Certainly the results speak for themselves in towing with a diesel. Respectfully, it sounds like Big Shasta loves his Tundra which he is certainly entitled to do, however several of his "costs" are not really accurate and I don't fault him, the reality is there is a lot of misconceptions with diesels. First of all the are the most reliable and overall a very low cost vehicle to maintain which is why larger fleets and especially businesses that are hard on their vehicles choose to use diesels. Yes, like any vehicle they can have a problem that can be very expensive to fix, in reality that is just a cost of the technology we drive now. The other item I mentioned in my earlier post was I chose to lease the vehicle because the engine at this point does not have the history of a cummins or duramax. Should it hold up and pass my tests, as well as industry real-life testing over the next 36 months I am sure the longevity will be better known at that point. To some degree its not that different than the Yamaha boats from 2006 and those that purchased them in 2006, realistically could have used one for years and years and hardly lost a dime as the boats continued to appreciate in value every time that Yamaha increased the price point.
As far as the premium to purchase, for the Dodge Ram it is $2,850 more than the Hemi option. For my purposes and driving as noted in one of my earlier posts, the payoff is less than three years driving around 15K miles per year and that is factoring in a 10% premium for diesel costs.
As someone else noted, an oil change is around $125 at a dealership and is suggested every 10,000 miles. A conventional oil change for a gas engine is recommended every 3,000 - 4,000 miles and will cost around $50 for a good quality semi-synthetic oil (at least that is what I pay for my Suburban and I think that is pretty close to going rate. Unfortunately, it is not typically $25 like they show on a sign unless you drive a very small car). So, to be fair the oil changes are at least comparable in cost per mile and possibly cost less.
Also as noted in my earlier post, the truck does require DEF (Diesel Exhaust Fluid) which is a requirement now in every new diesel truck sold from what I understand. A tank lasts about 10,000 miles depending on exact driving/towing. DEF typically will cost less than $4/gallon at a truck stop and the tank holds 8 gallons for a total of about $32. Over 100,000 miles that equates to $320. Everyone's opinion will differ, but in my books that is a pretty minor expense considering what most of us spend in aftermarket accessories, modifications, etc. It may be worth noting as well, that although the VM Motori engine is new to North America, it is not a new engine. From my understanding the engine was actually developed in 2011.
One other item on cost and truck value. Diesels are proven to hold their values far better than their gasoline counterparts. So although I chose to spend an additional $2,850 MSRP (in actuality I paid about 20% less than MSRP, so it was closer to a $2,300 upgrade)... my bet is that in 3-4 years the truck will be worth well more than that difference paid on day one. Which actually means I am driving a much improved towing and far more efficient vehicle, really at no cost to myself over the next 36 months, and beyond should I choose to purchase it.
Everyone's purchasing decisions are different and based on their individual needs, and I know that Big Shasta understands that. Please don't take this post as me defending my decision to purchase the EcoDiesel Ram... as the reality is I am at perfect peace with my decision. I am just hoping to spread the word and hope people make test drive one and consider the facts. Just like we have a great jetboaters forum, they equally have a couple of great Ecodiesel forums already. In my short experience, there truly is a reason this truck is getting all the positive press that it is... anyway, sorry for the rambling!!!
