on the hunt for a diesel 4x4 4 door

riche

riche

Forum Member
Be careful of the 6.0L powerstroke diesels. They can be ticking time bombs unless they have been "bullet proofed". They do not have a very good reputation. Maybe somebody else can expand more on them in more detail than what I know.
 
First make a List of why you WANT a diesel, then make a list of why you NEED one. Being a heavy equipment and diesel tech I personally would not buy a 6.0 powerstroke unless I was going to dump a boat load of cash into it before it breaks. Head studs egr system delete and tuner is a decent chunk of change esp. if you pay someone to do. not including a general mechanical break down, a new injector (1) ranges from 350 just for the part not including labor. If I absolutely ad to have a diesel it would be a cummins its what is in my work truck and has 360k on it and runs great still has stock injectors only issue has been the dpf and because it is a dot commercial truck we haven't deleted it.
 
I could go on and on there are people who love 6.0s and only thing I will agree on is they shag ass, but ive seen so many in my life starting at 18 when I popped a headgasket on one and 10 years later I cant even count how many I see blowing little puffs of white smoke all over from injectors going down or ones that run like a scalded dog then you shut it off to fuel it up and it cranks and cranks and you notice the oil pressure doesn't ever climb back up because the hpop goes bad or it has a hpo leak.
 
Ok, first wanting a truck again, needing 4x4, 4 doors and ability to pull a trailer at 9000lbs max. I also live in arizona where there are mountain mostly anyway you go for vacations. So I need to bring my own air. So that leaves a diesel or ecoboost. But under 15k an ecoboost will be hard to find.
 
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If your not pulling all the time it would be hard to justify a diesel over a gas burning 2500, Get what you want I can only offer my opinion and experiences but overall cost of ownership is way higher for a diesel. I sold my personal truck because I have a company truck but when I buy another one im either getting Cummins or a gmc with a 6.0 ls
 
5.0kid said:
First make a List of why you WANT a diesel, then make a list of why you NEED one.
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You need one because driving a big heavy 3/4 ton crew cab with a gas engine sucks. The question you should be asking is why wouldn't you want one! :lol: This site is a "car" guy site so cost of ownership should be a non issue. A Chevy Malibu can get me to work but if I can afford to do it with a Hellcat the cost of ownership is the farthest thing from my mind. I care about cost of ownership about as much as I care about fuel prices. :)

I'll never own a 3/4 or 1 ton truck that doesn't have a diesel. I will say I have no interest in a EPA 07 or newer Diesel but I imagine I'll own one some day and have to delete everything before I put any miles on it. :lol:

To the OP I'll echo the same thing, stay away from the 6.0 unless it's been bullet proofed already. I'd also stay away from the Duramax if it's an LB7, I've seen way too many repeat injector issues.
 
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nitrousrick said:
You need one because driving a big heavy 3/4 ton crew cab with a gas engine sucks. The question you should be asking is why wouldn't you want one! :lol: This site is a "car" guy site so cost of ownership should be a non issue. A Chevy Malibu can get me to work but if I can afford to do it with a Hellcat the cost of ownership is the farthest thing from my mind. I care about cost of ownership about as much as I care about fuel prices. :)

I'll never own a 3/4 or 1 ton truck that doesn't have a diesel. I will say I have no interest in a EPA 07 or newer Diesel but I imagine I'll own one some day and have to delete everything before I put any miles on it. :lol:

To the OP I'll echo the same thing, stay away from the 6.0 unless it's been bullet proofed already. I'd also stay away from the Duramax if it's an LB7, I've seen way too many repeat injector issues.
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Don't get me wrong diesel's are sick I drive one and work on them everyday, who wouldn't want to daily drive 600hp & 1000 ftlbs of tree stump pulling torque? but this sentence from post one jumped out at me "Now I know nothing about diesels so any help you guys could give would be awesome." People just don't realize how much repairs cost on modern diesels. What kind of truck do you have?
 
Anfeom the info so far I should probably just look for a nice 1500 Gm gas or f150. Most of the time it won't have a trailer behind it. And can find them a lot easier that a diesel.
 
5.0kid said:
Don't get me wrong diesel's are sick I drive one and work on them everyday, who wouldn't want to daily drive 600hp & 1000 ftlbs of tree stump pulling torque? but this sentence from post one jumped out at me "Now I know nothing about diesels so any help you guys could give would be awesome." People just don't realize how much repairs cost on modern diesels. What kind of truck do you have?
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I hear you, I'm around them everyday too so I do understand their pit falls. I would agree any perspective buyers should too. :) I work for a diagnostic company that primarily focuses on heavy duty diesel with some light duty support. Even if it's a job I can't or won't tackle I know plenty of able bodied techs who will.

