2010 DODGE RAM 2500 and 3500 Cummins Diesel 6.7l steps up the class.
Ram Quad cab with sunroof
After years of DPF, turbo and check engine light trouble in the Dodge Cummins 6.7L the 2010 is rumored to be trouble-free, and better than ever, according to insiders. My sources say the new truck blows away the power of anything in it’s class. “But wait,” I said, “What about the problems with the DPF, REGEN, TURBO and infamous CHK ENGINE LIGHTS?”
According to technicians trained in the art of Cummins warranty war-fare, here is the inside scoop. “The biggest issue with the REGEN and DPF issue has been traced back to idling. The factory can tap into the computer brain and determine what percentage of YOUR TRUCKS’ running time is spent in IDLE. The truck in idle never gets hot enough in of itself to go into REGEN and burn off the soot. My sources indicate that trucks showing idle over 20% of the time are subject to more problems. The computer can tell what percentage of your time is straight idle in park vs. stop light traffic. The idle problem has EVEN MORE significance on early editions of the 6.7L (2007-2008) sporting the ORIGINAL turbo. The ORIGINAL turbo hook-up stayed in one place, allowing soot to build up around the unit. Subsequent TURBO replacements, at $10k a whack, utilize a “floating rotor” that helps “shake-off” (a non-technical term 
” the soot as the truck moves.”
Tu-tone paint on 2010 Dodge RAM
Allegedly, new releases of software are reducing trips to the dealership, according to one of my tech-wizards, however readers of this blog have posted complaints of increasingly disintegrating fuel economy and performance. Meanwhile these software upgrades and equipment changes are not advertised to all Cummins’ owners, even if you have reported an ongoing problem. There is no official recall, hence, the factory does not have to expose itself to millions of dollars in warranty labor and parts claims by broadcasting an invitation to every 6.7L owner to come on down and get the latest software upgrade. All these changes are strictly TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETINS, a nice way of saying: NOT REQUIRED BY LAW TO FIX.
Now, if you happen to be in the dealership while under warranty and complain about performance, display a check engine light, or protest a specific problem, the dealer can (under warranty) upgrade the software. Even this warranty claim has become a sticky issue as the truck MUST display the appropriate computer error code to warrant the latest software upgrade (often called a “flash”) to fix that SPECIFIC problem. Get ready for a fight if you just “drop in” and ask for the latest software flash, there have been so many (almost one a month) that your truck could be several versions behind, and the dealer has to get paid to do these upgrades, from the reluctant, financially-strapped, FIAT-owned CHRYSLER factory. Replacing your old turbo is 10x the effort! And, should your dealer accuse your NON-Factory upgrades, i.e. Banks, DPF-R or other performance-enhancing aftermarket items of creating the problem, point out the hundreds of thousands of stock DODGES reporting the same problems!
In the meantime, dodge techs ask all DODGE CUMMINS 6.7L 2500 and 3500 owners to STOP the idling, please! (This isn’t the glow plug days of the 5.9l 24 valve. Get over the desire to “warm-up” a cold diesel engine when it’s not freezing, and if it is freezing in your neck of the woods, plug in the engine block heater cord overnight.) Jump in and drive it hard, according to Dodge. If this is your daily around town driver, try to blow-it-out at 60mph+ for 10 minutes or more each day. While this will certainly waste the precious fuel our government wants us to save, it will save you mental anguish and frustration caused by excess trips to the dealer.
Stay tuned here and come back often as I try to find a new 2010 to do the famous MY CARLADY Test Drive Review in the next week!
BTW, Dodge SPRINTER lovers, you better grab a new 2008 or 2009 while there is one around. There will be no more Mercedes Benz delivery trucks sold under the Sprinter badge. FIAT has effectively killed the German-made beast we grew to love. 2011 expect to see a diesel or alternative-fuel cargo van replacement from FIAT. ;-(
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Sarah Lee is a 20 yr. automotive executive writing on all things car related. A huge consumer advocate for better car deals and manufacturer responsibility. This website and the information provided is fueled by donations. If you feel the information provided is helpful, please feel free to contribute by clicking here. Thank You for your support. SLM
Tu-tone paint on 2010 Dodge RAM
Sarah Lee is a 20 yr. automotive executive writing on all things car related. A huge consumer advocate for better car deals and manufacturer responsibility. This website and the information provided is fueled by donations. If you feel the information provided is helpful, please feel free to contribute by clicking here. Thank You for your support. SLM
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Hello Car Lady. I just wanted to share my experiences wtih the latest from Dodge in my area. I have had the same problems with my 2008 Dodge Ram 2500 4WD 6.7 as all the other owners though mine has never left me stranded like some of the other owners. I have had the turbo replaced twice and the whole EGR system including the EGR valve, bypass valve, actuator, cooler cleaning, etc. The last flash was done along with all the parts they threw at it last time. I noticed better throttle response and hoped they would have done something to improve the mileage but alas, no such luck. Seems like it goes into regen more often than before but not as long. I suspect they were initially letting it go too long before a regen and things were plugging up with soot. The mileage was no better than before averaging 15-15.5 with prudent driving and as little idling as possible I am sure if I still followed the “Drive it like you stole it” method I would be down around 13 again. I am curious what they think we should do in the ice and snow though we don’t have that here I have lived where there was plenty of it. So their solution is to drive the hell out of it on ice and snow???? Brilliant!!! I had initiated buyback when they did the last work on the truck. They managed to keep the check engine light off so they refused to go through with the buyback. I have given up on keeping it legal and the only thing I have needed the warranty for is the emission system. I have installed a Hypertech programmer, unplugged the EGR, installed a Volant Cold Air Intake and a 5″ exhaust from the DPF back. My mileage isn’t up to what my 2001 was but I have gotten as good as 22.5 on a trip and average 18 combined, hand calculated. Mileage is up from the 14-15 combined and 19 hwy to 18 combined and 22.5 hwy. That works out to an additional 75-100 miles per tank of fuel and I haven’t had any codes other than the one for unplugging the EGR. The regens are down to one per tank instead of happening practically every day. I have a feeling the next mod will be the DPF-R kit. After a year and a half, 55,000 miles and constant trips to the dealership I am tired of putting up with this emission system especially when I see so many other trucks without DPFs not blowing smoke and getting better mileage without the constant trips to the dealership. Why can cars like the VW Jetta TDI be such a success but these trucks be such a disaster???
