I took my Ram into my dealer a couple weeks ago for an oil change. It had just over 810 miles on it and they refused stating it didn't need it yet. I explained this truck was originally shipped to a New York dealership where it sat/had test drives (one would assume) from late October 2020 until February 2021 when they traded/shipped it and two other new 2021 Ecodiesels to a local dealership here in Houston. At that time, the truck sat and/or was test driven at the local dealership from February 2021 to July 31 when I purchased it. These trucks are shipped in "Transport Mode" which does not record engine hours or engine miles. One never knows how long the truck has been idled or driven thus I wanted to be safe rather than sorry by having my first oil change done early. Please understand I've owned diesels for years and am not concerned about the color (although it was black when I purchased it with 35 miles on the odometer) as that is the nature of a diesel. My philosophy is why tempt fate - oil changes are cheap, Ecodiesels are not and the headache of dealing with a dealer over a blow engine under warranty is typically migraine inducing.
Here in Texas we have Ramcare in which every new Ram owner gets four free oil changes for the first two years of ownership. I wanted to utilize one of my free oil changes to do this yet they refused stating it wasn't time. The Service Advisor stated I could pay for one but that I couldn't utilize one of my free oil changes. I could smell that greedy, money grubbing bastard from a mile away so I just smiled, climbed back into my truck, resolved to not go back to that dealership for maintenance, and proceeded to purchase the spec oil/filter from Walmart and changed it myself last night. Other than the tight clearance between the oil drain plug and the lower frame support it was simple, quick and I know it was done correctly. My biggest fear was the pimple faced kid at the dealership assuming my 3rd gen Ecodiesel takes as much oil as a 2nd gen Ecodiesel, using a non-spec oil, failing to torque everything down, not cleaning up after job or worse.
It really made me wonder why we all continue to purchase Rams (and they supposedly have the highest owner loyalty) when most of us avoid going to the dealer for any service work as it is typically an appalling and dreadful experience.