Toyota Tundra Diesel Undergoing Testing
The Ram 1500 is the only half-ton pickup truck to offer a diesel option, but that won’t be true for long.
While Nissan has said it will offer a new diesel option for the Titan, Toyota is also investigating a diesel powertrain, with a source familiar to the project informing AutoGuide that diesel Tundras are already undergoing testing.
Speaking with Tundra chief engineer Mike Sweers, he wouldn’t confirm or deny the reports but did say that the earliest any such option would arrive would be 2017. The reason for the date is that new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) regulations come into place then, essentially making any current diesel engine irrelevant.
According to Sweers a diesel designed to meet current emissions regulations would be obsolete in 2017 while an engine designed to run past 2017 would, presumably, be either uncompetitive, too expensive or both in the current market.
SEE ALSO: 2014 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel Review
Despite that, the next-generation Nissan Titan is rumored to launch in 2015 and will be powered by a 5.0-liter Cummins turbodiesel V8 making around 300 hp and 500 lb-ft of torque.
Currently, the Ram 1500 EcoDiesel makes use of a 3.0-liter turbodiesel making 240 hp and 430 lb-ft of torque enabling it to tow 9,200 lbs while achieving 27 MPG combined.
Sweers spoke highly of diesel engines and commended Ram for the risks they took with the new 1500, including not just the diesel, but also the air ride suspension and eight-speed transmission, commenting that the gambles appear to have paid off.
Discuss this story at our Toyota Tundra forum.
With AutoGuide from its launch, Colum previously acted as Editor-in-Chief of Modified Luxury & Exotics magazine where he became a certifiable car snob driving supercars like the Koenigsegg CCX and racing down the autobahn in anything over 500 hp. He has won numerous automotive journalism awards including the Best Video Journalism Award in 2014 and 2015 from the Automotive Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC). Colum founded Geared Content Studios, VerticalScope's in-house branded content division and works to find ways to integrate brands organically into content.
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In the early 90's I owned a Dodge D-50 that came with a Mitsubishi 4cyl diesel engine. It was one of the toughest little trucks I have ever owned and I was getting almost 900km to a tank of fuel. Why they stopped making these trucks I will never know, but it is very exciting times to see all the big companies gunning for small diesels once again. Dodge, GM, Nissan, and Toyota all looking at small Diesels in their trucks, I can't wait! It is about damn time! Trust me, you will learn to love it! Yes Diesel is expensive now... But let's not forget it is one of the least refined fuels. With a large demand for it, I believe the price will reflect the cost of gasoline. Go Diesel!!
Toyota was offered the Cummins engine first and Toyota accepted the offer and was going to put it in the Tundra. Cummins then went to Nissan and offered the same engine to them and they also accepted it to go into the Titan. Toyota then decided to drop the Cummins because they didn't want the same engine as Nissan, "same engine-different wrapper". Toyota may come with a diesel in 2017 but it wont be a Cummins.