After just seven months in retirement, Tim Kuniskis came back to run the Ram brand, and already he's left a mark. He confirmed the brand is working on a new mid-size pickup to arrive in 2027, delayed the all-electric Rev pickup, reintroduced the Hemi V-8 for its half-ton truck, introduced a segment-leading powertrain warranty, and brought the brand to NASCAR in the Truck series. Now, he's teasing something unexpected—a new passenger van.
In an interview with CNBC on Ram's (and his) comeback, Kuniskis teased the possibility of a passenger van while also mentioning the previously announced mid-sizer. Kuniskis said the brand has over 25 announcements planned through the end of 2026.
Ram already sells a van in the form of the Promaster, but only as a cargo van with a maximum of two rows of seating in "Crew" configuration. Fiat offers the Promaster's European cousin, the Ducato, as a passenger van. Ram also previously sold the smaller Promaster City as a passenger van before discontinuing the model entirely in 2022. But, perhaps Kuniskis is thinking about something more like a minivan. We've reached out to the brand for more info.
Since 2019, Ram has faced a 39% overall sales decline, and the all-important 1500 lost significant market share in the half-ton pickup class. All of this comes amidst wider struggles at Stellantis, which is attempting to turn things around after the disastrous tenure of former CEO Carlos Tavares. CNBC argues that Ram is one of Stellantis' most important brands, if not the most important, because of the profitability of pickup trucks.
Right now, there are only three players in the commercial passenger van segment—Ford with the Transit, Mercedes with the Sprinter, and GM with the Chevy Express and GMC Savanna. The minivan segment is stronger, with the Chrysler Pacifica, Honda Odyssey, Kia Carnival, Toyota Sienna, and Volkswagen ID.Buzz.
