Today, the UAW started striking the only plant to make the “DT” Ram 1500. The company is still making heavy-duty models in Mexico and prior-generation “DS” Ram 1500 Classics in Warren, Michigan. The union said that Stellantis had “the worst proposal on the table regarding wage progression, temporary worker pay, conversation to full-time, cost-of-living adjustments, … Read more
Three new vans were unveiled today. They have new cockpits and control interfaces, aiming at higher safety and productivity, and stress-free driving. Driver assistance features include LED headlights. The second-generation zero-emissions systems were fully designed and built by Stellantis, including new regenerative braking systems. Compact vans The new compact van series was customized for each … Read more
e-PTO, Electric Power Take Off, lets contracts use the internal 400V battery (the traction battery normally used for forward motion) to run their equipment. It can be set for up to 17 minutes of power when the vehicles is off, e.g. to run refrigeration gear, or can provide longer-term power while the vehicle is on. … Read more
Stellantis announced the introduction of “reimagined” commercial vehicles from most of its brands on October 23. The lineup, to be launched by the heads of Ram, Citroën, Fiat, Opel/Vauxhall, and Peugeot itself, will be shown off at 9 am EDT, with streaming video available.
It’s possible to make some educated guesses about the vehicles shown. On the left is the little Ami; on the right, the Rampage
A software glitch has left roughly 300,000 Rams—an odd mix of Ram 1500s (2022-23), light-GVWR Ram 3500 chassis cabs (2022-23), and Ram 2500s (2022-24)—without the rear view image displaying when in Reverse. The fix is simply a software update, which must be done at the dealership. The Ram 3500s affected are only chassis cabs with … Read more
Ram has announced the changes to its 2024 models. Back in May, Stellpower wrote that “Either the 2024s or 2025s are likely to jettison the Hemi V8s in favor of Hurricane Sixes, with the possible exception of the 6.4 liter truck engines in the Heavy Duty lineup.” All that has changed now is the dates: … Read more
As time goes on, FCA US (Stellantis North America) press releases increasingly refer to “the Dodge brand,” “the Jeep brand,” and so on. Maybe this made sense for Chrysler before FCA, to avoid confusion between the marque and the company (many car folk eschew the term “brand” in favor of the more dignified “marque”), but there is no Chrysler Corporation or Chrysler Group today.
There has never been any reason for Dodge people to refer to “the Dodge brand.” It’s just Dodge. Nobody thinks that Dodge City is producing cars—or Phelps Dodge—or Grace Dodge. There’s only one Dodge that makes cars, and it’s the group that used to be Dodge Division and before that Dodge Brothers… and Dodge Brothers didn’t make other brands of cars.
With the Ram 1500 and possible ProMaster and ProMaster City due for replacement in 2025, Ram’s upgrades for 2024 are relatively minimal. Ram chassis cabs appear to have had no actual changes, keeping their 6.4 liter gasoline Hemi and 6.7 liter Cummins B-engine options intact. Ram 3500 Chassis Cab has the eight-speed automatic with the … Read more
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) recently issued the whole vehicle theft loss report for the 2020 through 2022 model years and the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat is officially the most stolen car in the United States. According to this report, the Hellcat Charger is 60 times more … Read more
Today, Ram announced the 2024 Ram 1500 TRX Final Edition, the last Ram to have the “Hellcat” supercharged 6.2 liter V8 engine.
It will apparently not be the final TRX, as Tim Kuniskis, head of Dodge and Ram, said or wrote, “This current chapter…
The Wagoneer’s first recall covers an issue with the upper B-pillar interior trim, which, if it was not seated properly, could interfere with side airbag deployment. This affects 2022-23 Wagoneers and Grand Wagoneers made through to June 7, 2022, when the vehicle assembly process was changed. The component was made by Century Plastics, but the problem is an assembly issue. The dealer will inspect the interior trim pieces, replace any that are loose or broken, and reseat them if needed.
The new Hurricane twin-turbo six-cylinder is stunning in its power and efficiency, but many are skeptical, saying it’s too small for serious work trucks.
GM has its turbo four for the Silverado, and Ford has a 2.7 twin turbo pulling the F-150, and they do well—though the Ford seems quite thirsty when towing. But GM and Ford still have V8 choices, while indications so far are that Ram will end with the sixes. (Some do believe the 6.4 V8 will remain on the Ram 2500 and 3500.)…
Overall, Dodge was the mass-market brand with the best performance, execution, and layout, according to the 2023 J.D. Power APEAL™ study. With a score of 887, Dodge equaled the top premium brand, Jaguar, and easily bested Mercedes (867)—and Alfa Romeo (859). Ram came in at #2 in the mass-market brands with a score of 873, … Read more
Stop driving your truck. Seriously. Oh, and call your mom.
That’s the essence of a message just sent out by the company which inherited Dodge and Ram, because around 29,000 owners of 2003 Dodge Ram pickups are still driving them with defective Takata airbags.
Ram has released its 2024 Rampage. The name used to adorn a front wheel drive pickup version of the Plymouth Horizon/Dodge Omni, which in turn was based on the SIMCA which Volkswagen used as a model for the Golf/Rabbit. The Rampage is based on the same platform as the Jeep Compass; development reportedly only cost … Read more
Merchants Fleet has ordered 12,500 Ram ProMaster electric commercial vans, to be delivered over several years, according to Ram. To be launched later this year, the van will be Ram’s first fully electric vehicle to hit the market; the Fiat version is already sold in Europe. The next electric Ram is the 1500 REV. Merchants … Read more