There's a mid-size Dakota pickup for the U.S. that is long promised by the Ram brand; this is not necessarily it.
No specs have been shared, but more info is promised soon for the 2026 Brazilian version shown here.
The U.S.-market Dakota is slated to arrive in the U.S. for the 2027 model year.
The Dakota is back—at least in Brazil. Stellantis has unveiled the Ram Dakota Nightfall concept in São Paulo, further stoking hopes that a smaller pickup is finally on its way from the truck brand. The resurrected nameplate is, at the very least, set to land in the Brazilian market for 2026. Ram reps have previously confirmed that a new mid-size model will join the U.S. lineup in 2027.
The "Concept" We've Been Waiting For
Rumors have swirled for years about the Stellantis truck brand returning to the mid-size pickup segment to fight the likes of the Chevy Colorado, Ford Ranger, GMC Canyon, and Toyota Tacoma. We're finally getting a glimpse of what Ram is thinking.
What's billed as a concept looks very nearly production-ready to us. The Dakota Nightfall is a four-door pickup borrowing more than a few design cues from its bigger Ram 1500 sibling. The hood scoop looks like that on Ram's RHO and TRX, and it even includes a trio of clearance lights, although this smaller truck likely wouldn't need them to be road-legal in the States (a full set of clearance lights is required on vehicles over a certain width).
Modern Ram design language appears to suit the less-large offering quite well. The show truck also wears plenty of off-road dress-up items, including a front winch, knobby 33-inch tires on aggressive 18-inch beadlock wheels, and a roll bar (the release refers to it as a Rambar) with lights mounted on top and support for a spare tire in the bed. The Nightfall rides on a Fox suspension as well. Given those details, we expect a similar-looking off-road version to be offered, possibly using the concept's Nightfall moniker.
There are no other concrete specs tied to the Dakota Nightfall concept, nor do we have news on what's underneath this new model. Our money is still on the Dakota being underpinned by Stellantis's STLA Frame platform, especially since it has been confirmed to be able to offer electric, gas, and plug-in-hybrid powertrains. We wouldn't be surprised if the electric version has since been delayed or shelved entirely, as Ram has pushed the launches of its Ramcharger EV and Ram REV extended-range hybrid models several times, and federal clean-vehicle incentives are scheduled to dry up before the Dakota's arrival.
Dakota Has History but Not as a Ram
Despite the Ram release playing up the Dakota's storied past, this would be the first Ram-badged Dakota. Previous generations of the mid-size pickup were sold here under the Dodge brand before (most) trucks and work vans were spun off into their own silo within then-Chrysler's portfolio in 2009. The Dakota went away after 2011, still wearing Dodge emblems on its way out. The reborn pickup will be the fourth generation to use the Dakota name.
When we last tested a Dakota, a 2009 model, we found that it wasn't much to write home about, especially when compared to the Ram 1500 in terms of capability and value. Here's hoping the two models are better differentiated going forward (and that someone already has a design for a new Dakota convertible on a wall somewhere).
Ram says that Dakotas for the Brazilian market (and likely others in South America and around the world) will be produced at a plant in Córdoba, Argentina. Ram previously confirmed that U.S.-market Dakotas will be built in the currently idled Belvidere, Illinois, plant, the former home of the Jeep Cherokee.
We have reached out to Ram PR for further comment on the new Dakota, and we'll update this story once we hear back.
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