Ram Trucks, stylized as RAM and formerly known as the Ram Truck Division (of Chrysler), is an American brand of light to mid-weight trucks and other
commercial vehicle
A commercial vehicle is any type of motor vehicle used for transporting goods or paying passengers.
The United States defines a "commercial motor vehicle" as any self-propelled or towed vehicle used on a public highway in interstate commerce to t ...
s, and a division of
Stellantis
Stellantis N.V. is a multinational automotive manufacturing corporation formed in 2021 on the basis of a 50–50 cross-border merger between the Italian-American conglomerate Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and the French PSA Group. The comp ...
(previously
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. (FCA) was an Italian-American multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles, commercial vehicles, auto parts and production systems. The Italian holding company Exor was the largest ...
). It was established in a
spin-off from
Dodge
Dodge is an American brand of automobiles and a division of Stellantis, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles have historically included performance cars, and for much of its existence Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above P ...
in 2010 using the name of the
Ram Pickup
The Ram pickup (marketed as the Dodge Ram until 2010) is a full-size pickup truck manufactured by Stellantis North America (formerly Chrysler Group LLC and FCA US LLC) and marketed from 2010 onwards under the Ram Trucks brand. The current f ...
line of trucks. Ram Trucks' logo was originally used as Dodge's logo. Ram "Classic" trucks are made at the Warren Truck Plant in Warren, Michigan and at the Saltillo plant in Saltillo, Mexico. New series Ram pickups are made at Sterling Heights Assembly in
Sterling Heights, Michigan. Since its inception, the brand has used the slogan "Guts. Glory. Ram."
Background
Prior to the 1970s, Dodge had maintained a separate marque for trucks,
Fargo Trucks
Fargo was a brand of trucks originally produced in the United States in 1913 by the Fargo Motor Car Company. Dropped in 1922, the name was reintroduced for a line of trucks manufactured by the Chrysler Corporation after purchasing Fargo Motors ...
, primarily for use outside the United States. After that point, all trucks made by Chrysler were distributed under the Dodge marque.
In June 2009, when
Chrysler
Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automoti ...
emerged from
Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, whe ...
protection, Fiat Group received a 20% stake in Chrysler Group LLC and
Sergio Marchionne
Sergio Marchionne (; 17 June 1952 – 25 July 2018) was an Italian-Canadian businessman, widely known for his turnarounds of the automakers Fiat and Chrysler, his business acumen and his outspoken and often frank approach, especially when dealing ...
was appointed CEO, replacing CEO
Robert Nardelli
Robert Louis Nardelli (born May 17, 1948) is an American businessman who was the CEO of Freedom Group from September 2010 to March 2012. Prior to that role, Nardelli served as chairman and CEO of Chrysler from August 2007 to April 2009 and CEO ...
. On June 10 that year substantially all of Chrysler's assets were sold to "New Chrysler", organized as Chrysler Group LLC. The federal government provided support for the deal with US$8 billion in financing at near 21%. Under CEO Marchionne, "World Class Manufacturing" or WCM, a system of thorough manufacturing quality, was introduced and several products re-launched with quality and luxury. The Ram, Jeep, Dodge, SRT and Chrysler divisions were separated to focus on their own identity and brands.
![Ram, Paris Motor Show 2018, IMG 0271](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Ram%2C_Paris_Motor_Show_2018%2C_IMG_0271.jpg)
Ram Trucks was established as a division of Chrysler in 2010, as a spin-off from Dodge, and using the name of the
Dodge Ram
The Ram pickup (marketed as the Dodge Ram until 2010) is a full-size pickup truck manufactured by Stellantis North America (formerly Chrysler Group LLC and FCA US LLC) and marketed from 2010 onwards under the Ram Trucks brand. The current fi ...
line of pickups that is now sold under the Ram banner. According to Chrysler, the Ram Trucks brand will concentrate on "real truck customers", rather than casual truck buyers who buy trucks for image or style.
