Ram’s mid-size Dakota pickup truck (originally a Dodge Dakota) bowed out of production in 2011, and the automaker has now provided the first hint that a modern successor may be in the works.
When asked by Pickup Truck + SUV Talk at last week’s Chicago auto show about the fate of a modern Dakota, Ram CEO Mike Koval said he plans to show something along those lines at a dealer meeting taking place in Las Vegas in late March.
Rumor has it Koval is planning to show a concept of a mid-size pickup with an electrified powertrain.
Koval starts talking about the pickup at the 11:30 mark in the video interview.
Koval also acknowledged that there’s plenty of opportunity in the mid-size segment. The likes of Chevrolet, Ford, Nissan, and Toyota have all found success in recent years with their respective mid-size pickup offerings. Even fellow Stellantis brand Jeep has a mid-size pickup in the form of the Gladiator, but Ram is noticeably missing from the list despite being a dedicated brand for commercial vehicles.
In the same interview, Koval also makes mention of a mystery pickup prototype recently spotted testing in Europe together with a Fiat Toro, a compact pickup offered in South America.
He hinted that the mystery pickup will be a new Ram offering for outside North America.
While a modern Dakota for North America, electrified or not, might be years away, Ram has some new products coming. Key among them is an electric 1500 to be called the 1500 REV. It was shown for the first time during Ram’s Super Bowl LVII spot.