Diesel trucks, anyone with diesel experience??

The diesel is just another option. Always wanted to try one. I do all my own maintenance & have access to a shop for the beyond driveway repairs. Not fond of the expensive oil changes they need & FF replacement every oil change either. As for towing, I have a 20' boat but one day will upgrade. My company does snow removal & home remodeling....it doesn't require the needs of a diesel, but, if I'm shopping preowned, I figured why not consider them.

 

Have heard the 6.0's had head stud issues, blown head gaskets, egr problems, ect. Also heard some were great other were expensive failures

 

All 6.0's are garbage until all the issues have been addressed

 

Not sure, maybe its the bearings inside like mentioned before? I just let it idle for a minute or so depending on how hard the engine was working, in that time I hear the turbo whine go up and down so I think it is doing its thing cooling down.

We change our oil every 7k-10k miles and they say it is pretty clean every time, so you can go twice as long without changing oil.

 

Turbos on any engine need to cool down before shutting the motor off. The bearings in the turbo are supplied fresh, cool oil from the engine. If the temperature inside the turbo is above the flash point of the oil when the motor is stoppped, the oil will coke which causes build up on the bearing surface and the turbo shaft will seize to the bearings. A common rule is to make sure the turbo is under 400 degrees before shutting the motor off.

 

400?? My diesel's oil runs at 200.. Now you are talking me into a turbo temp gauge. haha

 

12 valve FTW!

 

I've been driving diesels for over 20 years. The days of having to "cool-down" a turbo are over. A diesel is by far more dependable now more than ever.

 

My dad used to have a 2008 6.6 duramax and we pulled a lot with it, like cattle trailers and round rolls of hay and such. It wasn't a bad truck but it just felt sluggish all the time and I've never pulled with a 6.7 powerstroke but have been in the 6.4 when it was pullin and it was a joke. The dodge imo just pulls harder from start to go.

 

I have a 2011 F250 with 6.2L V8 (gas) for a work truck and traded a 2006 Tacoma for a 2013 F350 with 6.7L Powerstroke for my personal truck. I average 12.2 MPG with the gas and 17.3 (roughly the same as my old 4 cyl Tacoma...) with the diesel. There is no comparing the two...absolutely zero. The diesel is an absolute beast! Sure, the truck is more expensive to purchase and the maintenance is slightly higher, but mileage is better - lower fuel cost per 100 miles even with the higher fuel cost ($3.45 gas, $3.59 diesel) - but the resale is much better with the diesel if that is a factor.

 

The Duramax's are sluggish and I have heard it from other people so it isn't just me. Our 6.7 ford that is stock is an absolute dream. We have a 4-4.5k pound camper and then a 23ft boat that is about 600lbs on a 3 foot extension behind the truck (camper overhangs the truck 3 feet). Combined we are over 23,000lbs fully loaded. Going over mountain passes I can easily do 70 at about 2200rpm in 4th gear. My uncle had a 2013 cummins and hauled his boat which is about 7000lbs behind us and he couldn't keep up, up the pass. Sold it and got a ford.

I will agree the cummins engine is a strong engine but not as strong as our V8. The engine is fine but everything else about a dodge I don't like (i.e transmission, ride is uncomfortable, personally I don't like the interior etc...)

 

For comparison sake, I present my work trucks...

2005 Chevy 1 Ton DirtyMax 4x4. Gets about 10 MPG running around locally. About once a month we use it for a 200 mile road trip and it averages 15 MPG on the highway.


2009 Chevy 3/4 Ton 6.0 V8 Gas 4x2. Also gets about 10 MPG just running around locally. . We don't take it on the road trip since it is only a regular cab, but I wouldn't expect it to get any better than 16/17 MPG. And that's only because it has a 6-speed auto behind the motor.

 

The dirtymax is also an older year. Not sure how old the OP is looking at but the new ones are so much more efficient than the older ones. Lmm versus Lml, different versions and tuning of the same engine.

 

I'm coming from a 04 Duramax and got 24 highway and 18 city on an 8" lift and 35" tires. All depends on what you have done to it. 521hp/1006trq and ran 12's before the lift. Pulled and towed anything I wanted. That being said, I got rid of it because I got tired of the upkeep. Working on them sucks and its expensive. With the EPA cracking down on emissions crap I wouldn't get a new one. Its hard to find an old one that's not ragged out now a days. Me personally I hate the way dodges look but they're easy to work on.

 

I've owned several. They seemed no more problematic than comparable gas versions of the same types I've owned. The turd below got 17.5mpg as it sits in that picture (6" lift, 35" Super Swamppers & Exhaust). Pre-lift, 21 mpg.

 

400 egt pre turbo

Let it idle until exhaust gas tempa pre turbo fall below that. Not oil temp. Requires pyrometer before turbo.

 

Wrong

 

Ehh... There are a lot of 6.0s with no problems but there are a lot of 6.0s with problems too, there are a ton of 6.0s on the road either way. I don't think they're garbage though. Studs, ficm, egr andf they're pretty damn solid. Hpop turbo and injectors and you've got a runner. Thats all pretty simple shit.

 

Correct, if you don't float a head or blow an egr cooler they're running SOBs. And the drivetrain behind them is solid.

 

Oil quality is more critical on HEUI engines like 7.3 and 6.0 fwiw