EcoDiesel Ram

[bign1976]

Wondering if anyone is towing with the new Ram 1500 EcoDiesel. Would like to hear how it does towing if anyone has one.
Thanks

[BirchyBoy]

Trailer Life did a story a couple months ago on that truck hauling a large trailer. It seemed pretty positive overall.

[mikebrls]

I have one , and you can go to this site to find out a ton of info

http://www.ram1500diesel.com/


Great mpg's empty load , I average 25 to 26 mpg per tank , towing 3000 lb boat I get around 20 mpg , I am getting a 30 ft trailer soon and hope to be in the 14 to 15 mpg range ,
Warning payload is very light and the 9200 max tow rating is with a stripped single cab truck

mike

[bign1976]

Thank you Gentlemen!

[mikebrls]

The trailer I am getting is 6000 lbs dry and 7500 max and I will be at max legal weight with my truck . I have no problem being at close to max weight because the truck can handle a lot more , I just like to be with in the limit , also a good set of spring helper's is needed " air or timbrens" to help with sag , That's one reason why the truck drive's like a car when empty " the soft springs "
mike

[Hansel]

I think that is so cool that a diesel is in the smaller truck now, did I read that it has a 8 speed transmission?? That is impressive no wonder the high fuel mileage you'r probably only running above idle when going down the interstate with that many gear's.

[mikebrls]

Originally Posted by Hansel

I think that is so cool that a diesel is in the smaller truck now, did I read that it has a 8 speed transmission?? That is impressive no wonder the high fuel mileage you'r probably only running above idle when going down the interstate with that many gear's.

@ 68 mph empty your @ around 1800 rpm around 30 mpg highway
Now if you can drive 55 mph you would be around 35 mpg highway " I can't drive that slow .
Now just think I average city / highway 25 to 26 mpg per tank over 10,000 mile's driven so far with empty load

mike

[bign1976]

Originally Posted by mikebrls

@ 68 mph empty your @ around 1800 rpm around 30 mpg highway
Now if you can drive 55 mph you would be around 35 mpg highway " I can't drive that slow .
Now just think I average city / highway 25 to 26 mpg per tank over 10,000 mile's driven so far with empty load

mike

What do you get when towing?

[Ram189]

Originally Posted by bign1976

What do you get when towing?

His first post said 20 MPG pulling a 3000 lb boat, which is impressive in my book.

[mikebrls]

Originally Posted by bign1976

What do you get when towing?

so far the only thing that I have towed is my 19 foot boat @ 3000 lbs and I get 20 to 21 mpg .

There are guy's with travel trailer's on the eco forum that seem to be averaging between 14 and 15 mpg with 6000 to 8000 lb trailer depending on how fast they drive , and that's still decent mpg's but the truck really shine's when empty in the mpg category, I would say that 95 % of all my driving will be empty and I drive over 100 miles a day and thats why I got this truck .

mike

[bign1976]

That is awesome!

[goducks]

Originally Posted by BirchyBoy

Trailer Life did a story a couple months ago on that truck hauling a large trailer. It seemed pretty positive overall.

They got 12.6 mpg towing a 2015 Lance 1995. 4860lbs, 8'w x 9'9"h. Fairly low height. Frontal area is what kills mpg. That's why towing pointy low profile boats gives better mpgs.

[mikebrls]

Originally Posted by goducks

They got 12.6 mpg towing a 2015 Lance 1995. 4860lbs, 8'w x 9'9"h. Fairly low height. Frontal area is what kills mpg. That's why towing pointy low profile boats gives better mpgs.

another big factor is how fast there towing , some will tow at 70 to 80 mph vs 60 to 65 mph will make a big difference in mpg

[Hansel]

Originally Posted by mikebrls

so far the only thing that I have towed is my 19 foot boat @ 3000 lbs and I get 20 to 21 mpg .

There are guy's with travel trailer's on the eco forum that seem to be averaging between 14 and 15 mpg with 6000 to 8000 lb trailer depending on how fast they drive , and that's still decent mpg's but the truck really shine's when empty in the mpg category, I would say that 95 % of all my driving will be empty and I drive over 100 miles a day and thats why I got this truck .

mike

Well I'm curious on how they are when they get into the over 8000lb camper's, braking, fuel economy, handling,etc...

