Ram ProMaster City to Return, CEO Says
The compact van market in North America has completely evaporated since the pandemic. Ram, for one, discontinued the ProMaster City at the end of the 2022 model year.
However, with all the disruptions and changes of plans in the automotive industry right now, plus the return of Tim Kuniskis at the helm of the company, Ram is taking the bull (or ram?) by the horns. While the CEO expressed a desire for a passenger van around this time last year, expect a compact cargo van to return to the lineup sometime in the next few years.
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Kuniskis, who is also head of American brands as well as North American marketing and retail strategy at Stellantis, confirmed the news to Mopar Insiders at the Detroit Auto Show earlier this month.
“One of the things we’re going to do is ProMaster City,” Kuniskis said. “I don’t know if we said it publicly, but yeah, we’re bringing back ProMaster City.”
The name could change, mind you, and launch timing is yet to be specified. As for the powertrain, it’s anyone’s guess at this point.
Kia will enter the market in late 2026—in Canada only, not in the U.S.—with the all-electric PV5, which was on display at the Montreal Auto Show recently, but given that Ram has abandoned the idea of a fully electric pickup, we can forget about a battery-powered ProMaster City. Even with a range-extending gasoline engine? Well, maybe.
We're talking about a brand that just brought back the 5.7-litre HEMI V8 in the Ram 1500 by popular demand, so the most likely scenario is a conventional gasoline engine under the hood. Why not the new hybrid system from the 2026 Jeep Cherokee? That would be pretty interesting, especially for urban-heavy use.
One thing is certain: Ram will have a clear field since the Ford Transit Connect, Mercedes-Benz Metris, Nissan NV200 and others have all departed. A new compact cargo van could succeed simply because of that.
The return of the ProMaster City will follow that of the Dakota midsize pickup in 2027, not to mention the launch of Ram’s first-ever SUV in 2028, a full-size model that will be similar to the Jeep Grand Wagoneer.
