I think i like this Power Wagon remake on a 21 Cummins

[Wild one]

Modern 1,000-lb-ft Ram 4500 Truck Given Power Wagon Makeover

This 2021 Cummins diesel-powered truck was built to tow and given a vintage Power Wagon face-lift.

www.hotrod.com

Modern 1,000-lb-ft Ram 4500 Truck Given Power Wagon Makeover​

This 2021 Cummins diesel-powered truck was built to tow and given a vintage Power Wagon face-lift.
Steven RuppWriterManufacturerPhotographerMar 13, 2025


Old classic trucks just look cooler than the soulless trucks being churned out these days. Still, there’s no arguing that from a functional standpoint today’s rigs are far superior when it comes to comfort, driving manners, and ability to easily tow massive loads. Well, thanks to the gearheads at Desert Power Wagons (DPW), you can now have both.








DPW took a Ram 4500 4x4 Limited Chassis Cab and gave it an old-school classic Power Wagon makeover by way of a modified Tisdale Coachworks crew cab complete with rear suicide doors and a custom aluminum flatbed with fold-down sides, integrated locking toolboxes, and a gooseneck hitch. Put all those bits together, and this rig can tow28,000 pounds. This is one of DPW’s “max effort” projects; they also build rigs for those who don’t need this level of hauling power.


This crew cab Power Wagon is powered by a 6.7-liter Cummins turbodiesel that delivers 420 horsepower and a whopping 1,075 lb-ft of torque. Backing up this diesel mill is a heavy-duty six-speed Aisin AS69RC automatic transmission and an electric shift-on-the-fly transfer case.



Their Power Wagon also features dual fuel tanks (52 and 22 gallons), dual alternators (440 amps), a digital rearview mirror with Surround-View camera system, and even a MotoHorn train horn to get people’s attention.

 

[Wild one]

Inside is all the luxury and tech you'd expect from a new Ram truck, including large-format integrated displays, heated and ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, dual-zone A/C, and all the connectivity options.


This Power Wagon is finished in stunning Ferrari Blu Corsa paint and rolls on 22.5-inch Alcoa aluminum wheels wrapped in Sumitomo ST tires. To keep the drive smooth and controlled, the Power Wagon rides on an advanced LiquidSpring Smart Suspension system. To find out more about this Power Wagon or DPW’s other offerings, be sure to hit up its website for all the details. We really dig its more traditional Power Wagon builds.







https://www.hotrod.com/staff/steven-rupp

 

[Green_Manalishi]

I'da put a stake bed on it. Long list of things to add to make it street legal, but it's cool.

 

[Wild one]

I'da put a stake bed on it. Long list of things to add to make it street legal, but it's cool.

They look street legal by their website.Clue me into what you'd need to add to make them street legal

https://www.desertpowerwagons.com/

 

[Green_Manalishi]

Since it's a 2021 chassis, it'll need all the lighting and reflectors found on a 2021 1-ton dually, and mudflaps for most states.

 

[Wild one]

Since it's a 2021 chassis, it'll need all the lighting and reflectors found on a 2021 1-ton dually, and mudflaps for most states.

Read the link a little closer that i posted in #4 post.Scroll over to the 2024 section,it looks like he's got them legal for daily usage

 

[nlambert182]

Looks to me like all the lights are there. They're clearly shown in some of the bed pics. Ambers in front of the tires and reds behind the tires. What other lights are missing?

 

[Docwagon1776]

Not for me.

The exposed frame/bumper sticking so far out is terrible.

The wheels really don't fit the fender gap and the combination of extremely tight in the rear with so much open space visually in the front isn't appealing.

The use of modern angles in both the front bumper and rear flatbed with classic curves in the middle with no transition is visually jarring.

The bottom of the cab sitting above the frame while the bottom of the flatbed sits below the frame is also jarring. Stake beds are often the opposite, and most trucks are the same. This is like the "squatted" truck of body design, opposite of decades of design.

This one, especially, shows how off the proportions are and how it just looks like two completely different styles tacked together:



Aesthetically, the sum of the parts are worse then either original IMO. It's the mullet of retro and modern.

 

[Wild one]

Inside is all the luxury and tech you'd expect from a new Ram truck, including large-format integrated displays, heated and ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, dual-zone A/C, and all the connectivity options.
View attachment 570482
This Power Wagon is finished in stunning Ferrari Blu Corsa paint and rolls on 22.5-inch Alcoa aluminum wheels wrapped in Sumitomo ST tires. To keep the drive smooth and controlled, the Power Wagon rides on an advanced LiquidSpring Smart Suspension system. To find out more about this Power Wagon or DPW’s other offerings, be sure to hit up its website for all the details. We really dig its more traditional Power Wagon builds.







https://www.hotrod.com/staff/steven-rupp

That one is probably the ugliest one of vthe bunch,but some of their other builds do look very similiar to the originals.
Check out their other builds here Doc.

https://www.desertpowerwagons.com/past-projects

 

[Green_Manalishi]

Looks to me like all the lights are there. They're clearly shown in some of the bed pics. Ambers in front of the tires and reds behind the tires. What other lights are missing?

ID lamps on the cab, front left and right side marker lamps/signals and reflectors, rear side marker lamps/signals and reflectors. Front facing turn signals, if not incorporated in the headlamp housings, rear reflectors if not incorporated in the tail lamps.

 

[Wild one]

ID lamps on the cab, front left and right side marker lamps/signals and reflectors, rear side marker lamps/signals and reflectors. Front facing turn signals, if not incorporated in the headlamp housings, rear reflectors if not incorporated in the tail lamps.

I guess you missed the fact they've been certified under the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration as a replica vehicle,which to my understanding should make them road legal. What over rules the NHTSA as far as making a vehicle illegal.

 

[Docwagon1776]

That one is probably the ugliest one of vthe bunch,but some of their other builds do look very similiar to the originals.
Check out their other builds here Doc.

https://www.desertpowerwagons.com/past-projects

The yellow and green 2 doors are probably the best of the bunch. I wouldn't spend that kind of money on it, so I'm certainly not their target market but *for me* I wish they'd cut that frame rail and get rid of the bucktoothed look. It'd be a lot cleaner. Probably gets into a crumple zone or something, I'm sure there's a structural reason they are making that choice as they have eyes...

 

[Rustywallace]

Hey, I know that parking lot. It’s in Castle Hayne NC by the bridge going to Pender county over the Cape Fear River. Used to take my nephew fishing there, mother in law lived across the street.

Sorry haven’t posted intro yet, I will once I get some pics of my truck

 

[Green_Manalishi]

I guess you missed the fact they've been certified under the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration as a replica vehicle,which to my understanding should make them road legal. What over rules the NHTSA as far as making a vehicle illegal.

I guarantee I miss a lot. I don't purport to know everything about 49CFR, or about anything for that matter.

 

[utley]

It needs a horn to get ppls attention?