New RAM half-ton EcoDiesel gets 28mpg?..

[John E Davies]

It will be interesting to see how the new Ram 1/2 ton diesel pans out in real world use.

One problem with the big engines like your 6.7 Cummins is that you have to run them hard enough to keep the emissions system happy. With a small 3.0 engine pushing around a full sized truck, it will be working a lot harder for a lot more of the time, so frequent regens and clogged DPFs shouldn't be as common.

But a diesel owner should still try hard to limit those short trips that don't get the engine up to operating temperature. If the truck is going to be the only vehicle in your household, it would be better to buy one with a gas engine.

John Davies
Spokane WA USA

 

[fullofdays]

So anybody drive one yet?

 

[MT6bt]

Your paragraph relieves me greatly in my decision to go with a 12 valve and not a common rail, or newer. 1500 per injector?!? Wow. I can get a set of injectors for less than $750 I don't know if my turbo has ever been changed. Kind of makes me wonder if it is coming to be that time...?

The payload capacity is horrible in those eco-diesels, just as I had suspected. 500 lbs? Air suspension in a truck? Sounds like they're catering to a demographic that doesn't actually use their trucks like I do or anyone that needs a truck for work. Seems to me like they're looking for the city slickers who are looking for a place to stash their golf clubs. I wish they'd offer coil suspension and solid differentials because this truck has a lot of potential. Just one step closer to getting more fuel efficient 1/2 ton and smaller diesel trucks into the US market.
Although I would really like to see the MPG statistics for a truck with many options and a 4wd. Those numbers are obviously for a 2wd truck...

Bought my first new Chevy diesel 1-ton Crew cab 4X4 in '83. Over the years I have owned 3 of the General's diesels. Owned 6 of Ford's powerstrokes. For quite a few years I worked for a Ford/Dodge combo dealership, so was around Ford/Dodge diesels from the get-go. My 07 Dodge 4X4 one-ton has the 6.7L Cummins, it is a good engine. But spendy too! New turbo at 65K miles (under warranty), the Dodge dealer mechanic (he is 'top notch') told me to probably plan on another one at or about 130K miles at $2K cost. You have to have water free fuel, gotta' change that fuel filter very religiously or pay $1.5K per injector for replacements! That's according to my brother-in-law who is one of the Dallas-Ft.Worth area's top Dodge/Ram dealer's top line mechanic and knows Cummins inside and out. Diesels are more spendy to keep serviced, and really expensive to repair. Oh, and at/or about 67,500 miles, the Cummins 6.7L needs a spendy EGR filter cleaning, plus other things that cost about $750. Not like the pre-emission Cummins.
My old Ford mechanic friends tell me that the Ford Ecoboost has long term issues- so stay clear of them! It will be interesting to see how the new Ram 1/2 ton diesel pans out in real world use.
Toyota and Nissan could corner the diesel pickup market if they would bring a decent diesel to market in thier smaller pickups.

 

[bdp1978]

I think its great that Ram is selling a diesel, and that it has had a great first run of orders, but I think a gasser is still the way to go.

I picked up a 2014 Ram about 2 weeks ago with the 390hp/410tq hemi. I'm averaging 15.9mpg city. The eco mode is so efficient that as long as you keep your foot out of it you can practically run it like that all day. I couldnt think of any reason to go with the diesel over the gasser.

 

[zelatore]

What's wrong with air suspension in a truck? Hardly new tech here, and used regularly in OTR big rigs. Heck, I've got a set of air bags under the rear of my 1/2 ton Dodge to retain the payload and towing capacity despite being lowered. I can still put a load of firewood or a couple bikes or a 7000 lb boat on the back...just have to hit the little button for the on-board compressor.
BDP1978, that's a pretty good number for your truck. Mine is an '05 2wd hemi and it's about 12 city. I can get 17 highway if I'm really careful. Heck, I've been able to push the on-board lie-o-meter up to 20 mpg, but that's only under perfect conditions and it goes to pot as soon as I hit the first stop sign. My current reading is 16.x over the last 5000 miles or so, but that includes a LOT of rural 2-lane 60-65 mph easy cruising on flat land at sea level with no load. Basically about as easy as it can get.

