This news by Ram is a no-brainer, what with the success of Ford’s midsize Ranger pickup and smaller Maverick. The president of Stellantis South America, Antonio Filosa, leaked to journalists in a virtual meeting that Ram is producing a “monoblock Ram 1200 pickup.” He said the midsize Ram would be built at the Pernambuco, Brazil, plant where the Jeep Renegade is built now.

What will the new midsize Ram 1200 look like?

It will use the same 4×4 platform as the Jeep Compass SUV in the US, though stretched and widened. This is according to Brazil’s Autos Segredos. A longer version of the Compass is sold in other countries as the Jeep Commander, and in India as the Meridian. These also share some external sheet metal with the US Compass. 

So based on that, it is expected to look like a truck version of the Commander, which we’ve conjured in the lead image. Sizewise, it will be the general size of a Ford Ranger. In South America, it will buck heads with the Chevy S-10, Ranger, Toyota Hilux, and numerous others in this popular segment. 

What engines will the midsize Ram 1200 have?

And the Ram 1200 will be sold in the US. We don’t know what plant it will be made in, but most likely it will be Toluca, Mexico. That is where the current Compass is made. At least for the South American market, it is expected to be powered either by the 2.0-liter turbocharged Tiger Shark, or 2.2-liter  Multijet II turbo diesel. 

Curiously, a three-cylinder 1.5-liter turbo diesel is also in the works for Latin America. Then in 2024 Stellantis will debut both a 1.0- and 1.3-liter Firefly hybrid turbo engine. Again, we don’t expect these types of diesel or smaller engines to be coming our way. 

What else does the Tiger Shark engine come in?

The Tiger Shark is also used in the smaller Ram 700 and similar Fiat Toro. Both of those are smaller pickups we’ve expected will see Ram versions to go up against the Ford Maverick and Hyundai Santa Fe. So far, no official word on that happening. 

For the US, we expect the Ram 1200 might get a larger displacement version, or possibly the Pentastar V6. Of course, four-wheel drive will be available, along with the nine-speed automatic transmission. 

Does Chevy sell the Colorado in Latin America?

Ford’s Ranger has been sold in other countries since 2011, but only recently appeared here in 2019. Chevy’s S-10 is the new Colorado-based mid-size truck sold outside of North America. It is essentially a Colorado with round wheel openings instead of the squared ones for the US. The cabs and frame are virtually identical. 

As with the Ram 700, Chevy also has a small unibody pickup for Latin America called the Montana. A new version will be out later this year, based on the Onyx platform used by the Chevy Tracker. And as with the 700, we expect that it, or something similar, will hit the US if the Maverick continues to sell well. It seems that both Ram and Chevy are using the Maverick as a stalking horse of sorts.