The
Fiat Ducato cargo van design has been adopted and is sold as the Ram ProMaster in North American markets, filling the gap created when
Daimler ended production of the
Dodge Sprinter
The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter is a light commercial vehicle ( van) built by Mercedes-Benz Group AG of Stuttgart, Germany as a large van, chassis cab, minibus, and pickup truck. In the past, the Sprinter had been sold under the Mercedes-Benz, Do ...
in 2008. The goal was to increase truck sales "from today's 280,000 to 415,000 by 2014".
Executives at Chrysler have stated their intention to compete in the
semi-trailer truck
A semi-trailer truck, also known as a semitruck, (or semi, eighteen-wheeler, big rig, tractor-trailer or, by synecdoche, a semitrailer) is the combination of a tractor unit and one or more semi-trailers to carry freight. A semi-trailer ...
category with Ram, a possibility that is aided by Fiat's ownership of
Iveco and an already available network of Dodge dealers. Ram trucks are marketed separately from Dodge cars; former Ram Division President Fred Diaz stated, "Ram trucks are not a Dodge model. Ram will always be 'vinned' (Vehicle Identification Number) as a Ram. We need to continue to market as Ram so Dodge can have a different brand identity: hip, cool, young, energetic. That will not fit the campaign for truck buyers. The two should have distinct themes."
On July 21, 2011, Fiat bought the Chrysler shares held by the US Treasury increasing its stake in the company.
In April 2013, Diaz left RAM to serve as vice president of Nissan's divisional sales and marketing. He was replaced by Reid Bigland.
Fiat Chrysler formed as a new corporate entity in January 2014.
In August 2014, Ram Trucks CEO Reid Bigland was tapped to lead the
Alfa Romeo
Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis. The company was founded on 24 June 1910, in Milan, Italy. "Alfa" is an acronym of its founding name, "Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili." ...
brand in North America. It was announced that the new head of the Ram Trucks brand would be longtime Chrysler employee Robert Hegbloom, who joined Chrysler in 1986 and had been a director for Dodge.
In October 2018, Bigland was promoted to CEO of Ram Trucks. Shortly thereafter, he discovered that the division had been misreporting sales figures and turned over that information to the US government for investigation. Allegedly, FCA cut his bonuses in retaliation, which resulted in Bigland filing a whistleblower lawsuit against FCA. In March 2020, Bigland announced his resignation.
Stellantis formed in 2021 when Fiat Chrysler merged with the French PSA Group.
The Ram brand logo features the head of a
ram
Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to:
Animals
* A male sheep
* Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish
People
* Ram (given name)
* Ram (surname)
* Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director
* RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch
* ...
, formerly the logo used by Dodge.
Trucks
For specifically foreign-market models (designed by Chrysler Europe, etc.), see below.
From 1927 to 1928, all trucks built by Dodge were actually sold under the
Graham
Graham and Graeme may refer to:
People
* Graham (given name), an English-language given name
* Graham (surname), an English-language surname
* Graeme (surname), an English-language surname
* Graham (musician) (born 1979), Burmese singer
* Clan ...
name, as that company held the marketing rights at that time.
Current
*Ram 700 (2014–present): The
Fiat Strada
The Fiat Strada is a supermini coupé utility produced by the Italian manufacturer Fiat since 1998. It is based on Fiat's world car "project 178", the Palio. It is produced by Fiat Automóveis in Brazil, and has been marketed worldwide, exclud ...
, a
coupé utility
A coupé utility is a vehicle with a passenger compartment at the front and an integrated cargo tray at the rear, with the front of the cargo bed doubling as the rear of the passenger compartment.
The term originated in the 1930s, where it wa ...
sold in Chile, Bolivia, Colombia, Brazil and Peru, is sold as the Ram 700 in Mexico and South America (formerly known as Ram V700 Express in Chile).
*Ram 1000 (2018–present): The
Fiat Toro
The Fiat Toro is a pickup truck made by Fiat in Brazil. It is derived from the Fiat FCC4 Concept and is based on the Small Wide 4×4 architecture shared with the Jeep Renegade, Jeep Compass, and the Fiat 500X. In several markets in Latin Americ ...
, a compact pickup manufactured in Brazil, is sold in Latin America as the Ram 1000.
