Back in 2022, Ray (“R.B.”) wrote in to say that he loved his 2020 Ram 1500 with its multi-function tailgate, but thought it would be much more useful with the under-floor, slide-out bed ramps that FCA US had patented back in 2015. His theory was that, since the company had been sued over it, perhaps they had chosen not to use it until the suit was concluded. However, FCA US won the suit; in 2017, the patent office declared that the challenge was unsubstantiated. Indeed, when Ford patented an extendable tailgate years later, they went so far as to cite FCA US’ ramps as prior art. The inventors were Dean Ninon, Joseph Dehner, and Gregory Howell; it was patent #9,067,525.
The ramps were quite clever: they could be attached to the back of the tailgate and could slide anywhere from the edges to the middle, to make a wider or narrower track. To quote the patent,
A ramp system ... includes at least one ... bed channel [/track]. At least one ... channel is recessed into an inner panel of the tailgate... a lateral tailgate track is recessed into the inner panel and extends ... with the bed/longitudinal tailgate tracks. At least one ramp member has a track member configured to be stowed in the bed channel ... slidable ... from the stowed position to a fully deployed position during which the track member moves along the ... tracks and into the lateral tailgate track without having to raise [it].
Box trucks already have built in ramps, but this is a little different partly because the track can be changed.
Ford’s own patent included a sliding tray which could be used to move items from the back of the bed to the front, or vice versa. It was a clever design, and GM built on it with a new extensible bed patent of its own—patent #11,926,370. Next, in 2024, Ford patented a clever rail system; rather than RamBox, which includes storage along the sides of the bed, Ford’s rails lift out of the bed sides to provide racks for fastening furniture or equipment. When they’re not needed, they can be dropped back into the sides of the bed, using the empty spots in front of and behind the wheel.
Ray later asked whether the Ramcharger serial hybrid might come with that multi-function tailgate; the Ram 1500 REV had a 50/50 split tailgate which could be used either with side-mounted hinges or bed-mounted hinges for greater flexibility, which was also used on Ray’s 2020 Ram. They could also do a 60/40 split, according to the patent. Ray added, “The RamBox and Multifunction Tailgate are both great additions to a light-duty pickup, but Ram gives them no love; contrast that with GM, which seems to put their Multipro Tailgate on well over half of the Denali half-tons.”
A look through old news shows a 2013 Ram Sun Chaser concept, which included tailgate seats, complete with backs and cupholders, for tailgating. It also had a shower system integrated into the Rambox and surfboard holders that worked with the rail system. An aftermarket Mopar tailgate, this one for the 2018 Wrangler JL, flipped out to create a utility table and beverage holder, with individual pockets for the first aid kit.
The split tailgate, incidentally, was patented in 2014 by a set of five FCA US inventors (Danja McGoff, David Anderson, Gary Bastian, Trevor Garvey, and Eugene Paik). It could open wide like a door, or lay down like a traditional tailgate; the individual halves of the tailgates could be actuated by touch-pads or opened normally. The description in patent 8,740,279 noted that sometimes pickup owners needed one part of the gate open and another closed, so they worked independently when needed.
Another patent, this one from 2017, covered something similar to Mopar’s flip-down work area from 2018; it provided reinforcements to the tailgate to make it a better workbench. The setup would include a number of arms which could be swung out to attach a work table, which could be stowed in the storage compartment. The patent drawings don’t shed much more light on the invention.
Finally, it’s not a tailgate, but Ram has a patent on a bumper step that doubles as a tool for active aerodynamic manipulation, boosting performance a bit. It’s likely going to show up on the next-generation Ram TRX, if rumors are correct.
Copyright © 2021-2025 Zatz LLC • Chrysler / Mopar car stories and history.
YouTube • Editorial Guidelines • Videos
Tailfins Archive • MoTales on BlueSky