Ram 1500 running boards come in three basic forms: a fixed tube step, a full length running board, and a power step that swings out when a door opens. The right one depends on who climbs in most often (a parent with a car seat, a grandparent, or a tall driver who barely needs a step) and on what a Manitoba winter will do to it. Before you decide, ask our parts department in Portage la Prairie which factory and Mopar steps fit your trim and cab, then use this guide for the honest winter trade offs.

On a January morning in Portage, with the yard light still on and frost on every surface, the step is the first thing your boot lands on. Here is how each option works, who it suits, and what to watch for between November and April.

Key Takeaways

• Fixed tube steps have no moving parts, but the narrow round top is a small target in winter boots and glazes over in freezing rain.
• Full running boards give the widest footing, which helps a parent loading a car seat or a senior who wants somewhere steady to stand.
• Power steps tuck out of sight when the doors close, by Mopar's description, but add a motor, arms and hinges that live in the slush and salt.
• Ram Canada lists chrome wheel to wheel side steps on the 2026 Ram 1500 Express, and Mopar black tubular side steps on the Black Express (not available on the Quad Cab).
• Aftermarket steps fall outside Ram's vehicle warranty, according to Ram Canada's own wording.
• Our service department does accessory installation, running boards included.

The Three Paths at a Glance

Fixed tube steps. A round or oval bar under the doors, bolted to brackets on the cab. Light, simple, nothing to break. The standing surface is narrow, so you place your foot rather than plant it.

Full running boards. A flat board with a grip surface along the cab. A wheel to wheel version, as the name says, runs from the front wheel opening to the rear one, past the rear door toward the box. The widest footing of the three, and the most surface for snow to sit on.

Power deploying steps. A board that stays tucked under the cab while the doors are closed and swings down and out when one opens. Mopar describes its power running boards for the 2025 and 2026 Ram 1500 as coming out from a hidden position under the truck when a front or rear door is opened, and returning when the doors close.

What Ram and Mopar List for the Ram 1500

Ram Canada's 2026 Ram 1500 model pages list chrome wheel to wheel side steps among the Express trim's additions over the Tradesman, and Mopar black tubular side steps on the Black Express, noting the tubular steps are not available on the Quad Cab. Mopar Canada's online parts store also sorts running boards, side steps and power running boards for the 2026 Ram 1500 by trim and engine.

Fit can change with the cab, the box and the trim, so the window sticker and our parts team settle it for one specific truck. If you are still choosing the truck itself, browse our new Ram 1500 inventory and check the step line on each window sticker.

The Parent With a Car Seat

Buckling a car seat into its base means leaning into the back seat while holding weight away from your body. You want a platform wide enough to shift your weight without looking down.

• Full running board: the easiest of the three. A wheel to wheel board puts footing right at the rear door opening, where you actually stand.
• Power step: a stable platform at the rear door that stays out while the door is open. Close the door to grab the diaper bag and it tucks away.
• Tube step: workable, but you are balancing on a bar with a car seat in your arms.

Picture the Saturday morning rink lot in Portage, where the plow has left a hard ridge along every row. A board gives you somewhere to stand above the slush while you work the buckles.

The Senior Who Wants a Lower First Step

For a parent or grandparent who is careful with footing, two things matter: how high the first step is, and how solid it feels.

A power step swings down and out, which can put the standing surface lower and further out than a fixed board, because a fixed board has to stay tucked up away from rocks and ruts all the time. A full fixed board is steady, wide and already there when the door opens. A tube step is the hardest for someone unsteady, because the round top gives the least to stand on.

If grandparents from MacGregor or Gladstone ride along to Sunday dinner, have them try each step in a parka and boots, not in sneakers in September. A hand on the door frame, or on the grab handle if your truck has one, makes any climb steadier.

The Tall Driver

A tall driver may not need a step to get in at all. The question is what the step does the rest of the time.

• Clearing the roof. Brushing snow off the cab roof before the Trans-Canada Highway keeps it from sliding onto the windshield at 100 km/h. A fixed board is a perch for that job; a power step only stays out while a door is open.
• Clean pant legs. A fixed board under the door collects slush that your pant leg brushes on the way in. A power step tucks away.
• Clearance. A fixed board hangs below the cab, so it can be the first thing to meet a frozen rut.

