Fuel Economy Update for January - 2014 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel Long-Term Road Test

Comments

• mnecodowner Member Posts: 5

  February 2015

  I have owned an ecodiesel 4X4 for 6 1/2 months with no problems. Actual fuel economy has been 22.85 MPG over 14572 miles. Best fill MPG: 29.74 (Strong tailwind, Deming NM to Casa Grande AZ). Best tank mixed use MPG: 26.58 (Minnesota). Worst tank MPG: 15.18 (Below zero weather using #1 fuel). Fuel economy observations: Very good and consistent fuel economy up to 75 MPH. I don't see much difference in economy between 60 and 75 MPH. I don't think #1 fuel is needed unless temps are below -20F---Good #2 fuel blends in the North are rated at to -20F. #2 winter fuel seems to reduce fuel economy by 1 to 2 MPG compared to summer blends. I traded a 2007 5.3L Chevy Silverado for the Ram and have used both vehicles similarly. The Chevy delivered 14.3 MPG over the time I owned it, 8.5 MPG less than the Ram diesel. I suspect this Ram is getting about 5 MPG better than a new Ram or Chevy V8. General observations: The Ram is exceedingly quiet and has an excellent ride. It handles well but the steering is less precise than the Chevy I traded in. 0-30 acceleration is sluggish with multiple shifts. 50-90 passing performance is outstanding, like a race car. Turbo boost and great 8 speed automatic shift selection utilize the truck's torque potential and enhance performance. Downsides include the $184 dealer charge to change oil and the difficulty finding reasonably priced diesel fuel. Big freeway truck stops advertise diesel for 20 to 30 cents per gallon more than their in-town mom and pop competition. Also it is hard to find stations with DEF at the pumps, as pump DEF costs less than $3 per gallon. In containers you pay up to $9.75 per gallon for the DEF. (My truck consumes less than one gallon DEF per 1000 miles so DEF is not a serious expense if you locate the cheap stuff). I have limited experience towing a 6500# travel trailer. Shift selection is good, as is the performance of the built-in trailer brake controller. My towing use was too limited to comment on towing fuel economy.

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