Ram Fans Rejoice - An SUV Really is Coming

Ram has been a strong competitor in the pickup truck market because it focuses on giving buyers affordable luxury and capable towing. I have written several stories recently about the popularity of the 2026 Ram 1500 HEMI. Now, the truck maker is planning to build its first ever SUV. Automotive News broke the story after Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa told Wall Street analysts that Ram will offer a larger product range in 2028. 

Ram Fans Have Long Wanted an SUV

According to Automotive News, Filosa told analysts that a Michigan-made SUV and a midsize pickup truck that will be built in Ohio will give Ram “a much more comprehensive product range.”

When Stellantis announced, earlier this month, that it was making huge investments in future products, it talked about a new SUV. Ram fans had hoped it would be part of the popular line. 

The SUV will be built in Warren, Michigan, in the same plant that builds the Jeep Grand Wagoneer. The new SUV will reportedly have two powertrain options, gasoline and an extended range version.  As I reported earlier, the Jeep Grand Wagoneer will be a standard bearer for Stellantis’ new extended range electric vehicle platform. The technical term is a REEV range-extended electric vehicle. The powertrain has been talked about for the Ram 1500 and was so well received that Ram cancelled plans for its EV truck and is proceeding with the extended range version known as the Ram REV. It appears we will see the REEV first in the 2026 Jeep Grand Wagoneer. It makes sense that a new Ram SUV would be built in the same plant and feature the same powertrain options. The Warren plant is expected to add 900 jobs to build the SUVs. 

Filosa also told analysts that the company would be adding more workers to build an all-new midsize Ram pickup in Toledo, Ohio. Ram has not competed in the midsize truck market for years. Ram was originally going to build that pickup in Belvidere, Illinois. Now the new Jeep Cherokee and the Jeep Compass will be built in Belvidere to avoid tariffs. 

Filosa is Also Reportedly Promising Sporty Ram Trucks

The 2026 Ram 1500 HEMI is already on a roll. Fans were thrilled to have the HEMI in the lineup after it was expected to be phased out. Filosa reportedly told analysts that Ram “plans to unveil two Street and Racing Technology models, and a sub-$50,000 version of the 1500 that debuted in the third quarter.”

Many enthusiasts are hoping that Ram will reintroduce the TRX version with the super-charged HEMI as part of the new lineup. 

Ram Photo

Mary Conway is a professional automotive journalist and has decades of experience specializing in automotive news analysis. She covered the Detroit Three for more than twenty years for the ABC affiliate, in Detroit. Her affection for the Motor City comes naturally. Her father ran a gas station while Mary was growing up, in Wisconsin.

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