More Details Emerge On The South American Ram Dakota

More Details Emerge On The South American Ram Dakota​

Body-On-Frame Toughness Meets Modern Refinement​

Ram is preparing to grow its footprint in South America with the introduction of the 2027 Ram Dakota, a mid-size pickup designed to slot between the compact Rampage and the full-size Ram 1500. First previewed with the Dakota Nightfall Concept in São Paulo, the new truck is now inching closer to reality.

More Details Emerge On The South American Ram Dakota

Ram keeps its winning streak in Brazil with the upcoming 2027 Dakota, a mid-size pickup made for South American customers.

moparinsiders.com

 

[patfromigh]

A 2.2 liter Multi-Jet Diesel and ZF 8-speed, hmmm. Didn't they just change the emissions regulations in the US?

 

[The Mopar Junkie]

 

[bill burke]

If Ram and Jeep absolutely and Dodge tangentially are to be global brands there must be some basic differences in product. We see the error of too much uniformity in the North American market in lock step with European thinking and planning. Our brands are now desperately seeking to right that wrong and adopt the market based strategy that this South American Ram follows. The ability to adopt features, engineering and asset sharing from each others development process is a necessary decision, but uniqueness makes these globally essential brands truly global. The realignment of our domestic brands now underway will serve to model for the entire company. Hopefully Dodge, Jeep, Ram and Chrysler have suffered enough ignoring that reality exhibited smartly in Brazil and Argentina initially and that the new direction now starting here will quickly change failure to success. In the meantime success on the global stage for Stellantis will direct more resources to North America, where it is finally being acknowledged, it must drive the company as the cash cow of this global business venture.
No doubt this South American Ram has much to offer, if not engineering or technology, perhaps a lesson in focused product and marketing thinking that reinvents the global structure going forward for Stellantis. If globalism is to succeed it must be driven by North America, and the Europeans must realize that fact, even if North America, for now, is late to the game. Our developing smaller Rams, market appropriate reengineered Jeeps and true muscle car Dodges will soon redefine the North American business model that sadly was misdirected by arrogance and bias. Tweaking the globalism in global is happening at last, and the future of Stellantis may just have been saved. Salvation rests in North America and that’s a fact Jack.

 

[your huckleberry]

It's almost like Ram aka Stellantis doesn't want to make profit in the US

 

[vbondjr1]

It's truly hard for me to not be a bit upset and almost a little angry When I look at the situation of Stellantis here in North America and watch them fumble play after play after play. All of this big news about the new Durango coming out with no pentastar engine and going all Hemi, yet it can't be sold in a large portion of the country outside of the 5.7L Hemi V8. A completely botched current gen Charger that cost the company major funding by going out EV first and then taking soooo long to come out with an ICE powertrain that alot of people dont really want and the rest of us who are okay with it are basically just settling because the former leadership decided to get rid nearly all V8 powertrains. Granted yes it was costing the company alot of money and tbh maybe Carlos wasn't as wrong as we might have thought he was. I might not have gotten rid of all of the v8 engines the way he did, I probably would have kept the 5.7L but that's just me. On top of all of this we have a Giant, oversized, overpriced Jeep SUV called the Wagoneer that doesn't live up to its name AT ALL! We have a bunch of goofy EVs that are a waste because no one wants them and everything is completely overpriced because this company keeps making costly mistakes and it's pricing the Mopar brands above the market for the people that actually LOVE this brand and want to buy their products. It's time to STOP!!!!!!!!!!!!

You want to truly know something crazy?? Dodge could have brought out the new STLA Large platform like it did and had it be a multi-energy platform like it is and did some slight tweaks to the Charger and the Durango and the brand could have been fine. With the fact that alot of us are now okay with the new Charger's Hurricane platform, it lets me know that we would have been okay if Dodge had simply said the Hemi was done but we're still keeping ICE vehicles around and not going full EV but instead going to hybrids. Taking the 305hp 3.6L from the Challenger GT and attaching it to a Gen-4 ZF 8-speed hybrid transmission and giving it AWD and a few other things would have produced a 573hp horsepower car with 702lb-ft of torque and would have been completely emissions friendly. Don't get me wrong, the 3.6L V6 is not perfect, but it was a tried and true powertrain that worked. Granted I would have wanted to see Stellantis change the head design and get rid of the integrated exhaust manifold so the car would sound better at least, but that as an R/T, a 370hp 2.0L Hybrid GT with 475lb-ft of torque as an AWD hybrid GT and even a base 305hp 3.6L SXT would have been a better move than what we have now. A car like that on the STLA Large platform with an updated front styling that took some cues from the Hornet along with the widebody stance bigger brakes, updated wheels, an interior very similar to the new Charger, no hatchback and upgraded taillamps and the Charger would have been fine. Same thing with the Durango. It would have been a 3-row SUV with those same powertrains. Dropping the Challenger is no great loss because Coupes are a dying breed anyway. From there, just get rid of Chrysler all together because it's literally a dead brand anyway. Jeep Cherokee should have just been a stripped down version of the regular length Grand Cherokee with a regular 3.6L V6. The Grand Cherokee should be the longer of the two with a full range of options. Get rid of the Recon, Get rid of the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer and focus on the Wrangler Unlimited (drop the 2-door) and keep the Gladiator but give it a bigger, better bed. Ram 1500 trucks need one engine, the 5.7L nothing bigger, nothing smaller. Stop building RHOs and TRXs, Ram needs a good farm truck (Bighorn), a hunting/fishing truck(Warlock), a trail truck (Rebel), a work truck (WT), and a daily (Laramie). That's it. Nothing in this lineup should be over $55,000.00 with everytihng included. Direct Connection should be available for the Dodge and Ram vehicles so they can be upgraded.

