Attention: TDR Forum Junkies 
Picked up my first ever diesel last Wednesday from Adam Macomber at Dishman Dodge. It's a replacement for my '04 2500 5. 7/545RFE and it's quite a contrast. We put 1600 miles on it driving home via Yellowstone and Grand Teton.
It's a 3500 6. 7/68RFE Quad SWB 4x4 Laramie 3. 73.
Some observations, in no particular order (bear in mind this is my first diesel, so it's all new to me, and I haven't done any towing yet):
Mileage seems fairly good so far. The first fill-up came out at about 14. 5mpg. This was a mix of fairly high speed running and some construction areas. The best I've got so far was just over 19mpg which was driving in and around the national parks. The last 170 miles of the trip home was a good comparison against our hemi, as we made the same trip in similar conditions on the same day two weeks earlier. The hemi got 14. 5mpg, the 6. 7 got 16. 5mpg. The overhead reads . 5 to 1 mpg high on the new 6. 7, whereas the old truck was never more than about . 1 or . 2 mpg off.
Going from the hemi to the diesel, my first thought as I hit the highway was that it feels like it needs another gear. I have the 3. 73 rear end and I could easily see going for a 3. 42 if it was offered without hurting the tow rating. Really pleased that I didn't get the 4. 10.
The 6. 7 seems to have an immense amount of power after the gas engine. Hills might as well not be there. You can really feel the torque difference. Like the exhaust brake but haven't had any reason to use it yet.
Some comparisons '04 to '07:
Wind noise is vastly improved from '04 to '07.
Interior materials seem to have been the victim of cost cutting. The '07 dash material looks cheap compared to the 04. I would have much preferred a black interior, but the gray is growing on me.
A/C is good. Slightly better than the '04 and the vents are more controllable.
Like the fact that it remembers whether the fog lights are on.
Like the new overhead display and the personal settings menu. I wish it was a little brighter in the day time though.
Finally, thanks to the members here who recommended Adam Macomber. His reputation here is well deserved and he went out of his way to accommodate us and our inflexible schedule. It was worth driving 1600 miles to buy from Adam - both for the price and the professionalism - and I have no reservations about recommending him to others: -- email address removed --
Here's a picture from the day we picked it up, and the day we got home. I wonder if the carcasses on the front affected the aerodynamics
/webdata/photopost/data/500/medium/before.jpg#ad
/webdata/photopost/data/500/medium/after1.jpg#ad
It's a 3500 6. 7/68RFE Quad SWB 4x4 Laramie 3. 73.
Some observations, in no particular order (bear in mind this is my first diesel, so it's all new to me, and I haven't done any towing yet):
Mileage seems fairly good so far. The first fill-up came out at about 14. 5mpg. This was a mix of fairly high speed running and some construction areas. The best I've got so far was just over 19mpg which was driving in and around the national parks. The last 170 miles of the trip home was a good comparison against our hemi, as we made the same trip in similar conditions on the same day two weeks earlier. The hemi got 14. 5mpg, the 6. 7 got 16. 5mpg. The overhead reads . 5 to 1 mpg high on the new 6. 7, whereas the old truck was never more than about . 1 or . 2 mpg off.
Going from the hemi to the diesel, my first thought as I hit the highway was that it feels like it needs another gear. I have the 3. 73 rear end and I could easily see going for a 3. 42 if it was offered without hurting the tow rating. Really pleased that I didn't get the 4. 10.
The 6. 7 seems to have an immense amount of power after the gas engine. Hills might as well not be there. You can really feel the torque difference. Like the exhaust brake but haven't had any reason to use it yet.
Some comparisons '04 to '07:
Wind noise is vastly improved from '04 to '07.
Interior materials seem to have been the victim of cost cutting. The '07 dash material looks cheap compared to the 04. I would have much preferred a black interior, but the gray is growing on me.
A/C is good. Slightly better than the '04 and the vents are more controllable.
Like the fact that it remembers whether the fog lights are on.
Like the new overhead display and the personal settings menu. I wish it was a little brighter in the day time though.
Finally, thanks to the members here who recommended Adam Macomber. His reputation here is well deserved and he went out of his way to accommodate us and our inflexible schedule. It was worth driving 1600 miles to buy from Adam - both for the price and the professionalism - and I have no reservations about recommending him to others: -- email address removed --
Here's a picture from the day we picked it up, and the day we got home. I wonder if the carcasses on the front affected the aerodynamics
/webdata/photopost/data/500/medium/before.jpg#ad
/webdata/photopost/data/500/medium/after1.jpg#ad
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