Making A Case For A Ram Dakota Hellcat Mid-Size Pickup And Why It Deserves To Exist

Summary

• Dodge has discontinued their gas-powered muscle cars, the Charger and the Challenger, and is now focusing on EVs.
• Ram is currently the leader in Mopar muscle, offering powerful performance vehicles with truck beds, such as the Ram 1500 and the Ram TRX.
• There is a potential market for a mid-size Ram muscle truck, and a render of a next-gen mid-size Dakota with a Hellcat engine has sparked interest in the idea.

Dodge got completely out of the gas-powered muscle car business, discontinuing both the Charger and the Challenger after the 2023 model year. Ram Trucks, formerly known as Dodge Ram, however, is still building powerful performance vehicles with internal combustion engines that happen to have truck beds. It looks like Dodge is going all-in on EVs, so for the immediate future, the only way to get some new Mopar muscle is in a Ram pickup, which is not the worst thing in the world.

The 2024 Ram 1500 has the most comfortable ride of any full-size truck on the market, and they come with some serious performance engine options, making them the current Mopar muscle line-up. The Ram TRX packs a supercharged V-8 engine that cranks out 702 horsepower, which is the power expected from a two-door coupe, not a quad-cab pickup.

Ram may be bringing the compact Rampage pickup to the U.S. but until, and if, that happens, they only offer full-size and super-duty trucks. Since Ram, by default or by design, is now the leader in Mopar muscle, they owe it to the public to come out with a mid-size truck with freaky street performance.

Recently, TopSpeed render artist, Yasid Design created a rendering of a next-gen mid-size Dakota performance pickup with a Hellcat engine. While this gorgeous truck exists only in pixels, it got us thinking that there really should be a mid-size Ram muscle truck.

The Dakota may actually be making a comeback, rumored as soon as 2024, but there’s not a lot of solid information available right now. On the off-chance that Ram designers are still looking for ideas, they should take a look at our Dakota Hellcat as well as our compelling argument that this badass pickup needs to exist.

In order to give you the most up-to-date and accurate information possible, the data used to compile this article was sourced from various manufacturer websites and other authoritative sources, including Dodge, Car and Driver, and MotorTrend.

Ram Dakota Hellcat

Mopar Muscle Truck

Exhibit A in the case of a Ram mid-size muscle truck is TopSpeed’s rendering of a Dakota Hellcat. Even before grasping the concept that this vehicle would have terrifying power, the striking design is immediately captivating. It is a perfect blend of Dodge muscle cars and ram trucks.

The hood with a raised air scoop is straight from the Demon 170, while the C-channel side accents are an homage to the last-gen Charger. The sleek lines and design features seamlessly form into a cohesive vehicle that screams performance toughness. It has both an aggressive street look and the appearance of rugged capabilities.

Potential Power and Performance

(Performance stats based on 2023 Charger and sourced from Car and Driver)

Since this is a product of our imagination, we get to decide the performance of this dream Dakota. Of course, it has a 797 horsepower 6.2-liter supercharged HEMI Hellcat V-8 under the hood because there is no reason why a truck this awesome-looking shouldn’t match style with power.

A 2011 Dodge Dakota, the last year before discontinuation, weighed 4,211 pounds in Crew Cab configuration, but our Dakota is a little more compact and uses lightweight carbon fiber and aluminum components, so it weighs 3,964 pounds. Compared to the 2023 Charger SRT Hellcat Widebody’s 4,586-pound curb weight, our Dakota is going to get a bit more speed out of that fearsome Hellcat engine.

Smaller Trucks Are Waiting To Explode

The Coming Compact and Mid-size Pickup Craze

Compact and mid-size trucks dominated the market until the early 2000s, when they fell out of favor with the pickup-buying public. After decades of escalating truck sizes, people are once again interested in smaller pickups and it’s a market ready to explode.

As it stands, there are very few small trucks available, but virtually every manufacturer is banking on their rebirth, rushing to bring new models out. Ram has the four-door compact Rampage, that is currently only sold in South America, but word on the street is that this amazing 4×4 will make it to American dealerships sooner, rather than later. There are also rumors that Ram is rebooting the Dakota to fill the gap between compact and full-size models.

