Restored Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis explains why he’s back

Get in there, Maverick! He won’t last down there alone! Get in the fight, for Christ’s sake! Maverick! Maverick!

Maverick’s reengaging, sir.

Just like the 1986 Top Gun movie lines, the Tim Kuniskis has re-engaged in the truck fight. 

Making a surprise appearance at a Ram media event, Kuniskis walked out to Eminem’s “Without Me” song, with the lyrics “Guess who’s back” echoing in the background. During his brief remarks, he said he was ready to stop the brand from “getting their asses kicked.”

The song is fitting as the well-respected executive returns after a 6-month hiatus. His return is a shot in the arm for a beleaguered truck brand. 

Stellantis turmoil spurred his return

For the past several months, the news from Ram has been pretty rough for fans. Sales are down, new trucks have been plagued by delays getting built and shipped and new vehicle launches have been pushed back. 

Then, the sudden departure of Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares ends a controversial tenure fraught with discontent amongst basically every stakeholder like the union, the board, dealerships and employees. 

While Kuniskis didn’t elaborate on what may have occurred between Tavares and him during his short speech, it seems likely something might have happened. Kuniskis rejoins the brand just 8 days after Tavares resigned.

Now the 32-year veteran returns to the brand he led to new sales heights, challenging General Motors and Ford Motor Co. to keep up.

Maverick can’t sit home

For the last several months, Kuniskis said he sat around the house chomping at the bit. 

During the short-lived retirement, Kuniskis said he was on his phone calling the guys to get updates on things.

“I’d call the guys several times a week for updates,” Kuniskis said. “They would say, ‘we can tell you, but why do you care?’”

For a guy who cut his honeymoon short a week because he had to get to work, not being part of the fight wasn’t sitting well with him. 

Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis’ return brings hope

For Ram trucks fans, his return brings a lot of hope for things returning back to a time before Tavares.

What could that mean? For starters, production.

Kuniskis said the area where they are really getting their butts kicked is in the light-duty segment. The new 2025 Ram 1500 should have been out months ago, and dealership lots should be filled. 

He is, like myself and others, waiting for his RHO that he ordered back months ago. That’s unacceptable in his view, and mine.

For the heavy-duty segment, he pointed out Ram is actually doing quite well even with not having a new truck on the market. With a new one coming out next year, they should be even more competitive.

What about the lack of a Hemi V-8 option in the Ram 1500?

One of the largest criticisms of the new 2025 Ram 1500 is the lack of a Hemi V-8 engine. Instead it comes in two different versions of an inline-6 twin-turbocharged engine choice. 

While the return of the Hemi 5.7-liter V-8 engine is a long shot, since Kuniskis was involved when the decision was made to switch to the Hurricane engine after all, it probably isn’t off the table.

One option would be to bring back the TRX and offer it with a supercharged 6.4-liter V-8 engine out of the heavy-duty lineup similar to what Ford does with the Raptor R.

There’s also a chance the V-8 engine returns as an option in some lower trims levels, again, like Ford and GM offer in their lineup. Those V-8 engines do come with a host of emissions related components like cylinder deactivation, which is something Ram tried with the 5.7-liter HEMI V-8 before. 

This would mean, however, Stellantis would still have to figure out how to hit its Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) throughout their lineup. For years, Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles paid millions in fines for not meeting CAFE numbers, and it would have to be careful to avoid those fines in the future. Since the brand doesn’t offer small, fuel efficient cars or a lineup of electric vehicles, that makes it even more difficult to achieve. 

Also, one of the key reasons the Hemi 5.7-liter V-8 ended and Tavares resigned was tightening emissions standards in the European Union. Simply put, the Hurricane engine with less cylinders goes a long way toward meeting those standards. With those standards applying to larger markets than the U.S., including China, it makes it even harder to make a business case to bring back the Hemi.

Finally, Toyota ended its V-8 option in the Tundra back in 2022, and sales are actually up versus the prior model. This begs the question if the uproar over not having a V-8 in a truck is just an overreaction or will it actually cause slowing sales?

Kuniskis has bucked trends before. 

“I didn’t get off the bench to come here to not call some audibles,” Kuniskis said.

The bottom line

Ram fans should be excited to a have “Maverick” back as the CEO. They should also be realistic on what he can and can’t do with today’s world. With that said, it is time to grab the popcorn bag. This is going to be a fun ride one way or another.