Ram Eco Diesel, I need opinions from owners.

[Awilson]

Originally Posted by straightlinespeed

Thank you everyone for the input. Although it has not helped me at all!

Im still torn... Yes I love my 1500 for everything I do and the ride is great. It tows my trailer well, but sometimes I would like more from the truck. I see people tow much larger trailers with a 1500 and keep telling myself if they can do it I should quit bitching.
Would I love having a 2500 darn tootin I would.... Do I need it.... Probably not, but there might be those times. Hence why Im looking into these baby diesels for now.

The input has been insightful, and hearing from people that own one is a plus. Im at a tough point with my truck being its a 2012 it only has 46k on it. Still in great condition, and a lot of life left in it. This is only my first summer towing a trailer this large and Im sure I have lots to learn (shifting for example) while towing. We only have 1 camping trip left (October) which is only 40 miles away. However, Im thinking about future trips, out West into the mountains, long distances, etc... I would like a truck that can work great for everything I need it for.

Thanks again and if anyone else has input I would still love to hear it.

In mountains I would go Cummins because they will pull the passes and with the engine brake keep you from screaming down other side.

[m2kamp]

There is a member on here that hauls new TT's from the manufacturers for a living with an Ecodiesel. I believe he already has in excess of 350k miles. Hopefully he'll chime in.

I know Ford is following Ram with their own small 3.0L diesel 1/2 ton option soon.

[modaholic]

Sasch X2

[2Bryans]

Originally Posted by m2kamp

There is a member on here that hauls new TT's from the manufacturers for a living with an Ecodiesel. I believe he already has in excess of 350k miles. Hopefully he'll chime in.



I know Ford is following Ram with their own small 3.0L diesel 1/2 ton option soon.

Yeah, that's VernDiesel. He's on the EcoDiesel Forum a lot, have seen him post on this forum some, too.

[265bhx]

If you care about real life numbers this is a friends eco diesel ccc numbers

He pulls a 6500 lb jayflight and seem to have no problem. But if you are a number cruncher once you throw the tongue weight of the trailer in it doesn’t leave much wiggle room for people. However works for him and he is happy.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by 265bhx

If you care about real life numbers this is a friends eco diesel ccc numbers

He pulls a 6500 lb jayflight and seem to have no problem. But if you are a number cruncher once you throw the tongue weight of the trailer in it doesn’t leave much wiggle room for people. However works for him and he is happy.

That's what I have seen way too often.
Ram 1/2 tons, including the Ecodiesel, with payload capacities under 1000lbs.

My Avalanche, a wannabe truck, had a 1357lbs payload capacity.

[OldBob]

Originally Posted by straightlinespeed

I currently own a '12 Ram 1500 and tow a 22' Grey Wolf that weighs roughly 5500lbs, *probably more, I've never weighed it. We just purchased the TT in June but have owned the truck for a couple years now. We just finished our 5th camping trip today and have only stayed in the state of MN. Some trips only being a half hour from our house, others being 4 hours. However we do want to travel further (moutains, etc...). The truck serves me just fine day to day, and pulls the trailer pretty well, although sometimes shifting an awful lot, and at faster speeds on cruise control it can not keep the speed. I average 11.5mpg @ 60mph, 10mpg @ 65mph, and 8mpg @ 70mph.

So I've been contemplating the Eco Diesel, and really like the idea of getting close to 30mpg with out a trailer and mid teens with a trailer. Im torn though, on the payload and the actual size of the engine only being a V6 diesel.. Of course I like the 2500, but dont need that size of a truck at this point in my life. There dont seem to be a lot of the Eco Diesels for sale around here and I've only seen a few on the road. Im curious of opinions from actual Eco Diesel owners that have moved from the Hemi. Can you please give me some insight on how you may or may not like it.

We tow our 8000 lb (loaded) Rockwood Ultra V 2715VS with our 2015 EcoDiesel. We are on the road as I type this in Georgia on our way back to the Tampa Bay area. On this 8 week trip we've been all over the country from California, Utah and all over the west and up to Michigan, all over the mid-west and now back home to Florida. The EcoDiesel is very strong. It will easily pull anything within the designed weight limits and then some. We always use the tow switch when towing and get between 15 and 16 mpg. It can climb moderate hills without down shifting. It will downshift once climbing steeper hills and going over the Rockies it downshifted a 2nd time. But it always held the speed I had my cruise control set at, usually 62 mph.

In 2014 I purchased the gas Ram 1500. When we purchased our Rockwood I wasn't happy with the way the Hemi was downshifting on the hills. We traded for a new 2015 EcoDiesel RAM with the Tradesman trim (to get higher payload numbers). We are very pleased with the EcoDiesel. THAT SAID, we purchased the EcoDiesel Hot Tune from Green Diesel Engineering which is an ECM replacement that gives you more torque, greater engine braking power and higher fuel mileage. I fully recommend to every EcoDiesel owner that tune. More info here:
http://www.greendieselengineering.co...t+Tune&model=+
It is worth every penny.