Comment by Glen Logan — 09/19/2009 @ 10:08 pm
Nice post. Dodge get lot of success from ram. Dodge Ram have 6 speed automatic transmission. The Drive layout is a typical RWD or a 4WD. Ram HD is available in three cab i.e regular cab; crew cab and mega cab. Interiors are same as the features of the 2009 model. Controller can communicate all information to the driver through the gauge cluster information center right between the speedometer and tachometer. For more details refer http://www.macktruck.org/2010-dodge-ram-hd-25003500-review.html/
Comment by Mack — 09/22/2009 @ 5:16 am
We just sold a 2007 Dodge 2500 6.7 liter nightmare. I have never owned a vehicle with so many factory related mechanical issues. This pickup was in the shop more in the 16 months that we owned it than any other vehicle we have ever owned. They never could fix it….don’t let it idle, run the Jake brake, take it out and “blow it out” every now and then…blah..blah..blah. I’m sure everyone else has heard the same story. After 2 turbo replacements, numerous filter replacements and cleanings, and the last tow bill I had to pay out of pocket over 100 miles from my house with two small children, I told my husband to sell that truck before I had a nervous breakdown. Nothing but frustration, and the dealership didn’t even know how to fix it…put the Dodge bandaid on the problem and send you out the door. Dodge wouldn’t buy it back, too long since we bought it, and the dealer couldn’t wait to get out of their hair. After I read about the fuel contaminant issues that were coming up and voiding warranties, I told my husband to sell it before we got stuck with a huge repair bill and nobody to back us up. We went back to the Ford f250 and hope to stay out of the shop for a few months!!! It’s bad when the service manager and all the mechanics know you and your children by name. I don’t recommend this vehicle to anybody. Dodge needs to make it right for all the people who have these issues. We sold ours to a wholesale dealer and ate about $7,000.00 that we lost. Will Dodge pay us back??? Not a snowball’s chance. I couldn’t get any of the executives to respond to certified letters when we owned the vehicle. I would just want to warn everyone reading this, stay away from the 2007 6.7 liter engines. They are an endless nightmare. We put less than 50,000 miles on this quality truck we paid $34,000 for, and had nothing but trouble from two months after we bought it. My husband has a Ford F250 that just turned 250,000 miles and is still going strong—–now tell me who built the quality engine????????
Comment by Daylene Knight — 10/13/2009 @ 1:37 pm
I AM HAVING THAT PROBLEM NOW. I JUST CALLED CHYSLER AND TOLD THEM THAT I WANTED THEM TO DO A BUY BACK. DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY UPDATED INFOMATION ON WHAT CHYSLER IS DOING TO FIX THE PROBLEMS
Comment by RAY — 10/28/2009 @ 2:50 pm
I’m so sad about my 08 truck, I had a 05 cummins and traded it for the new 6.7 thinking I needed it. What I can’t figure out is why a consumer buys a truck to drive and has to adhere to wasting fuel driving the truck in a lower gear for so many miles to keep the dpf filter from stopping up. Why didn’t Dodge in their quest to burn clean use electric heat cells to burn the soot instead of wasting fuel. The way I see it when you spend 50K dollars for a truck you shouldn’t have to take the truck on the interstate and run it 40 miles at high RPM’s to do something the engineers should have corrected before releasing the thing. If it wasn’t against the law I would pull my truck in the woods and burn it to a crisp to collect the insurance.