*
Ram pickup
The Ram pickup (marketed as the Dodge Ram until 2010) is a full-size pickup truck manufactured by Stellantis North America (formerly Chrysler Group LLC and FCA US LLC) and marketed from 2010 onwards under the Ram Trucks brand. The current f ...
(1981–present): The flagship product line, it includes models 1500, 2500, 3500, 4000, 4500, and 5500.
*Ram ProMaster Van (2013–present): The line of
Fiat Ducato full-size vans are sold as Ram ProMaster vans in North America. The line includes models 1500, 2500, and 3500, with cut-away
cab chassis
A chassis cab, also called a cab chassis or half truck, is a type of vehicle construction, often found in medium duty truck commercial vehicles.
Instead of supplying the customer with a factory pre-assembled flatbed, cargo container, or other e ...
versions available.
*Ram ProMaster City/Ram V1000 (2014–present): The
Fiat Doblò
The Fiat Doblò is a panel van and leisure activity vehicle produced by Italian automaker Fiat since 2000. It was unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in October 2000. A second-generation Doblò succeeded the original vehicle in 2010 for most market ...
van is sold as the Ram ProMaster City in North America and the Ram V1000 in Chile.
*Ram ProMaster Rapid/Ram V700 Rapid (2014–present): The Latin America-spec
Fiat Fiorino
The Fiat Fiorino is a small commercial vehicle produced by the Italian car manufacturer Fiat since 1977. Its first two generations have been the panel van derivatives of other small models, such as the Fiat 127 and Fiat Uno, while the curre ...
van is sold as the Ram ProMaster Rapid in Mexico and the Ram V700 Rapid in Chile, Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru.
*Ram V700 City (2018–present): The European-spec
Fiat Fiorino
The Fiat Fiorino is a small commercial vehicle produced by the Italian car manufacturer Fiat since 1977. Its first two generations have been the panel van derivatives of other small models, such as the Fiat 127 and Fiat Uno, while the curre ...
van is sold as the Ram V700 City in Chile.
File:2014 Ram 1500 ProMaster Tradesman SWB std roof front.jpg, 2014 Ram 1500 ProMaster Tradesman SWB std roof
File:2015 Ram ProMaster City Tradesman Cargo Van, front left.jpg, 2015 Ram ProMaster City Tradesman cargo van
File:2019 Dodge Ram 1500 Laramie, front 2.28.20.jpg, 2019 Ram 1500 Laramie
Former
*
Dodge Dakota
The Dodge Dakota, known as the Ram Dakota for the final two years of production, is a mid-size pickup truck from Chrysler's Ram (formerly Dodge Truck) division. The first Dakota was introduced in late 1986 as a 1987 model. From its introduction th ...
(1987–2011): A midsize pickup, it was moved to the Ram marque with the full-size pickup lineup, although the vehicle retained its physical Dodge branding. It was also rebadged as the
Mitsubishi Raider.
*Ram H100: The
Hyundai Starex
The Hyundai Starex is a van built by Hyundai. First-generation models were known in Europe as the Hyundai H-1 and as the Hyundai H200 in the Netherlands. For the second generation, Australian and UK market models are sold as the Hyundai iLoad (carg ...
was sold as a Ram in Mexico, although the Hyundai badges were kept.
*
Ram C/V Tradesman (2012–2015): Cargo versions of the then-current Chrysler minivan platform were sold under the Ram marque until replaced by the ProMaster City.
*Ram 1200 (2016–2019): The
Fiat Fullback
The Fiat Fullback is a pickup truck from the Italian automobile manufacturer Fiat made from 2016 to 2019. The result of a collaboration agreement between Fiat and the Japanese automaker Mitsubishi Motors signed in 2014, the truck is mechanicall ...
/
Mitsubishi Triton
The Mitsubishi Triton is a compact pickup truck produced by Mitsubishi Motors. In Japan, where it has only been sold intermittently and in small numbers, it was originally known as the Mitsubishi Forte and from 1991 as the Strada. In the Unite ...
, a midsize pickup built by a Fiat–
Mitsubishi
The is a group of autonomous Japanese multinational companies in a variety of industries.
