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News

RAM Rampage Opens for European Orders: Premium Pickup Combines 272 HP Performance With Everyday Practicality

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RAM has officially opened European orders for the new Rampage, a premium compact lifestyle pickup that aims to bridge the gap between traditional workhorses and high-end SUVs. Available in Rebel 2.2 Turbodiesel and R/T 2.0 Turbo Petrol versions, the Rampage combines 4×4 capability, premium interior technology and everyday usability, with prices starting at €44,000 before taxes. First customer deliveries are expected in February 2027.

The European pickup market is getting a new contender, and RAM is betting that buyers no longer want to choose between the practicality of a pickup truck and the comfort of a premium SUV. The new RAM Rampage is designed around precisely that idea, offering the American brand’s familiar combination of bold styling and utility in a more compact package tailored to European roads.

Following its European preview at Fieracavalli 2025, the Rampage is now moving into the next phase of its market introduction, with orders officially open across Europe. Positioned as a Premium Compact Lifestyle Pickup, it targets customers looking for genuine cargo-carrying capability, four-wheel-drive versatility and a more sophisticated driving experience than conventional pickups typically provide.

RAM Rampage: A More Compact Pickup Designed for European Roads

Measuring 5,028 mm in length and 1,886 mm in width, the RAM Rampage is smaller than a conventional mid-size pickup, making it better suited to European cities, tighter streets and everyday driving conditions. Despite its more manageable dimensions, it retains the imposing presence expected from a RAM vehicle.

Unlike traditional body-on-frame pickups, the Rampage uses a unibody architecture, combined with independent suspension and a multilink rear suspension layout. This configuration is intended to deliver improved ride comfort, stability and handling, particularly during everyday commuting and longer journeys.

Its versatility extends beyond paved roads. An on-demand four-wheel-drive system, 4WD Low mode and Hill Descent Control provide additional traction and control when tackling difficult terrain or challenging weather conditions.

The cargo bed measures 1,450 mm in length and is designed to accommodate a European pallet. Depending on the selected version, maximum payload capacity reaches 1,015 kg, giving the Rampage genuine working credentials alongside its lifestyle-oriented character.

According to Fabio Catone, Head of RAM and Dodge Brands for Enlarged Europe, the Rampage brings together the brand’s traditional strength and capability with premium comfort and everyday usability, while its dimensions make it particularly suitable for European customers.

RAM Rampage Rebel: 200 HP Diesel Power and Up to 1,015 kg Payload

The RAM Rampage Rebel represents the more utility-focused interpretation of the new pickup. Developed for customers who intend to use their vehicle for outdoor adventures, demanding activities and occasional work duties, it combines a rugged appearance with a capable diesel powertrain.

Under the bonnet sits a 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel engine producing 200 hp and 450 Nm of torque. Power is delivered through a nine-speed automatic transmission, while the four-wheel-drive system provides additional confidence when driving away from conventional roads.

The Rebel’s practical credentials are further supported by a maximum payload capacity of 1,015 kg, making it the more capable choice for customers who intend to regularly exploit the Rampage’s cargo-carrying potential.

Its exterior features 17-inch All-Terrain tyres and protective design elements intended to reinforce its off-road character. However, the Rebel is not simply a utilitarian pickup. Its suspension configuration, cabin equipment and overall refinement are designed to make it equally comfortable during everyday urban driving.

RAM Rampage R/T: 272 HP and Sports-Car-Inspired Performance

At the opposite end of the range, the RAM Rampage R/T takes a considerably more performance-oriented approach. Rather than focusing primarily on maximum payload and off-road practicality, this version emphasizes acceleration, road dynamics and a more sporting driving experience.

Its 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine develops 272 hp and 400 Nm of torque, making it the more powerful option in the European Rampage lineup.

The R/T accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in just 6.9 seconds and reaches a maximum speed of 220 km/h. Those figures are particularly impressive for a pickup, underlining RAM’s intention to create something different from the conventional commercial vehicles occupying this segment.

The sporting character is reinforced by 19-inch wheels, suspension lowered by 10 mm and a specially tuned sports exhaust system. Together, these modifications give the R/T a more dynamic appearance and are intended to provide a sharper road-going character.