 

[patfromigh]

On top of all of this we have a Giant, oversized, overpriced Jeep SUV called the Wagoneer that doesn't live up to its name AT ALL!

Am I the only one here who has actually spent a decent amount of time driving the Jeep Wagoneer? As a Mopar enthusiast my immediate first reaction was that this feels like a Ram station wagon. You know what, that's a good thing. Stellantis botched the new electronics and U-connect on the Wagoneer at the same time they switched from the V8 to the Hurricane 6. The Hurricane 6 is nowhere as smooth as the Hemi was because the Hemi had the eTorque BSG setup and the Hurricane 6 uses a very clunky start/stop setup. The short wheelbase Wagoneer never felt giant to me, the long wheelbase one is giant, but it isn't any worse than any full size pickup.

... the 3.6L V6 is not perfect, but it was a tried and true powertrain that worked. Granted I would have wanted to see Stellantis change the head design and get rid of the integrated exhaust manifold so the car would sound better at least ...

The integrated exhaust manifold is for both emissions and noise control. The Pentastar V6 was and is primarily a bread and butter engine like the 383-B engine was back in its day. Changing the head design would be counterproductive and never return the ROI.

Jeep Cherokee should have just been a stripped down version of the regular length Grand Cherokee with a regular 3.6L V6.

The KM Cherokee is going directly into the hottest segment of the auto market. It has a drive-train design that is rapidly becoming the top configuration in that class.

Get rid of the Recon, Get rid of the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer and focus on the Wrangler Unlimited (drop the 2-door) and keep the Gladiator but give it a bigger, better bed.

I don't know what the Recon will show up with for power. I do know that the Recon is a global product offered in all a markets. If it is introduced with a pure battery electric drive that will please the socialist regimes in countries with those kinds of governments. If the people in Auburn Hills can figure out how to place a range extender under the hood of the Recon they will have a hit on their hands. Jeep is making money on the two door Wrangler and you want to drop it. I suspect despite the sudden drop in sales after the initial rollout, there is still an opportunity with the Wagoneer and Grand W. These models share much with the Ram 1500 and there is still a possibility of a REV option for the Grand.

From there, just get rid of Chrysler all together because it's literally a dead brand anyway.

The indecision over the focus of what the Chrysler brand should be has been destructive for the marque. FCA and then Stellantis should have stayed the course of making Chrysler the people mover brand. Being moved has more than one meaning, it can be physically moved as in the case of a minivan or emotionally moved as in the case of the various 300 sedans over the decades or the late 1990s LeBaron convertible.

Lee Iacocca in his autobiography has a chapter titled "The Day the Shaw left Town". In that chapter Mr Iacocca details the dramatic and rapid shift in the auto market just as he steps up to helm of Auburn Hills, er Highland Park. Are the legacy Chrysler Corporation brands prepared for the next black swan event?

Politics goes back and forth, but there is a major cultural shift happening in North America. Maybe there is some market space for people movers and family haulers. The ramifications of this cultural shift are another thread, but now is not the time to run Stellantis from an Ivory Tower in some other country.

 

[vbondjr1]

Am I the only one here who has actually spent a decent amount of time driving the Jeep Wagoneer? As a Mopar enthusiast my immediate first reaction was that this feels like a Ram station wagon. You know what, that's a good thing. Stellantis botched the new electronics and U-connect on the Wagoneer at the same time they switched from the V8 to the Hurricane 6. The Hurricane 6 is nowhere as smooth as the Hemi was because the Hemi had the eTorque BSG setup and the Hurricane 6 uses a very clunky start/stop setup. The short wheelbase Wagoneer never felt giant to me, the long wheelbase one is giant, but it isn't any worse than any full size pickup.


The integrated exhaust manifold is for both emissions and noise control. The Pentastar V6 was and is primarily a bread and butter engine like the 383-B engine was back in its day. Changing the head design would be counterproductive and never return the ROI.


The KM Cherokee is going directly into the hottest segment of the auto market. It has a drive-train design that is rapidly becoming the top configuration in that class.