Founded by Yatarō Iwasaki in 1870, the Mitsubishi Group historically descended from the Mitsubishi zaibatsu, a unified company which existed from 1870 ...
joint venture, was sold as the Ram 1200 in the United Arab Emirates.
Production
Ram vehicles are manufactured at four facilities, two in North America, one in Western Asia, and one in South America.
*
Warren Truck Assembly
Warren Truck Assembly is a Stellantis automobile factory in Warren, Michigan. The factory opened in 1938 and was known as "Dodge City" until the mid-2000's. The nearby Warren Stamping opened in 1949 and just south of Eight Mile Road in Detroit, ...
,
Warren, Michigan
Warren is a city in Macomb County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The 2020 Census places the city's population at 139,387, making Warren the largest city in Macomb County, the third largest city in Michigan, and Metro Detroit's largest suburb.
T ...
, United States. First opened in 1938, the facility has produced trucks for Dodge and Ram for over 70 years. Near the plant are also the Warren metal stamping plant, Mount Elliot tool and die plant which contribute parts and components to the manufacture of the Dakota and 1500 series. The following models are currently assembled at the plant: Ram 1500 series, all crew cab and double cab models for the global market are assembled here except for the Ram 1500 Laramie, which is built at both the Warren facility and Ram's Saltillo Assembly for the Mexican market.
* Saltillo Truck Assembly,
Saltillo
Saltillo () is the capital and largest city of the northeastern Mexican state of Coahuila and is also the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. Mexico City, Monterrey, and Saltillo are all connected by a major railroad and highwa ...
, Mexico. The plant manufactures the full range of the Ram truck series as well as the DX Chassis cab and ProMaster van. The plant has won numerous awards and has been recognized as the Chrysler groups best truck facility in terms of build quality. The ''Saltillo stamping plant'' is also attached to the facility.
The following models are built at the plant:
*Ram 1500 all regular cab models of various trim levels sold globally are manufactured at the facility as is the crew cab Ram 1500 Laramie for the Mexican market.
*Ram 2500 all models of various trim levels, cab type, and bed length. Vehicles built here are sold globally.
*Ram 3500 all models of various trim levels, cab type, and bed length. Vehicles built here are sold globally.
*Ram 4500 all models of various trim levels, cab type, and bed length. Vehicles built here are sold globally.
*Ram 5500 all models of various trim levels, cab type, and bed length. Vehicles built here are sold globally.
*DX Chassis Cab manufactured for the Mexican and Canadian markets only.
*Ram ProMaster
''
Tofaş
Tofaş (acronym for ''Türk Otomobil Fabrikası Anonim Şirketi''; ''Turkish Automobile Factory Joint-Stock Company'' pronounced ) is a Turkish automobile manufacturer which was established in 1968 by Vehbi Koç, who was the founder of Koç Ho ...
'',
Bursa
( grc-gre, Προῦσα, Proûsa, Latin: Prusa, ota, بورسه, Arabic:بورصة) is a city in northwestern Turkey and the administrative center of Bursa Province. The fourth-most populous city in Turkey and second-most populous in the ...
,
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
. The plant produces vehicles primarily for the European market; however, the
Ram ProMaster City
Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to:
Animals
* A male sheep
* Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish
People
* Ram (given name)
* Ram (surname)
* Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director
* RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch
* Raj ...
is produced at Tofaş and imported into North America.
Stellantis manufactures some trucks (Ram 1000, for example) in Brazil for the South American markets.
In popular culture
Cordell Walker
This is a list of characters from the TV series ''Walker, Texas Ranger''.
Main characters Cordell Walker
''Cordell Firewalker'', as Texas Ranger Sgt. Cordell Walker, is a former dolphin trainer with an elite Force Reconnaissance unit and a ...
(
Chuck Norris
Carlos Ray "Chuck" Norris (born March 10, 1940) is an American martial artist and actor. He is a black belt in Tang Soo Do, Brazilian jiu jitsu and judo. After serving in the United States Air Force, Norris won many martial arts championshi ...
