Inside Stellantis' plan to revive its Ram Trucks brand after years of sales declines

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis reemerged from a seven-month retirement late last year saying he “missed the fight” and admitting the Stellantis brand was getting smashed in the marketplace by its competition

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis reemerged from a seven-month retirement late last year saying he “missed the fight” and admitting the Stellantis brand was getting smashed in the marketplace by its competition.

Kuniskis walked on stage during a media event as the speakers blared Detroit rapper Eminem singing “Guess who’s back, back again.” He promised an aggressive turnaround for the embattled truck brand that is now getting underway and will extend through 2026.

The plan includes more than 25 announcements through next year. Thus far they have included a return to NASCAR with mechanical bull rides and a new race truck, the resurrection of Hemi V-8 engines with a new “Symbol of Protest,” and, most recently, a new industry-leading powertrain warranty for its Ram products.

Since returning after a CEO shake-up, Kuniskis is invigorated. He’s “flying without a parachute,” as he recently described it, while playing with borrowed time and house money since his unretirement. He’s going all in to launch a renaissance of Ram, which has experienced a 38% sales decline since its record year back in 2019.

“I have perfect clarity of my return because, after I left and had a chance to rest, I realized I didn’t need to leave, I just needed a break. Then I was itching to come back,” Kuniskis told CNBC during a recent interview in his relatively undecorated office. (He gave many of his career keepsakes away when he retired.) “We have a window of opportunity here to fix a lot of stuff, and some people are stressed out by that opportunity, and some people are fueled by it. Luckily, our team is fueled by it.”