[cdrookie]

pulled the trigger on a new truck yesterday, 014 1500 laramie. averaged 27.1 mpg on the 125 mile ride home, city/hwy. power wise it's close to my 010 hemi, and if it wasn't for the badges you wouldn't even realize you were driving a diesel.

[bankbook]

Congrats on the purchase. Did they move on the price?
Do you have any intentions on towing?
I have been looking at this truck as well, but won't commit until I talk to some one with personal experience with it. My 2500 series silverado is killing my wallet with 13.5 mpg high way with my daily 200 mile r/t commute.

Any info you can provide about your experience in the short future would be appreciated.

[cdrookie]

i did a good bit of research on ram1500diesel.com before deciding on it vs another hemi(or ecoboost). i tow a 18' bass boat but only 10 miles round trip to the lake, so that won't be fair to comment on. plan on taking a 6x12 enclosed trailer with my motorcycle on vacation next month, so that'll be a good test. my hemi only got 12's pulling it across I80.


dealer had almost 8k in rebates advertised but nobody will ever qualify for all of them, so i got about half that, plus we get supplier discount through work(1% under invoice)but that's smoke and mirrors...and i had 2 trades, so deal was ok, but if there was more of these on dealer lots i know a better deal could be had.

[cdrookie]

if i was you i'd wait for the 15's to come out and hopefully they will fix the few bugs common on these, and more info will be available about reliability.that's what i should've done.

[Baron Von Zeppelin]

Originally Posted by cdrookie

... averaged 27.1 mpg on the 125 mile ride home, city/hwy.

That is Very Very Impressive fuel mileage for a vehicle that size .

What size is the engine -- cylinders / liters ?
What is their method of getting that kind of mpg ?

That mpg number will likely increase in 1-2 years after it wears in some.

[cdrookie]

it's a turbocharged 3.0 v-6 with an 8speed auto tranny and 3:55 gears. vw has been using the engine for 4 yrs overseas, and they've been available in the grand cherokee's for a couple years now. has 240hp/420tq(at 2500rpm's). one of the diesel magazines did a test on them and saw 30+mpg.

[David Holmberg]

I saw the commercial for it tonight for the first time, looks great.

I will be interested depending on the final price.

Congrats.

[Baron Von Zeppelin]

I'm a VW Diesel enthusiast/collector and have been driving them exclusively for about 7 years as my daily drivers. 49-52 mpg overall averages.

Just want to warn you guys that after your MPG doubles for just 25cents more a gallon - there is never any going back to the gas hogs.
I am a fully reformed gasaholic.

Trucks like this will be payback vehicles when they hit the used car markets in about 5-8 years.

New versus New with similar monthly payments - they will be semi-payback right from the start to anyone who does a lot of miles yearly in a truck.

Congrats to you and Thanks for sharing the info.

[Baron Von Zeppelin]

Forgot to ask if it has to have the new clean burn additive ?
I'm not sure what the overall expense is with that stuff.
Might put a small dent in the cents per mile equation.

[David Holmberg]

Baron my first diesel was an 81 Rabbit, very basic but amazing little car. I've been hooked on diesels since. I've been tempted by the newer jetta's but worry about all the crap they've added under the hood.

[2002Z4CSS]

Had to believe a truck could get that kind of economy. This style Dodge is probably the best truck they ever made.

[cdrookie]

yes Baron, there's a tank for DEF(diesel exhaust fluid), it's 8 gallons and people have been averaging 1000miles/gallon. it depends on your driving habits though. of course dodge claims you need to use theirs(at around $8/gallon)but big truck stops sell it at the pump($2.60 when i checked the other day), walmart has it in 2.5 gallon boxes for $12, and most auto parts stores also carry it now.

oil changes cost $130-$150!!! but they recommend 10,000 miles before changing.

there has been some issues with the check engine light coming on and numerous other codes popping up on the dash. appears to be sensor issues. but due to how new these ram's are nobody really knows what the problem is. service departments have had people's trucks for a month trying to figure out what is going on and ram engineers aren't much help. that worries me a little and is why i recommend people waiting for the 015's.

[njsteve]

Why does the oil change cost so much?

[cdrookie]

Filters are $35-50 depending on where you get them and it holds something like 13 quarts of oil that has to meet certain specs

[72projectbird]

You can tune out that DEF crap. Thats what most diesel owners do.


Nice truck!

[David Jones]

I'll be interested in day to day mileage.

What speeds got the 27.1?

My 5.0 Ford got 23.1 on a trip to Georgia but speeds never broke 65.

[59safaricat]

Nice truck! I'm surprised it has taken this long for trucks to have diesels in them again. I had a buddy with a mid 80's Toyota pickup that had a 2L diesel and 5 speed manual transmission. Can't remember now if it was turbo charged or not (been almost 20 years), but Toyota made them with and without. It would get slightly over 50 MPG on the highway and low-mid 30's in town. I didn't believe it until we took a long trip in it. Took 113 miles of driving after a fill up for the fuel gauge to move!

[The Champ]

Most DEF is produced by TerraCair - and then relabeled by Ford, GM, Chrysler etc.

DEF will lose it's potency with time and heat - so buying from a bulk tank may not be a good idea unless you know that it is refilled often.

If you buy jugs, make sure to sore in a climate controlled environment (summertime) as excessive heat for prolonged periods will make it virtually useless. In the winter it can freeze - so you want to make sure it's not frozen when you want to refill your tank. The tank has a heater.

I have several fleet customers that I supply with it.

[60man]

What is the advertised towing capacity ?
Curious as it's a 1/2 ton truck.
Sounds like it should be great for light to medium towing..+ a daily driver.
Diesels are here!!
I love my old F250 7.3 diesel...I have got close to 25 MPG with it...empty.
A buddy is a VW TDI freak and pounds me with his 52-54 MPG..

[76LQ9TA]

9200 lbs towing. Friend at work picked one up about 6 weeks ago. It's about 27 mpg average. Took it to the dealer last week for a check engine light. They said it was one of the sensors. His was the first one the dealer received. It's quieter than my 2011 Silverado.