C
all it plain vanilla.
Call it a stripper. Call
it bare-bones. It's all
of those. One thing
the 2015 Ram 1500
Regular Cab EcoDiesel isn't, though,
is wimpy.
The truck I recently spent a few
days driving the city streets, inter-
states and mountain roads around
Phoenix, Arizona and Laughlin,
Nevada is the epitome of bland.
But get beyond the two-door's
vinyl fl oor mats, hand-crank win-
dows, manual seats and manual
door locks, and you quickly realize
it's also the epitome of a true work
truck: Functional. Powerful. Eco-
nomical. Comfortable.
Powered by the 3.0L EcoDiesel,
this Ram sips fuel like a camel
trekking over the Sahara. During a
joint test with the folks at Car.Com,
we saw 29.2 mpg on a 110-mile
highway-driving loop that included
a 20-mile section of twisting moun-
tain roads.
The truck also bested the EPA's 20
mpg city driving numbers with bet-
ter than 22 mpg navigating through
moderate traffi c.
I also slapped a 4,500-pound
trailer on the hitch ball to see how
the little V-6 diesel, developing 420
foot-pounds and 240 horsepower,
backed by the 8-speed automatic,
does in the trailering department.
Taking the same 110-mile route
the Ram delivered 17 mpg, which
is exceptional fuel economy for a
work truck.
The diesel V-6, which is a $4,000
pro pickup
|
by Bruce W. Smith
EquipmentWorld.com | March 2015
71
2015 Ram 1500
Road Test
WHITE KNIGHT:
2WD Regular Cab Ram 1500 V-6 turbo-diesel a fuel-
miserly, powerful, comfortable bare-bones fl eet truck
THE ECO-NOMICAL
WORK TRUCK
