2022 RAM EcoDiesel Problems. What Are Main Issues With Diesel?

RAM says that their 2022 RAM 1500 is available with the 3-liter V6 diesel engine that shows superb torque and wonderful fuel efficiency. This is not a completely new engine, so we can form our opinion about it.

A lot of potential buyers keep asking if this RAM EcoDiesel engine is worth buying. And the answer is not that obvious. Some people say that they have no problems with it while others regret their choice and opt to change their trucks to some other trucks with petrol engines or hybrid technologies.

Today, we are going to look at such things:

1. 3-liter EcoDiesel engine by RAM – what’s good and bad in a new V6?
2. Fuel consumption – manufacturer details vs real-life figures.
3. V6 EcoDiesel longevity – how many miles can it go?
4. Potential problems you are likely to have when driving a vehicle with RAM EcoDiesel.

Let’s get started!

So, what does RAM say about its new engine?

This is a classical diesel engine with high performance. This is obviously not the first diesel unit that RAM produces and offers with its trucks. So we are pretty sure that the engine is reliable and optimally set to serve years with no major problems.

RAM says that the block of the engine is produced of graphite iron and it’s combined with two aluminum twin-cam heads. They added some new technologies like B20 biodiesel capability and also a special technology that controls air intake in a special way. This helped them achieve less vibration and sound but keep the performance at a high level.

Here are some facts about this engine installed in RAM 1500:

• the towing capacity is quite great – over 12.5 thousand pounds;
• 480 pound-feet of torque seem more than enough for this vehicle;
• 260 hp of power is not bad at all;
• vehicle’s payload is over 2000 pounds;
• city gas mileage is 22 MPG while highway mileage comes to 33 MPG.

So, these are the key figures about the new engine that was introduced in 2021 and is still one of the most unpredictable innovations by RAM. No one expected them to offer something like that on the market.

As you see, the towing capability and gas mileage are the two main pros of the engine. The truck equipped with V6 EcoDiesel is really economical and it can tow anything you want, even a big trailer. But is the engine so good as the company’s ad tells us about it? Let’s see.

Real fuel consumption – not so great

You might have thought this was a Cummins engine as RAM trucks have already used Cummins diesels. But this one was actually produced in Italy, by VM Motori Company. The only competition for this engine is Ford’s 3.0 PowerStroke diesel engine.

By the way, the 3.0 EcoDiesel has been used by FCA in Dodge and Jeep vehicles since 2014. But today you will not see such an engine in Jeep cars, it’s only used in Dodge trucks. And yes, it was changed much in 2021 to make it suit new ecological standards. As you know, “higher ecological standards” never do anything good for a person who buys that car, so here we get something to write on the topic of our article.

Here comes something about the gas mileage:

• the figures that RAM gives are highly misleading;
• 33 MPG on the highway are possible if you drive at a constant speed of 45 mph without stopping or accelerating at all;
• so basically you will get around 24-25 MPG on the highway which isn’t bad but not as good as promised;
• in city traffic, the RAM 1500 will show even worse results – around 14-15 MPG will be the average mileage;
• this diesel engine doesn’t seem as economical as the manufacturer wants us to believe.

The fuel consumption of a diesel engine depends much on what you are towing, what the payload is, what the driving habits are, and so on. If you love pressing much on that acceleration pedal, you aren’t likely to see positive figures in your gas mileage section of the dash.

But deceiving gas mileage is not the worst thing that can happen with your EcoDiesel. You should know about other problems that may occur.

What are the technical issues with RAM EcoDiesel in 2022?

The new version of the EcoDiesel didn’t do much for getting rid of old problems. It keeps showing the same failures as the version of 2014 showed before. What’s more, some new problems were added to make the life of the buyers even more unpredictable.

First, we want to say that the 3.0 V6 EcoDiesel is actually quite reliable and it will only bother you with some minor problems. But still, you have to be ready for them.

EGR cooler may just crack

You know, that EGR valve is a real beast in diesel cars and even in some gasoline counterparts. This unit helps reduce bad exhaust gasses amount and sends some exhaust back to the engine to be burned again.

This results in a really high temperature of the EGR. And this is why it usually breaks and gets clogged. So, what did the engineers come up with? Right, they installed some cooling system in the EGR valve and now this cooling system starts cracking and leaking antifreeze.

This problem was extremely popular with the older generation of the EcoDiesel engine, but new units are also reported to have an issue with their EGR coolers.

Oil cooler may also stop working

It sounds strange, but this engine is not having good relations with coolers. Oil coolers in RAM cars may also crack and then oil and coolant mix together in the cooling system. You will see a film of oil in your coolant in this case. The oil will contaminate the entire cooling system and will make you replace some of the units.

Also, this will result in sharp growth of the oil temperature. When engine oil is much hotter than it should be, its lifespan shortens at least twice. This means that you will have problems with engine oil. If the problem is neglected, in just 20 to 30 thousand miles you will get big problems with the engine block.

Timing chain issues

RAM EcoDiesel engine uses a timing chain to set the correct timing for valves and other parts of the engine. The timing chain is not a bad decision for a truck, but somehow in RAM 1500 the chain may slip and change the timing intervals for valves and pistons. Usually, it will not destroy the valves (unless the slip is massive), but the repair costs may be really bad.

Timing chain issues have been reported for the older generation of this engine. But we see that the newer version has little to no changes in the timing mechanism, so it should be quite the same in terms of slipping timing chain.

The bad news – there’s not much you can do to avoid this. Just don’t try to tow more than the manufacturer states as the maximum towing capacity.

Fuel injection issues

We don’t know if this problem is still presented in newer engines, but older ones actually had it. Assuming there is not much they changed with the fuel injection system, we may say it will be quite the same.

The problem is that after a decent mileage (say, 100 000 miles) the injectors and the high-pressure fuel pump need servicing. This may not sound as bad as it will be for your budget. Servicing a diesel fuel injection system is not a very cheap thing to do. And unfortunately, in RAM trucks with a diesel engine, you will have to spend some money on it.

How many miles will the RAM EcoDiesel (3.0 V6) go?

It’s not a very simple question to answer. One person will find the way to kill the V6 engine in 100 000 miles, the other one will drive up until it shows 450 000 miles on the clock. But we assume the average lifespan of the EcoDiesel engine installed in RAM 1500 trucks should be somewhere near 300 000 miles.

You will still need to repair and replace some parts of the engine during this period. Keep an eye on coolers and a fuel injection system. These are the parts that may cause many problems in this diesel engine.

Final words

In general, the 3.0 V6 EcoDiesel engine is not a bad unit to consider if you want to buy the RAM 1500 truck. In 2021 the engine was updated so some problems should have gone. But we still see a lot of minor issues you may face with this engine. Still, if you buy a new truck with EcoDiesel under the hood and then take proper care of it, you will drive the vehicle for at least 300 000 miles with no major problems.

You now know about some of the possible issues. Just keep an eye on those parts and make sure they don’t leak and just work properly.