Buying a used 3/4 ton diesel.....advice?

[r carl]

Originally Posted by dznf0g

Skater, I think you're a bit low on the gas mileage. At least today's engines.....I get, pretty consistently 9 - 9.5mpg while towing and a loaded truck. AS=9000lbs and about 600lbs in the bed. This has been whether I was using a 5.3, a 6.0 or a 6.2 litre.

x2.

[Skater]

Originally Posted by dznf0g

Skater, I think you're a bit low on the gas mileage. At least today's engines.....I get, pretty consistently 9 - 9.5mpg while towing and a loaded truck. AS=9000lbs and about 600lbs in the bed. This has been whether I was using a 5.3, a 6.0 or a 6.2 litre.

Fair enough, I can plug that in and see what it does to the numbers. It'll definitely pull them closer, but I'm guessing the diesel will still be cheaper per-mile. I was kind of guessing, based on what people were reporting in a Ford-trucks.com poll, but it was integers only - 7, 8, 9, 10, etc. 8 was the most popular so I used that. Probably SOB haulers.

Of course, these numbers don't even match my own situation - everyone pays different prices for fuel, everyone pays a different price for their truck, and so on. So at best it's a general conclusion, and the phrase "your mileage may vary" has never been more correct. And, especially when you buy used, it's REALLY hard to guess how much extra the diesel engine cost - rarely would the dealer have an equivalent truck sitting side-by-side with the other engine.

We probably should split this discussion into a different thread.

[xrvr]

I understand the powerestrokes had problems the the duromax and cummins did not. Now the new ford diesels are much dif. Jim

[J. Morgan]

In my experience the Fords and Dmax have head gasket and turbo issues, the Cummins issues seem to be more with lift pumps causing injector pump failures.

The Cummins failures are mostly preventable, the other brands not so much.

The Fords equipped with the last generation of International engines have a slew of electronic control issues and injector problems that even dealers can't seem to fix for more than a month at a time... Add to this injector failures...

I like Fords, but the simple truth is that Ford unloaded a bunch of crap at premium prices and they never did make it right.

Dmaxes are better, but not a lot.

[Safari-Rick]

Originally Posted by TinTin

Your new TV should prove to be a good match for your AS. The current price differential for diesel should be erased by the better mileage you'll achieve!

Just want to say ...."Ditto"

[Ag&Au]

Originally Posted by r carl

Can't argue that the Dodge Cummins powertrain isn't good, but the rest of the truck is a POS.

That's an interesting observation. I have owned my dodge since new in 2003. I have had nearly zero problems with it. (No work done except required maintenance).

Could you please expand on what bad experiences you have had?

Ken

[Grrrwolf]

I'm happy with the power and quality (nearly out of warranty) of my 2012 1500 Ram but I'm starting to think the 3.0L diesel is more of a unicorn than a Ram. Do these have to be special ordered? That I will never do. Out of hundreds of Rams in my area, none have the small diesel.

I won't be paying sticker for anything much less something I can't test drive. I'm just hoping to find one within the next few years once the novelty wears off.

[Ag&Au]

Originally Posted by Ag&Au

That's an interesting observation. I have owned my dodge since new in 2003. I have had nearly zero problems with it. (No work done except required maintenance).

Could you please expand on what bad experiences you have had?

Ken

Never mind, R Carl. I just noticed your signature line.

Ken

[mefly2]

We would not go back to our F150 Triton after the Ram diesel ...PERIOD.

[SeeMore]

Originally Posted by hickory

I don't care what everyone else drives. I love my Cummins powered Dodge and it is hardly a POS. Just because you don't like a vehicle doesn't mean it is a POS.
Grow up.
Hickory

I'm confused: doesn't "POS" mean 'Perfectionist's Only Solution?'

[Skater]

Originally Posted by dznf0g

Skater, I think you're a bit low on the gas mileage. At least today's engines.....I get, pretty consistently 9 - 9.5mpg while towing and a loaded truck. AS=9000lbs and about 600lbs in the bed. This has been whether I was using a 5.3, a 6.0 or a 6.2 litre.

Okay, so it turns out I screwed some things up when I went from memory. For fuel costs alone, the gas engine is cheaper to operate when you're getting above 9 MPG, if the diesel gets 11 MPG - 35 cents/mile diesel and 34 cents per mile gasoline at 9.5 MPG.

