Diesel VS. Gas

[rebar]

OLD THREAD BUT..

I have to ask a few questions.. If I need a motor to pull 10K (trailer weights 6400 dry) for only maybe 2500 miles a year.. Should I continue to look for a diesel? Or would a gasser be better for prolonged storage?

Also.. When I read about a turbo repair costing $3200.. Whats cheaper to own over the entire life of the vehicle? Looks like a wash to me.. But Iv never found any studies on that topic.

Thanks

 

[bfdiesel]

I have to ask a few questions.. If I need a motor to pull 10K (trailer weights 6400 dry) for only maybe 2500 miles a year.. Should I continue to look for a diesel? Or would a gasser be better for prolonged storage?

Also.. When I read about a turbo repair costing $3200.. Whats cheaper to own over the entire life of the vehicle? Looks like a wash to me.. But Iv never found any studies on that topic.

Thanks

Pretty loaded question, if looking at new (2000 gmc, 2003 dodge, 2003 ford or newer) for you it is probably gas unless you live by some pretty steep long grades. Year ranges of what you are looking at play a significant role in this question.

Prolonged storage? Niether. Gas can set maybe up to a year in the tank, diesel about the same. Both will get deposits sitting for that long that will not help anything out.

 

[rebar]

Prolonged storage was a bad description. But I'm almost embarrassed to confess, I don't really need this pulling/camping vehicle until I decide to head west to Colorado with my toy-hauler. Iowa is boring. Maybe I might do two trips in one year or fart around with it on a few weekends. But I ride the bus to work and I'm a major home body. When I do get out its maybe 20 miles at the most.

Id start the engine once a month or just take it instead of the Camry but it would definitely not be a daily driver but prolonged storage was a bad choice of words.

 

[Mighty Dodge Ram]

The Ford V-10 would pull that load no problema, but with lousy gas mileage. The new V-8s (pick any manufacturer including Toyota) will have no problems whatsoever and get slightly better mileage. I have a friend who pulls a loaded toy hauler up the Grapevine (I-5 north of L.A.) with 4 passengers in his 2012 Tundra at 70 mph during the summer running A/C....not even a hiccup. :sombrero:

 

[Erik N]

The ambulances I use are both gas and diesel. We usually put about 200 miles on them per shift.

In the summertime heat the gas trucks usually falter. I don't think they like an extended high idle with accessories running. Those trucks get downed often in the heat.

OTOH, I get tired of listening to a diesel chatter incessantly, in the wintertime, when both seem to do equally well.

My 2 cents.

 

[bfdiesel]

Prolonged storage was a bad description. But I'm almost embarrassed to confess, I don't really need this pulling/camping vehicle until I decide to head west to Colorado with my toy-hauler. Iowa is boring. Maybe I might do two trips in one year or fart around with it on a few weekends. But I ride the bus to work and I'm a major home body. When I do get out its maybe 20 miles at the most.

Id start the engine once a month or just take it instead of the Camry but it would definitely not be a daily driver but prolonged storage was a bad choice of words.

What year ranges are you thinking of?

 

[rebar]

What year ranges are you thinking of?

Open to the year. I need a cargo without accessories all over the outside, powerful engine with another 50K available, solid vehicle ready to be personalized.
I'm now wondering how well a 03 awd g2500 with 6.0 gas would perform for me. And what it would take to make it 4x4.

Or if I found a engineless 1 ton cargo I might even attempt a cummins swap.

 

[Buliwyf]

I have to ask a few questions.. If I need a motor to pull 10K (trailer weights 6400 dry) for only maybe 2500 miles a year.. Should I continue to look for a diesel? Or would a gasser be better for prolonged storage?

Also.. When I read about a turbo repair costing $3200.. Whats cheaper to own over the entire life of the vehicle? Looks like a wash to me.. But Iv never found any studies on that topic.

Thanks

No. A diesel isn't needed for that load or that mileage. You might only get 11mpg with a gasser at that load, but it'll get the job down.

The gassers are cheaper most of the time. Working fleets use gas for a reason, it's cheaper overall by a large margin with loads less than 10k and trucks smaller than f450's and f350 duallys. Keep in mind that an hour of downtime costs the usual field tech company $100 in opportunity cost and todays diesels are fairly flimsy.

 

[redthies]

Working fleets use gas for a reason.

Todays diesels are fairly flimsy.

Not saying that a gas engine isn't a good option here, just pointing out that the op isn't looking to buy a new diesel and store it.

Some of the diesel engines made in the last 10-15 years are very "unflimsy". That said, if I could find a gas engine that could haul my camper (3300 lbs + water, propane, beer etc), and tow the Rubicon behind while getting more than 6-8 mpg, I'd be seriously interested. Oh, it has to do all of the above and be in good shape for under $12,000 as I am not interested in making payments.

Fleets also have the ability to rotate their rigs on a far more regular basis than the average individual which makes diesels less attractive to them (unless as you noted, they are in higher gvw units).

 

[rebar]

No. A diesel isn't needed for that load or that mileage. You might only get 11mpg with a gasser at that load, but it'll get the job down.

