Dan Mihalascu is an accomplished automotive journalist with over two decades of automotive media work both internationally and in his home country of Romania.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, and he has reviewed (sometimes even raced) cars for most of his professional life.
Prior to joining HotCars.com in July 2025, Dan worked as a news writer and editor for InsideEVs.com, CarScoops.com and Autoevolution.com. He also has bylines at DriveMag.com and ConsumerAffairs.com, among other international media outlets.
In Romania, he wrote for car magazines, sports newspapers and even a TV news station.
Writing and cars aside, he loves reading, cycling, hiking and spending quality time with his family.
Following Stellantis’ announcement that it plans to invest $13 billion in its U.S. operations through 2029, we’ve learned what some of the company’s plans for the Ram brand are, with the main highlights being the launch of a mid-size pickup truck and a full-size SUV in 2028.
Obviously, these two upcoming models are not the only new or refreshed vehicles Ram has in the pipeline. The company’s third-quarter shipments and revenues report provides some interesting information about the truck brand’s upcoming product launches on page 19, namely the debut of two new SRT products within the next three months.
On the Q3 shipments and revenues call with investors, Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa confirmed the SRT models. “Lastly, Ram will be showing even more of its trademark passion with two new SRT performance products to be revealed in the coming months, each with utterly distinct value propositions,” the executive said, according to Motor1.
The new Ram SRT models are part of a broader product onslaught from Stellantis North America that will start with the market launch of the 2026 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat later this year. According to Filosa, the muscle SUV will be “the first of several SRT products that we will launch in the coming years.”
His comments are confirmed by the company’s presentation, which on page 13 notes that Stellantis will launch “multiple SRT products” by 2030. That’s very exciting stuff, but what exactly does that mean for the Ram brand?
Well, one of the two SRT models is highly likely to be the reborn Ram 1500 TRX, powered by the supercharged 6.2-liter Hellcat V8 that produced a whopping 702 hp the last time the TRX was on sale. To mark its return, Stellantis is likely to amp things up a bit, possibly giving the muscle truck more power to compete head-on with Ford’s F-150 Raptor R, which boasts 720 hp.
As for the second Ram SRT model, the company’s intentions are a lot harder to decipher. However, taking the three-month timeline into account, it should be a product that is easy to bring to market so quickly, and the Ram 1500 RHO looks like the ideal candidate.
The current RHO model is powered by the twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline six-cylinder Hurricane engine rated at 540 hp and 521 lb-ft of torque, but brand loyalists would love the RHO to have a Hemi V8 instead. Earlier this year, Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis admitted that the emotional connection to a V8 still matters to many customers, even though the Hurricane engine outperforms the Hemi on paper.
“I drive an RHO now, and it is a fantastic package,” Kuniskis said at Stellantis North America’s Auburn Hills headquarters, as reported by MoparInsiders. “If you put a 5.7-liter in it, compared to what it is today, is that going to meet customer expectations? That’s what we’re thinking about right now,” he added.
That indicates that a Hemi-powered Ram 1500 RHO should not be ruled out, with the 395-hp 5.7-liter V8 possibly acting as a more affordable alternative to the TRX. Time will tell if that’s going to be the case, and the good thing is we won’t have to wait too long to find out.
Source: Stellantis via Motor1
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