The per-mile cost including the cost of the engine and more expensive maintenance is 41.92 cents/mile for the diesel and 34.84 cents per mile for the gas, assuming you tow 250,000 miles. So the gas is cheaper for the long term, too. Note the per-mile cost drops for the diesel as you drive more miles (because the engine is a fixed cost), but they don't equalize even at 1,000,000 miles. And I suspect anyone getting that many miles out of their truck is going to be thrilled, gas or diesel, so I didn't bother finding the actual break-even point.

These calculations are already out of date, of course - the fuel prices have changed since I first did it, if nothing else.

[Moflash]

The used vehicle market has been crazy for the last 2 years with top prices being paid by dealers at auto auctions around the country.This is due to the low volume of used vehicles being made available.Make sure to get prices on a new vehicle of choice as there may not be as big justifiable of difference in price between new and used.

[crisen]

Unless your driving 70 , 11 mpg is pretty low for a diesel. We averaged 11 with 28 ft toy hauler and easily 12.5 to 13 with 25 AS at 60-62..

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Airstream Forums mobile app

[Skater]

Originally Posted by crisen

Unless your driving 70 , 11 mpg is pretty low for a diesel. We averaged 11 with 28 ft toy hauler and easily 12.5 to 13 with 25 AS at 60-62..

We can argue the specific numbers all day, but it definitely seems like it's close enough to essentially be a wash, except for the cost of the engine. 11 is pretty normal for us; either we're doing 65-70 mph when traffic and weather permit, or we're stuck in a traffic jam, or we're climbing hills, and none of those are great for fuel mileage. Sure we could do better by going slower or choosing flatter routes, but it makes sense to compare numbers on what we're actually doing, not what we COULD be doing.

[jrudd1968]

Towed with both: Dodge 1500 gasser & 25' Airstream Safari. It struggled in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Dodge 2500 Cummins & 31' Airstream Classic.
Went anywhere in the Colrado Rockies I wanted to and even picked up speed going up hill when I needed to pass a gasser! Great combination for traveling anywhere in US & Canada!

[silversled]

No matter the fuel: If the used truck comes with integrated brake controller built into the dash, be sure it can communicate with your Airstream brakes. Some Airstreams braking systems are digital and some analogue. There are aftermarket solutions but they defeat the purpose of an integrated tow package that came on the truck and can be an added expense.

[SeeMore]

Originally Posted by silversled

If the used truck comes with integrated brake controller built into the dash, be sure it can communicate with your Airstream brakes. Some Airstreams braking systems are digital and some analogue. There are aftermarket solutions but they defeat the purpose of an integrated tow package that came on the truck and can be an added expense.

Whoa, "communicate with your Airstream brakes." I gotta process that one. Trailer brakes are electrically activated, braking mechanisms. They only react to inbound current and don't send a signal to the truck. Do you mean check the circuit for continuity?

Or, are you differentiating between proportional and solid state controllers? They both send current, but how much and when is governed by how the controller works internally. The integrated, in-dash OEM versions are all proportional in late model trucks. These units sense how quickly the tow vehicle is stopping and applies an appropriate amount of current to increase/decrease braking. However, they do require the operator to set/adjust the baseline current.

[mefly2]

Originally Posted by crisen

Unless your driving 70 , 11 mpg is pretty low for a diesel. We averaged 11 with 28 ft toy hauler and easily 12.5 to 13 with 25 AS at 60-62..

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Airstream Forums mobile app

Basically the same for us; perhaps 1-1.5 mpg better at 55-60 mph.

[crisen]

Originally Posted by Skater

We can argue the specific numbers all day, but it definitely seems like it's close enough to essentially be a wash, except for the cost of the engine. 11 is pretty normal for us; either we're doing 65-70 mph when traffic and weather permit, or we're stuck in a traffic jam, or we're climbing hills, and none of those are great for fuel mileage. Sure we could do better by going slower or choosing flatter routes, but it makes sense to compare numbers on what we're actually doing, not what we COULD be doing.

Didn't think I was "arguing" with anyone, sorry to intrude on your thread.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Airstream Forums mobile app

[Skater]

Originally Posted by crisen

Didn't think I was "arguing" with anyone, sorry to intrude on your thread.

It's not my thread. I didn't mean argue in that sense....let's say "discuss" instead.

Sure, I can plug in the numbers you gave me, and it'll balance in favor of the diesel slightly, but it won't change it a lot, and to be fair, you'd also have to change the numbers for the gas engine at those speeds, assuming the numbers I was given for gas are at speeds similar to what I tow at. See what I mean? There are just too many variables, and we can plug in numbers all day to change the results very slightly, and we still won't know the "true" answer, because it's different for every one of us - it probably even varies from trip to trip!