ecodiesel driving experience

[AdamChandler]

I currently have a 2020 Limited hemi 4x4 3.92. I've been 'considering' a 2021 limited ED 4x4. Not sure on gearing yet. I'm trying to justify the costs I suppose. The ED is what, 2/3s higher than the hemi on the build sheet? Plus 10c more a gallon give or take? So my truck, leveled, with 285/55/22 Nittos gets 14 city, 16ish on highway. I know the Eco will give better milege, but at what point do I see the benefit if i rarely tow? I'm talking overal cost to MPG. 1 year? 5?

Everyone has to do their own math because, where I am, rolling 24 month diesel prices are actually less than I’m paying today since my Volkswagen requires 93 which runs about $3.40 a gallon in NH. Diesel has been $2.70-$2.99 for last 24 months.

Upgrade cost on the Limited was $3200 more

3.92 Gearing for $95 extra

Here’s 42 EcoDiesels - https://www.fuelly.com/car/ram/1500/2021?engineconfig_id=238&bodytype_id=&submodel_id=

21 MPG average on that page BUT a lot of outliers here so since I plan on keeping low rolling resistant tires, Toneaux cover and keeping the air damn / shutters active and running in Eco mode on the air suspension. I’m going to conservatively stick with 25 MPG. I don’t have traffic where I live and mostly drive highways sub-73 MPH.

So I did the math for myself with Diesel at $2.90 a gallon, $3300 initial up front cost would mean that I’ll need to put about 1140 gallons in the vehicle to hit $3300.

But more importantly, my Volkswagen Golf gets 24 MPG and costs 14.1 cents a mile. The eco diesel will cost 12 cents a mile.

At a differential per mile of 2.1 cents per mile, it’s going to take a very long time for me personally to make back my eco diesel up front cost.

BUT, if you compare it to the Hemi V8 W/ e-torque which is standard on the Limited - https://www.fuelly.com/car/ram/1500/2021?engineconfig_id=411&bodytype_id=&submodel_id=

15.42 MPG OR @ my gasoline prices of about $3.00 a gallon rolling 87 octane over last 24 months, that’s a cost of 19 cents per mile OR about 7 cents more per mile than the diesel.

$3300 / .07 = 47,142 so that’s how many miles I have to drive before the eco diesel starts to pay for itself.

I’m leaving the price of the diesel filters out of this equation…maintenance is higher on the diesel.

For me, it comes down to more torque, visiting the gas station once a month, long road trips (I usually drive for 8 hours straight before I have to pee) and resale value as a Diesel pickup in northern New Hampshire/Vermont/Maine is highly desirable..they’re just more rare up here. So I’m happy with the decision.

You’ll need to track average fuel prices in your area and your HEMI MPG over last couple of years to find out your break-even odometer.

 

[WXman]

I currently have a 2020 Limited hemi 4x4 3.92. I've been 'considering' a 2021 limited ED 4x4. Not sure on gearing yet. I'm trying to justify the costs I suppose. The ED is what, 2/3s higher than the hemi on the build sheet? Plus 10c more a gallon give or take? So my truck, leveled, with 285/55/22 Nittos gets 14 city, 16ish on highway. I know the Eco will give better milege, but at what point do I see the benefit if i rarely tow? I'm talking overal cost to MPG. 1 year? 5?

Well, per Fuelly the Hemi is a 15 MPG truck as you have seen yourself. The EcoD in that configuration is a 21 MPG truck. So if you do the fuel math you're saving just a little monthly there, but then you remove some savings due to the high maintenance costs, so there's not much "meat left on the bone". Just depends on what you do with the truck I guess.

 

[silver billet]

I currently have a 2020 Limited hemi 4x4 3.92. I've been 'considering' a 2021 limited ED 4x4. Not sure on gearing yet. I'm trying to justify the costs I suppose. The ED is what, 2/3s higher than the hemi on the build sheet? Plus 10c more a gallon give or take? So my truck, leveled, with 285/55/22 Nittos gets 14 city, 16ish on highway. I know the Eco will give better milege, but at what point do I see the benefit if i rarely tow? I'm talking overal cost to MPG. 1 year? 5?

In today's market (ie what you can get for your truck), I would say it probably doesn't make sense financially if you're doing it for < 5 years. Before this covid market started? You would never make the money back with your loss in trade and increase cost of diesel fuel. Certainly not less than 10 years unless all you do is drive every day.

