Ram Brand Will Add Fiat Commercial Vans

AUBURN HILLS, Michigan — As part of its risky plan to separate Ram trucks from the Dodge brand and expand the range into a stand-alone brand, Chrysler's corporate parent Fiat expects to add two new commercial vehicles, one large and one small, in 2012 from the Fiat group in Europe, and has slated a major face-lift for the full-size Ram pickup about the same time.

As its sales remain in freefall, the midsize Dodge Dakota is now slated for extinction in mid-2011, according to Fred Diaz, president and CEO of Ram. But Chrysler is considering a unitized pickup — something similar in concept and construction to the Honda Ridgeline — as a potential successor to the body-on-frame Dakota for model year 2012.

Diaz said Ram will add the new Fiat-sourced commercial vans for model year 2013. Among the possible choices are the Fiat Doblo, a compact delivery vehicle about the size of the Ford Transit Connect that is built in Turkey, and the Iveco Daily, a full-size delivery vehicle that is built in China and Europe and used widely around the world.

After it separates from Dodge cars, the overall plan is to boost Ram truck sales from the current 280,000 units a year to 415,000 units.

Inside Line says: So far, the truck-only brand strategy hasn't worked well for GMC. — Paul Lienert, Correspondent