New HiLux and Ranger fighter circling! RAM Dakota set for US production in 2027 but will it come to Australia to battle the 2026 Ford Ranger, Toyota HiLux, Isuzu D-Max and BYD Shark 6?

After years of on-again, off-again teasing, evasion and false-starts, recently-installed Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa has confirmed a Ram Dakota ‘mid-size’ pick-up for North American production in 2027.

Speaking to investors at last week’s Kepler Cheuvreux Autumn Conference in Paris, Filosa confirmed he had recently seen clay development models in Ram’s Detroit design centre.

As per Mopar Insiders Filosa said, “Two weeks ago, it was in our design center in Detroit, and I saw the (truck) itself, not only the sketches and designs but the clay model. And it’s just beautiful.

“If you want to come to Detroit, we’ll show you without cellphones and cameras, and you will be, I believe, astonished,” he said.

The news comes on top of recent confirmation of a South America-only Ram Dakota to be built at the brand’s commercial vehicle production centre in Córdoba, Argentina, starting in 2026. 

This is the same facility where Stellantis builds the Fiat Titano, a ladder chassis dual-cab ute closely related to the Changan F70 and industry consensus is the Argentinian Dakota will be based on that ute.

But that Dakota, previewed earlier this year by a Nightfall Concept version won’t be sold in the US. 

Mopar Insiders said the North American mid-size Ram will be larger, built in the USA and “tuned for the demands of (that) market”, also referencing internal sources confirming the North American Ram will be a body-on-frame design.

Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis is on the record positioning the new mid-size ute as an affordable “spiritual successor” to the full-size 1500 Classic.

Over time, Stellantis has pointed to its Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois as a likely production centre, but other possibilities are factories in Toledo, Ohio (home of the Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator) and Warren, Michigan.

While it’s likely the Argentinian Dakota will be powered by a 2.2-litre ‘Multijet II’ turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine sending 149kW/450Nm to all four wheels via an eight-speed auto transmission, nothing is confirmed for its North American sibling.

Of course, the burning question is whether the new US Dakota will be built in left- and right-hand drive form for global export. Or whether it's a candidate for local RHD remanufacture as per the larger Ram 1500, 2500 and 3500 models already on sale in Australia.

Ram Trucks Australia General Manager Jeff Barber told CarsGuide, “We would love a mid-size pick-up and we have always said we have our hand raised if ever such a vehicle were to become available for our market.”

Stay tuned!