The 2018 RAM 1500 will be launched in Australia in the middle of 2018 providing buyers in Australia’s fastest growing market sector with a unique full-size American pickup truck that sets new benchmarks for towing, cabin space and ability, the sole Australian authorized importer and distributor of the RAM brand, the Ateco Group, has announced.
The RAM 1500 will enable the RAM to compete in what is the largest segment of the Ute Market for the first time. It will complement the RAM 2500 and 3500 range that was launched in 2015 and which increased its sales by 36 per cent in 2017 compared to the previous year according to official VFACTS figures.
Powered by a class-exclusive 5.7L Hemi V8 engine, the new RAM 1500 will be a formidable competitor, delivering best in class towing, power, cab size and cargo space with a tub length of up to nearly two meters long as well as options like the class-exclusive RamBox® Cargo Management System. The RAM 1500 will offer customers in Australia a unique and exciting addition to the Australian Ute market.
The North American-built RAM 1500 will arrive in Australia as a left-hand drive (LHD) vehicle and then be remanufactured to right hand drive (RHD) at a purpose-built facility in Melbourne. The chassis and body are first separated before a re-engineered RHD specific steering system is fitted, then a new dashboard which was designed, developed and produced in Australia is installed along with a RHD-specific heating and ventilation system before the body and chassis are re-married to produce the final product. The work is so substantial that it requires production line levels of quality, fit and finish, and a height of engineering excellence that means it is officially classed as a remanufactured vehicle, not a conversion, and it is offered with a comprehensive three year/100,000 km warranty and backed by a nationwide dealer group
“The RAM 2500, 3500 and, from the middle of 2018, the 2018 RAM 1500, are remanufactured in Australia, by Australians to meet Australian market demands,” says Alex Stewart, Chief Operating Officer of RAM Trucks Australia. “We are not just providing vehicles designed to tow big loads across our big country – up to 6.9 tonnes in fact – but we’re also employing top engineers, designers and automotive technicians, as well as local component companies to work with us. This is something of which we are extremely proud, almost as proud as we are of the expanded range of RAM Trucks that we’ll be selling across Australia and New Zealand!”
Full details, pricing and specifications of the RAM 1500 range for Australia will be announced when it goes on sale in the middle of 2018.
Source: RAM
Image courtesy of RAM