Current And Upcoming Small Pickups

• Ford Maverick
• Hyundai Santa Cruz
• Toyota Stout
• Subaru Baja
• Chevrolet Montana
• Ram Rampage
• Ram Dakota?

The Dodge Dakota has always existed in a space between compact and mid-size, which makes it competitive in both segments. Many Internet whispers suggest that Ram is coming out with a next-gen Dakota this year, but that seems unlikely. MotorTrend, on the other hand, is pretty sure a new Dakota will arrive for the 2026 model year, which seems a bit more realistic.

The automotive magazine notes that the Dakota, “would enter an uncrowded and hot market segment,” which is reason enough for Ram to do it. Ram trucks were the third best-selling vehicles in America last year and adding a model to a relatively untapped market would give them a bigger share. It stands to reason that if the Dakota does indeed make a comeback, it should have a high-performance trim like a Hellcat pickup.

Dodge Passes The ICE Muscle Baton

Ram Is Mopar Muscle

Maybe the best reason for Ram producing a Dakota Hellcat is the fact that Dodge has basically passed the ICE muscle baton to them. Dodge discontinued the gas-powered Charger and Challenger, replacing them with an all-electric muscle car that may or may not come out this year.

It’s a curious move by Dodge, and no doubt came from Stellantis because for 2024 they only make the Hornet compact hybrid SUV and the Durango. Both the Charger and Challenger were popular models, and it’s unlikely that their EV replacement will make up those sales numbers, especially if Dodge keeps dragging their heels on releasing it.

2023 Mopar Sales Figures

• Dodge Hornet – 9,314 units
• Dodge Challenger – 44,961 units
• Dodge Durango – 69,195 units
• Dodge Charger – 75,919 units
• Ram Trucks – 539,477 units

Even with the Durango, 2024 will be the last year Dodge puts a V-8 engine in the SUV, so the once mighty car muscle brand will have no legitimate gas-powered performance models. This is Ram’s chance to take over the Mopar muscle crown and while the TRX is an awesome example, adding a Dakota Hellcat to the line-up would solidify their position as the performance brand.

By the way, Dodge is sending the V-8 Durango off with a pair of “Last Call” models. One is the SRT 392 HEMI with a 6.4-liter HEMIi V-8, and the other is the SRT Hellcat with, duh, a 6.2-liter Supercharged HEMI Hellcat V-8. If they can put a Hellcat engine in a Durango, they can and should put one in a Dakota.

The World Needs A Dakota Hellcat

The Mid-size Muscle Truck Segment Is Real

Sometimes things don’t have to make a lot of sense to do them. 797 horsepower in a mid-size pickup isn’t the most practical idea, but it is cool beyond belief and, in a weird way, almost a no-brainer. Nothing like our Dakota Hellcat currently exists and there is a definite market for it.

The small pickup segment is poised for a resurgence and there is a decided dearth of ICE muscle, with the Charger, Challenger, and even the Camaro getting put out to pasture. It won’t take any arm-twisting to get those who would have bought a 2024 high-performance ICE muscle car to park their keisters behind the wheel of an amazing muscle truck.

Fastest ICE Muscle Trucks Ever Built

• 1991 GMC Syclone – 124 mph
• 2021 Honda Ridgeline Sport HPD – 130 mph
• 2019 Chevrolet Colorado Z71 – 135 mph
• 2012 Nissan Frontier PRO-4X – 146 mph
• 1998 Dodge Dakota R/T – 147 mph
• 2004 Ford Lightning SVT – 148 mph

Granted, hyper-performance trucks like our Dakota Hellcat would be only a relatively small piece of the overall mid-size market. A ride like this would likely sell for between $65,000 and $75,000, which is more than most folks would spend on a pickup. It would definitely be a niche market, but so is the Ram 1500 TRX, and come to think of it, super-fast EV pickups like the Rivian R1T and GMC Hummer EV.

A high-performance ICE pickup would have many advantages over its EV counterparts, and the price would be the biggest. There are enough people who would want, and more importantly, be willing to buy, an ass-kicking, Hellcat-powered, gas-burning mid-size Ram truck to make it worth building.