- Ram’s new head honcho Tim Kuniskis addresses the lack of a V8 half-ton
- It would take work to bring the powerplant back—but he hasn’t ruled it out
- Kuniskis says choice is important to Ram customers, and Americans broadly
It’s apparently open knowledge at Stellantis that ex-CEO Carlos Tavares himself was single-handedly responsible for killing off the Hemi V8 in half-ton Ram pickup trucks, leading to much hand-wringing at the company and, if anecdotal reports are to be believed, an exodus of customers.
Recently re-hired Ram boss Tim Kuniskis has already given his thoughts on this blunder — but new reports give insight into just how much him and other execs disagreed with the decision, and suggest Kuniskis is leaving the door open for the return of the Hemi.
In an interview with Road & Track, Kuniskis explained his strong opinions on the matter. “The bigger issue is we took away a fundamental American thing,” he said, speaking to the replacement of the Hemi V8 with a turbocharged inline-six engine. “Americans love freedom of choice more than anything. When you take away their freedom of choice and tell them ‘you must take this,’ they revolt.” A quick look at history, from reactions to the mandated banishment of minor stuff such as incandescent light bulbs to major pushes on items like electric vehicles, proves his point.
It goes to underscore just how badly Clueless Carlos understood the North American market — and how well Kuniskis does. The man is absolutely correct in his statements about choice.
Witness Ram’s greatest competitor, the F-150. It’s no secret the six-cylinder EcoBoost engine has a beyond-dominant take-rate today, but that mill has been an option for well over a decade, and yet the 5.0L V8 remains available. I would wager my yearly salary EcoBoost acceptance would not be as prolific if Blue Oval dweebs pulled the plug on its V8 in 2011 and required F-150 customers to select an EcoBoost V6 engine.
All of which aligns nicely with other statements made by Kuniskis. “I didn’t say you can’t do it,” he said to outlet Motor1 when talking about bringing the Hemi V8 back onto the half-ton option sheet, instead saying “you can’t do it right away,” citing challenges with supply chains and the like. Wiring and on-board technology compatibility with the current truck is also apparently a problem, with Kuniskis saying the Hemi “was never designed to run in that truck on that electrical architecture.”
It sounds like cancelling Hemi power in half-tons was much easier to do than getting the band back together. Using that analogy, this author is nevertheless hoping for an encore.
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