Ram 1500 EcoDiesel and Jeep File for Diesel Emissions Certification in the U.S. for 2017 Trucks with the 3.0L V6

2017 2015 ram 1500 ecodiesel loaded to the max towing up extreme incline at high elevation ike gauntlet
Ram 1500 EcoDiesel (3.0L V6)

FCA U.S. (including Ram Trucks and Jeep) has filed for diesel emissions certification with the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) and California Air Resources Board (CARB) for 2017 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel and 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee EcoDiesel. You may remember that, in January 2017, EPA accused FCA of cheating on diesel emissions and not fully disclosing its 3.0L V6 EcoDiesel engine control software. The alleged emissions cheating involved more than 100,000 Ram and Jeep vehicles built between 2014-2016. The result of the accusation was a stop-sale on the 2017 model year trucks and SUVs with this engine.

It’s been over four months without much news. Finally, we see some action in this case. FCA U.S. released a statement today announcing the 2017 vehicle certification. The report states that FCA has been in “close collaboration with the EPA and CARB” over the last several months. FCA modified the emissions software, and the company believes that the software updates will satisfy all concerns that the government agencies may have in relation to this case. If this update is certified for the 2017 model-year, the software will also be applied retroactively to the 2014-2016 vehicles.

The statement says: Ram and Jeep “do not anticipate any impact to performance or fuel efficiency” after the software is updated.

It’s good to see progress in this case, but there are still several unanswered questions. Will FCA U.S. be further penalized?  Did FCA only address the emissions performance that EPA and CARB raised concern about, or is this a more comprehensive update? We will keep you up-to-date with all the latest developments.