The Honest Winter Read

Every one of these steps lives in the worst spot on the truck for winter: low, behind the front tire, in the spray of whatever the road throws. They just struggle in different ways.

Ice on a Fixed Step

Snow off your boots lands on the step, packs down, and freezes overnight. Freezing rain glazes the top of a round tube first, and a board's grip surface helps only until ice fills it in. The fix is a free habit: kick the step clear and brush it off when you clear the windshield.

A Power Step Can Freeze in the Stowed Position

A power step tucked away for the night sits in whatever slush the tire threw at it on the drive home. If that slush freezes around the arms, the step can stay stowed in the morning until the ice breaks free or melts. A hard ridge of plowed snow beside the door can also block a step trying to swing out. Mopar says the motor and control components on its power running boards are protected by a weather tight housing; the arms and hinges outside that housing are still in the spray.

Salt and Gravel Find a Motor and a Hinge

On a salted Highway 1 run to Winnipeg or a gravel grid road past Oakville, everything under the cab takes salt, sand and stones off the front tire. Mopar describes the black powder coat on its power running boards as resisting corrosion, pitting, peeling and scratches, but a stone chip is still a chip. A fixed step has brackets and bolts to look after; a power step adds a motor, linkage and hinges. Rinse the steps when you rinse the underbody, especially after a stretch of salted highway.

A fixed board also changes how low the truck reaches, and on a rutted farm lane it can make contact before the frame does. Our post on Ram 1500 ground clearance covers how high the truck sits to begin with, and the Manitoba winter driving guide has the rest of the season's prep.

Aftermarket Steps and Your Warranty

Ram Canada's warranty page is plain about it: "The Ram Brand limited vehicle warranty does not cover routine maintenance, aftermarket parts, interior damage, accidents, or damage caused by the environment. Any part not installed at the factory or certified for use on the vehicle will not be covered."

So an aftermarket step itself is not covered by the vehicle warranty. Mopar publishes its own limited warranty for Mopar parts and accessories sold in Canada, with terms that depend on who installs the part, so ask for the current terms on the exact step you choose. For the wider question, read our post on whether a lift kit or aftermarket part affects your Ram warranty.

Getting Steps on Your Truck

Our service department does accessory installation, running boards included, so once you have the part you can book a running board installation. Which steps can be ordered for your exact trim, cab and box, and how long that takes, is a question for our parts team at the counter. Have your model year, trim, cab and box length handy.

Rather shop for a Ram 1500 that already has the step you want? Find out what your current truck is worth and, if you plan to finance, apply for financing online before you visit. Any approval, rate or term is on approved credit.

FAQs

Does the Ram 1500 come with running boards?

It depends on the trim. Ram Canada lists chrome wheel to wheel side steps on the 2026 Ram 1500 Express, and Mopar black tubular side steps on the Black Express, not available on the Quad Cab. For other trims, check the window sticker.

Do power running boards work in a Manitoba winter?

They are built for weather, but they are still a moving part. Mopar says the motor and control components sit in a weather tight housing; the arms and hinges stay exposed, and frozen slush or a hard snowbank can keep a step from swinging out until it is cleared.

Which step is easiest for a senior or a parent with a car seat?

A full running board or a power step. Both give a wide platform at the door, and a power step can sit lower than a fixed board. A tube step gives the least to stand on.

Are aftermarket running boards covered by my Ram warranty?

The step itself is not covered. Ram Canada says its limited vehicle warranty does not cover aftermarket parts, and that any part not installed at the factory or certified for use on the vehicle will not be covered.

Can Dunn Ram Trucks install running boards?

Yes. Our service department does accessory installation, running boards included. Which steps can be ordered for your truck is a question for our parts team.

The Bottom Line

No single step suits every Ram 1500. A tube is simple, a full board is the steadiest place to stand with a car seat or a careful knee, and a power step can put the standing surface lower and stays out of the way, at the cost of a motor and hinges that winter will test. Choose for the person who climbs in most, then plan for ice, salt and gravel from the first frost. When you know which way you lean, ask our Portage parts team which steps fit your truck.

Tyler Dunn, Dunn Ram Trucks, Portage la Prairie