Ram EV pickup concept will follow you like a puppy and just about charge itself

LAS VEGAS — Ram gave the industry a glimpse of what to expect in 2024 with the unveiling of the 1500 Revolution BEV Concept on Thursday during CES.

Ram is looking to raise the bar in the electric pickup market with features such as an automated charger and the ability to follow a walking driver like a loyal dog.

The truck brand is joining the EV pickup fray later than rivals when the electric 1500 arrives next year, but Stellantis says it has been using the time to gauge the competition and is working to surpass them in metrics such as range, towing, payload and charge time.

Ram CEO Mike Koval said designers were told to dream big and push boundaries. Koval wanted the team to "think of everything, so we can deliver a truck unlike anything."

Koval said the influence of the Revolution will be evident in the production model of the electric 1500 that will be shown "in the next couple of months."

"It's a visionary road map of where we're taking the brand," Koval told Automotive News.

The design team came up with an aesthetic for the concept that gives off toughness, yet is still sexy, said Stellantis design chief Ralph Gilles. He credited designer Mark Trostle with combining the words brutal and beautiful in calling the concept "brutiful."

Gilles said designers tried to differentiate the electric concept from Ram's traditional gasoline-powered trucks.

"Rams have always been more sporty, more athletic, the more beautiful, honestly, of all the trucks out there," Gilles told Automotive News. "There are a lot of trucks that tend to be super masculine and almost audacious in a way, so we were able to give that same audacity but without losing the function and attractiveness of the vehicle."

The concept is housed on the new STLA Frame platform for full-size, body-on-frame EVs. Ram credits the platform for giving designers room to create the concept's unique proportions.

The automaker said new intelligent safety systems and smaller, more powerful electric motors allowed the design team to shift the cabin forward and lengthen it. The concept's cabin is four inches longer than today's production truck, while the bed length remains the same.

Ram is looking to raise its game on the technology front.

The brand says the concept has a "shadow mode," for instance, that follows the driver while they walk ahead of the vehicle. Ram said the feature could be useful when the driver needs to move a short distance and doesn't want to get back in the truck, such as when picking up tools or equipment from a job site.

The truck, according to Ram, will follow the driver at a safe distance by using sensors and camera technology to navigate around obstacles.

Ram also is showcasing a new inductive robot charger at CES called the "Ram Charger" for those replenishing their battery at home. Ram said the robot "detects the vehicle's presence and its charging needs, and automatically moves into position and aligns itself under the vehicle."

Koval believes the brand is coming to market at an ideal time with the 1500 EV when the production version arrives next year.

Ram has been pairing what it learns from consumers about their expectations for an EV truck with the knowledge it already has about competitors' capabilities. Koval believes this combination gives Ram an advantage.

Koval said Stellantis designers and engineers went to around 25 cities last year during The Ram Real Talk Tour. One takeaway from the public, Koval said, was that EV pickups still need to do truck things.

"We are in this race," Koval said. "We are on track, and we think we're going to be coming to the market at the right time where the demand and the infrastructure and the market maturity is there. We are very bullish and confident in our position."