The burly Ram brand has officially announced what alert Canadian gearheads have known for a spell – the old-school Ram 1500 Classic pickup truck has been cancelled in that country.
Why have alert Canucks been wise to this development prior to Friday’s announcement? For starters, mention of the truck for a 2024 model year has never been part of the brand’s build-and-price tool in that country, despite dealers in the area having the things parked cheek-to-jowl on their lots. Meanwhile, both sides of the border sat up and took notice when the full-fat Ram 1500 earned a Warlock trim for 2024, a name formerly reserved for the Classic.
Per a short statement, the company said inventory in the Canadian market will sell through the 2024 calendar year, so presumably what ya see is what ya get in showrooms north of the border (unless someone’s willing to do a dealer trade; given the level of inventory on lots around here, that may be an option like it was in the pre-pandemic years). Notably, the same statement went on to say Ram 1500 Classic production will continue for the United States and Mexico.
Selling both the ‘old’ and ‘new’ trucks side-by-each wasn’t a wholly fresh idea when the current-gen Ram 1500 popped up about five years ago. After all, Ford did something similar with the F-150 way back in 2004 when that model was extensively redesigned. What is unique about the situation at Ram is how long the arrangement has lasted – to the point where the ‘new’ truck has received numerous minor changes and even a mild refresh on the front fascia of some trims.
Readers with a clue will have long identified that the Ram 1500 Classic is powered by either the 3.6-liter Pentastar or 5.7L Hemi, the latter of which isn’t long for this world. Continuing to offer the Classic with just the V6 would limit the truck’s towing prowess to less than 8,000 pounds. We feel the chances of Ram engineering the new straight-six turbo for use in a truck which first appeared over fifteen long years ago hovers somewhere between slim and none.
Our advice if you want a Ram 1500 Classic? Hop on that train before Stellantis makes a last call for the thing in America, too.
[Image: Ram]
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