Towing 5,000 Pounds for 5,000 Miles -- Part 2 - 2014 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel Long-Term Road Test

Edmunds.com

Towing 5,000 Pounds for 5,000 Miles -- Part 2 - 2014 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel Long-Term Road Test

On the second installment of our 5,000-pound towing adventure with our long-term 2014 Ram 1500, we unhook the trailer and go for a drive through the mountains.

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adamb1

It looks better without the side bars though I've read they actually improve fuel economy.

desmolicious

It seems people at Edmunds really love this truck but not so much the Ford.

mnecodowner

My 2014 EcoDiesel delivered 22.59 mpg over one year covering 23000 miles with no maintenance problems. Recently I towed my 28ft travel trailer with a total cargo weight including passengers and luggage of about 6800# a total distance of 600 miles. One-way mileage was 13.58. Returning against the wind reduced the mileage to 13.15. Using tow mode the shift selection was very good with no over-revving. At a road speed of 60-65 the engine held in a range from 1800 to 2300 rpm spitting out every bit of its advertised torque. There is plenty of power for all conditions with this load, and you can use the cruise control with no problems. However, the truck's standard coil springs are problematic with the RV, as everything starts to float above 65 mph, with standard 45# rear tire pressure. Increasing tire pressure 10# helped allowing a max speed of about 70 for adventure-free passing. I will add after-market rear helper air bags for my next venture with the trailer and/or put about 500# in the truck bed to hold things down. I suspect the optional air suspension on your test truck would be more stable. My previous truck, a 2007 5.3L Silverado with the standard 4 speed tranny, was a very unsatisfactory tow vehicle for the same trailer as it constantly over-revved to 4000 plus rpm on anything but wind-free straight and level. It also was prone to transmission over-heating, in which case the downshifting became worse. I love the 8 mpg+ fuel economy advantage of the 2014 Ram over the 2007 Chevy.
My dealer had run out of the special euro-diesel oil for the 3L when I last went for service, and gave me a 2015 5.3 Silverado as a loaner for a day. It is a major improvement over its 2007 predecessor.. the 2015 mostly stays in 4 cylinder mode delivering 20+ mph at 60-65 mph unlike the 2007 which was 4 cylinder only downhill with a tailwind. I never once achieved 20 mpg for a full tank of gas with the 2007. I'd guess the new Chevy would provide fuel economy about half way between my 07 Silverado and my 14 Ram diesel. I did a passing acceleration test from 50-70 and 50 to 80 with the 6-speed 15 Chevy. My no stopwatch time was around 10 seconds 50-70 and 15 seconds 50-80. My Ram diesel 8-speed (again, no stopwatch) went from 50 to 70 in about seven seconds, and from 50 to 80 in ten seconds with much better shift selection. Oil change on the Ram is an arm and a leg at $180. The dealer charges $60 a change for the new Silverado with a different recommended Delco synthetic oil.

bankerdanny

Why is special "Euro diesel oil" required? I would think that Shell Rotella T6 synthetic diesel motor oil would meet all the necessary requirements.

bgsntth

Taking off the step bars is leading to quicker wear of the outside bolster on the seat bottom - sliding out of the seat. No amount of careful leather conditioning will prevent excess wear.

sgilboy

Maybe the step bars just delay the wear on outside bolster because my truck (the white F150 in above pics) is starting to show wear from sliding into the seat. Just something to be conscious of when getting in and out I suppose.

mnecodowner

Regarding oil, Chrysler recommends ACEA 3C 5W30 or Pennzoil Ultra Euro L full synthetic 5W30 oil. The 6.7 Diesel takes an API CJ 4 15W40 oil.eg.-- the Shell Rotella. I'll stick with the European full synthetic technology oil for the small displacement turbo diesel where they have the most experience. The EuroDiesel can be started at lower temperatures as opposed to the 6.7 without plugging it in, making the 5W30 grade more necessary. Also, I'm getting easy starts at -10F without using the block heater, and I'd rather not deal with the longer warmup time for a 15-40 Oil. The 5-30 oil may also help with fuel economy. Fuel economy does suffer in cold weather regardless, but the effect may be offset a bit with the lighter viscosity oil. Finally,with this new engine it's prudent to stay on the approved list to keep that 100K mile warranty in force.

allthingshonda

The 6.7 Cummins has no problems starting in cold weather without plugging in. Unlike the EcoDiesel the big Cummins has an intake grid heater and two batteries to power the glow plugs, grid heater and spin the starter. And I bet the oil change for the 6.7 costs less than EcoDiesel. The Shell Rotella is cheap dino oil.