[argoldst]

I just placed an order for a 1500 laramie ecodiesel but found a bunch of sites that have me concerned that I may have made a mistake. First off, I have ZERO experience with diesel.

I had a 2013 Ram 1500 v8 that I loved and the only thing I wanted more from it was better guess mileage. Obviously this got me thinking ecodiesel. In my mind it was the perfect match.

I rarely tow anything but enjoy my trucks as simple commuters for local and long distance trips.

However, I am reading many posts about the smell espeically in the cabin. I have 2 young girls and do not want to expose them to any of that. Some people seem to say there is no smell at all. Others say it is normal diesel smells and every ecodiesel truck will have. The final group says the smells are so bad they can't drive the truck and wish they never bought it.

Please post your personal experience with this and how often/how bad it is. Based on my wants, would you recommend it or tell me to maybe go pentstar or go ford ecoboost?

 

[BigHornEco]

Hello, I have almost 21,000 on mine and love it! I have a Big Horn 4x4 crew and it has been a real pleasure. I traded my 07 hemi that I loved for this truck and it is a perfect balance of power and control. The smell in the cab issues seem to have been mostly the 4x2 models. A lot of the issues that were discovered by the 2014 owners have been addressed and though there may still be issues, the odds are much more in your favor. I just logged 28mpg in mine today driving to work. I have done this several times though I would say my average is 23-24 with a mix of city and highway driving. I have the 3:92 gears and would have preferred the 3:55's for better mileage if I could have picked. I wouldn't go the V-6 gas route for many reasons and I sure as all that's Holy wouldn't go the supercharged gas route from Ford. That would be very hard to control the throttle response and thus very difficult to obtain the gas mileage Ford claims. That and I have never seen a gas supercharged or turbo charged engine with the word longevity in the same sentence with anything other then theory. I could be wrong but it's not something I would bet on. Good luck in your choice. I love mine.

 

[Kevin1492]

I've only had the truck two months and 1k miles. I do not drive it every day but I have moved boats, hauled a camper and picked up a load of lumber with it. It has been perfect! I have read all the negative things you have and their are a lot of people that are going to try to convince you of problems that you won't have. My car is a Mini and if you go to the forum you would think it was the most unreliable car on earth. I've had two and never had a problem. Remember when you read these post that sometimes things do just go wrong, other times it can be a maintenances issue and other times it is operator related. Sometimes there is some embellishment and other times these posts are outright stories by people who just want to get you wound up. It is a great truck, it will serve you well and I am sure you will enjoy it.


Good Luck with it!


Kevin

 

[EricSorensen]

I have over 15K miles on mine now. I did have the smell in the cab issue and it DID take a long time to get resolved. (and it was resolved) I love my truck and the fact I get double the mpg I used to get (2006 Nissan Armada traded in) and the diesel is cheaper here in So. Cal I get the best of everything right now. I'm saving almost $200/month in just fuel cost so yes I am very happy!!
If you are concerned like I was get the extended warranty so it's all on them to fix any issues. I figure if it doesn't break in the first 100k miles I'm probably good to go. After that there will be after market parts to ease in maint and upgrades.
If this is your first diesel (mine was) learn about DEF and fuel filter/oil changes. My dealer has a special for 3 oil changes for $205. I know that sounds expensive but it takes a lot of synthetic oil (10 or 12 quarts if memory serves) but only needs to be done every 10k miles so it pans out in the long run.
Enjoy your truck!!!

 

[Haulin]

I have over 15K miles on mine now. I did have the smell in the cab issue and it DID take a long time to get resolved. (and it was resolved) I love my truck and the fact I get double the mpg I used to get (2006 Nissan Armada traded in) and the diesel is cheaper here in So. Cal I get the best of everything right now. I'm saving almost $200/month in just fuel cost so yes I am very happy!!
If you are concerned like I was get the extended warranty so it's all on them to fix any issues. I figure if it doesn't break in the first 100k miles I'm probably good to go. After that there will be after market parts to ease in maint and upgrades.
If this is your first diesel (mine was) learn about DEF and fuel filter/oil changes. My dealer has a special for 3 oil changes for $205. I know that sounds expensive but it takes a lot of synthetic oil (10 or 12 quarts if memory serves) but only needs to be done every 10k miles so it pans out in the long run.
Enjoy your truck!!!

Would you say going to a different dealer might have resulted in a better turn around time for getting the problem resolved?

 

[EricSorensen]

No at the time the part was being redesigned and for some reason they are slow to respond. Not a dealer issue but a RAM issue. Logistics and remanufacturing of a part takes a long time in Corporate World.:crying:

 

[Katoom250SX]

Just turned 10k last week.....14 crew 6'4 " laramie. Only 2 issues for me since I bought it.
1. Had a noise in the dash - fixed. It was just a loose fastener.
2. Led dome light went out - fixed.

Awesome truck! I had an 04 dakota v8 quad cab 4x4 prior. This was my 1st diesel as well. It's not rocket science - read the manual and absorb the good info here. I truly believe some have mistaken the interior odor as the truck going through an unannounced regen. I'm sure most have been true problems, but until I purchased an aftermarket gauge I had an occasional hot smell.....it was simply the exhaust tipping the 1200 degree farenhite mark. The odor was not offensive, but certainly noticeable. I watch it go into an unannounced regen every 150 - 200 miles. I'd certainly recommend an aftermarket gauge......minimal cost and if you are into readings like me it's useful!

 

[Katoom250SX]

My wording was poor about the smell. When I purchased the gauge it didn't stop the odor, it just simply confirmed what was going on ( dpf exhaust regen ).

 

[schmeg]

Its a really nice truck. You'll be fine. Sounds like the post 3/15 production trucks have all updates included too. I don't get any smell in the cab. If you sit at a light with the window down during a regen you may get a little smell. Not a big deal.