Consumer Reports crowns Ram diesel as best pickup Detroit Free Press
August 26, 2014
Chrysler Group’s Ram pickup outscores Ford and Chevrolet’s full-size trucks when it is equipped with a new diesel engine, Consumer Reports magazine says.
Chrysler Group’s Ram pickup outscores Ford and Chevrolet’s full-size trucks when it is equipped with a new diesel engine, Consumer Reports magazine says.
The Ram 1500 with the V-6 EcoDiesel engine not only saved substantially more fuel than similar models with gas engines, but did better in road tests than the others as well. It scored 82 in road tests, a point better than a Ram with gas engine that was tested previously.
The EcoDiesel averaged 20 miles per gallon in overall testing and 27 mpg on the highway, well above the Ram with the V-8 gas engine or Chevrolet Silverado 1500 LT
“These are about the same fuel-economy numbers that we typically see in a mid-sized SUV,” says Jake Fisher, director of automotive testing for Consumer Reports, in a statement. “Ram is currently the only truck to offer turbo-diesel technology. It will be interesting to see what impact it will have on the half-ton truck market.”.
More good press for Ram equals more bad news for the Silverado / Sierra?
Chrysler Group’s Ram pickup outscores Ford and Chevrolet’s full-size trucks when it is equipped with a new diesel engine, Consumer Reports magazine says.
Ram saw an opening in the 1/2 ton market and took a chance,(well calculated) and is doing very well with the diesel.Meanwhile GM says we don't need one,and ford keeps stuffing 10lbs of ssstuff into a 5 lb. bag,and still can't match the diesel Ram's total performance. As soon as the Colorado/Canyon diesels hit the market they will be a run-a-way hit,imho. As for toyota,they just don't get it and are still steeped in very old powertrain tech.Nissan is making some very positive moves for the pickup truck segment.Should be real sportin in the next year or two...
This is the 3.0 V6 turbo-diesel developed by VM Motori for GM - who then decided they didn't want it and let it go when GM sold their 50% share in VM Motori to Fiat.
Of course, now GM doesn't have a small/medium diesel above a 2.0 I4 - just when it needs one for Cadillac in Europe and GMC in North America.
This is the 3.0 V6 turbo-diesel developed by VM Motori for GM - who then decided they didn't want it and let it go when GM sold their 50% share in VM Motori to Fiat.
GM does have a 4.5 liter diesel that they developed 6 or 7 years ago. It won awards and got a ton of publicity in automotive circles. They shelved it when they went into bankruptcy. Bring it back, yo!
It's difficult to win an award when there were no production 4.5 TD V8 Dmax engines built. It got publicity, but I don't recall any awards. Unless it won Vaporware of the year award.
I was just reading about GM's diesel engines the other day. There are a number of DMAX engines ranging in size from 2.0-3.5L they have via the Isuzu buyout. I know they stopped using them in '08-ish presumably due to more stringent emissions. Wonder what it would take to bring them up to date.
Duramax is a general marketing term for their truck diesel engines (much like EcoTec 3 for gas truck engines). The 6.6L V8 models (all of the different engine codes) were part of a joint venture with Isuzu. Most of GM's other Duramax labeled engines have either been full Isuzu designed engines or VM Motori designed. The use of VMM engines is expected considering the partnership with Fiat as owners of VMM. The 2.0-3.5L TDs are much like the 4.5L V8 GM designed. Diesel engine updates require much fine tuning to remain emission compliant. Once an engine is retired/replaced, trying to dust it off years later practically means starting from scratch. Emission standards are becoming more strict by the year, so unless you have a TD & just try to keep it up to date, it would cost the same to update a retired engine as it would to build 100% brand new.
Perhaps those who a fans of "GM" should remember that so little effort has been expended on their full-sized truck products for about a decade. You cannot in all truthfulness say that "GM" has expended the same energy and attention to detail that both Ford and RAM have done.
RAM deserves kudos for taking a third rate truck and being competitive with Ford. Right now Ford and RAM are the real truck builders and everyone else is pretty much a joke.
I am seriously trying to be as kind as I can in this post (don't drop dead from shock).
It is not taking a chance if you see a hole in a market to exploit. Leaders take risks but do so from well-calculated decision-making. There is definitely a market for a diesel engine in a light duty full-sized truck - the market is not a big one, but the first to exploit the hole will be the winner. And once again the innovator in trucks is not Total Recall Motors.
I was just reading about GM's diesel engines the other day. There are a number of DMAX engines ranging in size from 2.0-3.5L they have via the Isuzu buyout. I know they stopped using them in '08-ish presumably due to more stringent emissions. Wonder what it would take to bring them up to date.
Get ready for the battle to continue between Ford and Ram once Ford reveals economy figures for EB 2.7.
Make no mistake both Ram and Ford want the best truck accolade and will move mountains to get it.
Ram's ED 3.0 V6 1500 is the first salvo, expect an interesting response for Ford that is aimed at a much
wider audience than those wanting a diesel. This gets interesting because it really probes the balance
between torque, efficiency and horsepower - performance/fun factor.
The interesting question is how many gasoline buyers will the 2.7 EB attract, we know that Ram's V6 diesel
is on target for a solid 10% but that's with limited supply.... buyers will be the big winners next year.
The Ford EB 2.7 is the Lion designed/developed by Ford/PSA in Europe but built in the USA for pickup applications, and used by JLR as the basis for their turbo-diesels in Jaguars, Land Rovers and Range Rovers - it's a good one.
I've never understood the Diesel hype. Why do you need a diesel engine in a half ton pickup? My 5.3 is plenty strong, it's quiet, gets decent gas milage and I don't pay as much for fuel as for diesel...
