Ouch...

Comparison: 2015 Ford F-150 vs. Ram 1500 vs. Chevrolet Silverado

Don't shoot the messenger we all know that the transmission is getting long in the tooth and the new tranny can't come soon enough but some of the other comments were new to me, especially the pricing of the ram diesel compared to the Ecoboost is basically a wash.

 

I don't know if anyone else saw it in the comparison table below the article but the price as tested was not the same

$46,720 for the Ford and $53,690 for the Dodge, so how can the price be a wash, that's a lot of gas to make up for the diesel options increased cost.

Mark

 

In the article it says that you'd have to add several extras to the Ford to bring it up to the same level of amenities that the Ram has. It said that all the trucks are over $53,000...also, they were not able to get a crew cab 2.7 so that is part of the discrepancy.

 

There's a reason I stopped reading Motor Trend years ago. It's called "selective perception". I'll test drive my own vehicles and make my own decision.

 

As I interpret the article I'm left to say that the test was fair and impartial. All three trucks were driven by everyone involved and all three trucks were laden the same way and were driven on the same courses.

The GM had some nice features that the MT staff liked but overall it was lacking in areas where the Ram and the Ford shined. GM had their opportunity to boost a Silverado and chose to upgrade the V-8 instead. Bad move GM.

Since GM doesn't have a boosted engine perhaps the staff should have sourced a 5.0L F-150 and a Hemi Ram. The Silverado wouldn't have looked so bad.

Either way, the loyalists will buy what they want no matter what is written about them.

Great article and well written, even if the Ford had fallen flat on it's face.

 

I agree with your comment. I am ordering a truck next month - either a Lariat or a Laramie and I also go to the forums for Ram and you're right the loyalists are passionate whether it's Ford, Ram or GM. I personally am open and am waiting for two last things - a test drive and deal ($$$). For me it's between a 2015 Lariat, 4x4, super cab, 2.7L and decked out or; a 2015 Laramie, 4x4, quad cab, 3.6L and decked out including air suspension and Ram boxes.

I must say what's keeping Ford in the mix is the performance of the 2.7L motor very impressive acceleration, payload and towing but the dealer is gonna have to come my way on $$$. The Ram specs out at about $4k under the Ford for MSRP.

Now I have both discounts available to me:
1.) The Chrysler Affiliate program through a Tread Lightly membership; and
2.) The Ford X Plan through a membership with the Experimental Aircraft Association (believe it or not - don't ask me why).

So I am instantly going to work from basically a dealer "invoice cost" - it will be interesting to see the smoke and mirros employed from that point forward - anyhow I think the pricing will be close and very competitive.

I was interested to read the Motortrend impression on the respective rides - the Ram with air suspension is still superior to the new F150 - I will be anxious to see this for myself. The test drive and deal are going to determine it for me.

 

Very interesting article, and I agree with Tim that this was a largely impartial comparison.

The Chevy truck certainly fell flat on its face, but the conclusion stated that the Ram and Ford were very close. I think it's fantastic how competitive the Big 4 are in the half-ton segment, I don't think there are any bad choices out there anymore. Really impressive how the little bitty 2.7L Ford was the hot rod of the group, even with a 7,000 lb trailer.

I will definitely be test driving the Ram and Ford when the time comes for a new truck.

 

The trucks were not similar optioned trucks. The pay load of the Dodge was the lowest, the Dodge was the slowest according to their chart but was rated better because it felt better. The towing tested a Ford with a 5,000 pound rating against a Chevy & Dodge with ratings over 8000 pounds. They put an optional air suspension on the Dodge than claimed it rode better while towing 1,600 pounds under its limit compared to the F150 which was 2,000 over its limit. Then they unfairly bashed the Chevy.

 

Just another note. It took the current winning RAM 1500 4 years before it won its first award in 2013, and then 2nd it in 2014. The caliper award hasn't even been given for this year, even if Ford doesn't take it yet, I'm sure they will tweak and fix the short-comings and up their game.

