Diesel Thoughts???
 

Hey guys...

I am trying to descide what I want to do..

I have a 2004 chevy 2500hd 4x4 6.0 gasser. It has 4.10 gears so pulling is no problem. But the gas mileage sucks! 8-10mpg

I am thinking about getting a diesel. I live in northern mn so 4x4 is a must. But I have heard many different thoughts about 7.3 ford diesel and 6.0. Thoughts on them?

Also I hear Diesels after 2006 have pretty bad mpg because of emissions crap?

Final thought.... Single rear wheel or dually?

I am usually towing my 27 fountain or a 30 enclosed race trailer.

I am chevy guy but I love fords also.. Something about straight axels just means bullet proof!!

I have heard lots of horror stories on the 6.0, I would stay away from them. I have two of the 6.7s and love them. Ave around 13 mpg with them pulling lawn equipment and driving everyday use. If I try I can get ave mpg up to 15.5 but my foot is heavy. When I haul my boat 12.5k to 14k depeneding on fuel I get 9.9-10.2 at 80-85 mph. If you want better fuel mileage you can take a plasma torch and cut off exhaust crap including the filter and place straight exhaust. My dad did this on his 450 and mpg went up 2 mpg.

I have single rear wheel and it handles the 38 with no problems.

My buddy has a couple of the new Duramaxs for his concrete company and said he is getting 15-16 mpg hauling heavy enclosed trailer around town.

Mileage didn't drop as much from emissions as it did from the big 3 jacking up factory hp in the hp wars of who is king and even then we are not talking much drop over earlier ones. As far as dually's go, I see your in Minn, if you plan on towing sleds or driving it much in winter duallys drive like a total POS unless you have tires with 1" of tread on them and are in 4wd, Smitty

I just picked up a 2013 ram and love it. 2500 single axle 4x4. I'm adveraging 20 mpg. It's 850 ft lbs of torque from the factory.

I had a F350 7.3 and it pulled my 33 PowerPlay well. I had no issues with the single axle at all but then again I was careful towing it, nice and easy was the prescription. It was a trailer boat so it saw plenty of town use as well as highway. Without question though, you know you're pulling a big load behind you, I'd probably go dually if it were any larger. I never calculated gas mileage because it's not that I didn't care but worrying about gas mileage while towing a boat that probably burns 50 gals per hour seemed pointless.

As a comparison I have a F250 now with the V10, it pulled the boat fine except on the highway which is when you really notice the difference. The diesel definitely has the big advantage on the highway and hills which there's no shortage of here in CT.

Towing a 27 Fountain will be no issue at all with the single axle...none. Get the block heater if you go diesel though. You should be able to tow with confidence in a F350 7.3 if you can find one in excellent condition.

The only issue I had in 100k miles were the o-rings on the injectors failed and I was blowing more smoke than a coal factory until the block heated up. I got it fixed for about $2500 if I recall correctly. You'll have to be careful with those transmissions mated to the 7.3 though, they were definitely the weak link in the drivetrain. Had to get mine rebuilt with an extreme duty build, never looked back...however that was a nice little tag too...$3k I think for that one. Got sick of pouring good money into an old truck (it was a '99) so I bought the new one.

Dodge ram srw with the cummins...got a friend that has one with a 5 speed,,if he keeps it at 55 mpg he gets 27 mpg,,70 ish 22 mpg,,towing 16 mpg..

I have a feeling the Dodge diesel stick gets about the best mileage. I had a dodge truck before and there was nothing about it that impressed me BUT recently we rebuilt a manual transmission in a 2006 Dodge diesel dually four wheel drive mega cab with 380,000 miles and on a 40 mile test drive saw 26 mpg at 62-65 mph empty, I can squeeze 20-21 out of my 08 Duramax SRW at 58 mph babying it empty but quickly drops to mid 15's once into throttle or start and stop driving, Smitty

I have owned both the 6.0 diesel, a 7.3 diesel now, and my dads got a LBZ duramax. The 6.0, what a pile (mine included with 185k). I know personally about 10 6.0s and they all have issues exceeding $5000. The 7.3 I have now is awesome. Runs great (202k). I absolutley love it. My dads LBZ has been 100% trouble free as well (155k).

05' or 06' Duramax, pre emission crap and the 06 or 07 classic has the 6 speed Allison. Tranny shifts like a TRS drive nice and smooth. Get efi live and up you mpg. I'd go with srw too. I had a 02' 2500hd silverado with the 6.0 and I love my 06' duramax the Allison is great while towing. It will help you slow down while towing.

My 13 ram came with a factory exhaust brake. It is the best thing I have ever had when towing that I never though of getting. My travel trailer or boats both feel like nothing is behind me stopping or going.