Ended up with the DMAX. Was able to pick up a 2007.5 chevy 2500HD with less than 60k for relatively cheap this week. Absolutely love the truck. The Allison shifts smoother than the transmissions on either of my other cars and the sound of the diesel is addicting. Started looking at 1/2 ton trucks, and this one was way cheaper than the Tundra new, and a small amount more than the equivalent 1/2 ton Chevy and Fords. GM CPO with two years of maintenance and 12month/12000 mile bumper to bumper warranty made it a no brainer.
Diesel trucks
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There great trucks. and the trannys are great in that truck. But you should have bought a ford!. lol j/k. Im a firm beleiver in diesel trucks. If you keep the maintenence up on them and do the normal stuff. you can get some serious high miles out of them tol my truck has 140000 and it feels brand new when drivining it. you said the truck has 60 k. thats like having 10000 on a gasser. just barely broken in yet. congrats on the truck.ChocoLab said:
Flatbedford said:
MPG was never the Triton V10's strong point. Stump-pulling off-idle torque was! Drove a '99 350 with one that liked to fire spark plugs into the engine compartment. lol (Truck was seriously neglected and should not be used as a example of the V10's reliability.)
I've had a 2004 Chev Duramax since it was new and I love the truck, power, towing and hauling ability. That being said I don't think it will be replaced with a diesel. Parts are expensive ($550 for a starter) and fuel costs more. I have 130k miles on mine and I am trying for 300k. I have put in 2 transfer cases, 8 starters(this is a problem with this truck that I haven't been able to solve), 1 heater switch, which isn't to bad since it is driven every day as a work truck and I plow snow with it in the winter. I can throw as much wood on this truck as I can possibly fit, stacked higher that the cab, and the springs aren't even maxed out. It has pulled a tool trailer everyday and a Gooseneck 14' dump trailer at least every week. I know I won't be buying a new diesel because of the cost.
Doug
Doug
I've had 3 Duramaxs and they've all been great trucks. The 2007.5 does not have the DPF? I have a 2008 and I think that was the first to have the DPF.
raybonz said:
My 2004 Dodge doesn't have glow plugs, doesn't have a CAT nor an egr system. And that is the way it came from the factory. As far as cold starts are concerned, that hasn't been an issue since the eighties. None of them need to be plugged in at all unless you are in below zero country.
This truck has two batteries and they are still the original ones.
Oil changes are 12 qts at 7500 mile intervals. That equates to a 6 quart change every 3750 miles or so... same as gas, not as often.
Not noisy since the stone ages.
I have owned my Cummins since new. I just rolled 113,000 miles. Before that I owned a GMC Duramax/Allison from new for three years. That was a nice truck too but it was an injector failure waiting to happen. They improved since. I would not touch a Ford diesel after seeing what they went through since 2003's sick.o Even the newest Ford designed 6.7 is having problems in the fleet when driven hard. I do like the old Navistar 7.3 though. That is a great motor.
When it comes to towing, the diesels murder the gas engines in hill pulling ability. The gas engines just fall flat where the diesel can actually accelerate. Nobody likes pulling a 10,000 pound load up a hill at 15 mph... which is what the gassers are like. The Ford V10 sucks when towing anything over 5000 lbs.
As far as Dodge and thier automatic trans issues... that was addressed in the 2003-2004 models when they beefed up the trans and torque convertors. Before that the torque convertors used to go and take out the trans. Ford also had auto trans issues. They would commonly go at 40,000 miles when worked.
I ended up trading my Duramax in for the Dodge because I just wanted a simple straight six grunt diesel in a truck with a straight axle front end. It sounds and looks like a 4x4 diesel truck should. Dodge has really come around with design and quality too.
I've also owned two Chevy's with the 6.5 turbo diesel. They were nice but the engine was more of a car diesel than a truck motor.
These are the diesels I owned...
1993 Chevy 6.5 Turbodiesel
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1997 Chevy 6.5 Turbodiesel
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2001 GMC Duramax/Allison
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2004 Dodge Cummins
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I have put some cash into the Dodge ... nothing broke.. I just wanted more power.
Here is my partial list of mods..
04 2500 4x4, QC SB SLT, 305/555
Trans...Goerend 48, Triple Disk Torque Convertor, BDFlex plate
Injectors...F1stix
Turbo..HT62/71/13 SS
Arp Head Studs
Power adders.. TST, Smarty
Fuel Pump FASS150
Intake Injen/Amsoil
Tires and wheels... H2 & Toyo OC M/T's
Suspension..Kore leveling, Defiant Dual Stab Sys, Thuren Trac Bar
Exhaust....5" RIP 6" SS TIP
Mag-Hytec, Carli Light Bar Hella's, Bushwacker, K3LA LocoHorn, Western 8.6MPV V Plow
And they make awesome plow machines..
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Thats funny. The first Chevy diesel I show in my previous post came without clearance lights. I installed aftermarket ones cause they look good. No other reason.
Too bad we're not discussing this in 1990..... The 7.4L (That's a Big Block 454 boys) in my heavy hauler (low compression, post-unleaded emissions pig that it is!) would tow circles around any diesel available from Ford or Chevy and the TH400 trans would hold long after the Cummins found it's trans' limit. And hey, gas was cheap! :coolgrin:
MasterMech said:
i am glad you did not put dodge in your tow circles around comment. I would agree that in the early 90's the large gassers would beat the diesel fords and chevys but not the dodge.
