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Tons of Torque: A Guide to Pickup Truck Diesels

Pickup Truck Diesels

In the wake of the Volkswagen emissions scandal known colloquially as Dieselgate, German automakers have almost completely discontinued offering their diesel-engine models in the United States–at least for the time being. Yet, somehow, sales of sales of diesel vehicles in the U.S. are actually up slightly. How is that possible?

Mountain of Torque: Remembering the Short-Lived “Big-Block” Chevrolet Avalanche

Yes, Land Rover and Jaguar are selling a number of diesel models, and Chevrolet now sells diesel-powered versions of the Cruze and Equinox, but the overwhelming number of diesel sales are coming from pickup trucks.

In addition to the 3/4-ton and one-ton diesels that Chevrolet, Ford, GMC, and Ram have been marketing for years, light-duty diesels in half-ton trucks can now be had from Ford and Ram. Plus, Nissan’s recently redesigned Titan can be equipped with a diesel engine in heavy-duty XD trim.

General Motors also offers a smaller diesel engine in its midsize Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon trucks. Note also that the redesigned 2019 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 1500 models will be offered with a new 6-cylinder diesel engine.

The result of all this activity is that while car and crossover diesel sales are down, overall diesel sales up are up, thanks largely to pickup trucks.

To help you keep track of all the diesel engines now available in pickup trucks, we’ve put together the following list. Note that specs on V8 diesels and the Cummins 6.7-liter engine are for installation in 3/4-ton pickups–specs may vary slightly for other vehicles.

Note also that all of the engines listed here require the use of diesel emissions fluid (DEF). The fluid is used to reduce diesel NOx emissions, and needs to be topped off roughly around the time the engine oil needs to be changed.

More diesel news and reviews

 

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

EcoDiesel

Ram EcoDiesel

Availability: Ram 1500

Manufacturer: VM Motori

Assembly: Cento, Italy

Displacement (liters/cubic inches): 3.0/182

Configuration: 60-degree V6 turbodiesel

Cylinder heads: Aluminum

Block: Iron

Valvetrain: DOHC 24-valve

Compression ratio: 16.5-to-1

Horsepower: 240

Torque (pound-feet): 420

Transmission: 8-speed automatic

Standard axle ratio: 3.21-to-1

Test Drive: 2015 Ram 1500 Laramie EcoDiesel

 

Cummins 6.7L

Ram Cummins 6.7L

Availability: Ram 2500, 3500, 4500

Manufacturer: Cummins

Assembly: Columbus, Indiana

Displacement (liters/cubic inches): 6.7/408

Configuration: Inline 6 turbodiesel

Cylinder heads: Iron

Block: Iron

Valvetrain: OHV 32-valve

Compression ratio: 17.3-to-1

Horsepower: 370

Torque (pound-feet): 800

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Standard axle ratio: 3.73-to-1

Note: The Cummins 6.7L can also be had with a 6-speed manual transmission and 6-speed heavy-duty automatic transmission. With the manual transmission, the 6.7L is rated at 350 horsepower and 660 pound-feet of torque. With the heavy-duty automatic, the 6.7L is rated at 385 horsepower and 900 pound-feet of torque. The heavy-duty automatic is produced by Aisin.

More Ram pickup news and reviews

 

Ford

Power Stroke 3.0

Ford Power Stroke 3.0

Availability: Ford F-150

Manufacturer: Ford

Assembly: Dagenham, England

Displacement (liters/cubic inches): 3.0/183

Configuration: 60-degree V6 turbodiesel

Cylinder heads: Aluminum

Block: Iron

Valvetrain: DOHC 24-valve

Compression ratio: 16.0-to-1

Horsepower: 250

Torque (pound-feet): 440

Transmission: 10-speed automatic

Standard axle ratio: 3.31-to-1

More F-150 news and reviews

 

Power Stroke 6.7L

Ford Power Stroke 6.7L

Availability: Ford F-250, F-350, F-450

Manufacturer: Ford

Assembly: Chihuahua, Mexico

Displacement (liters/cubic inches): 6.7/409

Configuration: 90-degree V8 turbodiesel

Cylinder heads: Aluminum

Block: Iron

Valvetrain: OHV 32-valve

Compression ratio: 16.2-to-1

Horsepower: 450

Torque (pound-feet): 935

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Standard axle ratio: 3.31-to-1

Test Drive: 2017 Ford F-350 Super Duty Lariat Crew Cab

 

General Motors

Duramax 2.8 (LWN)

General Motors Duramax 2.8L

Availability: Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon

Manufacturer: DMAX

Assembly: Rayong, Thailand

Displacement (liters/cubic inches): 2.8/169

Configuration: Inline 4 turbodiesel

Cylinder heads: Aluminum

Block: Iron

Valvetrain: DOHC 16-valve

Compression ratio: 16.5-to-1

Horsepower: 181

Torque (pound-feet): 369

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Standard axle ratio: 3.42-to-1

Test Drive: 2016 Chevrolet Colorado Z71 Duramax Diesel

 

Duramax 6.6L (LP5)

General Motors Duramax 6.6L

Availability: Chevrolet Silverado 2500 and 3500, GMC Sierra 2500 and 3500

Manufacturer: DMAX

Assembly: Moraine, Ohio

Displacement (liters/cubic inches): 6.6/403

Configuration: 90-degree V8 turbodiesel

Cylinder heads: Aluminum

Block: Iron

Valvetrain: OHV 32-valve

Compression ratio: 16.0-to-1

Horsepower: 445

Torque (pound-feet): 910

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Standard axle ratio: 3.73-to-1

First Spin: 2017 GMC Sierra HD Duramax Diesel

 

Nissan

Cummins 5.0L

Nissan Cummins 5.0L

Availability: Titan XD

Manufacturer: Cummins

Assembly: Columbus, Indiana

Displacement (liters/cubic inches): 5.0/304

Configuration: 90-degree V8 turbodiesel

Cylinder heads: Aluminum

Block: Iron

Valvetrain: DOHC 32-valve

Compression ratio: 16.3-to-1

Horsepower: 310

Torque (pound-feet): 555

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Standard axle ratio: 3.92-to-1

Test Drive: 2017 Nissan Titan XD Texas Titan Edition

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