Despite its performance credentials, the R/T retains the fundamental practicality of the Rampage platform. It comes with four-wheel drive and offers a maximum payload capacity of 750 kg, allowing owners to enjoy its more powerful engine without completely sacrificing pickup functionality.

Both European versions are equipped with a nine-speed automatic transmission and four-wheel-drive capability, although their different powertrains and suspension configurations give them distinctly different personalities.

Premium Interior With Digital Technology and Harman Kardon Audio

One of the Rampage’s main selling points is its cabin, which has been developed to offer a more sophisticated experience than buyers might traditionally expect from a compact pickup.

The interior features leather upholstery, carefully finished details and a driver-focused layout. Electrically adjustable seats are included, with up to 12-way electric adjustment available for the front seats, adding another layer of comfort during longer journeys.

Technology is another important part of the package. The dashboard incorporates a 12.3-inch multimedia touchscreen alongside a fully digital 10.3-inch instrument cluster, creating a modern and connected driving environment.

For audio enthusiasts, RAM has also included a premium Harman Kardon sound system, further reinforcing the Rampage’s positioning as a lifestyle vehicle rather than a conventional work-focused pickup.

The combination of digital displays, premium materials and comfort-oriented equipment is intended to make the Rampage equally appealing to customers who spend most of their time driving on paved roads.

Level 2 Driver Assistance and 4×4 Capability

Safety and driver assistance technologies are also an important part of the European Rampage package.

Both versions benefit from a comprehensive suite of Level 2 driver-assistance systems, including Hands-on Driving assistance, Adaptive Cruise Control, Lane Keeping Assist and Autonomous Emergency Braking.

These systems are designed to support the driver during everyday journeys, particularly on motorways and in congested traffic, while the four-wheel-drive system adds another layer of confidence when road conditions deteriorate.

The result is a pickup that aims to combine the functionality of a traditional utility vehicle with the comfort, technology and safety equipment increasingly expected from modern premium SUVs.

RAM Rampage Europe: Price and Market Launch

With European orders now officially open, the RAM Rampage is preparing to enter a segment that sits between traditional pickups and premium SUVs.

The European range consists of two models: the diesel-powered Rampage Rebel and the more powerful petrol-powered Rampage R/T.

The suggested retail price starts at €44,000, excluding taxes, while first customer deliveries are expected to begin in February 2027.

Whether customers choose the 200 hp diesel Rebel for its greater payload capacity or the 272 hp petrol R/T for its considerably stronger performance, the underlying proposition remains the same.

The RAM Rampage is designed for buyers who want the versatility of a pickup without accepting all the compromises traditionally associated with one. With compact European-friendly dimensions, a premium cabin, genuine cargo-carrying ability and standard four-wheel-drive capability, RAM is attempting to establish a new niche in Europe’s increasingly diverse pickup market.

Source: Stellantis

NEW CARS

The Ram Dakota Is Back

For more than a decade, Ram has been glaring at the booming midsize pickup market from the sidelines, watching rivals cash checks while the Dakota nameplate gathered dust. That drought is finally coming to an end. At a closed-door dealer showcase during this year’s NADA Show in Las Vegas, Stellantis pulled the cover off a new Dakota—one slated to hit showrooms in 2028—and the early word from the people who actually sell these trucks is loud and clear: Ram might be back in a big way.

Official specs are still locked in Stellantis’ vault, but dealers who saw the truck came away impressed by what they did get to see. According to Automotive News, several described the new Dakota’s styling as “rough” and “aggressive”—two adjectives that fit Ram’s blue-collar image like a well-worn pair of work gloves.

Jason Feldman, a Houston-area dealer manager, said the proportions look spot-on for going toe-to-toe with the Toyota Tacoma and Ford Ranger. “As long as the pricing is in line, it’s going to be a huge hit,” he noted. That’s not faint praise in a segment where every inch of bed length and every dollar of sticker price is a battlefield.

Others were even more bullish. Adrian Gonzalez, general manager of Payne Edinburg Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram in south Texas, didn’t mince words: “It really did look nice. Toyota better be careful—we’re going to start competing with them when it comes to the Tacoma.” Ralph Mahalak Jr., who owns six Stellantis dealerships across three states, went so far as to call the Dakota a “game changer.”

