2020 Ecodiesel Towing Report

[Mchurch52]

Thought I’d add a towing update for my Gen 3 EcoDiesel. We just pulled our 6500 pound travel trailer up to Queen Wilhelmina State Park in AR with the Laramie EcoDiesel with 3.92 Rear end. The road to the park is a 13 mile long very steep, very winding stretch with everything from 55 MPH straightaways to 20 MPH swtichbacks. Elevation went from 1100 feet at the start to around 2700 feet at the top. The truck did fantastic, sitting in 4th or 5th gear most of the way on the steep sections with plenty of reserve power. Oil temp ran between 237-242 degrees and tranny temp never got above 194 degrees. The outside air temp was in the low 90s. The truck seemed to hang around 2500-3000 RPM, occasionally going to 4000 RPM momentarily when down shifting.

The trip up was from near sea level (166 feet) in Shreveport LA, so uphill most of the trip and I got around 12 MPG. The trip back was into a headwind and I also averaged 12 MPG.

We did the same tow a couple of years ago with my 2017 F150 with 5.0 and it had to work much harder, making the climb in 2nd gear, 4000+ RPM and trans temps over 220 (I had to pull over at one point to let it cool).

To say I’m impressed with the new EcoDiesel is an uderstatement. I’ve got just over 6000 miles on mine now and get excited every time I get behind the wheel. All of that low end torque makes towing so much more enjoyable and getting the trailer moving from a stop seem almost effortless.

 

[J-Cooz]

Awesome to hear. Can't wait to put mine to work.

 

[WXman]

Yeah I find the same with my enclosed trailer. It'll hold much higher gears than my prior gas trucks would. Since the diesel does all it's work below 3,000 RPM, it's a much more quiet and less fatiguing experience. The sound of a gas V8 screaming and the tach needle constantly swinging around will tire you out quickly on a trip like that. I don't miss it.

 

[WXman]

Just did a 500 mile trip this weekend with an ATV in the bed and a 4,400 lb. enclosed trailer on the tail. Cruise set at 70 MPH most of the way, 55 MPH in a few sections. Truck averaged 12 MPG over the trip. That's a loss of 9 MPG over what I see unloaded. Pretty substantial. A gas truck would easily get 10-12 MPG towing the same load on the same trip.

But, I still love staying in gears 6-8 almost the entire time. It's more of a pleasure.

 

[CHONRAM]

Thanks for the updates, recently purchased a ED with the intention of towing a travel trailer early next year.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[NC Rebel]

The ecodiesel will pull the travel trailer without much struggle plenty of power, but the 1500 Ram chassis/ frame is really not ideal for towing a big tall travel trailer IMO. My TT weighs in around 7500 lbs and even with a dialed in WDH the truck feels unsafe. I am not overloaded and Tongue weight was checked by installer to be within spec. plus I have air bags. On the interstate at 65 mph with a windier than normal day this truck was all over the place...white knuckled the rest of the way home. The Rebel pulls my lighter flatbed trailers with ease...not to mention my 24 foot center console boat without issue . I really should have just made the move and purchased another 2500 instead.

 

[silver billet]

I'm not dumping on the ED by any means, I think it's a really great engine and I might have bought one myself had they been available when I ordered my truck. However, just remember that 3000 - 4000 RPM's in an ED is pretty much the definition of "working the ED extremely hard". It redlines lower than the Hemi, so when the Hemi is at 4000 RPM's, it's not redlining whereas the ED is at that point.

 

[Aseras]

The ecodiesel will pull the travel trailer without much struggle plenty of power, but the 1500 Ram chassis/ frame is really not ideal for towing a big tall travel trailer IMO. My TT weighs in around 7500 lbs and even with a dialed in WDH the truck feels unsafe. I am not overloaded and Tongue weight was checked by installer to be within spec. plus I have air bags. On the interstate at 65 mph with a windier than normal day this truck was all over the place...white knuckled the rest of the way home. The Rebel pulls my lighter flatbed trailers with ease...not to mention my 24 foot center console boat without issue . I really should have just made the move and purchased another 2500 instead.

If its "all over the place" you have bad trailer sway and you NEED more tongue weight or even weight in the bed. damn the specs. also tire pressure can make a HUGE difference. consider airing up when towing.

 

[NC Rebel]

All tires on the tow vehicle and trailer were aired up to spec , tongue weight adjusted twice final set up at about 800 lbs hitch weight. I even redistributed weight to give more tongue weight , no change.

 

[J-Cooz]

Those big *** off road tired probably don't help a rebel with towing

 

[WXman]

Those big *** off road tired probably don't help a rebel with towing

They are still smaller than what's on competitors' trucks, and they're a true LT rated tire, so I doubt the Duratracs on the Rebel would be to blame for any negative towing experiences. But I guess the overall weight of the truck with those added options may hurt some.