- Stellantis agreed with the UAW to only expand 1500 production into Mexico if its Sterling Heights plant reached capacity.
- Ram 1500 production figures are swelling with the arrival of the REV and the Ramcharger.
Ram has confirmed it will start building the 1500 pickup truck in Mexico, roughly a week after reports emerged online indicating such plans were in place.
The carmaker’s site in Saltillo, Mexico already handles the production of several truck models, including the Ram 2500, 3500, 4500, and 5500 Heavy Duty. Ram has been upgrading the site in recent months, erecting two new buildings. According to Ram chief executive Christine Feuell, the plant will soon start building the smaller 1500 because the Stirling Heights site where it’s currently being built is reaching capacity.
Read: Stellantis Starts Layoffs At Warren Plant, Says More Cuts Are Coming
“We are expanding the plant in Saltillo,” Feuell told The Detroit News. “It’s a relief valve for the Sterling Heights plant, because we know that we’ll be tapped out on capacity with the growth we’re projecting in the 1500.”
According to Feuell, Ram hasn’t decided to build the 1500 in Mexico due to the country’s lower costs but says “the plant in Saltillo does a really good job of managing the complexity,” adding “they’re building pickup trucks down there right now.”
Stellantis agreed with the UAW last year that it would only start to build the Ram 1500 in Mexico once it had maxed out capacity at the Sterling Heights facility. However, the UAW isn’t pleased to see overflow production heading to Mexico and wants it to stay in the United States.
The UAW believes that rather than building the 1500 in Mexico, Ram could start producing it at the Warren Truck Assembly Plant. This site is located close to Sterling Heights and, up until recently, had been responsible for building the Ram 1500 Classic. Officials from the union believe roughly 1,100 jobs could have been retained at the plant if it started building the current 1500 pickup.
Ram expects the Sterling Heights facility to reach capacity in the coming months as it will soon start building the all-electric Ram 1500 REV and the extended-range hybrid Ramcharger at the plant alongside existing ICE models.