 

[bdp1978]

BDP1978, that's a pretty good number for your truck. Mine is an '05 2wd hemi and it's about 12 city. I can get 17 highway if I'm really careful. Heck, I've been able to push the on-board lie-o-meter up to 20 mpg, but that's only under perfect conditions and it goes to pot as soon as I hit the first stop sign. My current reading is 16.x over the last 5000 miles or so, but that includes a LOT of rural 2-lane 60-65 mph easy cruising on flat land at sea level with no load. Basically about as easy as it can get.

Yeah, I havent gotten highway #'s yet as I havent taken a trip anywhere, but I'm expecting to come in around 23-24mpg. My truck is 4wheel drive and I only have the 6 speed trans, not the 8, the 3.55's, and its also a crew cab. The new Rams are really great trucks, the ride quality, interior, and cabin noise improvements etc over my '07 are substantial. That and the 390hp hemi can flat out move when you want it to.

With my '07 Hemi Quad Cab 4 wheel drive with the MDS system I averaged 12.5 City and 19 highway.

 

[Saiyan66]

I think that this combo will turn out to be a pretty darn good all around truck once people get used to it. The Eco Diesel is not going to feel powerful compared to those almost 400hp gas motors that are on the market. It does however have more power than the 1st gen 5.9 Cummins had, so it should do well if they got the transmission calibration close. As far as maintenance costs go, I don't really think that will be a big deal for most owners as the dealerships sell full maintenance plans now that many people buy with the truck so they don't even notice the cost as its rolled into the financing. I think where this truck will shine is once you hook up your boat or camper trailer and head up to the mountains. The Hemi would be wheezing and spinning at 4000rpm where this little diesel will just hum along. I think this is a good step for American market vehicles and can't wait for it to lead into other diesel options (namely a diesel Jeep Wrangler).

I understand that there are a lot of people that can't justify the cost with the fuel savings. That is understandable for certain types of drivers. I suspect however that in real world equivalent testing the Eco Diesel will get 50% better mileage than the gas motors offered by the big three. Keep in mind that especially here in California, we don't get EPA mileage numbers from our gas vehicles because of the extra crap they put in our fuel (to make it cleaner.............but then you have to use more???). Also I think that the ownership of a diesel vehicle might finally help many owners get over the 100k mile stigma of a vehicle being worn out. That in itself is a huge money saver if you are keeping your car way past when it is payed off. Too many people think that they have to get a new truck when the odometer hits 6 figures and it simply isn't true. Just wait till the tuning market gets their hands on one of these things too. I think 280hp and 480ft lbs is not too optimistic.

 

[RoyJ]

Yeah, I havent gotten highway #'s yet as I havent taken a trip anywhere, but I'm expecting to come in around 23-24mpg. My truck is 4wheel drive and I only have the 6 speed trans, not the 8, the 3.55's, and its also a crew cab. The new Rams are really great trucks, the ride quality, interior, and cabin noise improvements etc over my '07 are substantial. That and the 390hp hemi can flat out move when you want it to.

With my '07 Hemi Quad Cab 4 wheel drive with the MDS system I averaged 12.5 City and 19 highway.

Are you sure you don't have an 8 speed? Or is the truck a 2013? I'm not aware of any 6 speed Hemi 1500s in the 2014MY.

I have an 8 speed Sport, and I agree the efficiency is amazing. But I believe a big part of that is the 8 speed - putting around town the converter stays locked and keeps the engine between 1200 - 1800 rpm like a big diesel.

 

[RoyJ]

It does however have more power than the 1st gen 5.9 Cummins had, so it should do well if they got the transmission calibration close.

Glad you brought that up. A lot of people are quick to point fingers calling the Eco-D "slow" and "under powered".

Strange how 30 years can change people's standards and perception - back when the 5.9 B-series first stormed into the HD pickup market and caught everyone by surprise with a 10,000+ lbs tow rating, it made all but 160 lowly horsepower in its turbocharged non-intercooled configuration.

 

[ckupq]

FWIW I built an Eco-diesel Outdoorsman 4x4 Crew with the 6.4 foot box on the ram site. Payload was 1500 lbs. Sounds like the article was cherry picking. Especially because they were missing the Tundra, Titan, Ford Eco-boost, and the Ram V6.

