Diesel Pickup Sales Are Revving Up: Study
By Jim Travers
Diesel engines long have been popular with heavy-duty pickup truck buyers, thanks to their abundant torque for towing and hauling, better fuel economy and extended cruising range compared to their gasoline counterparts, as well as greater residual values for resale. As diesels become more widely available in light-duty pickups, those sales are likely to rise for many of the same reasons.
A recent study by the Diesel Technology Forum found that diesel sales are holding their own in all types of passenger vehicles, despite recent emissions issues with Volkswagen and other manufacturers. Currently diesel engines account for about 3 percent of passenger vehicle sales and around 13 percent for pickups. According to the study, more than 6.6 million diesel pickups on the road in 2017, the model-year the study used.
"Hands down, diesel pickups offer some of the best value for consumers," said Allen Schaeffer, executive director of the Diesel Technology Forum, in a statement. "On top of gaining 20 percent to 35 percent more torque and towing power, diesel pickups can go an extra 150 miles per tank of fuel, and can save owners an average of 200 gallons of fuel per year. We calculated these benefits out across the full pickup truck segment, and if every full-size pickup truck in America used diesel fuel, we'd save more than 500 million gallons of fuel each year — the same as if 15 percent of all cars in the U.S. switched entirely to electric power."
No Longer Just a Heavy-Duty Option
Until recently, virtually all diesel pickup sales were limited to heavy-duty models (also known as three-quarter and one -tons), where the lion's share of all brands are sold with diesel powertrains. With Ford, for example, the percentage of F-250 and F-350 pickups sold with diesel power is a whopping 72 percent, according to a company spokesperson.
Now that the Ford F-150 — which has been the best-selling vehicle in the U.S. for decades — is available with a 3.0-liter V-6 turbo-diesel producing 250 horsepower and 440 pounds-feet of torque, Ford is likely to see more diesels rolling off dealer lots. Especially since the F-150's newest power plant is also notable for its 30 mpg EPA highway fuel mileage rating.
Not to be left behind, Chevrolet is joining the fray for 2019 with a new 3.0-liter turbo-diesel Silverado 1500. And Ram, which was first with a smaller turbo-diesel in light-duty pickups, is finishing up certification of its EcoDiesel engine for the all-new 2019 Ram 1500.
Van and SUV Diesels
The Diesel Technology Forum study also found diesels are growing in popularity with van buyers. With the Ford Transit Connect compact vans joining full-size diesel models from Ford and Ram, commercial vans make up the fastest-growing category of diesel sales. Last year saw a sales increase of more than 44 percent, translating to about 5 percent of all domestic van sales.
SUV buyers also are getting more choices as domestic manufacturers have joined their European counterparts with new diesel versions of the Chevrolet Equinox and Jeep Wrangler. With their greater torque capability at lower engine rpm, diesels are a natural for rock crawling and other types of off-roading.
As you weigh all the new diesel choices, keep in mind that there are some drawbacks: Not only will you pay a premium for a diesel engine, regularly scheduled maintenance is likely to be higher than with a gasoline engine and the fuel can be, depending on where you live, more expensive as well. And even with wide availability nationwide, diesel fuel is only available at about half of all gasoline stations.
Cars.com photo by Evan Sears; Manufacturer images
Comments
I liked the 2.6 turbo diesel they put in the Dodge D50..
the EU is slowly outlawing diesels due to the smog they create.
Last week several "tuners"" got fined by the EPA big time for altering emissions. They say they are innocent. EPA= California/Colorado Prius driving liberals
They ought to make vehicle inspections mandatory. People should not be allowed to take the emissions equipment off there diesels and get away with it. NO I'm not even close to being a liberal but I can't stand trucks that spew black smoke and make the air bad for everyone.
Diesels have a lot of good points but the pollution far out weights. the good. Europe is getting rid of them
They ought to make vehicle inspections mandatory.
@Ron
Good luck. Many states went that route during the last 40 years and it was a monumental bust. Much screwing around, but very little real benefit.
My state dropped the mandatory inspections back in the 1990s after doing it for about 20 years. The net value was determined to be zilch.
I see some of you are falling victim to diesel misconceptions.
Go look up the evidence of the new gas direct injection engines, and how they have more unhealthy emissions than any modern diesel. Not modern port injection gas engines- mind you.
So not only do diesels burn less fuel and pump out less carbon dioxide), a fact that all plants decry, but the diesel puts out more healthy emissions.
And all of that is BEFORE any after treatment of the exhaust.
So what does this mean for the future?
Watch out for the science to sink in to the thick skulls of governments, and then they are going to make gas direct injection engines have all the exhaust after treatment that diesels do.
Yep, BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM! That's reality for ya.
