RAM EcoDiesel a Flop for Towing

jus2shy wrote:

Fair enough, I see your point. However, it is only recently that turbocharged trucks have entered the scene. I think there will be a magnitude change in expectation for towing. Remember, prior to the ecoboosts, all half-tons did slow-down at Ike when towing at maximum weight. Would you still have that de-rating expectation if the ecoboosts never existed and all trucks suffered the same slowing-down issue still?

I did think a lot of tow ratings were rather inflated long before the Ecoboost came to market. However, the Ecoboost did raise the bar and what was acceptable is no longer acceptable anymore. That is just like back in the day a "half ton" only having a payload of half a ton was acceptable, and today it is not. Or how just having a driver and passenger airbag would have given you a 5 star crash test rating 20 years ago, but now it takes more than that to get a 5 star crash test rating. Things change and they should change for the better. This is why I expect more, and what used to be acceptable is not acceptable anymore.

jus2shy wrote:
Even today, HD's are expected to slow down when faced with a steep climb and loaded to full capacity. What SAE J2807 attempts to do is set a universal expectation for minimum Tow performance at maximum load ratings for certain given grades (accelerating, stopping and handling). If things were done your way, all the HD trucks would not be able to meet the 30,000+ lbs tow rating that those duallies have. They would be universally be de-rated. It's also kinda hard to just say "Keep up with the speed limit at whatever grade".

That is fine, I don't think trucks like that should be towing 30,000 lbs in the first place. That should be left to medium duty commercial trucks. This "30,000 lbs towing battle" that Ford and Ram are doing is senseless which is why I applaud GM for staying out of it. Also, the J2807 only sets the maximum a manufacturer can rate its truck, it says nothing about rating it below that rating. Case in point is the two trucks in question. It is blatantly clear that the 2.7L Ecoboost can tow more than the Ram Ecodiesel going by the J2807. However, Ford set its tow rating lower than what Ram did with the 3.0L Ecodiesel. Why is that? Maybe Ford and Ram have a difference of opinion on what is "acceptable" when towing.

I am also not a fan of the J2807 either. I think it should be more strict on it speed requirements and bring them up to a more acceptable speed limit like at least 55 mph.

jus2shy wrote:
So where to draw the line? 1/2 tons versus 3/4 and up tons? It's obvious that this RAM would not meet your towing minimum, but for the fuel miser that doesn't care about slowing down, it may meet theirs. People vote with their wallets and as long as people want a certain product (or not) the companies will respond appropriately.

I draw the line with any manufacturer that rates their non commercial truck to tow more than what it can safely tow at a reasonable speed on any and every US highway. If it can't at least keep up with the trailering speed limit, then the tow rating needs to be lowered.