I have a 2004.5 2500HD CCSB 4x4 with the LLY.

riche said:
Anfeom the info so far I should probably just look for a nice 1500 Gm gas or f150. Most of the time it won't have a trailer behind it. And can find them a lot easier that a diesel.
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If you're looking to tow 9000lbs I would look for a 3/4 ton even if it's with a gasser.
 
Buy a Chevy 8.1, Ford V10 or Dodge V10 and call it a day.

What you pay in gas, you’ll save in everything else.
 
nitrousrick said:
I hear you, I'm around them everyday too so I do understand their pit falls. I would agree any perspective buyers should too. :) I work for a diagnostic company that primarily focuses on heavy duty diesel with some light duty support. Even if it's a job I can't or won't tackle I know plenty of able bodied techs who will.

I have a 2004.5 2500HD CCSB 4x4 with the LLY.



If you're looking to tow 9000lbs I would look for a 3/4 ton even if it's with a gasser.
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I think 9k is stretching it with a 1500 suspension and brakes even though there was a f150 rated for like 11 or something. Nitrousrick I don't work on many duramax but I think the lly was the last engine a do it yourselfer could work on and not get overwhelmed. but its hard to beat 6 in a row :rockwoot:
 
5.0kid said:
I think 9k is stretching it with a 1500 suspension and brakes even though there was a f150 rated for like 11 or something. Nitrousrick I don't work on many duramax but I think the lly was the last engine a do it yourselfer could work on and not get overwhelmed. but its hard to beat 6 in a row :rockwoot:
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I agree, one of the reasons I hunted for a lower mileage LLY when I bought. Changing the pump, injectors or messing with the turbo are pretty straight forward. Mine now has 115K or so on it but I also don't drive it daily. I typically drive it a day or two a week to keep it moving but drive a beater daily. Add opti-lube to the fuel, change the oil on the regular, fuel filter yearly regardless of mileage, watch the injector balance rates with scan tool and make sure the VVT keeps moving as commanded.

As they say 6 in a row makes them tow. :) I love the Cummins engines I'm just not a fan of the package that's wrapped around it in the year range I can afford. :lol:
 
9k would be a stretch. My trailer now max is 7500. My expedition will tow 9200. Now 9200 behind it to me is overloaded and will never happen. But checking around a 1/2 ton is more what I should look for. I would have kept my 10 f150 but it had 180k in it and I was worried things were going to start braking.
 
I don't know what it's like out there... but around here, the 4-door used diesel market is pretty crazy... seems like 10-15 year old trucks with 200k on them are still pulling 70% of their retail.
 
riche said:
9k would be a stretch. My trailer now max is 7500. My expedition will tow 9200. Now 9200 behind it to me is overloaded and will never happen. But checking around a 1/2 ton is more what I should look for. I would have kept my 10 f150 but it had 180k in it and I was worried things were going to start braking.
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I got an 07 Expedition and mine is rated at 9k. Feel the same way. No way would I ever wanna put that much behind it.
 
Heading to San Diego next week with the expo loaded down with 6 people and my 26ft camper. But without any water the camper should weight around 6000. So we will see how it does.
 
I have a 6.2L/8L90e 1/2 ton truck. Before that I had a 6.0L/6L80e 1/2 ton truck. Both of them have had the integrated brake controller and the towing mirrors. Both of them had the same Firestone SportRite airbags and the same Hellwig adjustable rear sway bar. I believe my old one was rated for 10,400lbs and my new one for 12,000lbs. I have had them both way past that number with the ball under the tailgate, but the bags and sway bar made that possible. The limitation in it being a comfortable endeavor are passenger car tires. 2,000lbs less curb weight than a diesel, way more comfortable of a ride when not towing than a diesel, always better handling than a diesel, always quieter than a diesel, always less stinky than a diesel, more horsepower than any available diesel at the time, and better dollar per mile driven economy than an available diesel at the time.

I would not buy a diesel unless I was pulling a gooseneck every day. Or if I left it in the garage unless I was pulling something then I would have a diesel.
 
riche said:
Heading to San Diego next week with the expo loaded down with 6 people and my 26ft camper. But without any water the camper should weight around 6000. So we will see how it does.
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Keep in mind that 9200# tow rating is before you load down the tow vehicle with people and gear. You are WAY overloaded (over the GCWR) if you're adding 6 people and "stuff" for a camping trip.
 
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