2025 Ram 1500 Ramcharger Extends the Electric Pickup Range—With Gas
Ram promises the best of both worlds with its unique range-extender EV pickup truck.
Ram showed off not one but two trucks early Tuesday morning. While the 2025 Ram 1500 will undoubtedly remain the big seller for a while yet, the brand is gearing up for a two-pronged EV approach. Not only with the Ram 1500 REV all-electric truck, but with this, the 2025 Ram 1500 Ramcharger, the first range-extender in the pickup class.
It’s no secret that pushing a big truck through the air places a big burden on the propulsion system. The solution has been lots of power and a corresponding increase in battery capacity. And then more power to move everything, and then more capacity… you get the idea. It’s a spiral that plays havoc with the workhorse nature of pickups. Ram believes it has found the solution with the Ramcharger, which pairs a reasonably-sized—for a truck—92-kilowatt-hour battery pack with a dual-motor, all-wheel drive setup. With 663 horsepower and 615 pound-feet of torque, the Ramcharger is quick (0–60 mph in the mid-4s) and has an electric range of… 145 miles (233 kilometers).
A 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 is also on-board. It has zero connection with the drivetrain however, instead working with a 130-kW generator to recharge the battery. The efficiency of the setup translates to a much more impressive targeted range of some 690 miles (1,110 km). Ram’s accompanying press release and its mention of “unlimited battery electric range” is a bit of a stretch, given the reliance on gas to do that. Nonetheless, the Ramcharger does address an important potential customer concern: range anxiety. In a pinch, owners don’t have to panic. Of course, charging the ol’ plug-in way is still possible, at up to 145 kW of juice. Ram says this could be good for approximately 50 mi (80 km) of additional range in just 10 minutes.
What’s more, the Ramcharger allows for bi-directional charging capabilities. Neighbors’ power went out again? No worries, you got this. The total available power is 7.2 kW. Towing and hauling max figures are both better than the gas-only 1500: up to 14,000 and 2,625 lb, respectively.
From across the road, this range-extender model is very clearly still part of the Ram family. It gets its own unique lighting signatures however, with the de rigueur take on a full-width light bar up front, only broken up by the Ram logo on the filled-in grille. There are horizontal taillight extensions on the tailgate as well. Don't forget the aero-optimized wheels, either.
Inside, the Ramcharger benefits from much of the same upgrades we saw in the regular truck. There’s a big upgrade in the amount of screen real estate, with the 14.5-inch central touchscreen the largest of four (four!). The digital instrument cluster, head-up display, and digital rearview mirror are joined by a 10.25-inch sceen in front of the passenger seat, allowing them to handle the media or search for destinations. There are differences too, like a unique shifter that also incorporates buttons for eco, e-save, and electric+. There are also buttons to select the right braking regen level for you.
Like the gas truck, the Ramcharger has an active-level air suspension, with five presets: entry/exit, aero, no rmal, and a pair of off-road settings. It also runs the latet Uconnect 5 infotainment.
While Ram wouldn’t commit to a full trim availability lineup, we do know the Ramcharger will have a range-topping Tungsten model just like the gasser. The Tungsten trim comes with an exclusive blue-and-white leather seat treatment and 1,228-watt Klipsch sound system.
On a pre-reveal presentation, Ram’s Tim Kuniskis stressed that this isn’t a hybrid and shouldn’t be considered one, as the Pentastar never directly sends its power to the wheels. (He’s right.) Whatever we want to call it, we’ve all got time to figure it out, as the Ramcharger won’t arrive until late last year. Expect more details to dribble out before long.
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Kyle began his automotive obsession before he even started school, courtesy of a remote control Porsche and various LEGO sets. He later studied advertising and graphic design at Humber College, which led him to writing about cars (both real and digital). He is now a proud member of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC), where he was the Journalist of the Year runner-up for 2021.
More by Kyle Patrick
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So availability late last year would mean it’s already available? Sign me up!
I have a 4Xe Wrangler, have been waiting for a truck like this!