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Ram establishes new commercial truck division

To better go after the work truck market that its rivals Ford and General Motors have dominated for some time, the Ram Truck brand of Chrysler is starting a new sub-line of work vehicles called Ram Commercial. Rather than carrying the full Ram Commercial name, each model in the new lineup would wear the Tradesman trim level, which means that the Ram 1500 Tradesman is disappearing for retail buyers only and will still be available for commercial or fleet buyers.
The Ram Commercial lineup will consist of current products like the Ram 1500 Tradesman, Ram Heavy Duty Tradesman pickups and chassis cab trucks, and the Ram C/V Tradesman cargo van, but it will also be adding a new full-size van called the 2014 Ram ProMaster Tradesman based off the Fiat Ducato. It also looks like Ram Commercial will be getting a smaller van from the Fiat Professional brand to go up against small cargo-friendly vehicles like the Ford Transit Connect and Mini Clubvan, but we can't tell if this new model is based on the Fiat Scudo, Doblo and Florino.
Ram Commercial buyers will also benefit from the BusinessLink and "On The Job" programs. Both programs make it easier for businesses to purchase and maintain their fleets.

Watch the video that inspired Ram's Farmer Super Bowl commercial

Chrysler may have the Super Bowl's most popular commercial for a third year in a row. Eminem and Eastwood helped it earn that distinction the last two years, and while Oprah did the voiceover for this year's Jeep ad, it's Chrysler's other spot that's in the running for Most Valuable Ad after the big game this year.
So where did the Ram brand's commercial about farmers come from? As it turns out, the ad appears to be inspired, shall we say, by a video produced by Farms.com that was uploaded to YouTube in June, 2011. Greg Mitchell of The Nation pointed out the similarities between the two in an article published this morning. The video uses the same speech given by famed radio broadcaster Paul Harvey played over a slideshow of farming images. It's the same concept as Ram's ad, though the truck brand did go out and commission its own images shot by very well-known photographers for its version.
Did Ram steal the idea? That does not appear to be the case. A message left on the Farms.com YouTube video says "Farms.com is pleased to be working with Ram Trucks and support the 'Farmer' Super Bowl commercial." When you play the video, a link even pops up to watch Ram's version.

Ram raises a quick $1 million for farmers with Super Bowl ad

While Chrysler has been behind the Super Bowl's most talked-about commercials for the past few years, this is the first year the automaker has added an element of charity to its marketing plans for the big game.
Chrysler aired a pair of two-minutes ads during the Super Bowl this year, one for Jeep called Whole Again, and the other for the Ram brand called Farmer. As we mentioned earlier in the week, Jeep has promised to give up to $300,000 to the United Services Organization (USO). The brand, whose own history is forever tied to this country's military, will donate $1 for every tweet with the hashtag #joinOSR, or visit to Yahoo.com or the Jeep Operation SAFE Return website.
Ram had somewhat loftier goals, pledging to give up to $1 million to the Future Farmers of America. The plan was to donate $100,000 for every 1 million times the commercial was seen, shared or emailed from its website. Now we have word from Ram brand chief Fred Diaz that the million-dollar goal has been reached less than five days after the ad first aired.