We are getting a lot of questions about the upcoming Chevy, Ford, and Ram light-duty half-ton diesels. When are these trucks going on sale? What are the specs? Which one is the best and which one to buy?
Here is all the latest. Ram is currently selling previous generation 2017 and 2018 Ram 1500 trucks with the 3.0L EcoDiesel V6 engine and 8-speed automatic transmission. The original rating on this engine was 240 hp and 420 lb-ft of torque, although the output may have received minor adjustments due to latest emissions programming changes. The 2018 Ram 1500 2WD EcoDiesel is rated at 27 MPG on the highway.
2018 Ford F-150
Ford is coming to market with the 2018 Ford F-150 Power Stroke turbo0-diesel within the next several week. We are driving this truck for the first time at the end of April, and we will bring the review and all of the latest real-world data soon. Ford is using a 3.0L V6 with a rating of 250 hp and 440 lb-ft of torque. The engine is mated to a 10-speed automatic transmission, and Ford is estimating up to 30 MPG on the highway in certain configurations. EPA does not yet have a final fuel economy rating on this truck yet.
2019 Ram 1500
Ram has announced that a 3.0L EcoDiesel V6 is coming back to the all-new 2019 Ram 1500 truck lineup in 2019 calendar year. The company has not announced specifications for the new diesel engine, but said the truck will be very competitive. It is likely that the next 3.0L EcoDiesel will offer in the neighborhood of 260 hp and 442 lb-ft of torque, which is the number that Jeep is specifying for the upcoming Wrangler and Wrangler pickup truck (aka. Scrambler).
2019 Chevy Silverado 1500
Finally, Chevrolet made an announcement in January 2018 that a 3.0L inline-6 Duramax turbo-diesel engine is coming to the new 2019 Silverado 1500 later in the 2019 model year, which also puts it into 2019 calendar year. Chevrolet says the new inline diesel engine is developed in-house, and it will be paired to a 10-speed automatic transmission. Our best guess is that we will have to wait approximately a year from now to see the new Chevy and Ram half-ton diesel trucks.
Which one should you buy? We cannot give an opinion here yet, because we have not yet driven the F-150 Diesel or any of the other trucks. Please stay tuned around April 27th for the first review of the F-150 Diesel.
Here are all of the specs we know so far about the 2018 Ford F-150 Diesel.
