Sometime around 2012, a Ram Trucks source told TTAC about an investigation into a smaller pickup for the brand, one that could have even turned out to be a front-drive pickup. "We won't do another Dakota," said our source, "but maybe something else.". By all accounts, that truck would have been based on one of Fiat's small, unibody front-drive pickups. But now, Fiat seems to want a Dakota of its own.
Automotive News reports that Fiat will get a new body-on-frame midsize truck starting in 2016, which will be a variant of the Mitsubishi L200. The Thai-built L200 is a smaller, body-on-frame pickup with rear or four-wheel drive and both gasoline and diesel engines, making it a good fit for Fiat's commercial vehicle lineup. And it's very likely that we'll never seen it here.
FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne told reporters at the most recent 5-year plan that FCA had tried out a smaller truck at clinics, but was unable to wow the crowd, let alone make a business case for such a truck. The L200 isn't homologated for North America either, and a smaller truck isn't a great fit for FCA in terms of CAFE either. FCA is already lagging behind other OEMs in terms of CAFE footprint, and small trucks are one of the worst vehicles when it comes to meeting those standards.
from The Truth About Cars http://ift.tt/Jh8LjA
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