I don't know what the Recon will show up with for power. I do know that the Recon is a global product offered in all a markets. If it is introduced with a pure battery electric drive that will please the socialist regimes in countries with those kinds of governments. If the people in Auburn Hills can figure out how to place a range extender under the hood of the Recon they will have a hit on their hands. Jeep is making money on the two door Wrangler and you want to drop it. I suspect despite the sudden drop in sales after the initial rollout, there is still an opportunity with the Wagoneer and Grand W. These models share much with the Ram 1500 and there is still a possibility of a REV option for the Grand.


The indecision over the focus of what the Chrysler brand should be has been destructive for the marque. FCA and then Stellantis should have stayed the course of making Chrysler the people mover brand. Being moved has more than one meaning, it can be physically moved as in the case of a minivan or emotionally moved as in the case of the various 300 sedans over the decades or the late 1990s LeBaron convertible.

Lee Iacocca in his autobiography has a chapter titled "The Day the Shaw left Town". In that chapter Mr. Iacocca details the dramatic and rapid shift in the auto market just as he steps up to helm of Auburn Hills, er Highland Park. Are the legacy Chrysler Corporation brands prepared for the next black swan event?

Politics goes back and forth, but there is a major cultural shift happening in North America. Maybe there is some market space for people movers and family haulers. The ramifications of this cultural shift are another thread, but now is not the time to run Stellantis from an Ivory Tower in some other country.

1.) I didn't know we could separate quotes in the same response!!!! That's cool!
Definitely agree on alot of these points. Simply put, my response to the article was simply that Stellantis North America needs to bring affordable performance to the general public and stop wasting so much money on vehicles that are overpriced and aren't selling the way that they should be. And yes, I understand the reasoning behind the head design on the 3.6L, the problem is that it makes the car sound terrible when you put any type of "performance" exhaust on it.

 

[patfromigh]

We are getting way off topic here, but let me continue. The years after the Stellantis creation until the CEO departed there were a number of strange happenings. I think it had a lot to do with the EV push. Some things can be blamed on the chip shortage, such as the price gouging, but decimating the engineering staff was criminal. There have been major engineering breakthroughs in the last six years since the merger talk began. The first one is turbocharged engines running the Miller Cycle. Ten years ago it was still thought of as unworkable, yet Fiat came up with a 1.5 liter GSE-T engine running on the Miller Cycle. The PSA side of the Stellantis house cancelled it, but that engine lives on in South America. The Auburn Hills engineers got their hands on the PSA Pure Tech 1.6 liter four to enhance and strengthen it to endure American driving conditions. When they were done that project, the engine now runs the Miller Cycle. It also has a strengthened valve train. The timing chain was added by the French a few years ago to this engine, but even some Europeans are calling the Dundee built EP6 engine a generational change. They are looking to add the same improvements to the 1.2L three cylinder engine from the same engine family for Europe. While all this sounds good, now this is where things get strange. There are whispered rumors that the 2.0 GME-T and 3.0 Hurricane six also were slated to run on the Miller Cycle with hefty resources already invested for their development. There is no fruit shown for the effort. Where are the engines? Why are rear drive based Jeep plugin hybrids still using the older ZF 8-speed hybrid transmission? Where is this next generation hybrid transmission?

Since the creation of Stellantis, 800V range extended EV systems have appeared. Two of them have been promoted by drive-train suppliers for the CDJR brands. This again is something that was thought unworkable only a few years ago. It probably is too late for the Ram REV, and I don't know if the size of the battery pack plays into that. Such a setup would probably save the Wagoneer S, Charger Daytona EV, and the Recon.

What I think is the culprit in all this was the obsession with battery electric along with a dramatically reduced engineering staff, while keeping the development going, didn't notice what was going on beyond confines of Auburn Hills.

To bring this all back to the topic at hand, the Chagan based Ram Dakota will stay south of the border. I speculate the American built BOF Ram midsize will be built in Toledo South. At that time the Jeep Gladiator will be moved to Toledo North and be built with the Wranglers. The situation doesn't prevent the Gladiator and a Ram midsize from sharing drive trains or even a frame. A Ram could have independent front suspension, while the Gladiator keeps the traditional Jeep solid axles. A mid-size Ram, the Gladiator, the Wrangler 2-door and 4-door models could all share a standard 48V mild hybrid drive with the 2.0 GME-T and ZF 8-speed transmission. Even with the e-motor in the transmission the battery does not have to be huge. Keep it affordable.

I suppose asking for a 2.2 Multi-Jet Diesel 48V hybrid is asking too much for an option for either the Ram midsize or the Gladiator. Is there room in one of the American production facilities to produce the 2.2 Diesel ? How many Jeep and Ram products would the Multi-Jet Diesel be a practical option in to make a business case for producing it here? Between Europe and Latin America it's found under the hood of both rear drive, 4WD, and transverse front drive vehicles of different sizes, including the Fiat Ducato (Ram ProMaster twin) full size van.