The Ram Dakota nameplate has been officially revived, but only in South America on a reskinned Chinese ute.
After previewing its new ‘mid-sized’ pickup in August with the Dakota Nightfall concept, Ram has unveiled the production Nightfall, based on the Changan F70, and closely related to the Mexico-only Ram 1200.
Built in Argentina and confirmed to go on sale in both the local market and Brazil, it’ll take on the likes of the Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux in the region, but won’t be coming to Australia.
Instead, Australia is more likely to get the upcoming mid-sized pickup which is being planned to launch in North America in 2028, and would serve as a more logical product in our market.
While the as-yet unnamed pickup will do battle in the US with the likes of the Ford Ranger, Toyota Tacoma and Chevrolet Colorado, its natural rivals in Australia include the HiLux, Isuzu D-Max and Mitsubishi Triton.
Though the Dakota name was previously affixed to Dodge’s own mid-size pickup up until the start of last decade, the new model shares little in common with its predecessor.
Available in luxury-oriented Laramie and off-road focused Warlock grades, the Ram Dakota is powered by a 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine, capable of producing 149kW and 450Nm. For context, the 2.8-litre Australian-delivered HiLux makes 150kW and 500Nm.
A full-time 4×4 system is mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission, while there’s also a number of features which wouldn’t be out of place in an Australian ute showroom, such as a 3500kg braked towing capacity, more than 1000kg payload capacity, and four-wheel disc brakes.
Inside it’s clear there is some Chinese influence with the cabin design, incorporating a 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen, a 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster, a 360-degree camera and a host of active safety systems.
Whether any of these features and design cues will carry across to the US mid-size pickup remains to be seen, though with the segment rapidly evolving and super-competitive, it’s likely the upcoming Ram will be even more advanced.
As previously reported, the US Ram pickup will be based on a body-on-frame platform, something which underpins the Wrangler and Gladiator, suggesting the new model could be related to the Jeeps – though it could also move to an all new architecture.
In the US, petrol engines are far more popular than diesels in the mid-size segment, as opposed to Australia where turbo-diesel utes reign supreme.
Given the success of the 1500 locally – which has to be converted from left- to right-hand drive in Melbourne – Ram may have to build the new model in right-hand drive from the factory to give it a chance against the Ranger, Toyota HiLux and Isuzu D-Max.
“[The] mid-size truck in the future could be potentially [offered],” Ram Australia general manager Jeff Barber said in August. “They could do a left-hand drive and a right-hand drive, mid-size potentially, who knows? But I don’t ever see that happening in the full-size trucks.
“In relation to our relationship with Stellantis, the support we get, it’s fantastic. I think they’re very impressed by what we do in this market in Australia and New Zealand.”
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