Will a 10 mile commute kill a diesel?
Looking at a 2014 Ram 2500 diesel but will my 10 mile round trip daily commute damage the engine? Should I just get the Hemi?
Forum Discussion
Diesel is great for pulling 13,000 lbs or more but for anything under 10,000 lbs a gas engine and 4.10 gears are all that is needed. Diesels cost more to buy, more to maintain, and more to keep in fuel (the extra MPG is offset by the higher price charged for diesel).
Fully loaded your vehicle is pulling less than 6,000 lbs and a 1/2 ton truck like the Toyota Tundra will handle that easily and be extremely reliable. The problem with an SUV is that the vehicle itself is very heavy and more engine is needed to move it and more braking to stop it.
I cannot understand why anyone would recommend paying an extra $9,000 or more to get a 3/4 ton diesel pickup to pull a trailer like the one you have. Dumb does not even begin to describe it. Might as well get a Hummer to go grocery shopping.
I have a diesel and it takes 20 miles to begin to reach operating temperature for the engine and even longer to get the transmission fluid temp into the normal range. Fuel economy is worse than for a gas engine for short trips and it provides no advantages for around town driving. Less than one quarter of the gas stations within 20 miles of my house sell diesel so I have to drive an extra 10 miles to get fuel and burn extra diesel in both directions.
Fully loaded your vehicle is pulling less than 6,000 lbs and a 1/2 ton truck like the Toyota Tundra will handle that easily and be extremely reliable. The problem with an SUV is that the vehicle itself is very heavy and more engine is needed to move it and more braking to stop it.
I cannot understand why anyone would recommend paying an extra $9,000 or more to get a 3/4 ton diesel pickup to pull a trailer like the one you have. Dumb does not even begin to describe it. Might as well get a Hummer to go grocery shopping.
I have a diesel and it takes 20 miles to begin to reach operating temperature for the engine and even longer to get the transmission fluid temp into the normal range. Fuel economy is worse than for a gas engine for short trips and it provides no advantages for around town driving. Less than one quarter of the gas stations within 20 miles of my house sell diesel so I have to drive an extra 10 miles to get fuel and burn extra diesel in both directions.
