Okay, okay...I know this is a Dodge forum - and I absolutely love my '04 555 by the way. That being said, if you were in the market right now for a used truck, quiet diesel being an absolute necessity (**** HOA's), with approximately $26,000.00 to spend, what would you do?

A relative is in this predicament and I've convinced him that Cummins is the ONLY way to roll...only problem is, they're all out of his price range (must be an '03). He doesn't care much about mileage, can take auto or 6 sp., doesn't have a long list of interior requirements, but doesn't want a stripped truck (i.e. ST). Ideally he wants a loaded SLT or a comparable trim level from Chevy (has a Z71 Tahoe and doesn't want to take a step down interior-wise for clients).

So what would you do? Since '02's aren't an option with the Dodge, but are for the Chevy, am I going to have to start looking for Duramax's for him? Man I hope not (I won't even let him say the word "Ford").

 

If you look hard enough, you might find a Dodge. If not, my mom's got an 03 Dmax with the allison auto and it's a wonderful truck. Pulls our 10K lb trailer like it's not even there. The mileage ain't that great (bout 14 unloaded at 70 and about 10 loaded at 65). Rides great, drives great, quiet, smooth power.

 

That is a tough one. Here is something to think about. The majority of pre-LLY Chevy trucks have always had major fuel system issues, costing owners big dollars in non-warranty repairs. You would probably do good to steer clear of Chevy unless it has the newer LLY engine. That being said, that knocks out most of the older Chevy trucks that are in his price range. I'm not sure when the LLYs came out, but the pre-LLYs are hard to give away these days, hence why they are cheap and easy to find. Run from a cheap pre-LLY. The newer LLYs are doing well though if you can find a deal on one.

Why not a Ford? The interiors are plain and the ride is not that great, but an 01/02 with the 7.3 is a solid truck. Things didn't go bad until they tried the 6.0. If it were my decision, I would definitely go with a 2001, 2002 7.3 Ltr Ford before I touched a Chevy of the same year.

 

My '03 averages 19mpg and has great power. I wish I'd got the 6spd. I have read or heard the d-max get's less mpg's than this. It's also a lower truck(height). However, form my experience with my dodge dealer, adn the bad experiences I have read about on this site(almost daily), it has been my experience that GM GENERALLY honors their warranty better. BUT, it's also my experience that GM's require a lot more work under warranty. (My 2 cents for what it's worth!)

 

I would be looking for a Chevy over a Ford. The Fords dident get quiet till 03 and they where not near as quiet as the Dmaxes or Cummins. You said he needs it for his clients. I would want the Chevy if hes going with a crew cab, WAY more room and they sit lower so its eisier to get in and out of. I have heard that they are quieter inside than the dodge as well. I will find out tomarow if thats true as a freind pics his up tomarow. As far as all pre LLY dmaxes having problems with fuel systems I have never personaly ran across anyone who has had a problem with theres. This is the only place Ive ever heard anything abought it. I would bet theres not near as many problems with it as people make it sound. And for shure less problems than Dodge is haveing with there 600 injectors.

 

To learn about pre-LLY trucks and their problems go to the diesel page .com.

 

I found a bunch of trucks on autotrader for ~$26K range. Here's a nice SLT 4x4. link

 

The 01 and 02 Dmax's injectors are covered for 7 years/200k miles now. I miss my Dmax. With a chip it was by far the best truck I ever had and still got 20mpg on the highway. Its a great truck and I would not be afraid to get another one.

If driving is what he does I would go for a Dmax. If its pulling probably go with a Cummins although I had no problems pulling with my Dmax. If you look hard enough you can find a Dmax with around 100k on it for about $20k.

 

Hey Guys,

This is incredible. You guys are making life MUCH easier with all of this info. There are some great points here that I hadn't thought of. While I personally love the height of my truck, the lower profile of the Chevy might be the way to go for his clients...step in height is far lower in the Chevy. I'll check out the Chevy forum link, but what years are "pre-LLY?" Is an '02 safe?

Honestly, I HATE the interiors of the Ford, and can't stand the mentality of most of the Ford drivers I come across daily on the road (just the 250/350 guys that is), so I had a bad taste in my mouth for those trucks. I'll give him the option, but if there's anyway he can avoid it, I'll probably still make him do so .

Thanks for the auto-trader link - I'm going to go check that out. I'd been looking on Cars.com and couldn't find much under $30K (which, by the way, makes me an even happier Cummins owner ).