Stellantis’ interior plans to revive the RAM truck brand after decline

AUGN HILLS, Michigan – Lamb CEO Tim Kuniskis came back from his seven-month retirement late last year, saying he “missed the fight.” Stellantis The brand was being destroyed by competition in the market.

Kniskiss walked on stage during a media event while speakers sang Detroit rapper Eminem, “Who’s back, I’m back again.” He has promised a positive shift in the struggling truck brand, which will be expanded through 2026.

The plan includes more than 25 announcements by next year. So far, it has included a return to NASCAR with mechanical bull rides and a new racetrack, a revival of the Hemi V-8 engine with a new “symbol of protest” and, more recently, a new industry-leading powertrain warranty for RAM products.

Since returning after the CEO shakeup, Kuniskis is energized. As he recently explained, “flying without a parachute.” He’s all about to launch a Renaissance of RAM. This has experienced a 38% decline in sales from a record year in 2019.

“I’m totally clear about my return because after I had the opportunity to leave and rest, I realized I didn’t have to leave, so I just needed a break. Then I was itching to come back,” Kuniskis told CNBC in a recent interview in his relatively unadorned office. (He distantly shunned many of his career memorabilia when he retired.)

Kuniskis, who left Lam to lead Lam, said he left mid-year and led the brand’s current situation, including issues with car manufacturer pricing, model launch cadence and, most importantly, redesigning the RAM 1500.

“We tried to do too much at once,” Kuniskis said of the Ram 1500.

Kuniskis did not touch on the bigger issues Stellantis was dealing with under Carlos Tavares, former CEO of Stellantis, who left the car manufacturer in December. Kniskiss was recruited to Ram amid a change in leadership.

RAM is one of the most important of Stellantis’ 14 brands. Professionals in the profitable full-size pickup truck market and industry say its success is key to reestablishing itself in the commercial sales market.

“It’s like the backbone of their business,” said Joseph Yun, a consumer insight analyst. Carmaxdata and consumer car shopping site edmunds.com. “Market share is very important.”

According to Edmunds, the market share of the RAM 1500 in the US full-size pickup truck market plummeted from 17.8% in 2019 to 8.4% until the first half of this year.

According to company data, sales of full-size trucks, including 1500 versions or less, fell 41% from 2019 to 2024. General Motors and Toyota Motor To increase sales in the meantime.

Although early on in the turnaround plan that will take place next year, Ram is reviving the already popular Hemi V-8 engine. We have reintroduced a low-cost pickup truck model. We have announced our return to NASCAR. We also introduced a 10-year/100,000 limited powertrain warranty for the new trucks throughout the lineup.

Kuniskis says the announcement could include several new potential vehicles, including the expected passenger van and mid-sized pickup truck for 2027.

“There’s always a way to get mad,” Kniskis said. “There’s always a business reason behind what you think is fun.”

Some of that “fun” includes his return to NASCAR track racing. There, fans can “ride the Hemi.” This is a mechanical bull ride that looks like the brand’s new “Symbol of Protest” logo, featuring an engine with a ram head. If the rider can stay for 15 seconds, they will receive a special edition T-shirt that cannot be purchased.

Returning to NASCAR in Michigan earlier this month included a new truck design and a vehicle burning out of donuts.

Kuniskis refused to disclose sales targets for RAM brands or full-size pickup trucks, but he said he aims to have a market share between 20% and 29.9% of full-size trucks by the end of the plan. According to industry data, Lam Trucks captured a roughly 17% share of the US full-size pickup truck market in 2024.

“We know exactly where we want to be and what our expectations are,” he said. “I should legally have a market share starting with two. …That’s the starting point for us.”

However, Kuniskis said market share is just one metric and plant utilization and profits are also important. While overall RAM sales are declining, he said retail sales, a meticulously viewed metric, is expected to rise by around 28% until the first half of the year.

“I don’t want to chase shares just to chase shares,” he said. “I want to run all plants at full capacity to maximize efficiency.”

Kuniskis wears a black band on his left wrist with white lettering that reads “The Last 10th LFG.”

The first part was the mantra of Kuniskiss for many years. The latter part is an acronym with many meanings, such as “Let’s go crazy.”

“When you were in school, they said to you ‘A’, A’, everything would be great. You will be successful in life. “It’s not true,” Kuniskis said. “They remember the guy who not only got the ‘A’ at school, but pushed that way, and do something different and push the last 10th. ”

Kuniskis handed out wristbands to his team and brand dealers when he returned to the annual dealer meeting in January as a way to regain trust in retailers after a controversial relationship over rising incentives, products and prices.

It appears to be working so far, according to Illinois dealer Michael Bettenhausen, who chairs the Stellantis National Deal Council.

“Everything that Tim has shown us is on the way back to the volume that our brand has seen for years,” Bettenhausen said. “I’m really excited that Tim is leading this fee, and that’s really worth noting.”

Bettenhausen also said the full-size pickup truck market is key to the success of the company and its dealers. It consists of buyers with generational loyalty to the brand and acting as ambassadors for that.

“Customer loyalty is a big part of that business,” Yun said. “For many of these people, it doesn’t matter if their brand is objectively the best product. No matter what the automaker is doing, they feel it’s the best for them.”

Kuniskis said reviving the famous HEMI V-8 from the car manufacturer received 12,000 HEMI orders in the first day pickup truck with engines, allowing dealers to order.

As HEMI returns, plans for electrification of RAM, including new plug-in tracks and all-electric models, are delayed. Kuniskis declined to discuss the production timing of all-electric models, which was originally anticipated last year. He said that the plug-in model (known as an extended range electric vehicle, or EREV) will begin production this year, but refused to specify when consumer sales will begin.

Kuniskis said that Erev believes that in its brand conversion plan through 2026, EREV will become a market differentiator.

“I’m really bullish this year. I’m really proud of the way I started this year. It’s just using traditional tactics,” Kuniskis said. “We haven’t reached anything new yet.”