Ram 1500 EcoDiesel 2019 price and specs confirmed: HiLux-hammering power from new V6 engine

The Ram 1500 EcoDiesel has arrived in Australian dealerships, with the importer confirming local pricing and specification detail for the American-born jumbo truck.

The EcoDiesel option is available only in top-spec Laramie guise, and will set you back $109,950 - or $10k more than the 5.7-litre V8 version, which lists at $99,950.

Crucially, this is not the new engine revealed in the 'States this month. That unit, which appears in the new-gen DT Ram not due in Australia until next year, makes 194kW and 650Nm.

Read More About Ram 1500

How does the RAM 1500 Laramie handle family life?

That said, this version is hardly lacking in power, with the 3.0-litre turbocharged V6 good for 179kW at 3600rpm and 569Nm at 2000rpm. That grunt is fed through an eight-speed Torqueflite automatic. Those figures mean the diesel engine is down on power from its V8 sibling (which makes 291kW) but up on torque (from 556Nm). The EcoDiesel is thirsty, though, drinking 11.9L/100km on the combined cycle.

Ram says those engine numbers translate to a braked towing capacity of 3500kg and a max payload of 735kg.

 Looks-wise, the diesel is identical to the petrol version (pictured), with the exception of the badging. Like the rest of the Ram range, the 1500 Laramie EcoDiesel is a big unit, stretching some 5817mm in length, 2017mm in width and 1917mm in height.

By comparison, a Toyota HiLux Rugged measures in at 5350mm, 1885mm and 1815mm respectively. That car's four-cylinder turbo-diesel produces 130kW and 420Nm, with braked towing listed at a Ram-matching 3.5 tonnes.

The Ram diesel's off-road specs match the petrol-powered models, too, with 249mm ground clearance over the front axle, an approach and departure angles of 15.2 and 23.7 degrees, and a ramp breaker angle of 17.1 degrees.  The diesel also gets the same 98-litre fuel tank.

The Ram 1500 Laramie EcoDiesel rides on 20-inch alloys, and arrives with a nav-equipped 8.4-inch touchscreen (that's both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto equipped), a nine-speaker Alpine stereo and partial-leather trim. You also get keyless entry and push-button start, dual-zone climate control and dual chrome-tipped exhausts.

Would you spend more on a Ram diesel? Or is it V8 or bust for the 1500? Tell us in the comments below.