I was all excited for that new diesel Ram until I read that test report, it's downright PATHETIC.

Your paragraph relieves me greatly in my decision to go with a 12 valve and not a common rail, or newer. 1500 per injector?!? Wow. I can get a set of injectors for less than $750 I don't know if my turbo has ever been changed. Kind of makes me wonder if it is coming to be that time...?

The payload capacity is horrible in those eco-diesels, just as I had suspected. 500 lbs? Air suspension in a truck? Sounds like they're catering to a demographic that doesn't actually use their trucks like I do or anyone that needs a truck for work. Seems to me like they're looking for the city slickers who are looking for a place to stash their golf clubs. I wish they'd offer coil suspension and solid differentials because this truck has a lot of potential. Just one step closer to getting more fuel efficient 1/2 ton and smaller diesel trucks into the US market.
Although I would really like to see the MPG statistics for a truck with many options and a 4wd. Those numbers are obviously for a 2wd truck...

 

[kojackJKU]

I don't know why they even bother with the halfton trucks anymore. There are so many light duty diesel trucks here in South America. These trucks are complete workhorses too. They should stick with 3/4 ton diesels and up, and put a small diesel in the Dakota. The average consumer would be more likely to buy a Dakota, chevy Colorado or Tacoma anyway. Here they have the Colorado with a small dura max, VW Amarok with the TDI, Nissan Frontier...don't think its a Cummins though and the hilux which everyone on here is horny for anyway. The trucks that make the most sense to me are Full size diesels which can haul some weight, or an efficient light duty pickup for the average guy with a 2.0 - 2.5L diesel.

the new trucks here are work horses too, just that lawsuit happy 'merica ties the makers hands to give these ridiculous ratings. because if someone loaded more than 500 lbs in a new truck, then had an accident, the leach lawyers that follow the ambulance and have huge billboards all over will sue the balls off the said auto makers. Down in south America, there are no such scum suckers therefore they use their trucks as intended.

 

[Sock Puppet]

I've driven 2 of them so far, both 2WD models since that is all that the dealers had. Both had 3.55 rears. The one I drove locally I put about 30 miles on in somewhat mixed driving, and the EVIC read 26.1 mpg (which owners are reporting to be accurate). The other I drove when I was in Albuquerque, and only put about 20 miles on. The EVIC read 24.9 mpg.

Both trucks drove beautifully! The little Ecodiesel drives like...well, a little diesel. Mid range is where it's at with this thing, and the 8-speed seems to keep it in a happy place all the time. There is a slight lag off the line, but then she picks up an moves. The power is very linear; not "throw-you-back-in-your-seat like a hemi or Ecoboost. All around driving manners were excellent, and you'd be hard pressed to even know it's a diesel from the noise level (nonexistent) and general feel.

I live at 5500 ft. elevation, and can be over 10,000 ft. in a couple of hours, with plenty of mountain passes a stones-throw away. A turbocharged diesel will have real advantages for me over an NA Hemi. I know quite a few people who own Ecoboosts, and their real world mileage, combined, seems to hover around 17 mpg on a good day. I don't consider that bad for the power of that engine, but if an EcoDiesel can crank out 24-25 combined (which is what owners are reporting on the Ecodiesel forums) then that's nothing to sneeze at, even with the increased cost of diesel fuel.

There is no doubt this engine isn't for everyone, but for those who can realize the advantages, I think it's a winner.

 

[zb39]

I just spent a few minutes reading this thread. Most comments seem negative. Hard to understand that when there really not out yet and there are no real world numbers. Hear are some real world numbers. In Feb of this year Ram got orders for over 8000 of these trucks in 3 days. That more than filled the first run. I hope they do well with it.

 

[fullofdays]

That's why I asked if anyone has driven one yet... Nope. all conjecture

 

[Sock Puppet]

OK, went back and drove the dealers EcoDiesel today. 2WD crew cab big horn with 3.55s. I took it on a mixed drive to simulate what a normal local day would look like for me; some city, a little open road, and some country roads. I'm not an aggressive driver, though I got on a few times to check acceleration and passing capability. The truck ran great, was smooth as silk, and I never lacked for power. Here is a shot of the EVIC: