Diesel Performance

[Matstock4]

I'm currently driving a 2015 4wd Quad Cab Ram 1500 3.0 Ecodiesel (same engine. more or less, that will be in the JT) and I have generally been very happy with it. It was nice 100% stock, and I have gotten, truly, hand-calculated, 28 MPG with it under ideal conditions of clear cruising around 50-55 on open rural 2 lane highways. I average in the low 20s during VT winters and mid 20s in VT summers. It tows with great ease and gusto, including things as heavy as a car carrier with another 4500lb vehicle on it, or a big dropdeck trailer with a 4000+ milling machine on it. A little-publicized company called Green Diesel Engineering (GDE) (I don't know if it is acceptable to post their web address here- I am sure that you can find them via Google) does an ECU swap that wakes it up substantially without stressing anything, improves MPG a modest but nice amount, reduces turbo lag, leaves the EGR shut off so that you don't end up with an intake system caked with baked-in soot+blowby, and causes you to go through the DEF a lot less quickly. GDE has done ECU offerings for the diesel Jeep Liberty, the diesel Grand Cherokee, and the Ram 3.0 Ecodiesel, so it seems likely that they may come out with one for the JL/JT. The turbo lag (even after the GDE, and it is less after the GDE) is a bit of a drawback if you really need to scoot around a corner rapidly in close quarters in a crowded urban intersection- you have a moment of modest power and then in justg about a single second, vavoom, almost more power than you were aiming for. In anything other than urban driving the lag is a non-issue at least to me. Traveling range is vast, between the MPG and the Ram's 25 gallon tank, I've literally, under ideal conditions, gone 700 miles between fill-ups, and typically get around 600 miles even under non-ideal for MPG driving conditions. If you change own oil, the service cost isn't that bad, since it has 10,000 mile oil change intervals- BUT it does take a scarce and somewhat expensive oil filter cartridge, and is spec'd to only be used with some slightly less-than-widespread spec low-ash diesel lube oil. I think Rotella synthetic now meets that spec.

Gale Banks has done some cool stuff with the 3.0 diesel V6, including some insanely high output build of it for an un-named specialized light military vehicle. If you own a 3.0 in a state without inspections, or otherwise "don't drive on the road' you can probably wake it up to a nearly ridiculous degree, and probably without a lot of internal 'build' to do it.

Just to be clear, I have no affiliation with GDE mentioned above, except as a happy customer.

The Ram 1500 3.0 diesel is my third diesel vehicle, following a 2006 5.9 Cummins Ram 2500 (which I wish I had kept) an a 1991 non turbo 7.3 F350 4x4 DRW. The Ram 3.0 is probably the most sane all-around vehicle of any of those, and I have been very happy with it. BUT modern diesels have become so complex that (even though I have done a lot of work on a lot of vehicles, my own and others) I do not want to own a 'modern' diesel like the Ram 3.0 when it is old or high mileage.

I am looking forward to getting a JT fairly soon as long as I can find a dealer who will help me order the specific features I want and will not try to stick it to me on price for a vehicle that'll likely be in high demand, but, because (1) I definitely want the manual 6 speed, and (2) I definitely anticipated keeping the JT for a very long time and (see above) I do not want to own an old or high mile modern diesel, I will definitely be getting the 3.6 Pentastar gasoline engine in my JT.

Hope the above user-observations as someone who has had an FCA truck with this same 3.0 diesel are informative to those of you who may be considering it for the JT

That was very helpful, thanks!

Welcome to the forum

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[Oilburner]

BTW oil = Rotella T6 I get mine at Walmart. I order filters online.
I gave gotten 750 miles per tank in my GC many trips.

 

[CDJeeps25]

+1 For Green Diesel Engineering, Great company.

 

[WXman]

I had my '05 KJ tuned by Green Diesel Engineering and it went from 23 MPG avg. to 26, ran better, and didn't eat EGR valves anymore.

 

[RedTRex]

Good to hear

 

[JP1]

That was very helpful, thanks!

Welcome to the forum

+1 For Green Diesel Engineering, Great company.

I had my '05 KJ tuned by Green Diesel Engineering and it went from 23 MPG avg. to 26, ran better, and didn't eat EGR valves anymore.

I'll pile on the GDE Bandwagon
Running the Engine and Trans tune in the Colorado ZR2 Diesel. REALLY makes a difference!

 

[sandbaja]

I'll pile on the GDE Bandwagon
Running the Engine and Trans tune in the Colorado ZR2 Diesel. REALLY makes a difference!

So JP1...you already have the diesel Colorado zr2. Do you not like the zr2 or just wanted the LE to add your garage?

 

[JP1]

So JP1...you already have the diesel Colorado zr2. Do you not like the zr2 or just wanted the LE to add your garage?

As silly as it sounds, I LOVE IT!

I have a disfunction, I go thru vehicles WAY too often. Just gotta keep switching to a new toy.
When I bought this truck, it was to get me to the Jeep Pickup that was coming sometime.
(I already have the next one planned, a Gator Diesel Gladiator in a year and a half or so).

 

[bruno747]

Well, it doesn’t come with that diesel sound. The EcoDiesel was actually designed by GM when they owned VM for European Cadillac cars. It’s very quiet. Most people who ride in ours have no clue it’s a diesel.