I bet you thought you knew what real was. But now you do.
Not I, Johnathan
The troublesome emissions are sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, carbon oxides and soot. Sulfur oxides can contribute to smog and acid rain. They are reduced simply by using ultra low sulfur fuel. Nitrogen oxides contribute to smog and acid rain, negatively impact the ozone layer, and are a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming. They are controlled in our engines by EGR and SCR (DEF). Carbon oxides are greenhouse gasses that contribute to global warming. Using more fuel does increase the CO2 produced in the engine and contribute more to global warming. But, carbon dioxide is not a major contributor to smog and its health problems. Soot is basically carbon. It contributes to smog and to health problems. It is controlled by the soot filters in the exhaust system. Although coaling is silly and annoys other people because it is visible and contributes to health issues, the real villain is the NO emission which is not visible and contributes to smog, acid rain, and global warming. It is arguably the most expensive to manage - both because of the loss of performance by EGR and the expensive SCR system.
I understand smog and air quality can be a major concern for those of you in urban areas, but I get really annoyed by taking the rules that are designed for idling buses in the inner city and applying them to all of our farm pickups, trucks, tractors, and combines. Our operations have zero statistical impact on air quality, but our operating costs are increased by thousands of dollars per years due to ineffective, illogical regulations that have zero positive benefit.
@Dave
did you say Global Warming? Ozone hole? Greenhouse gas? Been drinking the leftist, globalist koolaide again?
So not only do diesels burn less fuel and pump out less carbon dioxide), a fact that all plants decry, but the diesel puts out more healthy emissions.
Posted by: Jonathan | Sep 29,
/QUOTE
LOLOL..
I think youve been snifing exhaust emisions way too long..it damaged your brain
Nothing coming out of exhaust is healthy in any way,on the contrary,,its poison that kills over 7 milion people each year..
My next truck will be Electric and if GM dont build it they wont survive much longer
@Dave
No the EU is not slowly outlawing diesels, they have been introducing new diesels in 1 Europe and across the Globe.
You have 3 % in the US takeup rate, in Europe it is above 40%
Lerhal emissions come from petrol gas engines that is CO, particulates(carcinogenic) and CO2 a green house gas.
Diesels produce a lot less CO2 than a petrol engine but more NOx a green house gas
Nothing coming out of exhaust is healthy in any way,on the contrary,,its poison that kills over 7 milion people each year..
My next truck will be Electric and if GM dont build it they wont survive much longer...Posted by: Chevrolet builds a better way
@Chevrolet...
Can you spell propaganda? Seven million?
Where do you think the electricity comes from? Natural gas, coal, nuclear.
Sorry no wind, geothermal or bicycle powered current today on any kind of commercial scale.
Good luck
@ PapaJoke
“ Nine in ten people around the world breathe air containing high levels of pollution, according to the latest data from the World Health Organization (WHO). The agency estimates that pollution causes 7 million deaths each year. “
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/05/01/estimates-7-million-die-pollution-year-reveals-latest-global/
The only propaganda is your stupidity
Sorry no Diesel for me thanks. I am more of an off roader so gas blows diesel out of the water off road. Diesel engines weigh double what a gas engine does and Gas has a broader power band. Fuel dosent seperate in cold mountain weather where you need 4x4 in the snow. Yes Diesel may get 2 mpg better towing because its a low rpm engine but with 12 to 16 quarts of oil and def fluid fuel filters and the 10,000 dollar initial cost for a diesel you have to wait a while to see any cost benefit. So to the writer of this article you may save gas but you wont save oil.
@Chevrolet builds a better way to see the USA ,
No one has ever said any gas or diesel emissions are "healthy".
It is the relative healthiness between direct injection and diesel engines I am talking about.
so you just lost all credibility to everyone here because you can't read or think clearly.
And did any of you go look up the science on this issue? No, so you will have to continue in your ignorance. But not for long, because is becoming common knowledge eventually.
But many of you seem to willfully want to remain just "common".
@brick. you embarrass yourself again. The WHO is the world leader in propaganda. Please take that rubbish elsewhere.
The World Health Organization is propaganda? You are an embarrassment to mankind.
You are clinging to straws. Prove your assertion you clown or S.T.F.U
Seriously, Brick. Take it somewhere else.
The FAKE Brick.
Get on topic PapaJoke
@brick. you embarrass yourself again.
I've been a truck driver for over twenty years and the only good diesel engine is from a semi. Cummins is best by far. The small pickups are crap. If I had to tow a fifth or something heavy it would a Ram with the baby Cummins.
Papajim is right. The WHO is radical globalist socialist propoganda. Educate yourself.
The Who isn't bad. I like The Who.
THE WHO SPEAKS THE TRUTH. PAPAJIM CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH.
