GM is going to offer a small truck diesel!
Gm announced it will offer a diesel option in its small trucks- http://wallstcheatsheet.com/stocks/can-diesel-engines-revitalize-the-small-pickup.html/ Not designed as a big tow vehicle by any m...
Forum Discussion
ksss wrote:
I cant imagine a 4.5 baby Duramax making 310 and 520 when the LB7 was just 300 and 520. That would require 2500 sized running gear(in a 1500) and unless they found an efficiency Genie somewhere, marginal mileage. I believe in order for this diesel in a half ton thing to work. It has to be a good bit cheaper than the HD version, and get real close to 30 mpg. I think 500 foot pounds defies both of those criteria.
I don't know, you might be right -- real world numbers of 22 mpg would kill sales, to be sure, especially with diesel costing more. But I can also imagine a 500 ft/lb engine with a low torque curve pushing along a 1/2 ton at 70 mph turning 1500 rpm in front of an 8 spd transmission. Probably wouldn't be a good towing gear, but I guess it might return pretty good mpg unloaded.
Heck, my grandpa's 2001 Dodge Cummins 2500 6 spd got close to 25 mpg unloaded on the freeway, and I think it had about the same power output as GM was predicting from the baby Max. A 1/2 ton would be 1500# lighter, with more technology to boot, so I think it might be doable. If I could get a 1/2 ton (hopefully a Suburban, since I have 4 kids) that got slightly better mileage than his truck did, with the same power, I think I'd be a buyer.
