Is RAM Building A New Midsized Pickup Truck?

It’s been a decade since the RAM brand axed the midsized Dodge Dakota from its lineup. The Dakota, once a leader in the segment for being the first to offer a V8 engine option as well as the first true four-door offering, became too expensive and ended up becoming too close in price to the bigger Ram 1500 model which ultimately leading to its demise. 

Since 2012, many former Dakota customers have asked RAM to bring back the nameplate on a modern midsized offering. While RAM said a midsized pickup was coming in a 2018 press conference during the former Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ Capital Market’s Day event. The RAM brand has offered smaller pickups to its lineup in other parts of the globe like the Ram 700 (Fiat Strada) in Mexico and Latin America, Ram 1000 (Fiat Toro) in Latin America, and the Ram 1200 (Mitsubishi Triton/Fiat Fullback) in the Middle East. But it seems that RAM might be ready to produce a true midsized pickup in the near future, however, it probably won’t reach the United States or Canada.

It appears that due to the growing pickup market in Latin America, RAM will indeed build a true midsized offering exclusively for the brand. Our friends at AutoSegredos have released some new information about the vehicle and the brand’s plans to bring it to market by 2024.

According to AutoSegredos sources, the new mid-sizer is codenamed ‘Project 291’ and will be built from the Small Wide 4×4 platform used by the current Fiat Toro, Jeep® Compass, Jeep Renegade, and the new upcoming Jeep 598. The report indicates that the pickup would be a true midsized pickup and would even be larger than the popular Fiat Toro offering.

AutoSegredos indicates that it will be more than likely offered in only a diesel powertrain, more than likely being a 2.0-liter Multijet diesel offered in other Stellantis products in the market. Being based on the Small Wide 4×4 platform means that the new RAM would be offered in both front-wheel-drive or four-wheel-drive (4×4) configurations. The report also indicates that the truck would more than likely produced in Latin America and share many design elements with the current Ram 1500, a theme we have seen in the upcoming Fiat Toro refresh.

Again, while it is more than likely we will not see the vehicle in the United States or Canada, RAM will continue to offer the Ram 1500 Classic pickup until 2023 as the most affordable full-size pickup available. Sorry, midsize truck fans.

With new smaller pickups coming to the North American market like the Hyundai Santa Cruz and Ford Maverick, it makes us wonder if Stellantis will be watching the market very closely to see if such a vehicle could be brought to the market.