Ram has teased a body-on-frame ute to take on the Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger, but the new model may be exclusive to Latin America.
The company posted a teaser video (bottom) on its social media accounts for several South American markets, including Argentina and Brazil. In it we’re treated to shadowy shots of the ute’s tailgate, headlights, bonnet, grille, and wheels.
There’s prominent Ram lettering and Nightfall badging on the tailgate, and Turbo badges on the bonnet bulge. The latter suggests it will be powered by a turbo-diesel engine.
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From what we can see the new ute will be based on the Peugeot Landtrek sold in Africa and Fiat Titano available in Latin America. Both the Landtrek and Titano aren’t indigenous Stellantis designs, though, as they are in turn based on the Changan F70/Hunter, which is also sold by the Deepal marque.
Notably, the new ute’s name has yet to be revealed. Ram already sells a version of the Landtrek/Titano in Mexico as the 1200 (below), but rumour has it the brand will revive the Dakota name that was used until 2011 by Dodge for its “global mid-size pickup”.
Compared to the existing 1200, the new ute has LED headlights connected by light bar to a more aggressive grille with humungous Ram lettering, chunkier alloy wheels, and will be available with a roof-mounted light bar and amber lights on the bonnet.
Overall it promises to be meanest looking model yet derived from the Changan/Peugeot/Fiat ute.
In Latin America, the Landtrek/Titano is offered with a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel making 147kW and 450Nm. It’s paired to an eight-speed automatic, and four-wheel drive. In all likelihood, the Ram version will use the same drivetrain.
The new Ram ute will reportedly be built in Argentina alongside the Fiat Titano (above). It will sit above the Ram Rampage dual-cab, which features a monocoque body, and a platform shared with the Jeep Compass SUV and Fiat Toro ute.
Rumours have swirled for years that Ram is planning a smaller body-on-frame ute to sit underneath the 1500 for global consumption. A July report from Mopar Insiders claimed Ram was planning to start production of just such a ute in 2027 at its plant in Belvidere, Illinois.
This US-built model is thought to use a smaller version of the STLA Frame architecture that underpins the Ram 1500. If true, it will be quite a different beast to the Changan-based model heading to Latin America.
While Ford has one mid-size ute in the Australian-developed Ranger, which is sold around world including at home in America, Toyota has two different models: the Tacoma for North America, and HiLux for the rest of the world.
The Tacoma is larger and uses a more modern platform shared with the LandCruiser, while the HiLux employs a tried-and-true architecture that dates back to the early 2000s.
It remains to be seen which strategy Ram emulates for its new ute. Previous Ram CEOs indicated its US-bound mid-size pickup would also be produced for right-hand drive markets, like Australia.
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