The gassers are cheaper most of the time. Working fleets use gas for a reason, it's cheaper overall by a large margin with loads less than 10k and trucks smaller than f450's and f350 duallys. Keep in mind that an hour of downtime costs the usual field tech company $100 in opportunity cost and todays diesels are fairly flimsy.

Thanks Buliwyf. That hit home. In fact, I thought I had a clean 1981 G30 4x4 cargo with BBC in my sights for less than $3k but someone from south Dakota is driving 700 miles to buy it this weekend.:smiley_drive: Any more I'm not to excited about ford diesels but the cummins is another story.

Maybe I need to start a thread called.. Rebar's, "will this Van work" thread. Would you guys chime in with pro's and cons of the Vans I find?

 

[SOBX]

I'm a diesel man myself. I have owned them since I could drive. Right now, I have a 2006 F-350 SRW Crew Cab FX4 with an auto tranny. It's hard to believe that I get nearly 19 MPG in that 4x4 monster, but I don't drive like a pissed off teenager. And yes, it's a 6.0... with 236, 889 miles with no major problems.

I think a lot of the negativity surrounding these motors is the ************** that over tune, dump tons of fuel in and blow black smoke. They think its cool and that it means "power". FALSE! The point is, you may not get the MPG's out of a deisel, but you get a more complete burn which equals more energy and bang for your buck. They aren't daily drivers, unless you're anways hooked up to a trailer, they take forever to start in cold weather, and you can't just jump in an go, it has to warm up... but once you get one, you'll never get anything else.

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[eggman918]

I'm a diesel man myself. I have owned them since I could drive. Right now, I have a 2006 F-350 SRW Crew Cab FX4 with an auto tranny. It's hard to believe that I get nearly 19 MPG in that 4x4 monster, but I don't drive like a pissed off teenager. And yes, it's a 6.0... with 236, 889 miles with no major problems.

I think a lot of the negativity surrounding these motors is the ************** that over tune, dump tons of fuel in and blow black smoke. They think its cool and that it means "power". FALSE! The point is, you may not get the MPG's out of a deisel, but you get a more complete burn which equals more energy and bang for your buck. They aren't daily drivers, unless you're anways hooked up to a trailer, they take forever to start in cold weather, and you can't just jump in an go, it has to warm up... but once you get one, you'll never get anything else.

Sent from my GT-P5113 using Tapatalk 2

I am with you black smoke is WASTED fuel and at $4.00 + a gallon that is just dumb 30 years ago @ 75 cents a gallon it didn't much matter but that was then.
I am in the final stages of a Cummins 4BT install in my '68 F-250 CrewCab and went from 9mpg to 19mpg, been driving it for a year now and am at the point of fine tuning it.
and to me that means the power I need to do the job and no wasted fuel ie black smoke.Also the reliably and long service life of a mechanical diesel were also part of the equation
I would be finished by now but finding the correct turbo for the 4BT at the power levels I need is more difficult than with the more common 6BT I am hoping that the Holset HE221
I am waiting on will do the trick,If it doesn't the wife might be through with me and my Expo. Rig could become home:Wow1:

 

[BurbanAZ]

Im a diesel guy now after having this Suburban. I have had 3 Suburbans, 1 had the 350, 1 had the 454, and now my current one has the 6.5 turbo diesel. My 95 k1500 had the 350 and it was a solid engine, sold it to my friend and he still drives it daily with 260k plus miles. It just didnt have the power i wanted though to be able to pull the horse trailer and on steep hills it felt like it couldnt get out of its own way. My 92 had the 454, loved the power, reliability, sound, etc.. but hated getting 7 mpg offroading on trips and maybe 10 on the highway loaded down. My 94 k2500 now has the 6.5 and i love it, as much power as the 454 but getting around 20 mpg. The 6.5 isnt loved by many either but for me its perfect, great mpg, enough power, easy to work on, and cheap to repair or even replace if it comes to it. I just think if ur putting a bunch of miles on a truck a diesel is the way to go, just cant get the power with that kind of mileage in anything except a diesel. Especially in the older trucks there is a huge difference between gas and diesel, in the newest trucks with all the advancements in technology the gap in performance/mpg is getting smaller.

 

[SOBX]

The bolt on market is huge for diesel engines also. You can get twice as much power for half the price in parts alone. Simply putting a good zero backpressure turbo-back exhaust on will net about 5% fuel economy and tons of useable power. Coupled with a good intake, and you have made your rig much more efficient. The best part is, no black smoke, less turbo lag, and some variants are 50 state legal. Diesel motors have tons of potential from the factory. They are under tuned and have lots of power locked away just begging to be turned loose... JUST BE RESPONSIBLE AND KEEP YOUR FOOT OUT OF THE SKINNY PEDDLE!

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[redthies]

Especially in the older trucks there is a huge difference between gas and diesel, in the newest trucks with all the advancements in technology the gap in performance/mpg is getting smaller.

What he said!

I've toyed with the idea of a hemi powered dually (found an 06 with a 6 speed for cheap), but I just don't think the 5.7 is going to move truck, camper and tow the Rubicon easily, or above single digit mpgs. I just don't see many other options unless I go new, which I won't do.