, so a truck set correctly in October is running soft by December unless somebody checks it. Underinflated tires cost fuel and wear out sooner.

After that it is the maintenance schedule doing its job: clean air filter, clean fuel system, oil at the right grade and interval, alignment straight so the truck is not scrubbing. Our Ram 1500 maintenance schedule guide lays out the rhythm, and our service department runs it with factory parts and Ram trained techs.

Then there is the part no shop can do for you. Consistent throttle, easing off early rather than braking late, and not idling longer than you need to will out perform every other item on this list combined. Two drivers in identical trucks routinely post fuel averages a full litre apart, and the difference is entirely in the right foot.

Which Engine Fits Which Owner

Mostly highway, light loads, fuel bill matters most. The 3.6 litre Pentastar with eTorque. Best rating in the lineup and plenty of truck for a commute and a weekend.

Mixed duty, a trailer some weekends, wants the truck to feel effortless. The 3.0 litre Hurricane Standard Output. This is the one we recommend most often and the reason is the seven tenths of a litre above.

Wants a V8, knows what it costs. The 5.7 litre HEMI with eTorque. It is back, it sounds right, and 13.3 combined is the honest number.

Wants maximum output and does not blink at premium. The Hurricane High Output at 540 horsepower, or the RHO if the mission is genuinely off road performance.

If you are torn between fuel types entirely, our gas versus diesel comparison for the Ram 1500 covers that decision, and the current Ram 1500 Eh Plus offer page shows what is running on new trucks right now.

FAQs

What is the fuel economy of a 2026 Ram 1500?

It depends on the engine. Natural Resources Canada rates the 3.6 litre Pentastar V6 with eTorque at 10.8 L/100 km combined in 4x2 and 11.0 in 4x4, the 3.0 litre Hurricane Standard Output at 11.5 and 11.7, the 5.7 litre HEMI V8 with eTorque at 12.5 and 13.3, and the 3.0 litre Hurricane High Output at 13.8 combined in 4x4.

Which Ram 1500 engine is the most fuel efficient?

The 3.6 litre Pentastar V6 with eTorque, at 10.8 L/100 km combined in two wheel drive. The 3.0 litre Hurricane Standard Output is close behind in four wheel drive while making significantly more power.

Does the Ram 1500 need premium fuel?

Most of the lineup does not. The Pentastar V6, the Hurricane Standard Output and the 5.7 litre HEMI are all rated on regular gasoline. The Hurricane High Output and the RHO are rated on premium, so factor that in if you are looking at either one.

Why is my real fuel economy worse than the rating?

Because the rating comes from a standardized laboratory procedure and your truck lives on a prairie. Cold starts, idling, winter tires, headwinds, gravel, load and towing all raise consumption, and Natural Resources Canada says plainly that published ratings are meant for comparing vehicles rather than predicting individual results.

Is the HEMI V8 worth the extra fuel?

That is a personal call, not a technical one. It costs about 1.6 L/100 km more than the Hurricane Standard Output in 4x4 while making less horsepower and less torque. Buyers choose it for the character and the sound, and there is nothing wrong with that as long as the fuel number is not a surprise later.

How much does towing hurt fuel economy on a Ram 1500?

Enough that you should not estimate it from a combined rating. Towing consumption depends on trailer weight, frontal area, speed and wind, and the honest answer is to plan fuel stops around the trailer rather than around the sticker.

The Bottom Line

The 2026 Ram 1500 gives you a real choice on fuel, from 10.8 L/100 km combined with the Pentastar V6 up to 15.9 with the RHO, and the middle of that range is where most Manitoba owners land happily. The rating sheet is a comparison tool and a good one. What it cannot tell you is what your winter, your right foot and your trailer are going to do, and anyone who pretends otherwise is selling rather than helping. Come tell us how you actually use a truck and we will point you at the engine that fits, not the one with the prettiest number. Start with the new Ram 1500 inventory and we will take it from there.

Tyler Dunn, Dunn Ram Trucks, Portage la Prairie