I still think the F-150 is a sharp looking truck and should be a contender as soon as Ford gathers more input from the journalists and customers to get the truck just-right. You have to consider that this isn't just a new generation of truck, but a magnitude shift in a truck, its manufacturing, and its entire setup. It weighs less, so I bet it will under-go several suspension revisions to get the ride just right. I also believe a new transmission is just on the horizon. There will be features added as well. Also, truck of the year is certainly up for grabs. Return of the Chevy Colorado is a big deal, and just because RAM won this comparo, it isn't a comparison of the entire truck line as well (all options and engines considered). RAM will also be bowing out its new 1500 as a 2017 model. These are exciting times for the blue oval and goat fans.

Really in the article, the biggest take away is that apparently GM isn't playing the pickup game nearly as serious as Ford and RAM are.

 

Motor Trend is about as biased as US Top Gear. Funny thing is the Ford/GM transmissions are joint venture so soon as Ford releases it GM will release it same day so it'll really be interesting on how "liable" magazines review the 2 trucks then.

 

Great thing is that no matter what truck you buy it'll be a great one. Drive them all and buy the one that suits you.

 

Even if you could compare a diesel truck to a gas truck for the same price, the other day, here where I live diesel was .94 higher than regular gas...

Im not sure what the math mileage would work out to be but youd have to get mega mpg better with that diesel to justify paying almost a dollar a gallon more for fuel, not to mention the higher maintenance costs with routine mainenance like fuel filters and more expensive oil changes?

Dont misunderstand me, I like diesels but for the average guy with a pickup that just puts around and gets groceries or goes out to eat in their truck. .. Im just sayin

 

Yep, all factors that a potential owner needs to measure. The northeast has a bigger differential between diesel and regular versus the west coast in general. In my area for the past two years (taking seasonality into account), Diesel has had just over a 10% premium over regular unleaded. Sometimes it costs a little less than regular, and for another part of the year it costs a bit more.

I have to say, it's much more refreshing to have a conversation on this board. Too much axe grinding and such on many other boards.

 

This is absolutely true...I mean honestly very few consumers actually need the amount of torque a modern diesel put's out...It's just an expensive luxury these days. That combined with the added fuel cost, and added maintenance cost, it's really unreasonable to own a diesel for anything other than towing the heaviest loads.

But I've never been one to tell other's what they should or shouldn't drive, many would argue that I have no need for my F-150...And they would be right, I rarely ever haul or tow anything, I essentially treat the truck as if it were a large car, it's just my driving around vehicle...But I drive it because I can afford and I love pickups, if what you want to drive fit's your criteria then by all mean's have at it!

 

Here's what I had said on here back in February:

Say if the new ecoboost tops 26mpg in a 2wd standard cab short bed and the diesel gets 29mpg in the same setup. Assuming both trucks have a 25gal tank with gas at $3.30 and diesel at $3.89 the gas is $0.13 per-mile. The diesel is at the same $0.13 per mile.

Let's face the fact here, fuel is going to get expensive. This drop in fuel won't last next summer, its going to go back up over $3.00 a gallon...oil companies are planning on not drilling as much oil to force oil back over $90 per barrel to make a profit again.

Oil changes on the EcoDiesel are between 7500 and 10,000 miles. EcoBoost is what 3000-5000 miles still? Cost of DEF for 2 gallons is around $12 in store or at least near Mankato, MN is $2.79 per gallon last I knew from about 2-3 weeks ago. So you figure an extra $17 for a full tank of DEF plus diesel. This is only taking into account using 87 octane in EcoBoost but I recall its better to use Premium (90/91 Octane) in it...so that'll put you at over $3.00 per gallon at current prices.

If your planning on keeping the truck for a good number of years/miles generally when it comes down to basic maintenance the diesel will usually last longer. But that's if you keeping the truck for well over 10 years and by then that's about when the drive train can start showing its age.

The math is simple I just cannot remember off the top of my head from over 9 months ago how I calculated it. Cost per mile is what it comes down to in this. But overall its really what YOU as the consumer wants. At last check EcoDiesel was a $4500 extra over the gas versions.

Link to the thread that I had stated cost per mile: https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...l#post14026116

640...EcoDiesel puts out around 420ft/lbs of torque. 3.5L EB is upwards of 460ft/lbs of torque