1990's GM 6.5 Turbo Diesel???

[JimR]

That's good advice. Currently, I run a 7.3L Powerstroke and a 6.6L DMAX and I think they're bother great diesels. However, the DMAX is MUCH more refined & quiet. The 7.3L is a clatterbox. Make sure you find cab noise with the 7.3L acceptable before you buy. I can barely hear my cell phone in mine. My DMAX is so quiet inside it sounds like a gas engine truck with a nice soft turbo whistle.

The transmissions are really what you should be looking at. IMO, only GM has built a transmission worth putting behind a diesel engine, the allison 1000. It's a really sweet transmission. The Ford trans is OK, but it will eventually fail behind a 7.3L if you want to tow with it. The older Ford trans (4R100) is a failure waiting to happen. A 6-speed would last much longer.

The newer Ford Torqshift ('03 & newer) is a step in the right direction, but it's no allison.
(Quote)

Thanks for all the info. In my price range, I am definetly confined to an older truck. I heard the major fault with the Ford automatic tranny is from towing in OD. That goes for even the gas powered trucks. My friend has a DuraMax/Allison and it is quiet as can be compared to my neighbors 7.3L. As a matter of fact his DuraMax is as quiet as my old 81 Olds Delta 88 Brougham diesel was.

 

[Builder]

your best bet would be a Ford 7.3 or Dodge 5.9 with a manual trans. Very reliable, economical & real easy to maintain.

 

[JimR]

your best bet would be a Ford 7.3 or Dodge 5.9 with a manual trans. Very reliable, economical & real easy to maintain.

The search continues for a nice cheap diesel truck.

 

[cp1969]

The search continues for a nice cheap diesel truck.

Nice...cheap...diesel.

Pick two; you can't have all three.

Seriously, why a diesel? You don't put very many miles on one, I think you'd probably be happier later if you didn't buy a well-used diesel now.

 

[JimR]

Nice...cheap...diesel.

Pick two; you can't have all three.

Seriously, why a diesel? You don't put very many miles on one, I think you'd probably be happier later if you didn't buy a well-used diesel now.

Diesel up here is cheaper than gas. They get better mileage when towing. I get about 8 mpg when I haul my boat. A round trip to L.I. Sound cost me about $65.00 using my pickup. My Ford is a gas guzzling POS as far as I am concerned when you put it under a load. It will get 14 mpg on the highway if you keep it at 65 mph or under when empty. Add weight and watch the gas go right through it. I also need something that can be used to plow with, carry rocks, cord wood, lumber, plywood, sheetrock and whatever else I want or need to pick up. If I was rich I might consider a foreign pickup and a dump trailer. I hear they haul pretty good.

 

[cp1969]

In just over two years I have only put about 10K on my Ford pickup.

You need to do some number crunching to figure out where the break-even point is going to be if you go with a diesel. That few of miles is not what a diesel is meant to do. A 15mpg diesel vs an 8mpg gasser, over 5,000 miles in a year, will save you $93 per month in fuel costs, based on today's prices (unleaded @ $3.40, diesel @ $2.80). A single repair on the diesel will wipe out all those savings, for many months. Everything you touch on a diesel costs much more than a gasser. Dual batteries, turbos, injectors, injection pumps, 14 quart oil changes...it goes on and on. There is nothing economical about these trucks--they are only less expensive to operate when compared to gas trucks that are being used hard every day, lots of miles over a long period of time.

Plus, I don't think this disparity in fuel prices is going to last. I hope it does, but have my doubts.

 

[ScottAR]

The fuel price difference is cycical in my experience. The gassers cry all summer, I cry all winter when heating oil season starts.

Last year for example, road diesel was around $2.63 most of the summer. Started getting cool and it jumped over $3.00. Got to $3.15ish at one point.
Warm again and it's $2.79.

I was halfway looking for a TDI VW fuel miser to ride around in and keep the miles down on my F350 till I hit a deer last week. Rethinking the fuel savings vs deer damage to small car. Deer are quite numerous here. YMMV.

 

[JimR]

You need to do some number crunching to figure out where the break-even point is going to be if you go with a diesel. That few of miles is not what a diesel is meant to do. A 15mpg diesel vs an 8mpg gasser, over 5,000 miles in a year, will save you $93 per month in fuel costs, based on today's prices (unleaded @ $3.40, diesel @ $2.80). A single repair on the diesel will wipe out all those savings, for many months. Everything you touch on a diesel costs much more than a gasser. Dual batteries, turbos, injectors, injection pumps, 14 quart oil changes...it goes on and on. There is nothing economical about these trucks--they are only less expensive to operate when compared to gas trucks that are being used hard every day, lots of miles over a long period of time.

Plus, I don't think this disparity in fuel prices is going to last. I hope it does, but have my doubts.

Fortunately for me I do all my own repair work. So the cost to fix anything is a parts only cost. I have a motorcycle and a car available for doing all of my errands and running around. The truck is for heavy jobs only and plowing. I know about the gas cycles and how the oil companies inflate prices each summer to screw us, and how they inflate heating oil in the winter to screw us again. I guess I could compare my 27 horsepower 7275 Cub Cadet diesel tractor against the old, I think 28 Horsepower, 1952 Ford 8N gas job I used to own. The little Cub Cadet runs circles around what the 8N could do.

 

[Builder]

If I was rich I might consider a foreign pickup and a dump trailer. I hear they haul pretty good.

What the heck would you get out of a foreign pick-up power-wise that domestic doesn't have?

 

[Builder]

You need to do some number crunching to figure out where the break-even point is going to be if you go with a diesel. That few of miles is not what a diesel is meant to do. A 15mpg diesel vs an 8mpg gasser, over 5,000 miles in a year, will save you $93 per month in fuel costs, based on today's prices (unleaded @ $3.40, diesel @ $2.80). A single repair on the diesel will wipe out all those savings, for many months. Everything you touch on a diesel costs much more than a gasser. Dual batteries, turbos, injectors, injection pumps, 14 quart oil changes...it goes on and on. There is nothing economical about these trucks--they are only less expensive to operate when compared to gas trucks that are being used hard every day, lots of miles over a long period of time.

Plus, I don't think this disparity in fuel prices is going to last. I hope it does, but have my doubts.

I would agree if he was buying a new truck, but if he's buying a used truck with many miles on it, I would think the gas engine would be close to shot whereas a diesel engine could easily go 300-400,000 miles before needing to be replaced.
Gas engines don't last as long and need repairs, too.
The older "90's" 7.3L & 5.9L were models of simplicity & very economical to maintain.