Sold to CarMax - 2014 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel Long-Term Road Test

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Sold to CarMax - 2014 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel Long-Term Road Test

We sold our 2014 Ram 1500 to CarMax. Here's how it went down.

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kirkhilles1

This certainly seems like a good deal. Getting an instant offer for 37% depreciation after the equivalent of 4 years of driving with no bumper to bumper and only about 10k left on the powertrain warranty (good for what you guys went through early on) and doing it basically at the bottom of gas prices (plus the VW diesel drama) where not many consumers are going to be looking for a Diesel is pretty impressive. That'd be like paying $385 a month for a $50k vehicle.

kirkhilles1

It should also be noted this "The EcoDiesel is very much in demand, and the dealer didn't budge from $50,510."

I have no idea what type of deals you can get on Rams and whether the EcoDiesel is still "very much in demand", but only having 37% depreciation FROM ORIGINAL MSRP is pretty darn good. If, instead, you could get $5k off that $50k vehicle now (just 10% off), depreciation would only be about 29%.

red_xj2000

There's actually 50k miles left on the powertrain warranty. The EcoDiesel has a 5yr/100k powertrain warranty as did the gas versions during the 2014-15 model years.

ebeaudoin

http://www.carmax.com/enus/view-car/default.html?id=12802212&AVi=1&No=0&Rp=R&D=90&zip=12543&N=4294963070+4294962706+4294963049+4294963166&Q=b2a095c3-6b85-4f1c-88af-40dce3d62a33&Ep=search:results:results page

They've got it listed at $37,998. Whoa.

daryleason

I don't think you got a bad deal on the trade-in of the truck. I don't think the diesel paid for itself though. The fuel economy was great, at 22 MPG, but the increased cost of purchasing the diesel engine when new, increased cost of diesel fuel, increased service requirements, and the cost of the DEF offset any fuel savings over the gas engine, such as the 5.7 Liter Hemi. The only real benefit was the towing capacity, and as was shown by the use of the F-150 with the EcoBoost, wouldn't have been required for what they used it for. Basically, I don't believe the Diesel Option paid for itself.

throwback

Seems like a good deal in an era of >$2 gallon gas. What's next?

nate001

Given that you paid about the same for the Ford and have averaged 5 MPG better with this truck and it was well liked by the staff and was able to handle the towing and dirt trails with ease.

I would call that all these things a win for this truck.

jakek66

Seems like a good deal. Especially since if they discount now, you could get one new for only 5-8k more than they will sell this for used. Diesels will last another 150k+ though so whoever has it next can run it an awfully long time still.

daryleason

jakek66 said:

... Diesels will last another 150k+ though so whoever has it next can run it an awfully long time still.

I get what you're saying, but this isn't as big of a deal now as it used to be. I remember, back in the early 80s, how amazed people were when a car hit 100K miles. Then, in the early 90s, it wasn't uncommon for them to hit 150k. Now, its routine to see cars hit 200K or more. I had a '98 Buick Regal GS with the Supercharged 3.8 Liter V6 bust through the 300K mark. The guy that bought it from me is still driving it and loves it. Gas engine durability has come a long way in a relatively short period of time. The key is to take care of them and make sure you do the required maintenance.

nagant

kirkhilles1 said:

It should also be noted this "The EcoDiesel is very much in demand, and the dealer didn't budge from $50,510."

I have no idea what type of deals you can get on Rams and whether the EcoDiesel is still "very much in demand", but only having 37% depreciation FROM ORIGINAL MSRP is pretty darn good. If, instead, you could get $5k off that $50k vehicle now (just 10% off), depreciation would only be about 29%.

The EDs have $1500 cash on the hood so I would say the huge demand days are over. There are some people that only want diesel because its a diesel and I think that part of the market has been captured (at least for those that will consider a Ram).

gslippy

Assuming simple exponential depreciation, my math says that the 12-month depreciation would have been 22%, since your 22-month depreciation was 37%.

I guess you did OK, but it still works out to $841/month in depreciation. If you had taken a loan on this vehicle, you'd be terribly upside down on the money.

allthingshonda

I'm sure you would have received a better offer if it wasn't for VW's diesel debacle.

nagant

No matter how one spins it, unless you plan on keeping your ED for many, many years and plan on putting on a huge amount of miles, it wont work out as a value win for the diesel.

carguydaryl

I'd say that's a decent value seeing as how you put so many miles on it in a short period of time. I'm so tired of hearing the "value" argument on diesel as the value goes far beyond just the $$$. The ease in how the truck moves and the little impact to fuel economy while towing or driving it slightly aggressively are huge plusses and add up value in other ways. When you go easy on them, they really reward you in gas mileage and the more highway driving you do, the larger the spread on fuel economy. I've ridden in a few of them and the small diesel really fits how I drive a truck. I really want an EcoDiesel if I was going to unload $50k on a truck... even at a 3-4k premium and waiting for the initial demand to die-down, it makes a lot of sense.

misterfusion

Also, at least in SoCal, diesel is not much more expensive than gas. The only issue is that the price can vary unbelievably from station to station (moreso than gas prices). It's like some stations don't know what diesel is for, or that the other stations in the neighborhood are selling it for $1 less...

allthingshonda

nagant said:

No matter how one spins it, unless you plan on keeping your ED for many, many years and plan on putting on a huge amount of miles, it wont work out as a value win for the diesel.

I agree. The same truck with Hemi power would be a much better value to buy and to maintain. IMO if you're buying a full size truck fuel economy is a factor but it's not high on the list. The money you save in fuel cost versus the Hemi is gone after the first oil change.

stanlaurel

There's no half-ton available that rides better than the Ram, period. Undisputable. The luxe cabin, great mileage, and towing ability made this a no-brainer for me. !5,000 miles on my '15 Laramie Ecodiesel so far and the only way I could be happier is if I didn't have to pay for it.

rod_r

Based on the comments I think a lot of folks have the idea that everyone buys the EcoDiesel to save money on fuel. Fuel is cheap now so I don't think the fuel costs are a huge factor in the purchase of a $50,000 truck. I bought my 2016 because I really liked the Ram 1500 and prefer the driving characteristics of the diesel. I don't need and didn't want to pay fir an HD diesel. The EcoDiesel feels quick in normal driving even though it won't win many races. My previous truck was a 2013 2wd Hemi. In normal driving the diesel feels quicker to me. Of course the 13' had a 6 speed auto rather than the 8 speed. Hard to believe that the Eco is only 3 liters. I really like that I generally get 600 plus miles on a tank. I mostly stop when I want to rather than when I have to. It is likely the best road trip vehicle I've ever owned. It feels the same at 90 as it does at 55. And it gets 22mpg at 85-90. I drive weekly on Texas 130 where the speed limit is either 80 or 85 depending upon what part of it you're on. I get 24-25 driving in town and at better at typical highway speeds. I have had some trips in the low 30s. In a 6400lb 4 wheel drive truck. That just amazes me. Is demand down for the EcoDiesel? I don't know. In 2015 all my local dealers had lots of them. I had trouble finding one in central Texas in December 2015 when I bought mine. I imagine that when fuel cost inevitably start rising that it might even start to make economic sense. Regardless I am very happy with mine.