Lets say it costs you $10,000 to switch/upgrade. A loss of $10,000 buys a ton of gas, and remember that $10K is not for the fuel itself, it's for the difference/savings in fuel only, ie what it costs you to run the hemi on gas over and above what it costs you to run the diesel in gas. So if you spend $2000 on hemi/gas, and $1500 on diesel you save $500/year; it would take 20 years for the loss in trade of 10K to balance out. Numbers pulled from thin air but you can adjust to your situation and get the point.

Your current highway number seems quite low, but if you level and put nittos on an ED and drive the same way I wouldn't count on super high MPG with a 3.92 diesel either.

But if you were going to take the hit anyway on a new truck because you just want a new one, or you like how the ED drives, then none of that matters of course.

 

[Finn5033]

My thought on getting the ecodiesel is this. If you want it and can afford it then just get it, don’t worry about the fuel and maintenance differences.

If you have the need for it, as in lots of miles put on and fairly regular towing, then it is the best engine option and a smart choice.

I wanted one back when they first came out but at that time in my life I couldn’t afford the added up front cost. Now days I can afford to get what I want and I honestly don’t care if it is needed or not. Although mine is put to very good use.

 

[tom318]

Everyone has to do their own math because, where I am, rolling 24 month diesel prices are actually less than I’m paying today since my Volkswagen requires 93 which runs about $3.40 a gallon in NH. Diesel has been $2.70-$2.99 for last 24 months.

Upgrade cost on the Limited was $3200 more

3.92 Gearing for $95 extra

Here’s 42 EcoDiesels - https://www.fuelly.com/car/ram/1500/2021?engineconfig_id=238&bodytype_id=&submodel_id=

21 MPG average on that page BUT a lot of outliers here so since I plan on keeping low rolling resistant tires, Toneaux cover and keeping the air damn / shutters active and running in Eco mode on the air suspension. I’m going to conservatively stick with 25 MPG. I don’t have traffic where I live and mostly drive highways sub-73 MPH.

So I did the math for myself with Diesel at $2.90 a gallon, $3300 initial up front cost would mean that I’ll need to put about 1140 gallons in the vehicle to hit $3300.

But more importantly, my Volkswagen Golf gets 24 MPG and costs 14.1 cents a mile. The eco diesel will cost 12 cents a mile.

At a differential per mile of 2.1 cents per mile, it’s going to take a very long time for me personally to make back my eco diesel up front cost.

BUT, if you compare it to the Hemi V8 W/ e-torque which is standard on the Limited - https://www.fuelly.com/car/ram/1500/2021?engineconfig_id=411&bodytype_id=&submodel_id=

15.42 MPG OR @ my gasoline prices of about $3.00 a gallon rolling 87 octane over last 24 months, that’s a cost of 19 cents per mile OR about 7 cents more per mile than the diesel.

$3300 / .07 = 47,142 so that’s how many miles I have to drive before the eco diesel starts to pay for itself.

I’m leaving the price of the diesel filters out of this equation…maintenance is higher on the diesel.

For me, it comes down to more torque, visiting the gas station once a month, long road trips (I usually drive for 8 hours straight before I have to pee) and resale value as a Diesel pickup in northern New Hampshire/Vermont/Maine is highly desirable..they’re just more rare up here. So I’m happy with the decision.

You’ll need to track average fuel prices in your area and your HEMI MPG over last couple of years to find out your break-even odometer.

I think your safe considering 25mpg average. I understand why some look at fuelly for real world numbers but those numbers are skewed due to many modified trucks (large tires) and a lot of people tow/haul with their trucks. I don't use fuelly so its possible towing figures are separate from non towing? I've yet to see anything even close to 21 driving unloaded with no trailer. In fact the worst MPG I've had so far was 19mpg towing a little over 3k. I just returned from a similar trip and averaged 23.6mpg towing 850miles with 2800#s. I typically average 26-27mpg for my entire 33gal tank driving unloaded, 45-65mph mixed highway/city. I'm not one to step on it or drive hard/fast with this truck.

