Sometimes it is hard not to try and connect all of the dots on the board. Magazine editors are constantly bombarded with press releases and new product information. Every once and a while it is fun to play the “what if” game.

Cummins’ 2.8-liter inline four cylinder.

If you take a few steps back and look at the information coming in as a whole, what story does it tell? Here is our latest hypothesis.

Cummins, recently, announced they just completed testing and development of a new 2.8-liter four cylinder diesel for the half ton market. This engine would not only be good for the half ton market but, also, a midsize truck.

Automotive News published a story where Dave Guilford interviewed Bob Hegbloom from Ram (click here for the full story). In that interview, Hegbloom basically said that to be competitive in the midsize truck market they needed a 35 mpg truck and the cost to develop one would make the truck too expensive.

If an engine like the 2.8-liter is already developed, then it wouldn’t cost as much to integrate it into a truck. If Ram was looking at using that engine, Hebloom wouldn’t have made it so blunt that they are not looking at bringing back a midsize truck. When we reached out to Ram to inquire about this specifically, their official response was, “We don’t comment on future product.”

Ram 1500 powered by a 3.0-liter V6 EcoDiesel

So, that leads us two places. One, is the relationship between Cummins and Ram only for the three quarter and larger trucks? Is Fiat’s influence preventing them from using outside engines? Two, who is going to use the 2.8-liter?

Ford 6.7-liter V8 Power Stroke

Ford just introduced two more gasoline engines for their new aluminum half ton truck. This amount of investment makes it highly unlikely they would be looking at another option. In addition to that, between the five cylinder Power Stroke and the 6.7 Power Stroke, they are in a position to build their own small displacement engine.

GM would be a likely candidate except for they just developed a new 2.8-liter Duramax for the Colorado. There is no way they would be looking at adding a second non-GM diesel to their lineup of the same displacement.

Nissan is coming out with the Titan XD. The Titan XD is powered by a 5.0-liter V8 Cummins and they are quite proud of that. They have announced that the Titan will be available with two other gasoline engines. Would they offer a second diesel?

2016 Nissan Titan XD powered with a 5.0-liter V8 Cummins.

5.0-liter V8 Cummins that will be powering the Titan XD. A similiar version will be offered in other commercial trucks.

In order for a second diesel option to be viable, it has to offer something pretty special, like incredible fuel economy. The 2.8-liter has reportedly 53-percent better fuel economy than a comparable gas engine. Even so, we highly doubt that the Titan could claim the crown for “Best In Class” mpg away from Ram with their EcoDiesel.

Nissan’s Desert Runner concept Frontier

Nissan did debut a Frontier last year with the 2.8-liter under the hood as a concept truck. Unnamed sources inside Nissan report to us that the concept truck isn’t under development. Two of them were built for shows and that is about all they have done.

Next up is Toyota. Toyota has announced they will be using a Cummins in the upcoming Tundra. They have not disclosed which Cummins. The rumor was that the engine was going to be the 5.0-Liter that Nissan had announced the just prior, but Toyota has been rather tight lipped.

Could this new 2.8-liter Cummins be the ace up Toyota’s sleeve for the Tundra? Could this engine and truck combination compete with the EcoDiesel’s fuel economy ratings? The current Tundra gets 19 mpg highway. A 53-percent improvement would result in 29 mpg. Then you add in additional aerodynamic options (like Ram did for the HFE) and we could imagine a 30 or even 31 mpg half ton truck!

Toyota has always prided itself on their high MPG vehicles. So, we know they pay close attention to it and with the half ton market being so competitive in horsepower and torque, it is unlikely they would bring in a diesel to compete for “Best In Class” for these two titles. MPG on the other hand, is really only contested by Ram.

Well, that’s our hypothesis. What do you think?

Do you remember the Super Bowl commercial where the Tundra towed the Space Shuttle? Do you think they would do that with a 4 cylinder of equal torque?