Experience with diesel 3/4 ton pickups?

[ETC]

Originally Posted by Brucey

Everything in the fleet at work is a chevy, so I'd definitely go Dodge.

Come on, you know you want a Cummins.

Honestly, at current gas prices, driving any sort of distance in full size truck is a waste. You plan on getting another beater to run around in? Our Chevy's get 9 mpg if we're lucky. 130 bucks to go 250 miles usually. Even with a diesel I don't see it getting much cheaper.

Are you guys fully loaded all the time like we used to be in our extended 3500 vans ?

9 is pathetic for a gas 3/4 ton ... I get 11-12 on my Lifted crew cab with 35's, a 6.0 supercharged motor with a moderate load in the back 600 +. The lift and tires killed the mileage, I used to get 16-18 on the highway with the blower before I lifted it.

Diesels get waay better mileage than gas motors, especially when you start loading them.

[DOHC Outback]

Whatever you do:

Do not buy a 6.0 liter Ford Powerstroke. They are probably the worst diesel engine in any modern vehicle.

Ford Power Stroke engine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Some of the problems encountered, was the possibility of the variable geometry turbo charger to stick due to carbon deposits and/or rust buildup. This could potentially cause over boost and under boost conditions, which could lead to headgasket failure. Other problems include sticking egr valves, restricted oil coolers, which lead to leaking egr coolers. Numerous PCM (Powetrain Control Module) recalibrations, fuel injector stiction along with several other driveability and QC issues. The major problem with the 6.0L was the torque-to-yield head bolts, and poor head gasket design, both leading to a blown head gasket, and eventually a cracked cylinder head:

[rockhopjohn]

Well, I ended up buying a 2004 GMC 2500HD SLT with the Duramax. While shopping, I had resigned myself to a gas 3/4 ton, because I didn't think I'd find a diesel in my price range that my financing would approve of (I was limited to 7 years and 70k miles, with a $25000 limit), but in the end I ended up finding a great truck with 50k miles for $26000, and was able to put enough down to get in under the $25000 limit. I have always loved GMCs (my first vehicle was a GMC, and my family has had several GMCs over the years).

So the truck seems to be great, I towed my Outback on an Auto Transport from Boise where I bought the truck back up here to NW MT, and it was like it wasn't even back there. Mileage wasn't stellar, at 13 MPG, but it was OK considering I was towing, and I had to go over 3-4 passes along the way. I am going to be looking into some tuner options that might get that mileage up a little higher. The truck is the SLT, which means its got the top of the line interior, with the bucket seats, leather, climate control, all that jazz, which is nice, and it only had 50k miles, which is unheard of for a 2004 Diesel pickup out in this neck of the woods. I don't think the price was a steal, but I think it was fair, and I am happy with it, which is all that matters. The truck was at a Hyundai dealership, and I think it had just been largely overlooked.

[hammer6048]

Have a 04 chev duramax, 114,000 miles on it. This is for my heavy lifting. Other than routine maintenance, belts and such, nothing big. Got in a hail storm in Montana, PDR fixed that. Still has original brakes, at 50%. A little rust in the inside of the doors, had that fixed, salt in WI does a job on vehicles. Mileage with a tuner average all around 19.5, great long haul vehicle.

[HoosierDaddy2]

This is months old now , but I thought I'd bring it back a bit.

Turbo diesels have a sweet spot in their rpm range , it has something to do with the temp. of the turbo and other stuff all meshing together and working really well. In my 2001 F250 , the sweet spot was right at 1800 rpm , which put me at 70 mph with the 3.73 gears and stock tires. At that speed , I'd get 21 mpg all day , every day , every tank , not towing of course. Even towing a 4500 lb non-aerodynamic brick on a car hauler (69 Ford Bronco) , I could get 16/18 mpg , maybe better , which is actually better than the Bronco could get under its own power ! LOL.
Thing is , go just a hair over or under that rpm sweet spot and mileage would suffer , especially on the upward side.
So my point is , if you have the patienece to try various speeds in 5mph increments per tank full , over a similiar route and compute your mileage MANUALLY! , you may find that little MPG boost in there somewhere , and over time , that could save you a bundle considering current ULSD prices.

Wish I knew more about the GM diesels to tell you , but all i can add is that each brand had its own little issues , some not bad , others not good , do some research and you will know what to look for or avoid in caring for your truck.

[aftCG]

I guess I'm late to the party too. I've owned a '99 F-250 with 7.3 Powerstroke and a 6 speed manual (woohoo!) for a little over a year now. Mine has 229,000 miles and it hauls a** and is completely dependable.

It gets equal or better mileage than my Subaru, plus I run B99 biodiesel (french fry oil). So not only does it not "stink" the way people think a diesel does, no one had to bury their son so I could drive it.

I had prior experience with a 6.9 diesel in an F-250 so I went that way. I did consider the Cummins equipped Dodge but my experience with Chrysler products has been a joke. I work with a guy who has a Ram and the engine is the only thing he hasn't replaced. I was willing to consider a Ram with a manual transmission but found my truck before I ever drove one.

I've talked to a few Duramax owners at the fuel pump and they love them, reporting mileage I'll never see with my Subaru. Between GM finally getting the diesel right, and the Allison transmission I'm sure it will be a great truck for you.

Also, since most Subaru owners seem to be a sort of gear head, you'll be happy to know that the GM computer can tell you what you had for lunch, so it should be easy to troubleshoot.

[HoosierDaddy2]

You must be someplace warm to run veg. oil often. I looked into it , but just wouldn't work for what I did with the truck.

My 7.3 was a winner too , maintenance wise , ran like a top at 195K. Replaced the glow plug relay and water pump. Everything else on the truck was rusting away fast as all holy heck .... traded it for my OB.

I thought I'd miss it , not yet , we'll see what happens when the snow flies. I'm saving so much in fuel though , I may actually be money ahead AFTER making the car payment !