Would you drive a 13 year old Truck across the country?

[Ted S.]

Originally Posted by ITSNO60

Is that Bulletproof Diesel in Phoenix? That was the best thing you can do to your 6.0 and you will be able to travel with confidence. The 6.0 has a variable geometry turbo and they like to be worked so keep it working and it won't seize up on you.

Yes, they have been working on it for a week and it should be running by Friday.

The truck was fully Bulletproofed, motor out and resealed, new body and motor mounts, new alternator, new radiator, 7.3 fan clutch mod and a very long list of other improvements in their Tier III package. It’s a big investment but a mere fraction of the cost of a new truck.

I will say they have been fantastic to deal with but the road test lies ahead and I will update!

[BigSxyWhtGuy]

Excited to hear more. I know LOLOHO loved the mods when they did it. We have a newer truck but I think this may be in our deck of cards down the road

[Scooter2104]

I have a 1997 F250 7.3l diesel with 205k miles on it. I drive it across the country all the time. I do the regular maintenance, and I bring it in for pre-trip checks for the longer trips. I know that truck, so I'm confident that it will make it on the longer trips. Plus, dealerships and reputable repair shops exist all over the country.

Maintenance and repairs cost money, but it's a lot less than a new truck payment.

[J. Morgan]

Originally Posted by J. Morgan

I pull my Airstream with my 230,000 mile 2005 Silverado everywhere...... I don’t worry about it much, but I keep it up pretty well.

276,000 miles now.....

Traveling now, a long way from home...

[Bill M.]

Old thread. I posted spring of 2018 that we were headed to Alaska in our old truck. Update: We went to Alaska and back with no problems. We spent this last summer in Colorado and Montana and surrounding states. We had to have a rear main oil seal replaced. The truck was running fine but pouring oil. Found a dealer in Grand Junction that did a fine job. 2007 diesel. 240,000 miles now. I still like it. Drive what you are comfortable with. In human terms, I am older and more decrepit than the truck. Sure, I worry about it stopping. But it is not any more likely to happen than with a fairly new one. The truck is worth little to nothing in resale and worth a great deal to me in function. I can replace it on the road almost as well as I can at home if it comes to that. But I am pretty sure anything I buy will be a lessor truck so I hang on to this one.

[perryg114]

I pull with a 2000 V10 Excursion. It costs me very little to maintain. I would not hesitate to take it cross country. Yes there are better vehicles to tow with but not many that are more reliable. I plan to keep using it till it dies. I have about $8000k in it and bought it in 2011. It has about 140k on it. I have replaced the alternator and the fuel pump in that time between then and now.



Perry

[tjdonahoe]

Yep after reading the above posts..I realize after rebuilding many big trucks...I made the most money with a new one... no problems..just run it...I am very happy with my new ram...get in and go....labor is high and I am not going to work on it..

[wildhorses]

Took our van cross country again this past summer, still love our Airstream and 6.0L gas van, hauls everything we want dry inside. Did a few weeks this summer and plan to take it all down to FL for the winter.

[Ted S.]

Glad to see the thread is still alive, I am the OP. We successfully drove the truck from Boston all the way to California up the west coast and back home without a problem towing our Airstream. It’s a 2005 Ford Excursion with a 6.0 Powerstroke diesel that was rebuilt at Bulletproof Diesel in Mesa, Arizona, you can see it a few posts back. We’ll be taking it across the country several more times then hopefully to Alaska one day before she retires.

It just goes to show you that with enough love and money, any relationship can last forever.

[Mollysdad]

Originally Posted by wildhorses

Took our van cross country again this past summer,

I like vans too as a tow vehicle.
However, in looking at your pictures, just be aware if you were in an accident, all that stuff behind you will be heading into the windshield.
Please consider a barrier of some kind.

[Just RVing]

We are still driving our 20 year old Ford and planning on driving from Oregon to Florida and visit 6 more states on our way. Just completed changing all fluids in transmission, axles, transfer case, etc. on a 4 X 4.


As someone else posted, just do a through check up on all fluids,, bearings and other moving parts and check the codes on the vehicle.


Have a safe and enjoyable triip by saving money for the trip!

[Hittenstiehl]

TedS nice to hear how your journey went. I think more of us are driving older vehicles and when well-maintained and without any glitchy parts they will hopefully last a long time.

We are still driving our 16yr old Chevy Avalanche. That particular group of Chevys has glitchy transmissions but other than that it's doing well with 280000 miles.

We will at some point get a brand new Chevy or GMC with fun things like tmps, backup cameras and Bluetooth phone. Until we're ready for that BIG payment we'll keep on truckin in this one.

[J. Morgan]

Just finished a 3,500 mile 16 day circuit, from southern NM, to southern AZ, to Chicago, to Detroit, to Little Rock, back to southern NM.

Not bad for a high milage fourteen year old truck and an old Airstream.

[Gene]

Well, did the OP take the trip with his Ford and how did it do? He should be ready for another trip by now—this thread is several years old. Or maybe he's been stuck beside the road for serval years and no one will help him.

Many of us were raised when cars started falling apart pretty quickly. New brakes in 20,000 miles, for example. It is a very different world, but I am still nervous about traveling long distances in an older vehicle. I am also worried about taking an old man (me) across country, so a lot of worry should be ignored so we can have fun.

Our 2007 Tundra has gone over 130,000 miles and still runs like new. I have replaced most of the braking system because towing eats brakes. Four O2 sensors, one catalytic converter (there are four and each is cheaper than one large one) and a rodent ate an electric cable. I look after it, use synthetic oil, change filters regularly, grease it regularly, and there's not much else to do. I have a spare serpentine belt I have put off changing for two years since I bought it, but the original one looks fine. I'd love a new truck, but the prices are absurd. Better to spend hundreds fixing an old one than tens of thousands on a new one.

I would have to have an attitude adjustment to drive it cross country, but it runs flawlessly. The best reason to replace it would be if there were a vehicle that uses much less fuel, but electric trucks are still a couple of years away and probably several more years after before they are affordable.

[drbrick]

Age has no relevance whatsoever! The question really surrounds maintenance and reliability. If it's well maintained and reliable and equipped to pull the airstream that you're pulling. Also if you're happy with the truck - why spend the money for something else? We tow a 16 year old AS with a 7 year old F-150 that are a perfect marriage. Also I'm well over 70 and the boss still keeps me around and is not considering any type of trade-in.

[Ted S.]

Originally Posted by Gene

Well, did the OP take the trip with his Ford and how did it do? He should be ready for another trip by now—this thread is several years old. Or maybe he's been stuck beside the road for serval years and no one will help him.

There are posts above on our successful trip. Yes we are off again in April to New Orleans and Destin Florida. Same truck, just a bit older.