Importantly, this Dakota isn’t the one Ram sells in South America. That truck, launched in late 2025, rides on a Chinese-sourced platform and uses a Fiat-derived diesel—hardly the recipe for a red-white-and-blue workhorse. The North American Dakota will be a different beast altogether, built on a ladder-frame chassis and powered by a combustion engine. So much for the unibody EV concept teased back in 2021.

Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis has been clear about the mission: this Dakota has to be a real truck, with the towing and payload numbers to prove it. A V-8 is off the table, but a hybrid powertrain is very much in the cards, a nod to both emissions realities and where the market is heading.

Production plans have also shifted. Instead of Illinois’ Belvidere plant, the Dakota will now be built at the Toledo Assembly Complex in Ohio, alongside the Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator. That move is part of Stellantis’ $13-billion push to modernize U.S. manufacturing—and, presumably, to ensure the Dakota is built with the scale and quality a volume player needs.

And volume is exactly what Ram is after. As Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa recently admitted, Ram is a “huge, strong pickup maker that is missing a midsize pickup truck.” The Jeep Gladiator may technically live in the same segment, but its off-road-first personality leaves a wide-open lane for a more conventional, utility-focused Ram.

By the time the Dakota arrives in 2028, the midsize truck field—Tacoma, Colorado, Canyon, Ranger, Frontier—will all be on their next turns of the product cycle. Ram is betting that showing up a little late, but with the right hardware and the right attitude, is better than not showing up at all.

If the early dealer buzz is anything to go by, the Dakota won’t just be back—it might finally be ready to fight.

Source: Ram

News

Ram’s Maverick-Sized Daydream Is Real—But Not (Yet) for America

By now you’ve probably seen it: Ram’s Rampage, a tidy little pickup from Latin America that looks like someone shrunk a 1500 in the dryer and forgot to pull it out. It’s rugged, modern, and exactly the kind of compact truck that makes U.S. Maverick buyers wonder why their choices still start and end with Ford. Turns out, Ram’s top brass is wondering the same thing.

Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis recently admitted what a lot of us have been thinking: the Rampage would make a terrific addition to the American market. Built in Brazil and riding on the same unibody architecture as the Jeep Compass, the Rampage is a city-friendly, lifestyle-focused pickup with just enough toughness to pass the Home Depot test. In other words, it’s precisely the recipe that’s made the Ford Maverick such a runaway hit.

Kuniskis didn’t exactly play hard to get about it. He said he loves the Rampage, he thinks it’s awesome, and yes—he would absolutely love to sell it in the United States. But that enthusiasm came with a corporate-sized asterisk. Liking a truck and launching a truck are two very different things, and Ram has bigger fish to fry first.

Those fish are wearing a familiar name: Dakota. Ram’s long-awaited midsize pickup, now officially confirmed to revive the Dakota badge, is slated to arrive in 2027 as a 2028 model. That truck, importantly, has nothing to do with the current Latin American Ram Dakota, which is based on a Chinese platform and lives in a completely different automotive family tree. This new Dakota will be Ram’s first serious crack at the midsize segment in North America in years—and it’s taking priority over everything else.

There’s also a classic internal-competition problem at play. Compact and midsize trucks tend to blur together once pricing, options, and real-world capability start to overlap. Ram doesn’t want to launch a Rampage only to have it siphon buyers away from its all-important Dakota before that truck even gets a chance to establish itself. As Kuniskis put it, the brand needs to see exactly where the Dakota lands before deciding whether there’s room for something smaller to coexist alongside it.

Even if the business case lined up tomorrow, there’s still the matter of reality—specifically, federal reality. The Brazilian-built Rampage would need to be reengineered to meet U.S. safety, lighting, and crash-test standards, which it doesn’t necessarily do in its current form. That means real money, real development time, and no guarantee that Americans will buy it in numbers big enough to justify the investment.

So while the idea of a Ram-badged Maverick fighter is tantalizingly close to being real, it’s also frustratingly far away. Yes, Ram wants it. Yes, enthusiasts want it. But until the Dakota is firmly in place and the spreadsheets make sense, the Rampage will remain what it is today: a very cool truck you can’t buy here.

In the meantime, if Ford’s Maverick already fits your life and your budget, don’t put that order on hold waiting for Ram to make up its mind. In the auto industry, dreams are easy. Timing is everything.

Source: Ram