Ram brand having tough time competing with rivals, Chrysler considering model name changes

2011 Ram Outdoorsman

Yesterday, Sergio Marchionne, CEO of both Chrysler and Fiat, reported some ‘decent’ third-quarter numbers for the Auburn Hills automaker. However, Marchionne stressed that the Ram truck brand is losing ground in the full-size pickup segment, a crucial part of Detroit automakers profits.

“We have underperformed against the competitors. I think we know this,” Marchionne said. “The pickup truck business is important because of its contribution, because of its margins and the bigger guys at the table are fighting pretty hard, spending substantial amounts of marketing dollars.”

Chrysler is far behind Ford and General Motors who dominate the U.S. pickup market. Ford’s F-150 trucks kept their lead in the segment with a 39.1 percent share in the first 10 months of 2010, GM took 38.1 percent.

The Ram truck brand lagged way behind with a 14.2 percent share of the U.S. market. If that didn’t sound depressing enough, that’s down from 16.6 percent a year ago.

According to a report by PickupTurcks.com, sources say that Chrysler is considering new names for the Ram trucks.

– By: Omar Rana

Source: Free Press, PickupTrucks.com