 

[WXman]

I understand why some look at fuelly for real world numbers but those numbers are skewed due to many modified trucks (large tires) and a lot of people tow/haul with their trucks. I don't use fuelly so its possible towing figures are separate from non towing? I've yet to see anything even close to 21 driving unloaded with no trailer. In fact the worst MPG I've had so far was 19mpg towing a little over 3k. I just returned from a similar trip and averaged 23.6mpg towing 850miles with 2800#s. I typically average 26-27mpg for my entire 33gal tank driving unloaded, 45-65mph mixed highway/city. I'm not one to step on it or drive hard/fast with this truck.

Yeah that's why Fuelly is nice. You get to see REAL numbers. There are hundreds of thousands of combined EcoDiesel miles tracked on there now, and if you click on a model year, sort by diesel engine, and start looking at individual numbers you'll see that VERY few of them are seeing window sticker numbers. These trucks are just not as fuel thrifty as the EPA says they are.

Now, I'm sure some of those guys tow. And I'm sure some of them have a leveling kit or tires or something. But you can flip through all the trucks on there and clearly see that most of them don't have mods. A lot of them are just stock trucks that are daily driven.

I just took a 160 mile trip on 55 MPH highways last weekend, perfect weather, windows up, stock wheels and tires back on, and saw the best MPG I've ever seen with this truck since I got it. So it is possible to get upper 20s in perfect conditions. But for 98% of guys who are driving mixed city/highway and using it as a truck occasionally, it's a low 20s MPG truck week after week.

 

[Bad Notch]

I currently have a 2020 Limited hemi 4x4 3.92. I've been 'considering' a 2021 limited ED 4x4. Not sure on gearing yet. I'm trying to justify the costs I suppose. The ED is what, 2/3s higher than the hemi on the build sheet? Plus 10c more a gallon give or take? So my truck, leveled, with 285/55/22 Nittos gets 14 city, 16ish on highway. I know the Eco will give better milege, but at what point do I see the benefit if i rarely tow? I'm talking overal cost to MPG. 1 year? 5?

I tow kind of often. I would get the 3.21's, especially now that they have the engine tuning spot on.

 

[mhb1638]

Thanks everyone. I appreciate the feedback. Considering the etorque over ED sure to the costs. As others stated, it would take a few years to recouped the uofront costs over a hemi and I usually trade after a couple years.

 

[Erik Alanis]

Hello everyone. Back in august 2020 i traded a 2019 AT4 w/ 6.2 liter for a 2020 ecodiesel. 2 weeks ago a traded up to a 21 longhorn ecodiesel. I liked this engine so much, im not buying anything else. In 7 months i put 32,000 miles on the previous eco. The def tank needed to be filled at @ 4000 miles +/- 100. It had 3.21 rear end w/ 4x4 offroad package. The downshifting was horrible w/ 295 60 r20 nitto ridge grapplers so i like the ride with original size tires. This longhorn has 3.92 and handles the bigger size tires great. Only downshifts going over a tall bypass against 20mph winds. Never saw more than 21mpg with original tires and never saw more than 19 mpg with big tires but does way batter than the 6.2 corvette engine as far as mpg

 

[J-Cooz]

I had a 2019 Hemi and hated it and traded for a 2020 Ecodiesel and I love it.

Do what makes you happy. It will never make sense to financially to switch, but neither does driving a 70k truck, so who gives a $hit. Life is too short.

 

[Rebelguy2020]

Thanks everyone. I appreciate the feedback. Considering the etorque over ED sure to the costs. As others stated, it would take a few years to recouped the uofront costs over a hemi and I usually trade after a couple years.

Just a comment for you to think of, everybody is saying the ecodiesel’s extra cost won’t pay for itself for so many years or so many miles....there are so many options that cost a lot of money, is worth the extra cost, my truck’s window sticker base price was over $62,000 and with the options it was $80,140 that’s before adding the dealer options, the tonneau cover, the running boards, the rust proofing and undercoating, the dealership and manufacturer gave me a discount of over $17,000 so did the ecodiesel really cost me more?
It comes down to what you want.
I really wanted the diesel for its fuel efficiency and I am really pleased with it so far, I feel good every time I have to fuel up my truck, knowing that it would have cost me more on every fill up if I had purchased the Hemi.
So just to clarify, I have the Harmon Kardon 19 speaker system, that’s only one of the many options, that will never pay for itself, right, at least the Diesel engine saves me money, at every fill up, for the entire time that I will own it, something to think about.