@papadim--The Who says the United States pollutes more than every other country.
Australia is in the top 3 cleanest of any industrialized nation.
We can teach you a thing or two.
This is a fact!
Papajim is the dumbest f@$& to ever post at PUTC.
It is nice to see the diesels being sold. They hold the value better and although none of the manufactures have a single bit of common sense to build them with the correct size engine they are a great idea. They should be roughly in the 4.5L to 5.5L range such as the GM baby Duramax 4.5L V8 that was pulled at the last minute and the underpowered Cummins 5.0L. Having diesels and hybrids allow for stuff like the 6.2L V8's and bigger power stuff as well. As long as the emissions are up to par I am up for it. Diesels emissions are terrible for humans. The people who say it isn't simply say this because they want it to be the case that they are not a problem. I was trained many, many years ago that diesels were clean and the black stuff coming out simply fell the to ground and wasn't a problem. Further research over time showed that to not be the case and then as power levels went up cylinder temps went up creating new problems with diesel emissions. Newer diesels make great power, run quiet, and run very clean as long as their emissions equipment is kept in place. If that emissions equipment bothers you, buy an old diesel. Do not buy a new one and ruin how clean it runs. Enjoy a quiet running, clean burning, fuel mileage getting machine.
Papajim is speaking truth to the fascist totalitarian envirostatist drones on putc.
@Dave Z
Back in World War Two they told young bomber pilots that when the anti aircraft fire was really bad, it meant you were right over the target.
Ditto with these dopes (about half of which are actually the former commenter here at PUTC from "down under").
I am not a fan of diesels but despite that I do see their value. The idiots that coal roll don't help the cause of diesels and make it hard for those who legitimately use diesels for commercial purposes and its capabilities. If you have ever been coal rolled it makes you angry.
Jeff cracks me up.
As a society we've been getting "rolled" by environmentalist politicians for the last 40 years AT HUGE PERSONAL & SOCIAL EXPENSE, but he's bummed because some pimply faced kid out for a spin in uncle's truck blasted him with soot at a stop light.
The Greens nearly killed our entire auto industry, our coal and steel industries and our oil companies.
I've never heard Jeff (and so many others on this site) address the destruction of America's (and Europe) green politics.
Man, that papajim guy really messes up this site.
Anyway. you all really need to look up the GDI vs. TDI comparisons for emissions. Ye-all are behind the times in knowing about how the new GDIs have more poisonous emissions than diesels. Its the new way GDI burns the gasoline so hot and creates really nasty chemicals. Worse than diesels. There are whole countries now considering how they will mandate emissions controls even more strictly than diesels on these new gasoline vehicles. So check it out. By the look of it, many of you are still under the old misconceptions about gas and diesel. But that was fifteen years ago. A lot has happened in the combustion chamber of gas engines since then, man! They are more efficient now, but that is because they burn differently and cause more poisonous chemical than before.
@papadim--The Who says the United States pollutes more than every other country.
Australia is in the top 3 cleanest of any industrialized nation.
We can teach you a thing or two.
This is a fact!
Posted by: Big Oz | Sep 29, 2018 11:31:59 PM
Link?
Would be interesting to see this info.
I mean Austrailia is a barren waste land for most of the country with little to no populations.
25 million to 325 million?
Sounds like poor numbers to me. But you can always post a link to your source material.
Man, that papajim guy really messes up this site.
Anyway. you all really need to look up the GDI vs. TDI comparisons for emissions. Ye-all are behind the times in knowing about how the new GDIs have more poisonous emissions than diesels. Its the new way GDI burns the gasoline so hot and creates really nasty chemicals. Worse than diesels. There are whole countries now considering how they will mandate emissions controls even more strictly than diesels on these new gasoline vehicles. So check it out. By the look of it, many of you are still under the old misconceptions about gas and diesel. But that was fifteen years ago. A lot has happened in the combustion chamber of gas engines since then, man! They are more efficient now, but that is because they burn differently and cause more poisonous chemical than before.
Posted by: Josey | Sep 30, 2018 8:05:32 AM
Not sure I'm following you.
GDI is direct injection.
TDI is turbocharged direct injection.
GDI tends to have issues with carbon buildups with the valvetrain.
TDI can have issues with NOX emissions due to high boosting.
Those issues in TDI tend to be the same as Diesel, which cleaned up the emissions with things like DEF. I have even seen some articles talking about adding DEF to TDI engines to clean up the NOX.
Feel free to enlighten me if I'm not understanding you correctly.