Danny
Comment by Danny Bartran — 12/26/2009 @ 8:37 pm
have an 08 2500 6.7 crewcab 4×4. with 41000 miles….catalyst full light comes on continuously…at the the dealer at 28,000 miles with engine light on and turbo not responding…..plugged exhaust…got new exhaust under warranty….$would have been $7000 dollar bill ….at 40,000 light came back on with catylist full and blowing white smoke..dealer says idles too much and to just start it up and go….10 to 15 below zero in denver colorado when it acted up last and im supposed to not warm it up….what about oil thats thick as mollasses on these cold mornings? after the latest visit to the dealer they did a software up date and the next day it flashed the catylist full again at 70 miles an hour on I-70 heading up in to the mountains….not exactly idling is it dodge!!!!! now the turbo is not hooking up or boosting and the engine light is just glowing away and the overhead says system is okay but at least its not smoking everyone out thats behind me…otherwise runs great….pull your head out of your ass dodge
Comment by tim — 01/15/2010 @ 5:53 pm
It’s a deisel, they are made to idle for long periods of time. It’s the manufactors and all the stupid EPA regs thay have to folloe. I have a 2010 Dodge 3500 it runs all the time.
Comment by dennis — 02/13/2010 @ 10:26 am
Your comment earlier “This isn’t the glow plug days of the 5.9l 24 valve” is misleading. The Cummins 5.9L diesel in the Dodge pickup never had glows. It had/has a grid heater on the intake that warms the incoming airflow. The 6.7L diesel also has a grid heater and no ‘glow plugs’. S- “GLow Plug” is a catch phrase used commonly to refer to giving the diesel time with the key in the aux. position before starting.
Comment by Dan — 02/28/2010 @ 1:11 pm
Hello just reading and I am scared crapless . i am very very close to buying a 2010 2500 6.7 dodge . I have an 07 1500 and a 09 1500 both great trucks and both 5.7 hemis but i am getting killed by fuel. Am a contractor and pull most of the time so need to save on fuel and figured dodge 2010 6.7 was way to go. Great lookin truck like my 09 1500 but its a 2500 but man have all the problems been fixed. Dealer says well you know they just want to sell a truck. Hey no more mistakes on my part , i will keep the 1500 s if new 6.7 are a piece of crap . Please someone give me some info . Possibly will buy on March 19 – I will wait for a comment . Ronny
HI RONNY, the 2010 does not seem to have any complaints since Dodge added the ectrice throttle control unit to the top of the motor. See my youtube.com/mycarladytestdrives for a video on the new 2010. SARAH LEE
Comment by Ronny from Canada — 03/17/2010 @ 6:58 pm
i have a 2010 dodge 6.7 and love it. it runs greast about 16mpg in town and 20 no the hiway. the light will come on then go off
Comment by james wilson — 08/24/2011 @ 2:27 pm
I own a 2010 dodge 2500 4×4 6.7 diesel with 36k miles. Turned the 4×4 knob and nothing, even with 4×4 off truck would not move. Then moving knob heard clicking below truck then for some reason, al o.k..
Then, after 75 mile trip back and mostly 65 to 70 mph, check engine lite is on when I realized I did not have exhaust button pushed. I am curios as to whether the 1 st. problem had anything to do with 2nd. and why lite is still on.
Any comments regarding my two comments?
Comment by duane — 09/03/2011 @ 2:47 pm
You need to be rolling at least 5mph to engage the 4wdH or Low. The chk engine light could be coincidental to the 4wd engaging, as this is NOT typically related to the REGEN/ CHK ENG Light problem most folks complain about. Time for a trip to the dlr, sorry.
Comment by MYCARLADY — 09/04/2011 @ 11:17 am
I just returned from the dealer for an DPF issue. I have a 2011, 3500 with the 6.7 turbo diesel and every week the regen comes on and I have to regen it because it will only regen to 60%, then clear. The dealer told me the same thing, don’t idle the truck, which is about the stupidest thing I have heard, expecially since its a diesel. The point is I have not been leting it just idle and I have been trying to regen it. He can’t access it unless it is active when I bring it to him, well i live 15 miles away and by the time I get there or even three miles down the road it has completed. He said there is nothing they can do because Dodge has not come up with a fix yet. He told me I basically have to take it out on the highway every week and regen it. I didn’t pay almost $50,000 dollars for a vehicle that I have to put extra miles and gas into just to make it run right. I would like to know who I can write, call, whatever I have to do to help with this? Seems by reading your posts, it has been an on going issue.
Comment by Steve — 09/15/2011 @ 9:24 am
Any computer issues with the 2011 6.7l diesel? fuel pump quit working around 6300 miles but when dealer bypasses the computer it works fine they say.
Comment by Eric McMaster — 10/27/2011 @ 2:51 pm
I bought a 2010 Ram 2500 6.7 mega cab and love it. I did a DPF delete and a 4″ turbo back exhaust with a smarty jr tuner and the only issue I have was the o2 sensor is reading rich and this code is from before I had completed my changes. I love my truck and will not go anywhere without it. 1 year and 25k miles and a wheel and tire upgrade! No issues since the tuner and delete kit.
Comment by RJ McGaha — 11/02/2011 @ 11:29 pm