 

[Dragonmaster13]

With my mileage and towing the cost including extra maintenance will be paid for in 4-4.5 years. Diesel is 10cents per litre cheaper than gas here and the extra maintenance is more than offset vs my current Hemi that gets 12-13 mpg on a good day and my last towing trip was 6.5 mpg. The ED at 20, being conservative, and 12-14 towing is nearly double daily and is double towing, so very worth it.

 

[mhb1638]

From what I'm reading though the ED needs a tune to reduce the bad lag in it. I rarely tow ... Maybe a uhaul or something here and there. I drive 30 miles to work with most on the hwy. I also have 285/55 tires so it's a bit heavier than factory. But I've always like the eco

 

[thedream829]

You can't leave a diesel idling?

 

[392DCGC]

From what I'm reading though the ED needs a tune to reduce the bad lag in it. I rarely tow ... Maybe a uhaul or something here and there. I drive 30 miles to work with most on the hwy. I also have 285/55 tires so it's a bit heavier than factory. But I've always like the eco

There is no lag in my truck. I push the pedal and it goes. March 2021 build date. There was a TSB for earlier built trucks, but I have not driven an older one to compare. For anyone considering, just test drive and ideally buy a fresh build to see if you like it.

400 miles on my EcoDiesel so far and Iove it more every time I drive it. Do not miss the Hemi at all. In the stock 2020 Limited 4x4 3.21 eTorque e-LSD 22" wheels I had, I averaged 17.7 MPG over 10K miles running 90 octane tracked via Fuelly. For some reason, the 2019 I had (identical build) was closer to 19 MPG and I don't know why it was better. Haven't had to fill up my EcoDiesel yet, but the lie-meter is showing 26 MPG with the same driving habits... so 17.7 with the Hemi to about 26 MPG with the EcoDiesel (not broken in yet either) in my case. Oh, and my EcoD has 3.92 gears!

Maintenance is higher, but not concerning for me anyway. My dealer has diesel oil changes for $100 a pop. I haven't asked about fuel filters, but don't plan to. It's a $40 part and you can change it in 5 minutes in your driveway or garage - it's dead simple.

 

[J-Cooz]

You can't leave a diesel idling?

The new ones don't like it. You should really idle any engine too long.

 

[Dirtdoc]

As far as idling need to bump rpms over 1000 if you do much. 18 hemi longhorn, Az and back every year. Hemi avg 13-16 mpg depending on wind, etc, alot of 70-80 mph. ED same conditions 23-28. Huge difference. As far as any throttle lag, turbo spool takes a moment but otherwise acceleration is very impressive. 21 limited built in Nov 20.

 

[Croaker]

They fixed the lag on my 2016 with the latest software update. Now if goes when you push the pedal.

 

[Sascwatch]

The power train in this new truck continues to impress me, just got done towing a 7x17ft enclosed trailer weighing over 6000lbs loaded 1500km and averaged 18.2L/100km. My old gas truck with similar loads was 28-29L/100km.

The truck stayed in 7th gear most of the time only downshifting on the steeper grades, no signs of a struggle from the truck whatsoever.

On the return trip I was lightly loaded without the trailer and got 8.4L/100km or 28mpg over the 1458km return trip.

 

[Rebelguy2020]

The power train in this new truck continues to impress me, just got done towing a 7x17ft enclosed trailer weighing over 6000lbs loaded 1500km and averaged 18.2L/100km. My old gas truck with similar loads was 28-29L/100km.

The truck stayed in 7th gear most of the time only downshifting on the steeper grades, no signs of a struggle from the truck whatsoever.

On the return trip I was lightly loaded without the trailer and got 8.4L/100km or 28mpg over the 1458km return trip.

I get very similar fuel mileage, what is more impressive is if you convert 8.4L/100km to Canadian mpg it is 33.6 mpg.
Did you do the hand calculations for your results, I found that the EVIC shows 1 mpg better than it is, most of the time, but still very impressive either way!
Do you keep track of your DEF usage? I got over 700km/L on the last fill.
I will be doing a 1000km trip with my 8x16 loaded trailer soon, moving my daughter to Quebec, “je me souviens” is the logo on their plates in that province. I will post my mpg.
You must have many KMs on your truck now.