It appears there could be a new truck headed to Ram showrooms. According to several reports from south of the border, the Stellantis brand is strongly considering the introduction of a unibody pickup to our market.
Numerous outlets all citing a foreign language car site called Auto Segredos say the company may be bringing a right-sized pick’em-up truck to North America in the next calendar year. This so-called “Ram 1200” was apparently mentioned by Antonio Filosa, a suit with Stellantis South America, who went on to allegedly say electrified hybrid powertrains are in the cards, as well. Such a machine would make an excellent foil to the popular Ford Maverick, a vehicle which has surpassed Blue Oval expectations in several measures.
During the company’s EV Day last summer, the digital outlines of no fewer than eight different vehicles were shown resting on a variety of all-electric platforms, including a mid-size(ish) Ram truck. At the time, top brass described its STLA Large platform as capable of spewing an array of vehicles including “a new midsize truck.” Whether today’s speculation refers to that rig or something more traditional remains a very muddy topic.
Of course, this is hardly the first time we’ve heard rumours about an impending small pickup from Ram. However, the inclusion of a Chief Operating Officer this time around lends the rumour a bit more credence, to say nothing of the fact that Ram surely sees money being left on the table as some shoppers gravitate toward the Maverick. It’s worth noting the house of Stellantis now includes several European brands, some of which have baby trucks ripe for adaptation to this side of the pond.
However, that adaptation can be expensive. Our market’s crash test and emissions requirements are notoriously tough, as are the expectations of North American customers in terms of technology and cabin space. Power, too. If a baby Ram is sold Stateside, you can bet your boots it’ll have stronger engines than those offered in markets abroad. Speaking of, the hero shot for this post is of a Ram 1200 from the brand’s Middle East website.
Do you think Ram would be successful with a Maverick-type truck in the North American market? Should it be called the Dakota? Sound off in our comment section below.
Keyword: Ram rumoured to be close to revealing Maverick-fighter