Ram confirms new Ranger-rivaling mid-size pick-up for 2028
Ram is officially returning to the mid-size pickup market in the US, with Stellantis confirming plans to build a new body-on-frame ute there from 2028. That’s more than a decade after the last Dodge Dakota rolled off the line.
The new pickup will be produced at Stellantis’ Toledo, Ohio plant, home to the Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator, as part of a $13 billion (USD) investment into US manufacturing. The announcement confirms Ram’s long-anticipated return to a hotly contested segment dominated by the Ford Ranger, Toyota Tacoma, and Chevrolet Colorado. It also opens the door for possible right hand drive production too, as Down Under Jeep Wrangler and Gladiators are there too. Australia has previously expressed a desire for a Ram offering to go head to head with Hilux and Ranger down these parts of the world.
“This investment in the US—the single largest in the Company’s history—will drive our growth, strengthen our manufacturing footprint and bring more American jobs to the states we call home,” said Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa. “As we begin our next 100 years, we are putting the customer at the center of our strategy, expanding our vehicle offerings, and giving them the freedom to choose the products they want and love.”
The confirmation follows years of speculation about a new mid-size Ram. The choice of the Toledo facility suggests the that new ute will use a ladder-frame chassis, likely sharing architecture with Jeep’s off-road-focused Gladiator.
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Originally, Stellantis had planned to build the new mid-size pickup at its Belvidere, Illinois plant, which has since been repurposed to produce the next-generation Jeep Cherokee and Compass starting in 2027. The company also announced new investments in Warren, Michigan for a large internal-combustion and range-extended EV SUV, and in Detroit, where production of the next Dodge Durango will begin in 2029. It’s all part of a move to help Stellantis skip paying tariffs on its models that it makes overseas but sells in the US.
The mid-size Ram will join a wave of new and revitalised models under Filosa’s leadership as he looks to restore the company’s momentum after a turbulent few years marked by discontinued V8 models, underwhelming EV launches, and a misstep in pushing Jeep too far upmarket.
