Ram Doubles Down On 2027 Plans For Its Ford Ranger Rival

Ram has been absent from the mid-size pickup game for years now, which is a head-scratcher. While Ford, Chevy, and Toyota have been battling it out, Ram has been sitting on the sidelines, but that's all about to change. 

On September 11, 2025, Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa dropped the bombshell truck fans have been waiting for, confirming at the Kepler Cheuvreux Autumn Conference that a new Ram mid-size truck is officially slated for a 2027 launch. This is a big deal, because it's the first time the company has attached a firm date to the project.

Filosa also added a ton of hype with the announcement. A report from Mopar Insiders highlights that he told investors he saw a full-size clay model at the Detroit design center a couple of weeks ago and called it "just beautiful." He was so confident that he playfully invited the investors for a look, on the condition they left their phones and cameras behind. 

After all, this isn't just another vehicle launch for Ram. It's a critical move to fill the void created when the Dodge Dakota was discontinued way back in 2011. The Dakota was the company's last mid-size truck, and it's been a while. Filosa also promised the truck will have "very good" technical specifications, signaling that Ram isn't planning to just participate in the segment. It's planning to make a serious run at the crown.

The most significant news for anyone who uses a truck for actual truck stuff is the platform. Early fears suggested Ram might go the lifestyle route with a unibody platform like the STLA Large architecture, the same foundation used for the Dodge Charger Daytona. That would have put it in the same class as the Honda Ridgeline, not the Ford Ranger. 

Thankfully, sources in July 2025 confirmed to Mopar Insiders that the new pickup will be built on a proper body-on-frame chassis. This architecture is expected to be versatile, potentially a shortened version of the STLA Frame platform that can support combustion engines, plug-in hybrids, and even all-electric powertrains. The decision comes as Ram has stopped development on its full-size all-electric pickup. This makes its electrification strategy for this new mid-sizer even more critical.

Another detail that seems locked in is the body style. Reports indicate the truck will be offered exclusively in a four-door Crew Cab configuration, which mirrors the strategy of its main American market competitors. Where the pickup will be assembled is still slightly up in the air. 

The official plan, first revealed in the UAW's 2023 agreement with Stellantis, points to the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois. However, industry whispers suggest other locations like the Toledo plant or Warren Truck are also being considered.

To understand why this new truck is a big deal, you need to look at the old Dodge Dakota. The Dakota was discontinued because it was getting too similar to the full-size Ram 1500 in price, making the bigger truck an easy upsell. The market today looks very different, as full-size trucks nowadays have eye-watering price tags, leaving a huge opening for a capable, yet affordable mid-size option. Even the Ram 1500 Classic was discontinued in 2024, leaving the crucial sub-$40,000 segment, though it did try to plug that with the Ram 1500 Express.

Don't expect a revival of the Dakota name, though. Ram is already launching a completely separate and smaller mid-size truck named Dakota in South America. To avoid market confusion, the North American version will be a larger and entirely different vehicle that will likely carry a new name. Moreover, with the Ford Ranger starting around $33,000 and the Toyota Tacoma in a similar range, Ram needs to price its entry-level models competitively at around the same price to succeed.