The Fiat Toro is a compact unibody pickup sold in
several Latin American markets, including Brazil and Argentina. Since it, too, belongs to FCA,
Ram recently started selling a rebadged Toro under the 1000 moniker in
countries where it’s better positioned than Fiat, such as Bolivia, Chile,
Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama
and Peru.
Based on the recently-facelifted Toro, the Ram 1000
looks exactly like the Fiat, apart for the brand-specific badging and Laramie
and Big Horn trim level names. As with the Toro, power comes from a 1.8-liter e.TorQ Evo
four-cylinder gasoline engine rated at 128 HP and 170 Nm of torque, paired to a six-speed automatic transmission that sends power to the
front wheels. That is the only configuration available at launch, but later on
other engines and transmissions could join the range, along with AWD.
Since the Ram 1000 is based on FCA’s Small Wide 4×4
architecture shared with the Fiat 500X, Jeep Renegade and Jeep Compass, it’s
not exactly a workhorse. Still, it delivers decent practicality for a unibody
pickup, including a payload of 650 kg, a loading area of 1.5 square
meters and a cargo volume of 820 liters. At 400 kg its maximum towing capacity is quite modest.
So, why doesn’t FCA bring the Fiat Toro to North
America? The answer is that Ram’s priority is to launch a midsize truck and the
Toro can’t compete with body-on-frame pickups such as the Ford Ranger and Chevy
Colorado when it comes to practicality and off-road capability. Not to mention
it’s significantly smaller too, measuring 4,915 mm in length, 1,844
mm in width, and 1,729 mm in height.
Depending on the market, the Ram 1000 Big Horn
range-topper offers a rather generous standard equipment. On the outside, it
comes with LED DRLs, 16-inch alloys, roof bars, fog lights, and parking
sensors. Inside, customers get dual-zone automatic climate control, UConnect
infotainment system with a 5-inch touchscreen, Bluetooth and USB connectivity,
power windows, a leather-wrapped multifunction steering wheel and a rearview
camera.
Standard safety features include ABS with EBD,
ISOFIX anchor points, front airbags, traction and stability control, and hill
start assist. Prices in Colombia start from 89,990,000 pesos, or roughly US$ 26,200.
