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K.Regester
08-02-2014, 12:34 AM
After our last trip to Western NY we needed a change. Our 2011 Ram 1500 Hemi 2WD was a good truck but the 26 gallon tank was killing me on gas stops. We were getting about 8-10 mpg or 180-230 miles between gas stops.
The Hemi had plenty of power and in some cases too much. More than once I have lit up the rear tires on the on ramps LOL.

We finally found a 2014 Ram 1500 Crewcab 4WD, EcoDiesel, 8 Spd trans and air Suspension and took it for a test drive. I have to say this is a very nice combo. We looked at 2500 6.7 Cummins rigs and it was way too much truck for our TT. Besides the XYL couldn't get in and out without a step stool.
The EcoDiesel is a nice balance. It is a lot less HP than the Hemi (240 vs 397 HP) but has more torque at half the RPM. (420 vs 410 FtLbs) and I have always heard,"In towing, torque is king" The 8 Spd ZF Trans is nice match, it keeps the diesel in it's power band and not buzzing it brains out.

We haven't towed with it yet but for commuting unloaded it is great.
I can drop the air suspension for easy entry and exit and the 3 liter diesel is smooth, quiet (fro a diesel) without the drama of the Hemi. I miss the Hemi sound until I look at the fuel gauge. So far my best is 28 mpg and worst is 25 mpg commuting. The Hemi was 15- 19 mpg.
We didn't buy it to save money, it will take years to break even.. We got it to stretch the distance between fill ups . I expect to about double the distance between fuel stops while towing.
It is a compromise but I think it makes a lot of sense for us..

Radio
08-02-2014, 07:17 AM
I wish Ford had a setup like that, a smaller diesel in a F150 with lots of gears in the tranny. But I made good choices in the beginning and I think I will be well served for a good number of years.

And welcome to ORR.net. Don't be shy. Jump right in!

K.Regester
08-02-2014, 08:57 PM
I think Ford , GM, Toyota and Nissan are re-thinking the small diesel market for the US. It make a LOT of sense.
Ford has put a lot in marketing the EcoBoost so that may be harder than GM.
Cummins has their 4.2 & 5.6 Liter Diesels that were slated for the Ram 1500
http://www.cumminsdieselspecs.com/5.6L-and-4.2L-cummins.html
So who knows were they will end up ?
We are all gonna win with some competition in the 1/2 ton market and maybe get more easier to access diesel pumps.

Thanks for the welcome BTW..:hello:

Mr. Ham
08-16-2014, 08:25 PM
A brother of mine works for Siemens and he had a 2007 1 ton, dual wheel, four wheel drive diesel with an automatic transmission and winter tires.

When empty, the truck would average about 17 MPG.

He hauled a 28' tag along racecar trailer with several thousand lbs of equipment inside of the trailer - gas cart, vacuum pump, mechanics tools etc.
With the trailer and the truck loaded to the gills the truck would get 23 - 27 miles to the gallon.

I can't understand it since he hauled the trailer throughout western Pennsylvania, new york, Ohio, west Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri and he usually went 70+ MPH - even up the hills!

The more weight you put on the truck, the better it hauled and the better it rode. The ride when empty was almost as good as my new Avalanche...

The new 1 ton single axle single wheel Dodge only gets 18 - 22 mpg..
Now they are talking about getting rid of the trailer.

With the 06 Ford 1 ton - four wheel drive, the truck would lift the front tires off the ground when you entered a turn and you didn't know if it was going to turn or not.. He was using the sway bars on each vehicle...

NN5I
08-16-2014, 09:25 PM
I understand it, Mr Ham. Your brother is funnin' you.

Mr. Ham
08-26-2014, 09:13 AM
After our last trip to Western NY we needed a change. Our 2011 Ram 1500 Hemi 2WD was a good truck but the 26 gallon tank was killing me on gas stops. We were getting about 8-10 mpg or 180-230 miles between gas stops.
The Hemi had plenty of power and in some cases too much. More than once I have lit up the rear tires on the on ramps LOL.

We finally found a 2014 Ram 1500 Crewcab 4WD, EcoDiesel, 8 Spd trans and air Suspension and took it for a test drive. I have to say this is a very nice combo. We looked at 2500 6.7 Cummins rigs and it was way too much truck for our TT. Besides the XYL couldn't get in and out without a step stool.
The EcoDiesel is a nice balance. It is a lot less HP than the Hemi (240 vs 397 HP) but has more torque at half the RPM. (420 vs 410 FtLbs) and I have always heard,"In towing, torque is king" The 8 Spd ZF Trans is nice match, it keeps the diesel in it's power band and not buzzing it brains out.

We haven't towed with it yet but for commuting unloaded it is great.
I can drop the air suspension for easy entry and exit and the 3 liter diesel is smooth, quiet (fro a diesel) without the drama of the Hemi. I miss the Hemi sound until I look at the fuel gauge. So far my best is 28 mpg and worst is 25 mpg commuting. The Hemi was 15- 19 mpg.
We didn't buy it to save money, it will take years to break even.. We got it to stretch the distance between fill ups . I expect to about double the distance between fuel stops while towing.
It is a compromise but I think it makes a lot of sense for us..

Diesels are nice when it comes to towing, but they hurt when you take it in to have the maintenance done.
Although they will go further between oil changes, the cost of all the filters and stuff offsets anything that you save on fuel and the cost of the diesel engine - $10,000 - $15,000 does nothing to save a person money - unless they travel 50,000 miles a year.

I have found that it is better to just have a decent tow vehicle for towing purposes and park it in the yard when you aren't towing then to drive it all the time. The cost of having two vehicles offsets the savings on fuel in the long run.

For two years I hauled my race car trailer up and down the east coast and I found that one of the best haul vehicles was a dump truck.
The dump truck already had dual wheels, a heavy suspension, a heavy duty transmission and radiator and could haul the trailer - like there was nothing behind the truck.

My next trailer will be a 5th wheel, no more tag along trailers for me...

Mr. Ham
08-26-2014, 09:19 AM
I understand it, Mr Ham. Your brother is funnin' you.

No - my brother was being totally honest..
I wish I had that old 07' Silverado - it was remarkable on fuel.
The ride was a little stiff, but it was very comfortable to drive and ride in.

The transformer crew kept borrowing it and bringing it back full of dust and dirt. They would take it to the coal fired power plants and ride around with the windows open.

I convinced him to park the Dodge at his house, after 5 years of putting up with other crews borrowing his truck and bringing it back dirty and full of garbage. My brother lives in one of those plans where everyone is busy trying to keep up with the Jones... They thought that it was an eyesore - because it was a work truck, while everyone else was driving expensive European sports cars and luxury vehicles. In todays world, a diesel pick up truck is just as expensive as some BMW's and Mercedes.