[mikebrls]

Originally Posted by Hansel

Well I'm curious on how they are when they get into the over 8000lb camper's, braking, fuel economy, handling,etc...

check out the site in the towing forum there are quite a few towing over 8000 lbs , it wont be legal but there doing it and saying good thing's about how it handle's and fuel mileage

here are some link's

7500 pounder http://www.ram1500diesel.com/forum/r...b-trailer.html

9500 pounder http://www.ram1500diesel.com/forum/r...ecodiesel.html

towing double http://www.ram1500diesel.com/forum/r...ery-happy.html

more power then susspension http://www.ram1500diesel.com/forum/r...bags-next.html

10,000 lb tow http://www.ram1500diesel.com/forum/r...ow-report.html

small 5th wheel pull atv behind http://www.ram1500diesel.com/forum/r...t-doubles.html

[Desert185]

We talk of legality and safety, but I wonder how many accidents are directly attributable to RV load exceedance?

I enjoy the freedom (as much as the next guy/gal) to push certain limits within the boundaries of my own limitations, but if there is an accident niche attributed to these folks who push the weight limits and then advertise it on a public forum, we are all in line to suffer a further loss of freedom at the hands of those who seek out areas for more regulation and enforcement, justified or otherwise. At the very least, higher RV insurance rates will affect us all. I have seen this in aviation.

I suspect the accident blame rate is minimal and/or hidden within other factors of the related causes of the accidents. In any event, I would rather not give the 'crats public proof by readily admitting that some are 20% over their vehicle's load limit in a public forum. Sometimes, we're our own worst enemy.

Off the soapbox and returning to your normally scheduled programming...

[tirnanah]

I have been wondering the same thing after reading some of those posts Desert... And after hearing about the 1500 diesels I wondered how long it was going to take people to over load them...

Granted, I am CLOSE to the maxes on my truck, which I knew going into buying the trailer. But I am still UNDER the legal maxes on my particular truck and so far have felt very comfortable pulling the trailer (except for the first trip due to not paying enough attention to my "helper"). But with an 8200 max towing and lugging around 10k+??? That just sounds like asking for trouble...

[JRTJH]

Let's do a simple comparison of two "vehicle operators" and see if the sentiment remains, "Oh well, what do I care?"...

Scenario 1: RAM 1500 diesel with a maximum payload of 1200 lbs, towing a 10,000 lb fifth wheel with a 2000 lb pin weight. While going 65 MPH (normal cruising speed and within legal limits) hits a patch of ice and slides into a school bus, destroying it and injuring 60 elementary school students.

Scenario 2: Cessna 172 with a maximum payload of 1200 lbs, pilot takes off with 6 passengers, luggage and full fuel tanks (2200 lbs of cargo/passengers), flying at cruising speed of 165knots, icing on the wings causes control problems and he begins to lose altitude. Crashes into a school bus while attempting to land, destroying the bus and injuring 60 elementary school students.

OK gang, We all know what the FAA accident team is going to do with the pilot who was flying an overloaded airplane, crash landed on a highway and injured a bunch of kids....

Question is: What's the real difference (in the public eye) between the guy in the RAM with 6 passengers and a big trailer vs the pilot with much the same problem?

I agree with Desert185 and tirnanah. Maybe some people are "really that brash, bold (or stupid)" to overload their vehicle and boast about it. But, what are the investigation result going to show and how is that going to affect all of us when the "stuff hits the fan" and the government starts looking at protecting the general public from "those crazy RV owners"???

Like other posters, I'd wonder if "boasting about it" is really a wise thing to do?

[sourdough]

x2 JRTJH. All's great until it starts to unravel.....then your chances while pulling an overloaded half ton go south quick.

[JRTJH]

Just another thought: Think back to 4 or 5 years ago when Ford was advertising the ECO BOOST engine as the "new F150 power plant". They did all kinds of endurance testing from the Baja run to towing an 11,000 pound trailer, "nonstop" for 500 hours. Then they tore down the engine to examine for wear and boasted about how the truck could perform in "rugged terrain" and "at maximum towing weights for extended times"

Not once did they boast about towing with an overloaded payload, or towing a 12,000 trailer with the truck rated at max trailer weight of 11,300. They always kept their advertisements and their limitations UNDER what the truck was rated to tow/carry/perform. They never exceeded any of the design criteria (at least publically) and not once did they boast about being able to tow 11,400 pounds. Think maybe that was intentional on the part of Ford? Hmmmmm

Also, the same 6.7L diesel is in the F250, F350 and F450. The maximum trailer weight rating goes up significantly with the F series, but Ford has never boasted in a F250 advertisement that the engine is capable of towing much more weight than the truck is rated to tow. They steer clear of even admitting that the F250 engine can tow more than the truck's rating. Hmmmmm