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Detroit Three's lucrative pickup war intensifies as Ram makes big gains

DETROIT — The battle for profits from sales of large pickup trucks is intensifying among the Detroit Three automakers as sales of small cars in the United States shrivel. For decades Ford has had the single best-selling truck brand in its F-Series trucks. General Motors' Chevrolet brand was a solid No. 2, and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles' Ram was a distant third. Now, that hierarchy may be in flux. Sales figures for December and the fourth quarter released on Thursday show Ram tied with GM's Chevy for the No. 2 spot, as sales of the redesigned Ram pickup surged, fueled in part by demand for an optional 12-inch (30.48 cm) dashboard screen. Chevy not long ago held second place to Ford by a wide margin. GM executives said on Thursday they are bullish on their new GMC and Chevy trucks for 2019.Related: How the Detroit Three's pickups compare on paper 2019 Ram 1500 Laramie review 2019 Chevy Silverado 2.7L four-cylinder review 2019 Ford F-150 2.7L EcoBoost review "There's no doubt this segment (pickup trucks) is one of the epicenters of the auto wars," said Sandor Piszar, director of marketing for Chevrolet at GM. "It's been that way forever, and we wouldn't have it any other way." On Wall Street, investors give electric car leader Tesla a higher valuation than any of the Detroit automakers. But in the nation's heartland, big pickups remain far more popular and profitable than any electric car — and most other consumer vehicles of any kind. Large pickups generate at least $17,000 a vehicle in pretax profit for GM, the company has indicated in disclosures to investors. By contrast, many Detroit Three sedans are so unprofitable, their manufacturers have decided not to build them anymore. 'Hotly contested' Sustaining sales and pricing in the large-pickup segment will be critical in a year when most forecasters expect overall U.S. car and light truck sales to fall. Ford's U.S. sales chief, Mark LaNeve, on Thursday called the F Series "the backbone of our franchise" during a conference call, and added the "segment will continue to be strong, but hotly contested" in 2019. Automakers are banking on pickup truck sales to stay strong even if U.S. interest rates continue to rise. Rising interest rates translate into higher monthly car payments and are expected to deter some buyers in 2019. GM has said 27 percent of Chevrolet and GMC trucks — which can haul trailers by day and substitute for a luxury sedan by night — sell for more than $55,000.

2021 Ram 1500 gets Reverse Steering Control to help with trailers

A month ago, Mopar Insiders got the scoop on new features coming to the 2021 Ram 1500 and now thanks to MI getting a peek at dealer guides for the coming model year, we got more details. New for 2021 will be Trailer Reverse Steering Control, which will provide easy in-cab directional control when backing a trailer and be part of next model year's Trailer-Tow Group package. The current package includes trailer-tow mirrors and a trailer brake control. Next year's Trailer-Tow Group will include trailer brake control, trailer light check, trailer reverse steering control, and trailer tire-pressure monitoring. The current group adds $400 to the price of a new Ram; the new equipment will likely cause that number to rise.  We're not sure what happened to the trailer-tow mirrors, but with the Surround-View Camera system thought to be available on the trailer mirrors in 2021 — an option cribbed from the HD lineup — there's likely a bit more package rearranging in store. The third addition mentioned last month was a bed-focused camera housed next to the third brake light, which would be another HD hand-me-down. The camera would fit in with the enhanced trailer focus, and get Ram aligned with assistance features that have become a near necessity in pickups and SUVs. At the other end of the truck, the Snow Plow Prep package makes the leap from the 2500 to the 1500. We only wish Ram had kept the Snow Chief Group name used for the 2500 trucks.    Uconnect 5 is coming as well to the Ram after launching on the 2021 Chrysler Pacifica. The new Android-based operating system provides five-times-faster processing power and three times the screen resolution, while adding 4G Wi-Fi capability, configurable buttons and custom pages, six individual profiles, better looking interactive maps from TomTom, the ability to connect two phones at a time, and Alexa integration.

2019 Ram 1500 Classic Warlock adds Mojave Sand Package

Fiat Chrysler earlier this year brought back the old Warlock name from its Mopar division as a special edition for the Ram 1500 pickup truck. Now, the company is trotting out a new appearance package to go with the Classic Warlock. It’s called the Mojave Sand Package, and it adds a sport performance hood, 20-inch aluminum wheels painted black and the namesake exterior color. That pairs with the Warlock package, which is based on the Ram 1500 Classic and brings the R-A-M logo bluntly displayed on the heavy black grille, powder-coated bumpers front and rear, Warlock decals on the sides of the bed and a one-inch lift over the factory version. ItÂ’s available on the quad cab or crew cab models and comes with a choice of engines: either the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6, which makes 305 horsepower and 269 pound-feet of torque, or the 5.7-liter Hemi V8, which puts out 395 hp and 410 lb-ft. Warlock, of course, harkens to the custom version of the old Dodge pickup that was built from 1976 to 1979, having been introduced following positive public response to a truck originally designed as an auto show concept. It had chrome-plated running boards, oak sideboards and gold striping, wheels and upholstery. 2019 Ram 1500 Warlock View 14 Photos None of those features make it to the modern Warlock, unfortunately, but it does provide some value for truck lovers. The Mojave Sand Package adds to 10 color options on the Classic Warlock. All versions go on sale late in the third quarter starting at $37,040, including the $1,695 destination fee.