My 1993 cummins auto is holdin 500 hp to the wheels just fine. A built auto dodge trans is pretty much bullet proof. Yes a built auto does cost a pretty penny but the auto is where its at for towing.
Saw this posted.
2004 Ford F350 crew cab 6 l diesel. 147K miles. Reciepts for $12,000 worth of repairs on the engine in the last 12 months. Running great right now, but I need to sell before it strands me on the side of the road again. I need to buy a truck that doesn't dump all of its engine oil into the cooling system or die as I am rolling down the mountians here in Colorado with a load of horses in the trailer behind me, leaving me with no power steering or brakes on a winding 7% downhill grade, several times a week for months on end, while the dealership changes random components in between butt-cheek clenching episodes. I need $32,000 for this truck, so I can pay off the re-finance with the bank for repairs, and still have some cash to buy a used Chevy or Dodge one ton. I would prefer an out of state buyer so when it takes a dump again, nobody will come by my home and threaten to hurt me for selling them such a turkey. I'll need cash in advance, and will bring it to your home on a flat-bed trailer. I will leave you the trailer rather than risk starting the truck to unload it. Sold as is. Have a nice day! :lol:
Gary
2004 Ford F350 crew cab 6 l diesel. 147K miles. Reciepts for $12,000 worth of repairs on the engine in the last 12 months. Running great right now, but I need to sell before it strands me on the side of the road again. I need to buy a truck that doesn't dump all of its engine oil into the cooling system or die as I am rolling down the mountians here in Colorado with a load of horses in the trailer behind me, leaving me with no power steering or brakes on a winding 7% downhill grade, several times a week for months on end, while the dealership changes random components in between butt-cheek clenching episodes. I need $32,000 for this truck, so I can pay off the re-finance with the bank for repairs, and still have some cash to buy a used Chevy or Dodge one ton. I would prefer an out of state buyer so when it takes a dump again, nobody will come by my home and threaten to hurt me for selling them such a turkey. I'll need cash in advance, and will bring it to your home on a flat-bed trailer. I will leave you the trailer rather than risk starting the truck to unload it. Sold as is. Have a nice day! :lol:
Gary
Archer39 said:
Built auto's are the cat's rear for heavy towing. Had the pleasure of running a '92 Dodge 350 with the 12V Cummins and a 5 spd as a farm truck/hay hauler. Truck was an animal so long as you could keep it in front u-joints (was a 4WD) but rode like a log wagon.
The factory dodge cummins engine output in the early 90s was like 160HP with no intercooler. Pretty ridiculous. It did make some serious torque though.
Highbeam said:
My 2004 is rated stock at 305hp/555tq. I have it jacked to 540/1036
And don't forget this is just a little 5.9 six cylinder.
Highbeam said:
Yea and turning a few screws and a few hundred dollars the can make 350-400 hp 700-800 tq.
That's why I said FACTORY cummins. I am well aware of the ability to add power to diesels. You could also add power to the 454. Just this week I touched an 8-71 blower mounted to a 454 that helped it make just under 1000 HP with gasoline. Diesels aren't the only way to make power, but they do make it more efficiently and much easier and cheaper than with gas.
Highbeam said:
Unfortunately I have the L19 454 that is notorious for being unresponsive to cam upgrades and the usual power adders. I can't justify forced induction or the $$ of swapping cylinder heads either. The "peanut port" heads and Throttle Body Injection systems on this motor both stand in the way of making serious power. So I'll take my 240Hp 380Lb Ft , 7.9:1 (!!) compression, gas-hog the way she is. When I need more, it will prolly be a diesel.
a little late to the party but...............
2003 Dodge Cummins Automatic, 200,000 miles no issues
automatics will always be the weak link behind a diesel powerplant
when the rest of the truck falls apart, literally
the Cummins will still be hummin along
not the biggest dog in the fight
just the best
2003 Dodge Cummins Automatic, 200,000 miles no issues
automatics will always be the weak link behind a diesel powerplant
when the rest of the truck falls apart, literally
the Cummins will still be hummin along
not the biggest dog in the fight
just the best
You can get a nice gasser for cheap.
I drive a 1995 Ex cab K2500 Silverado with a 350 Cu eng 4x4 3/4 ton. It has 175000 trouble free miles on it. Looks and drives like a new truck. I can put 2 ton on the back and pull 5 ton on a trailer. Thats a lot of wood.
This truck is only worth blue book about 5K now,paid 9k for it in 03 . Iv been using it almost every day for 8 years and so far i only replaced exhaust parts. ID say its bullet proof. Cant justify 30+ K for a new one like it when it works and looks so good yet. Would like a diesel but make too many short trips plus they are into the 40s new.
I drive a 1995 Ex cab K2500 Silverado with a 350 Cu eng 4x4 3/4 ton. It has 175000 trouble free miles on it. Looks and drives like a new truck. I can put 2 ton on the back and pull 5 ton on a trailer. Thats a lot of wood.
This truck is only worth blue book about 5K now,paid 9k for it in 03 . Iv been using it almost every day for 8 years and so far i only replaced exhaust parts. ID say its bullet proof. Cant justify 30+ K for a new one like it when it works and looks so good yet. Would like a diesel but make too many short trips plus they are into the 40s new.
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