[Awilson]

Here is where I got my capacities. Enter your VIN number and it will come back with capacities for YOUR truck.

https://www.ramtrucks.com/en/towing_guide/

[living-the-dream]

I have a 2014 Ecodiesel crew cab bighorn with 3:55 rear. I tow a Coachmen 276rkds and have CAT scaled the setup (fully loaded for a week) and weight of trailer was 7200 lbs. I have airlift 1000's to help with "squat" and my WD equalizer hitch works perfectly. While towing I stay at 65mph and am getting 13-14mpg consistantly. When not towing I get anywhere from 25-27 mpg around town and long distance open highway 30-31 staying at posted speeds. Looks like your setup would not be an issue for the ecodiesel and you will really be impressed with the ride comfort and flexability of this truck. If you need more info send an email and I will answer your questions direct so you don't get a million opinions from non owners. Good luck

[tfdoug]

I own a 2016 Eco diesel which I ordered in the SLT trim with every towing feature available, except the Airlift. We previously owned a 2012 1500 hemi and towed a 27RKSS Wildwood with both. The hemi got 8 mpg while towing and 16 to 18 just cruising, while the Eco Diesel gets 12 to 14 towing, and 24 to 28 on the hwy. The Hemi was a 3.55 rear end, and the Diesel has a 3.92 rear end, with both being 2 wheel drive extended cabs with a 6'-4" bed. I put air lift bags on both and used an WDH with 2 anti sway bars. We pull here in East Texas where there are rolling hills, and straight freeways. We love the truck, but Ram just updated the cpu and my in town driving dropped to 22.5 from 26, I have not tried the hwy, or Towing since. If you want or need additional info holler and I will try to help.

[straightlinespeed]

Thanks again everyone!

[Austintatious]

I have a 2016 Ram Ecodiesel. I also have a little travel trailer that weighs around 3500 pounds loaded up. I use my Jeep to haul it down to the coast on the back roads and the Ram to pull it farther and on interstates.

The Ecodiesel pulls it like it's not even there. I've been extremely pleased with the ride - just recently went from Austin to the Florida state line on a single tank of fuel without stopping and I felt like I had just gotten out of bed.

I'm at close to 14K miles now and haven't had a single issue. Can't complain about the fuel mileage, either. I'll average 16-18 when towing and when not, well.....this was heading east on I-10 just a few weeks ago:

[Happydaze]

I have a Ecodiesel Tradesman CC with tow package and almost 1500lb payload according to the yellow sticker. I tow a 6700lb TT loaded. The truck does great, firmly planted on the road. I have towed a lighter TT with the 2.7 Ecoboost and felt a little wandering. I don't know if it was the lightweight aluminum bed or ? Haven't tried the 3.5. IMO the Ecodiesel wins for ease of towing. I don't have the fancy gadgets that the Ford has like trailer backing assist. But if you need that to back a trailer, buy a motorhome. Just my .02. Oh and I was a Ford trucks only guy for 40 years. Love the mileage with the diesel too.

[Squirrelchaser]

OP, up until about 3 months ago we had a 2015 Big Horn CC EcoDiesel and pulled our 2017 Grey Wolf 23dbh. It's 5100# dry and, per cat scales 6200# loaded for camping. The door sticker payload on the truck was 1420#. Weighing the truck dry I found my payload (after adding running boards and all terrain tires) was about 1100#. The tongue weight on our TT was 700#. After adding the family traveling goodies and a full tank of fuel, I was over GVWR by quite a bit. In fact, I was almost at GAWR front and rear.

After several struggling trips through the hills in Nevada and Utah, and after repeatedly hitting 260 in oil temps and 240+ in coolant temps, I gave up and sold it. I moved to a 3/4 ton platform. Less fuel mileage day to day but a much more stable platform when towing.

[ronheater70]

Remember that Ford is putting a baby diesel in the f 150 for 2018 as an option.
Early guesstimates is about 13 more hp and 20 lbs of torques over the Ram with similar mileage. It comes from the Lion Family (like the range rover)

[Hersbird]

Originally Posted by ronheater70

Remember that Ford is putting a baby diesel in the f 150 for 2018 as an option.
Early guesstimates is about 13 more hp and 20 lbs of torques over the Ram with similar mileage. It comes from the Lion Family (like the range rover)

They could have used the small 3.2 diesel optional for awhile in the Transit vans in the F150. Probably didn't because it pales in comparison to the 3.0 the Ram is using. Too bad they didn't just go with the exact same motor as it's from a 3rd party. It's a good motor and would just make the option cost less on both trucks.

[VernDiesel]

Straightlinespeed, The first big difference you will notice from your existing truck when towing is that the eight speed is dramatically better than the previous transmission. No hunting, it will downshift up a grade as needed & always be in the best gear. I have 341,000 on my ED delivering TTs click my Avatar then album and you can see the biggest units I've Transported with it. These went across the western grades with no issues but you have to learn weight distribution and the limits of your truck. Your set up will be a breeze.

Mine has the 3.92s, a tune with software driven turbo brake, axle to frame air bags and I use a no sway WDH. Proper weight transfer proved on a cat scale is key for safety & stability especially with a half ton. GDE & PPEI has tunes with a brake which you can use to control speed when your trailer wants to push you down a grade. A very reassuring tool and when coupled with a factory brake controller make descending a grade safe & easy. Even with a 9k trailer you don't need to touch your foot brake to control speed. My original brakes went 293,000.

I generally tow 2 axle TTs at 65 & avg 14-14.2 with box units or 15-15.2 with an Airstream. Lots of good posts from ED owners on here. If anybody has any questions how I deal with WDH / scales set up, truck limitations, heat issues, maintenance etc. I will share what I've learned.