New 2025 Ram and Ramcharger PHEV Hybrid revealed

[jjswan33]

Looks like potential for the ultimate overlanding vehicle. I like it.

Not opposed to a range extender, some places will not get DC fast charging for years in the future.

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[vandy1981]

I mean, I get it for towing, but adding all the maintenance and potential mechanical issues of an ICE (plus the emissions) to an electric vehicle really seems to defeat the purpose of having an electric vehicle.

Towing is 100% the point of the Ramcharger.

 

[pc500]

Thats funny to me because that's the exact reason I went with the Rivian not the TRX is I didn't want a huge truck.

I had both a 2009 ram 1500 and drove a f150 lightning. The ford was just larger driving. I know dimensionly it wasn't but it was a handful more. I don't know if it was turning radius, sight visibility, or something else.

 

[zefram47]

I could care less about the REV, but the Ramcharger?... They're going to sell every one of these they manage to produce. It's an EV for every day use and now it can quell the screaming that EV trucks can't tow cross-country. By the specs, it looks like it ought to still get 50 mpg while running the gas generator and likely close to 25 mpg while towing. If I didn't care about off-road capability, I'd be very interested in this one.

 

[Davethadog]

Does it really suck?

I haven't had issues with it. I guess I haven't done a cross country road trip yet, but how often does one do that?

Also, this still has a V6 that needs gas, oil, maintenance, emits carbon, etc.

Yes. I tow a race trailer ever weekend in the summer, it was a headache just to go 70 miles with the r1t so much so that I sold it.

There’s also a lot of people that just don’t care about emissions, particularly people like me who buy RAM stuff. Also, the pentastar v6 is bulletproof. This will have an easy life.

 

[pc500]

Does it really suck?

I haven't had issues with it. I guess I haven't done a cross country road trip yet, but how often does one do that?

Also, this still has a V6 that needs gas, oil, maintenance, emits carbon, etc.

You're in the Midwest. Understanding how big Texas or the west is... A commute between two cities at 80mph speed limits and 800 miles in one day isn't unheard of. Toss a rv or horse trailer on the back...

 

[kurtlikevonnegut]

A few thoughts:

1 - I'm surprised they decided to use a V-6 gas engine for the generator. I'd think a small diesel would make more sense and be easier to maintain. I suppose if the intent was to save costs by taking something off the shelf then it makes sense, but certainly not the most efficient way to do it.

2 - I think the idea is good, but I'm not sure how much I trust Dodge/Stellantis to execute this well.

3 - The rule of the big 3 means that GM and Ford will be working on something similar tomorrow if they aren't already.

 

[Redline]

You're in the Midwest. Understanding how big Texas or the west is... A commute between two cities at 80mph speed limits and 800 miles in one day isn't unheard of. Toss a rv or horse trailer on the back...

If that's your daily commute, why are you even considering an EV?

People make this so freaking complex. Especially those who don't even own Rivian's or EVs.

 

[emoore]

Yes. I tow a race trailer ever weekend in the summer, it was a headache just to go 70 miles with the r1t so much so that I sold it.

There’s also a lot of people that just don’t care about emissions, particularly people like me who buy RAM stuff. Also, the pentastar v6 is bulletproof. This will have an easy life.

I can see it for towing for sure. At least until batteries get better. Although it dies make me sad that a lot of people don’t care about emissions. That’s one of the biggest reasons we are probably screwed in the future

 

[Dark-Fx]

So do you have to do regular maintenance on the Pentastar — oil changes and the like?

Our Volt wanted us to change the oil way before it was degraded. First oil change I did after a year and the oil was still translucent when it came out. I didn't change it again before we sold it two years later, just reset the timer on it.

I'd think a small diesel would make more sense and be easier to maintain.

Diesel can be harder to start in cold weather. DEF would still be required and adds a LOT of complexity around short cycling the motor. Whenever we had the motor running in the Volt, it generally wasn't on for more than a few minutes since we never took it on long trips.

From an engineering and cost standpoint, gas is the better option here IMO.

 

[vandy1981]

A few thoughts:

1 - I'm surprised they decided to use a V-6 gas engine for the generator. I'd think a small diesel would make more sense and be easier to maintain. I suppose if the intent was to save costs by taking something off the shelf then it makes sense, but certainly not the most efficient way to do it.

2 - I think the idea is good, but I'm not sure how much I trust Dodge/Stellantis to execute this well.

3 - The rule of the big 3 means that GM and Ford will be working on something similar tomorrow if they aren't already.

1-diesels tend to be much heavier (and expensive) than equivalent gas engines. They already have the weight and cost of the battery to deal with and the pentastar v6 is ubiquitous and likely to be relatively inexpensive.

2-they have been producing the Chrysler and Jeep PHEVs for years and Stellantis already has BEV expertise from their EU offerings. Their market share for EVs over there is huge.

3-I am amazed that Ford isnt already selling an F150 powerboost or Maverick PHEV.
They already have an Escape PHEV and the Maverick is based on the same platform.

 

[vandy1981]

I had both a 2009 ram 1500 and drove a f150 lightning. The ford was just larger driving. I know dimensionly it wasn't but it was a handful more. I don't know if it was turning radius, sight visibility, or something else.

We felt the same way with our 2019 Ram vs the Lightning because the lightning has a measurably larger turning radius.

 

[Zoidz]

The trucks like the Ramcharger are a great transition for the sceptical. They will buy them realize that they never fill up and the gas engine is just extra junk they are dragging around and don't need 90% of the time. Then the next vehicle they buy will probably be full electric. I've already seen people doing that with the 4XE.

Not unlike Linus and his security blanket.

 

[RWerksman]

A few thoughts:

1 - I'm surprised they decided to use a V-6 gas engine for the generator. I'd think a small diesel would make more sense and be easier to maintain. I suppose if the intent was to save costs by taking something off the shelf then it makes sense, but certainly not the most efficient way to do it.

2 - I think the idea is good, but I'm not sure how much I trust Dodge/Stellantis to execute this well.

3 - The rule of the big 3 means that GM and Ford will be working on something similar tomorrow if they aren't already.

Concur on all of that.

In regard to the engine, my guess is that the Pentastar was incredibly cheap and plentiful. They've been making them for over a decade now and the costs are tremendously sunk at this point. They're reliable, relatively compact for what they are, and can be extremely efficient at lower RPMs.

They probably also chose it because they want to put out enough charge from the generator to keep the truck's batteries supplied with power even while towing. A torquey 3.6L engine running against a ton of resistance at a low RPM will do that, I'd suspect.


All in all, the capabilities sound really intriguing. It also feels really wasteful to tote that lump of iron around everywhere just for the few times you may need it. And then the Chrysler engineers - they've done some really good things lately, but we can all remember the Sebring.

 

[kurtlikevonnegut]

All in all, the capabilities sound really intriguing. It also feels really wasteful to tote that lump of iron around everywhere just for the few times you may need it. And then the Chrysler engineers - they've done some really good things lately, but we can all remember the Sebring.

As long as it doesn't have a transmission they should be fine....

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