AUTO

Shock: Electric Ram Pickup Debuts

January 6, 2023

After a long wait, it’s finally here. An electric Ram to challenge the F-150 Lightning arrived at CES last night, and it’s shockingly good!

The Ram Revolution BEV Concept is, it should be noted, only a concept, and the brand is well behind its rivals at Ford and GM who have full-size electric pickup platforms already in customer’s hands. That said, it’s interesting to see Ram take a page from GM’s playbook by seemingly building a truck-ish body and dropping it onto a dedicated EV “skateboard” chassis … and they are dead serious about this thing.

“The Ram 1500 Revolution BEV Concept is our clearest signal yet that we’re on the precipice of something extraordinary at Ram and points directly to where we’re going on our electrified journey,” said Mike Koval Jr., Ram brand CEO – Stellantis. “At Ram, we’ve redefined what pickup trucks can be, and we will do so again by pushing past what competitors are offering by delivering the best electric pickups on the market.”

Notable new features include a full-length cargo pass-through that extends into the “frunk” of the vehicle, allowing contractors to haul 18’ wooden beams inside their more-or-less enclosed EVs, as well as third-row “jump seats” behind the rear (middle?) bench.

And, because the vehicle made its debut at CES, it is full of sky-high “concepts” that include an AI-powered personal assistant, complete with, “a 3D Ram avatar acts as the vehicle’s face, responding to various voice commands from users. Additionally, voice control enables the Ram 1500 Revolution BEV Concept to follow commands from the owner while they’re outside the vehicle, such as close the windows, play music, take a picture, and ‘follow me’ with Shadow Mode.”

The Ram 1500 Revolution BEV Concept is part of Ram’s significant contribution to Stellantis’ Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan to lead the way the world moves by delivering innovative, clean, safe and affordable mobility solutions. “The Ram Revolution represents several important things to the Ram brand,” Koval added. “Of course, it’s our new Ram 1500 Revolution BEV Concept that serves as a roadmap to our electrified future. Yet Ram Revolution is also our philosophy as we redefine the pickup segment, with a steady drumbeat of announcements and initiatives as we embark on our electrified journey.”

Ram claims its 1500 BEV will, “be the leader in a combination of areas customers care about the most: range, towing, payload and charge time,” and says its Ram 1500 Revolution BEV Concept can add up to 100 miles of range in approx. 10 minutes with 800-volt DC fast charging at up to 350 kW (level 7, in Chargeway-speak).