Which 2017 heavy duty diesel pickup truck puts down the most power? This seems like an easy question to answer, but the real world is a whole different animal. We got together with the experts at ATS Diesel Performance in order to get the real numbers on their Mustang Dyno.
The three contestants are the 2017 Chevy Silverado 3500 HD with the new 6.6L Duramax turbo-diesel V8 engine that is rated (at the engine crank) at 445 hp and 910 lb-ft of torque. Chevy’s rear-end gear ratio is 3.73. The 2017 Ford F-350 Super Duty with the updated 6.7L Power Stroke V8 engine that is rated (again at the crank) at 440 hp and 925 lb-ft of torque. Ford’s rear differential ratio is 4.10. Finally, the 2017 Ram 3500 HD has the existing 6.7L Cummins I6 diesel with a crank rating of 385 hp and 900 lb-ft of torque. Ram’s rear-end ratio is 4.10.
Will the Ford put down the most power to the dyno rollers? We were about to be surprised.
Devin, research and development department leader at ATS Diesel, was the dyno operator. He strapped the trucks to the dyno the same way, also using downward pressure with chains and turn-buckles. Devin did three dyno pulls in each truck. The first run was a more gentle “roll-on” of the accelerator. The other two were much more aggressive with the throttle application. We reported the best result for each truck. Each pull in each truck was done in 4th gear. This allows for a more consistent result, as the 4th gear is a 1-to-1 gear ratio.
Here are the results:
Check out the video to see exactly how the test was conducted and learn more about ATS Diesel Performance shop.