) drove a silver Dodge Ram throughout most of the run of ''
Walker, Texas Ranger
''Walker, Texas Ranger'' is an American action crime television series created by Leslie Greif and Paul Haggis. It was inspired by the film '' Lone Wolf McQuade'', with both this series and that film starring Chuck Norris as a member of the ...
'' after driving a
GMC Sierra
GMC Sierra (Classic) may refer to GMC counterparts, either as model names or as trim lines, to the following Chevrolet vehicles:
* Chevrolet C/K
* Chevrolet Silverado
* Chevrolet Suburban
{{Authority control
Sierra
Pickup trucks ...
the first season. The truck was part of a larger
product placement deal with Chrysler that saw the other main characters drive other Chrysler vehicles while villains drove vehicles from Chrysler's fellow
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
rivals
General Motors
The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...
and
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...
. The Ram was also heavily advertised during commercial breaks throughout the series run on
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
.
A 1995 red Dodge Ram 2500 pickup truck featured prominently throughout the 1996 film ''
Twister
Twister may refer to:
Weather
* Tornado
Aviation
* Pipistrel Twister, a Slovenian ultralight trike
* Silence Twister, a German homebuilt aircraft design
* Wings of Change Twister, an Austrian paraglider design
Entertainment
* ''Twister'' (1989 ...
'' as the storm-chasing vehicle used by the two lead characters, played by
Bill Paxton
William Paxton (May 17, 1955 – February 25, 2017) was an American actor and filmmaker. He appeared in films such as '' Weird Science'' (1985), ''Aliens'' (1986), '' Near Dark'' (1987), '' Tombstone'' (1993), ''True Lies'' (1994), '' Apollo 1 ...
and
Helen Hunt.
Ram Trucks entered popular culture in an unintentional way on February 4, 2018, during
Super Bowl LII
Super Bowl LII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2017 season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles defeated the American Football Conferen ...
. Their commercial's use of Rev.
Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
's sermon
"The Drum Major Instinct" was quickly and widely panned by audiences, academics, news outlets and social media alike. Of particular concern was its usage of a speech in which King condemned advertising ("we are so often taken by advertisers... those gentlemen of massive verbal persuasion") to sell more Ram Trucks. Within hours, content creators on YouTube had made spin-offs ("What Martin Luther King Actually Thought About Car Commercials", "The MLK Super Bowl Ad Dodge Didn't Show You", "What Dodge LEFT OUT Of Their MLK Commercial In Super Bowl", etc.) that showed a more accurate perspective of King's sermon and opinions about advertising.
Ram trucks feature prominently in
Taylor Sheridan's ''Yellowstone'' television series as the chosen work vehicles of the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, featuring the ranch's logo and branding on the sides of the vehicles. The trucks feature a variety of configurations, mostly 3/4 ton 2500-series trucks with the 6.7L Cummins diesel.
See also
Fiat Professional
Fiat Professional is the brand name and subsidiary of Stellantis which manufactures light commercial vehicles and their passenger variants. It was launched on 17 April 2007 and replaced the Fiat Veicoli Commerciali division. Fiat Professional is ...
: This was
FCA's global light commercial vehicle brand marketed outside North America, marketing the same vans marketed as Ram in the Americas. In the other part of
Stellantis
Stellantis N.V. is a multinational automotive manufacturing corporation formed in 2021 on the basis of a 50–50 cross-border merger between the Italian-American conglomerate Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and the French PSA Group. The comp ...
,
PSA, all brands except
DS Automobiles
DS Automobiles is a French luxury vehicle marque which was introduced in 2009. Formerly part of Citroën, DS has been a standalone brand since 2015 (2012 in China).
DS can be an abbreviation of Different Spirit or Distinctive Series, although it ...
sell vans in three sizes under their respective brands.
References
External links
*
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{{Ram Truck Timeline
{{Chrysler LLC
{{Stellantis
{{Dodge
{{Dodge Truck Timeline
{{Automotive industry in the United States
{{Trucking industry in the United States
Dodge
Stellantis
Motor vehicle manufacturers based in Michigan
Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 2010
Truck manufacturers of the United States
Pickup trucks
2010 establishments in Michigan
Car brands