Mahindra Diesel Pickups Comming to America!

[azidpa]

I have long sought a fuel efficient light duty diesel pickup. While we have some great trucks from the big three, they don't make anything smaller than a 6L diesel. I hear Ford might make a 4.4L F150 but I won't hold my breath from the big three. Jeep owners are still waiting for the export only diesel Jeeps to be sold here.

I pretty much fell in love with diesel Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger crew cabs they have in Afghanistan.

So, I am happy to report that we may actually get something like this in the US. The Indian company Mahindra plans to sell their trucks here in the US. Check it out:

http://www.mahindrana.com/

You can also sign up for a test drive when they become available in your area.

However, many diesel enthusiasts have been down this road before. The Romanian company AOR has been trying to bring the Cross Lander to America since 2006 http://www.nolimits4x4.com/options.html

Those Rangers rocked!

[ranburr]

Your information is about ten years out of date for that price. See attached window sticker photo for a 2011 SD Ford. Even that upgrade cost is shuffling of numbers, as a replacement DPF is almost $4000.

When you make the actual deal, a diesal upgrade is about $3K. If you are actually paying sticker, I feel sorry for you.

[ranburr]

Firstly, its D-E-A-R, not D-E-R-E and Sarah aint got two R's.

Dodge's "Build My Own" has the 6.7l Cummins listed as a $7,615 option for their 2500 series.

On Ford's "Build & Price" has their 6.7l Power Stroke listed as a $7835 option on the F-350.

Chevrolet's site blows compared to the others and could not find a diesel option but the Duramax engines are up there with the rest of them.

If the dealer has something on the lot they want to get rid of they obviously discount them, but if you have to order something new then those prices are the starting prices of that option.


It all depends on what you are towing (weight) and how you drive.

My grandfather tows a little trailer down to his other house on Cape Cod a few times a year to bring his wood chipper and stuff down there. He isn't going to notice anything.

When I worked with the race team we towed a huge custom built trailer with the bikes, pit bikes, tools, spares, fuel, tires, etc all around the country. There you would notice the difference.

It is more common to see guys that spend all the extra money for a diesel truck because they "need" it for towing. They own a motor home that they pull a 100 miles away once a year. At least that is what you see up here in the NE.

Several things here; Sticker and actual prices are wildly different. Secondly, I live in TX, people actually tow things here.

[Nathan_Bell]

When you make the actual deal, a diesal upgrade is about $3K. If you are actually paying sticker, I feel sorry for you.

Deal as hard on a gasser as you do on a diesel and you will see your $3k figure is bunkum.

[Left Sig]

Deal as hard on a gasser as you do on a diesel and you will see your $3k figure is bunkum.

And we're comparing apples to hand grenades. The old Navistar 7.3L is regarded by many to be the best light truck diesel every made. And it was relatively simple compared to anything made since. They can and do run for hundreds of thousands of miles if you take care of them. Navistar couldn't make enough of them to meet demand back in the late 90's.

But with the increasing complexity of the 6.0L - (4 valves per cylinder, single EGR cooler, VGT Turbo, more electronics), and MUCH higher complexity of the 6.4L (dual EGR coolers, twin sequential VGT turbo, even more electronics, common rail injection, aftertreatment filter) there's just a lot more that can go wrong, and it does. If you lose your radiator and dump enough water, the EGR coolers will burn through and hydro-lock your engine faster than you think. Ford had a bad run of radiators early in the 6.4L program that trashed quite a few engines. And that's a $13,000 cab-off repair.

Ash build up in the DPF due to oil additives that can't burn off means you will have to get the filter replaced or cleaned every few years.

This is 100% due to government emissions regulations. You still need diesels when you need them, because gas won't cut it for larger trucks and industrial equipment, but they are costing a lot more.

There is hope for smaller engines, because the emissions rules do take into account the hp rating of the engine. If the power is low enough, some of the rules aren't as bad.

[Nathan_Bell]

And we're comparing apples to hand grenades. The old Navistar 7.3L is regarded by many to be the best light truck diesel every made. And it was relatively simple compared to anything made since. They can and do run for hundreds of thousands of miles if you take care of them. Navistar couldn't make enough of them to meet demand back in the late 90's.

But with the increasing complexity of the 6.0L - (4 valves per cylinder, single EGR cooler, VGT Turbo, more electronics), and MUCH higher complexity of the 6.4L (dual EGR coolers, twin sequential VGT turbo, even more electronics, common rail injection, aftertreatment filter) there's just a lot more that can go wrong, and it does. If you lose your radiator and dump enough water, the EGR coolers will burn through and hydro-lock your engine faster than you think. Ford had a bad run of radiators early in the 6.4L program that trashed quite a few engines. And that's a $13,000 cab-off repair.

Ash build up in the DPF due to oil additives that can't burn off means you will have to get the filter replaced or cleaned every few years.

This is 100% due to government emissions regulations. You still need diesels when you need them, because gas won't cut it for larger trucks and industrial equipment, but they are costing a lot more.

There is hope for smaller engines, because the emissions rules do take into account the hp rating of the engine. If the power is low enough, some of the rules aren't as bad.

The size engine where they stop being eco-Nazi's is so small that they are not really automotive useful. IIRC they start being applicable at about 50hp, then get harsh at 175.