Why Ram’s Electric Trucks Are Delayed… It’s Not What You Think

There’s been a lot of chatter lately about why Ram keeps pushing back its upcoming electrified pickups, the range-extended Ram 1500 Ramcharger and the all-electric Ram 1500 REV. Some folks are convinced something went wrong during development. Others say it must be a software issue. But according to Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis, that’s not the case at all.

At a recent press event, Kuniskis made it crystal clear: the delays are all about business strategy, not technical problems.

“We intend to get there,” Kuniskis said. “We have to get there. Despite what, ya know, what a lot of people write in chat rooms and online from their basement, things like that, the regulations are not gone. Compliance is not gone.”

Kuniskis is discussing topics such as the government’s Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) regulations, greenhouse gas goals, and other federal standards that require automakers to improve the environmental performance of their fleets. So, electrification is still happening—just on Ram’s terms and timeline.

Back in May, Stellantis informed suppliers that both trucks were experiencing further delays. The Ramcharger is now scheduled to arrive in early 2026, and the REV will follow in 2027 as a 2028 model. Ironically, the REV was originally supposed to hit the market first.

But the decision to delay isn’t about regulations, it’s about how customers are shopping right now. Ram is bringing the 5.7-liter HEMI V8 back to the lineup this month, and Kuniskis didn’t hesitate to admit that the move was connected to the delays.

“So you look at that and go, ‘Wait a minute, I have a plant that can build X number of vehicles, I can put a bunch of vehicles in there that make this much margin, or I delay that because I don’t have the consumer demand,’” he said. “[It was] strictly a business decision based on market demand. Nothing else, no crazy ulterior motive.”

In plain English: buyers want HEMI trucks right now more than they want electric ones—and Ram doesn’t want to risk clogging up production lines with lower-demand vehicles.

Makes sense. The Ram team wants to avoid the kind of rollout headaches that have plagued other automakers launching EVs. Additionally, taking more time allows the factory to refine the new powertrain lineup, which now includes turbocharged I6 engines, mild-hybrid HEMI V8s, and soon, electric drive modules (EDMs).

Even with the delays, Ram hasn’t stopped testing these trucks. We’ve seen multiple Ramcharger prototypes out on the road, without camo and running through their paces.

Bottom line: Ram isn’t abandoning electrification, it’s just being smart about it. And for now, the HEMI still has plenty of fans happy to see it sticking around.