Report: Ford says no to light-duty diesel pickup to combat 2014 Ram 1500 diesel

While Chrysler made the move of having the Ram brand feature a light-duty diesel variant based off of the 2014 Ram 1500, this has made many of us wonder if the other two competitors within the Big Three—and foreign offerings—would follow. In a new report by Edmunds.com, word is that Ford will not be joining the light-duty diesel race because “payback time for a diesel F150 is too long.”

“We don’t see the dynamics for an F-150 diesel right now,” Raj Nair told Edmunds.com, Ford’s group vice president of global product development. “If you go through the math, your payback is much longer and consumers are smart enough to know that.”

As of now, the most fuel-efficient Ford F150 is the base 3.7L V6 model good for 17/23 city/highway mpg.

Alternatively, Chrysler disagreed and vouched for their diesel Ram 1500. Additionally, a recent study commissioned by Robert Bosch LLC. found that diesel engine passenger cars have resulted in a lower cost of ownership than gasoline-powered vehicles in the US. So we’re not sure where Ford is getting their doubt from, especially considering the possibility they may be basing it off of obsolete data from when diesel was considerably more expensive than gasoline.

“It differentiates us in the marketplace,” Reid Bigland, Chrysler’s U.S. sales chief, told Edmunds.com. “We see it delivering a reasonable payback time, especially when you consider how long the average truck buyer keeps their vehicle. It won’t hurt when it comes to meeting the mileage requirements of CAFE rules either.”

– By: Chris Chin

Source: Edmunds