Correct, unless you know what you are listening for you wouldn't notice anything. If you know what to listen for it's got a very nice quiet diesel clatter that was very satisfying in my 1500 Laramie.

Side note I'm always intrigued by people that call the mileage difference modest. My mileage doubled on the highway from my Dakota to ecodiesle ram. From 15 to 31. I consistently got 26-27 where my Dakota got 12mpg. My 1500 ecodiesel got better mileage than my jk gets normally while towing a full cab, bed, and 6x12 trailer.

I don't consider that modest I call that dang impressive. I fully expect the jl diesel to be 30+ mpg in factory diesel form.

 

[whatevah]

Side note I'm always intrigued by people that call the mileage difference modest. My mileage doubled on the highway from my Dakota to ecodiesle ram. From 15 to 31. I consistently got 26-27 where my Dakota got 12mpg. My 1500 ecodiesel got better mileage than my jk gets normally while towing a full cab, bed, and 6x12 trailer.

I don't consider that modest I call that dang impressive. I fully expect the jl diesel to be 30+ mpg in factory diesel form.

Gotta compare apples to apples. Look at the 3.6L gas performance in the same vehicle to the 3.0L diesel. Randomly pulled up the 2018 Grand Cherokee. 4wd diesel is EPA rated at 21/28 city/hwy. 4wd gas is rated 19/26. Not that big of a difference. Of course, that's with regular driving, not towing. For the 2018 Ram 1500 4wd, diesel is rated 19/27 and 3.6L gas is 16/23. More substantial here, but not double.

Almost any vehicle on the road will get better mileage than a Wranger... the aerodynamics are horrible. The diesel won't fix that. EPA rating for the JT is 17/22 city/hwy. I'm expecting the diesel to be around 20/25. With a real-world highway mileage around 20. Personally, I'd be tickled if I could routinely see 20mpg on the highway... coming from my JK Rubicon that only got 18mpg before the 35" tires.

 

[Oilburner]

TFL tow review pretty much makes the case many of us have been saying that the lack of torque in the 3.6 is gonna have it screaming when you tow. Can't wait to see their review when they get a 3.0 to test.

 

[megamucho]

I’ve a 2015 EcoDiesel GC and a 2018 JLR 3.6L. The EcoDiesel has turbo lag. There, I said it. Once going, it hauls beans. The 3.6L hauls beans at the get go.

After 4 years living with the diesel I can say I’m done paying the added expenses. DEF is a stupid idea, freezes at 8°, and leaves white residue needing to be cleaned up as soon as you’re done spilling it all over the quarter panel whilst never getting the DEF tank full. For distilled water and urea, I don’t see the cost of it justified at all. Oil changes cost more and diesel fuel costs more.

I’m getting the same mileage around town in both Jeeps. On the freeway the diesel gets 4 MPG better but the added cost and hassle still doesn’t make up the difference.

Since I did purchase the LE, and am trading/selling my GC, I’ve made my choice between the two options pretty clear. Don’t get me wrong, if the price and availabilty were the same, I’d lean toward the diesel again, but I’ve experienced that it’s not worth the added expense at purchase, doesn’t justify the higher upkeep costs, and the PITA looking for fuel and DEF for daily driving.

Thanks very much for your detailed review here. I have expected the ED to make a huge difference for power and economy up here at altitude, but your real world report here has me reconsidering. Since you're comparing a JL with a GC, I'd expect the GC to have better highway economy based on aerodynamics alone. To only realize a 4 MPG improvement says a lot -- especially comparing with a Rubi JL. Ouch.

 

[Sorbs]

Thanks very much for your detailed review here. I have expected the ED to make a huge difference for power and economy up here at altitude, but your real world report here has me reconsidering. Since you're comparing a JL with a GC, I'd expect the GC to have better highway economy based on aerodynamics alone. To only realize a 4 MPG improvement says a lot -- especially comparing with a Rubi JL. Ouch.

One more piece of advise...buy an extended warranty. The emissions system (DEF, NOX, etc.) are not covered by the powertrain warranty after 36k miles.

Be sure when you're in the finance mgr's office that, whatever extended warranty offered, it covers the entire emissions system. I've had my DEF pump and NOX system replaced. I'd be out of pocket $5k right now if I didn't buy a third party extended warranty. The service Dept at my local CDJR always notes what a great extended warranty I have. It isn't MOPAR so just be armed and ready to ask questions about coverage if you are waiting for the ED.

 

[Sorbs]

BTW oil = Rotella T6 I get mine at Walmart. I order filters online.
I gave gotten 750 miles per tank in my GC many trips.

If you're doing your own maintenance be sure you have all the receipts handy if you have a warranty claim. Good luck!

 

[megamucho]

One more piece of advise...buy an extended warranty. The emissions system (DEF, NOX, etc.) are not covered by the powertrain warranty after 36k miles.

Be sure when you're in the finance mgr's office that, whatever extended warranty offered, it covers the entire emissions system. I've had my DEF pump and NOX system replaced. I'd be out of pocket $5k right now if I didn't buy a third party extended warranty. The service Dept at my local CDJR always notes what a great extended warranty I have. It isn't MOPAR so just be armed and ready to ask questions about coverage if you are waiting for the ED.

Thanks for the added details here - much appreciated. Lots of food for thought here. I may end up taking the Pentastar and 6-speed stick instead of the ED if there isn't a remarkable turnaround on reliability and efficiency when these arrive for Gladiator.

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