Stellantis peeled again the curtain Feb. 24 on the 2026 Ramcharger and revealed some attention-grabbing stats on efficiency and gas financial system.
Ramcharger, you’ll bear in mind, is the prolonged vary model of the Ram 1500 that’s powered by a 3.6-liter V-6 engine and a pair of electrical motors driving the entrance and rear wheels. The 271-hp Pentastar engine is bolted to a generator that makes electrical energy for the 2 motors, and it fees the 91.8-kilowatt-hour lithium ion battery pack. As a result of there isn’t a mechanical connection between the V-6 and the wheels, solely the electrical motors drive the truck.
Though there are hybrid pickups from Ford and Toyota, and full electrical vans from Rivian, Common Motors and Ford, Ramcharger is the primary pickup with a spread extender powertrain.
It has the potential to throw a wrench into the established order.
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The Ramcharger’s gas financial system
Diesel retains the gas financial system crown for drivers who need to go far on a gallon of gas. For 2025, the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 stays essentially the most fuel-efficient full-size pickup, with two-wheel-drive fashions sporting an eye-popping 33 mpg freeway and a spread of practically 800 miles between gas stops. The four-wheel-drive Silverado diesel, which compares higher to the Ramcharger, is EPA-rated at 29 mpg freeway and goes 696 miles on a tank — 6 miles greater than the Ramcharger.
However for some pickup homeowners, diesel is a nonstarter. Not solely is there diesel exhaust fluid so as to add, however diesel gas is often dearer than gasoline. And restore prices on diesel engines might be pockets busters.
Rivian, Chevrolet and Ford electrical pickup drivers have found their vans work nice — till you make them work. Join up a trailer or fill the mattress with sacks of cement and the vary between fees melts away. After which there’s the customarily complicated miasma of coping with public charging stations and ready for the battery pack to cost.
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The Ramcharger is the truck that dodges diesel hassles and vary anxiousness. But it surely doesn’t ship any gas financial system profit over gasoline-powered opponents and even its stablemate, the usual six-cylinder four-wheel drive Ram 1500, which is rated at 17 metropolis, 24 freeway and 19 mixed mpg. Stellantis mentioned the Ramcharger’s anticipated gas financial system rankings are 60 mpg of gasoline equal and 20 mpg, however these numbers are seemingly for an unladen truck. And one different factor: The Ramcharger isn’t a light-weight. The truck weighs a whopping 7,507 kilos, partly due to the beefy metal body wanted to guard the battery pack and gas tank.
Benefits and a query mark
One clear benefit the Ramcharger has over opponents is towing capability. Stellantis mentioned the truck can tow as a lot as 14,000 kilos. The F-150 Lightning’s highest towing capability is 10,000 kilos, whereas the Rivian R1T can haul a most of 11,000 and the Chevrolet Silverado EV can drag a load weighing as excessive as 12,500.
The opposite benefit, in fact, is that the Ramcharger is not going to be sidelined ready for a plug at a public charger and it received’t be on the mercy of the charging grid. The typical American gasoline pump spits out round 8 gallons per minute, which means the Ramcharger’s 27-gallon gas tank can often be crammed in underneath 4 minutes. The truck can also drive so far as 145 miles on electrical energy solely.
Will the Ramcharger’s class-leading towing capability and freedom from charging snafus be sufficient to make it successful?
Right here’s my prediction: If it has a six-figure price ticket, it will likely be DOA. The driving expertise goes to be in contrast to something we’ve ever skilled in a truck and Ram’s status for excellent interiors ought to bode properly for the Ramcharger. However for the truck to get any vital traction out there, it have to be an unimaginable worth. Ram model CEO Tim Kuniskis mentioned the sticker worth can be introduced nearer to launch, which can be within the second half of the yr.
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