Once again, GM is caught flat-footed. I understand Ford is coming out with a new 2-door Bronco with true off-road capabilities. Meanwhile, GM continues to offer an endless stream of grocery getter chickmobiles.
Just like a diesel guy would never drive a little toy pickup powered by a gas motor. Real work is done with diesel power. Let me see your gas motor pull 30,000 lbs. A gas motor would choke trying to move a 5th wheel loaded with SUV's.
More good press for Ram equals more bad news for the Silverado / Sierra?
Chrysler Group’s Ram pickup outscores Ford and Chevrolet’s full-size trucks when it is equipped with a new diesel engine, Consumer Reports magazine says.
Article continues at link: http://www.freep.com/article/20140826/BUSINESS0103/308260076
There are those of us who are more then willing to spend the extra $'s for a diesel.In the long run,a diesel pulling a trailer with x amount of weight will last longer and get better mpg then any gasser pulling the same weight,and last longer doing it.Then there are the mountains that some of us have to contend with.While climbing up a mountain,a gasser will drop one or two gears to pull it,even if empty,whereas the diesel just chugs right along in high gear at lower rpms and using less fuel while doing it.And as I've said before,nobody will be forced to buy a diesel,it will be an option,one that I happen to like.
Diesel economy is far less sensitive to how one drives than gas...diesel doesn't really have a need to "go rich" to avoid pre-detonation/pinging as spark engines do, since spontaneous combustion is what the diesel needs. This is why they get great mileage towing too.
The Ram is doing well because there is a desire for a half-ton diesel. When people talk about "need" many times it's hard to justify many of the vehicles we have. Hell, I don't "neeed" a 12 second truck. I don't even neeeeed a minivan. If I really tried, my wife and I could probably make do with just one car....but why? Having a truck that tows ~9000lbs but can still get 28mpg is pretty cool. I don't fault people for wanting it.
Without even seeing the full write up on Consumerreport.org, which isn't on their website yet, I'm guessing they didn't use the truck as a...........truck. Everyone talks about towing and this and that. Look at the numbers. We want to look at torque in the 3.6 and 4.3 poll, but we don't want to look at the payload and towing number on a 3.0 RAM 1500?
You guys need to drive a diesel to understand it. It's about performance AND economy. Non sequiturs in the gasoline world.
Duramax is one of the best BUT you must buy an HD to get it. That is the only way you can have diesel in a GM truck.
Almost every pickup truck in the road in America is used in the ways we used station wagons 35 years ago. Occasional 4x8 sheeting, some bundles of shingles and sacks of soil or mulch. These are the uses that a small diesel excel at.
After driving diesel for a year now I'm not sure that I'd ever go back to gasoline except for something very specific like a convertible.
That's all dependent on what "performance" means. Look at the numbers that RAM supplies for the 3.0, from the best numbers it can provide to the worst.
Almost every pickup truck in the road in America is used in the ways we used station wagons 35 years ago. Occasional 4x8 sheeting, some bundles of shingles and sacks of soil or mulch. These are the uses that a small diesel excel at.
Which bring me back to the first part of my response. You might not be able to do both at the same time!!!! You can't haul people and your weekend lumberyard supplies at the same time. You might not even be able to haul 4 grown men at the SAME TIME!! Look at RAM's towing & payload capacity calculator. They even let you include the weight of passengers into the formula. And guess how much RAM is saying each passenger weighs. 150lbs!!!! High school freshman aren't the ones driving these trucks and American's aren't getting skinnier, so why did they use 150lbs? They aren't being funny with numbers like GM and Ford, are they?
In my opinion, the majority of half ton truck buyers want greater fuel economy so long as they don't have to pay for it
and the higher the premium asked the less embracing the customer is. Yes the 3.0 Diesel does the job for RAM but the
appeal is limited to people who are prepared to pay more for superior economy. For the greater population of half ton
truck buyers, the 2.7 Ecoboost will retain the gasoline performance they expect but with better fuel economy.
How did this thread turn into every Diesel engine vs every gas engine? We are talking about the 3.0L diesel in the Ram and how GM is "behind" the 8 ball with diesels in 1/2 tons.
My problem with the 3.0 in the 1500 Ram is being in the CC 6' bed 4x4. It can hardly pull itself around.
Dodge has this thing called a Heavy Duty with a Cummins if the 1500 Diesel isn't enough.
The EcoDiesel can pull 9,200 lbs -- that's pretty strong for a tiny 3.0 liter engine. Obviously
its no comparison to what any of the HD diesels can do. (But what do you expect? The HD motors are also twice
the size.)
LOL, at the fact that some people complain about absolute utter nonsense. I mean seriously, if any of the light duty trucks don't meet your needs -- then pipe down and buy a heavy duty. It is a complete waste of time to complain about any of them. I remember someone in this forum ranting about fog lamps for 3 pages -- as if you couldn't buy a set of fog lights from the aftermarket. Seriously, some people get so anal -- which is why all trucks have OPTIONAL equipment. If you don't like one motor, then order the other one.
LOL at the continued bitter pill mindless rant over something that's not occurring. I merely made a statement of fact based on something someone else said. No complaints, just a comment....
It's a good point you're making, diesels work well increasing fuel efficiency in heavy vehicles,
the trade off is of course, less acceleration - the thing a lot of truck buyers have come to
expect when buying a half ton. It's a very personal thing and requires each person to evaluate
their own preferences and desires - what is it you really want and can you live with that choice.
Diesels are neither good nor bad, just another choice offered for those who want them and prepared to pay,
going in eyes open is the best way and if a diesel is to a buyers liking then good economy will follow from there.
Choose an efficient gasoline like EB 27 and the mix changes - for those wanting a part way solution towards diesel.
Personal preference is key here, it's a choice that should be made by each buyer, not someone like me on a forum.
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