Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares has confirmed that the all-new Ram 1500 EV will be offered with a range-extender option, reports Car and Driver.
Tavares revealed this at a roundtable interview at CES 2023, corroborating previous statements about the segment-exclusive setup. Ram chief executive Mike Koval Jr. previously described the electrified pickup truck as having a "class-shattering" range extender variant but failed to share additional details.
That remains the case now, with no mention made of the type of setup Ram will be offering. As a reminder, the now-discontinued BMW i3 was available with a range extender (known as the REx) that used a small two-cylinder, gasoline-powered engine under the trunk floor. Range extenders use combustion to act as a generator rather than driving the wheels, which is a far more energy-efficient way of burning gas or diesel.
Based on this, we can assume Ram will offer the upcoming truck as a pure electric vehicle and as a plug-in hybrid of sorts. The latter option will likely be welcomed by members of the truck-buying community, many of whom still view electric trucks as impractical. Even Ram knows this, which is why Koval told CarBuzz that the combustion 1500 pickup will live alongside its electric counterpart.
Tasks such as towing place additional stress on the battery system of electric trucks and reduces range significantly. This limits real-world use, making the ICE-powered pickup a more sensible bet for those who travel long distances and put their vehicles to work.
A range extender would alleviate many of those concerns and allow Ram owners to enjoy emissions-free motoring and call on a gas-powered motor only if necessary.
The striking 1500 EV Revolution Concept, revealed at CES 2023, is a battery electric vehicle previewing a production model arriving for the 2024 model year. A production version will debut sometime during 2023, at which point we expect to find out more details about the range extender option.
It will be underpinned by the STLA Frame architecture and utilize a twin-motor setup. Thanks to the 800-volt electrical architecture, owners can expect to glean 100 miles from just 10 minutes of charging. If the range extender model enjoys the same fast-charging benefits, it will certainly be the electric truck to beat in terms of practicality.
As Koval Jr. recently told CarBuzz, "Trucks still have to do truck things. Electrification cannot be a limitation." Ram's research has revealed that "people are open-minded to electrification but are not willing to compromise on core attributes," specifically range and charging. Towing has been a great hindrance to the Ford F-150 Lightning's range, but Ram is confident its suite of solutions "will exceed competitors."