New Ram truck has a secret inside: a small electric motor

“Mild” is not a word that’s usually associated with brawny pickups. But Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is betting it can sell more Ram 1500s by turning its famous V-8 HEMI engine into a mild hybrid, and clean up its industry-worst emissions record in the process.

Some 2019 Ram pickups equipped with the company’s eTorque system, which features a small electric motor, are trickling into dealerships now. The extra battery power gives the truck a little more oomph after the engine shuts off rather than idling at a stoplight. The technology is key to the automaker’s electrification strategy: Rather than creating all-new electric or full-hybrid models, it’s slipping motors into popular, profitable vehicles like Jeep Wranglers and Chrysler minivans to boost overall fleet mileage.

“It’s fuel efficiency and power coming on at the same time,” said Jim Morrison, who leads Ram in North America, where most of its trucks are sold. “You start with very proven powertrains and supplement that with eTorque technology that you add in, and customers get to have their cake and eat it too.”

The Italian-American carmaker, which sold more than half a million Ram pickups in the U.S. last year, wants to increase Ram brand sales in North America by as much as 30 percent by 2022 and overtake Chevrolet as the No. 2 truck maker in North America, according to a five-year plan announced in June.