@papajim--So you are calling me a liar? I have been coal rolled several times by some idiot. You assume that I am a greenie because I brought this up. I have many friends with diesel trucks that have raised this concern because idiots like coal rollers hurt those who have legitimate uses. As for some of the others comments about you I agree that you want to control and moderate this site. So far you have succeeded because Mark Williiams seems to endorse everything you state and takes your side blocking any comment that calls you out on this practice. You have a right to your opinions and others have a right to theirs without you name calling. Coal rolling is something that makes the most conservative person a greenie. Frankly I think any one caught coal rolling more than once should have their truck taken away and destroyed and they should have to pick up garbage along the roads and to clean public restrooms. If they like to spew crap others faces then they should have to clean up crap.
@papajim--You would not think it was so funny if you were driving along minding your own business with your windows down enjoying a nice sunny day and have someone coal roll you. True it is not an everyday occurrence and the trucks that do it are deliberately modified to roll coal so it is not just some pimple faced kind out for a joy ride with his uncle's truck. The uncle would bear just as much responsibility if he modified the truck to roll coal. Responsible diesel owners are not going to deliberately modify their truck to roll coal which is different than bypassing def.
@papajim--Our car industry is far from being killed by greenies. Record sales prove that you are wrong. Our steel industry was not killed so much by environmentalists than by cheaper steel. I thought you were for free enterprise and capitalism.
Jeff's wife must be out of town or something. Talk about cranky!
probably the FAKE Jeff S
@Jeff s
I agree with you, anyone who deletes there emissions on their diesel truck should have the exhaust pumped into the cab of their truck! I have a Ram with the Cummins and love the truck, pull it into my garage and it doesn't smell! I can't stand idiots that roll coal!
@Marc--Thank you. I do not have anything against a well maintained diesel that is not deliberate sabotaged to roll coal. My nephew has a 2014 Ram 3500 Cummins diesel and loves it. He uses it around our family farm and to tow his trailer when he and his wife visit their grown children.
Give me a 5.9 Cummins any day!
France has pledged to ban the sale of diesel and petrol cars from 2040, while some cities in Germany are set to ban older diesels. The UK government has increased taxes on diesel cars and is planning a ban on the sale of most hybrids and all purely petrol or diesel-driven cars from 2040.
In December 2016, the mayors of Paris, Madrid, Athens, and Mexico City announced plans to ban diesel cars and vans from their roads by 2025.
India's government has said it plans to ban sales of new cars powered by internal combustion engines by 2030.
@Dave
Is that supposed to be a joke?
Try to remember a single time in the last 100 years when the above-referenced governments did ANYTHING in concert with an individual ally, (or for that matter an alliance of any kind?).
HERE'S THE BEST PART:
YOU SAID---the mayors of Paris, Madrid, Athens, and Mexico City announced plans to ban diesel cars and vans from their roads by 2025.
Papajim replies: You have just listed four of the most politically corrupt places on earth. Are you ready to bet some real money on any of that actually happening? Yeah right.
Diesels are running on perception right now and that alone. Back in the day when Diesels could pollute like freight trains and were much simpler mechanically/electrically they got awesome mileage and lasted forever with little maintenance.
Then society realized that - get this - if you breath in air pollution, it actually affects your health - and they started coming up with emissions standards to help clean up the air! Progressive communities, societies, counties, states, ADAPTED for the benefit of their citizens in wanting cleaner air!
The problem is diesels adapted to current emissions standards simply do not make sense economically. So the solution is? Well I think most would think diesels have seen their day. However, some in here don't mind dying early for a diesel and want emissions standards removed so they can go on breathing in high levels of NOx in their community just for a bit more fuel economy - I guess fuel economy is worth dying for? . They don't mind seeing more kids with asthma and higher levels of lung cancer.
C'mon Scott. The world has bigger problems. Are you proposing a bicycle economy? Or should we all ride electric buses?
Many parts of the world don't have the weather problems they have in Mexico City or Los Angeles. Why prescribe a solution for Kansas because people in San Francisco happen to like it?
Sorry, I was not clear enough.
GDI vs. Diesels. (I did not mean turbo).
Go study the scientific comparisons of modern diesel emissions vs. modern GDI gas engines.
It is clear that GDI engines are even more poisonous than diesels.
This si a relatively new thing, since GDI engines did not become widespread until about 2013 or so. So it just has not sunk into the common man's mind yet. But scientifst know all this.
papajimmy, In my opinion the US government is probably the most corrupt in the world
I am just posting the facts, not what some people think they know, maybe. Look at what I previously posted about emmisions from diesel motors. Lots of people hammered me but did not bring any facts to repute any of that post. You can always tell tweeter/instagram people.
Your opinion is just that. An opinion.
Since you have not offered any facts to support the idea that our nation's government is any more corrupt than others, you've left yourself with little to support your point of view. Instead, a sensible person might read your comment and assume you have nothing of substance to offer.
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