estshrrdnck725

Hi, I have a question. I'm looking at buying a used truck and I was looking at diesels. I'm in high school right now in Maryland and I am hopefully going to college in Iowa soon. I want a diesel primarily for the longevity of the truck. Should I buy one? I'm looking at '00 Ford F-250 Powerstrokes and '98 Dodge 2500 Cummins. The truck will be used primarily as a daily driver, it will be used in farm work and during the hunting season for various things. I just really love diesels and I really want one. Right now, in Maryland, diesel is 10 cents cheaper than gasoline. So please help me out in my decision to buy one. Thanks for the help.

tmleadr03

Eh, if your looking at it from a economy for a daily driver the 10 cents is nice but you should get a jetta TDI rather then a truck.

I would go with the 98 Dodge if it isnt a 24V, reason for this is that the 24V has WAY more expensive parts if/when it breaks (i.e. VP44)

96_12V

And it seems they have been breaking a lot lately - look at the help & 24V forums. Do a search on the VP-44 pump & lift pump issues.

You may love diesels (as I do)9 but for most general commuting needs a car that gets over 30 mpg is a much better choice. These trucks cost a lot more in parts, maintance, and fuel to maintain than a car. I've have mine 6-years, so I have some experance with it's cost. There really has to be a purpose to have it. - I would not consider a diesel truck while going to school. If you must have a truck a 4-cylinder Toyota would serve well and be inexpensive to drive, and hold it's value well.

JyRO

No!!!!!!!!

dhughe2

where in MD are you from?

dieselJon

You asked a dodge diesel truck forum about getting a diesel

How much farm work are we talking? Hauling trailers or a few fence posts in the bed? How many miles to work and back? When, and if, hauling trailers, what would be general weight?

If you get a 4x4 it is really handy on the farm pulling logs and other people out. The diesels you are looking at, especial the Cummins, have massive amounts of low-end torque, which is great for trailers and pulling. The Ford if I am right, still has the 7.3L which is right now the best of the Powerstrokes in reliability. Every truck has their quirks ([Cummins]VP-44, 53 block, Getrag bearing, KDP, [Ford] CPS, glow plugs relays).


Research, research, research. Don't ask the people what they think, some are very bias but some will give you fair assesments. Go to their help sections or search the word help. If I had researched this truck, I probably wouldn't have bought it. The rust is the biggest and main issue that I am dealing with right now.

Longevity is synonymous with the Cummins, if taken care of properly. There are a few million milers with both engines, but you should expect over 500,000 mile from the Cummins. There are 2 advantages that I see with the Ford. 1 is the higher rev it has compared to the Cummins, stock. The other thing I see is if you don't like it and move to Iowa, sell it in Chicago. ALOT of Ford Powerstrokes.

All in all, what is come down too is this, are you willing to put up with. Stock both truck are great. But once you start down the slippery path of modding, it is gonna get expensive.

Jon

MTGunNut

yes, next question?

D2 Cat

If you're going to school and have financial responsibilities to take care of wait until you'll REALLY need the truck. You need a ride not an ego trip!

I've got a '93 Dakota I bought with 55,000 miles on it in '96. It's got the 3.9 gas, two wheel drive. It's the easiest to maintain, fewest parts required, cheapest to operate, plenty of leg & head room little truck I've owned and it now has 249,000 on the clock.

Try something like that while you're in school.

Dartmouth 12V

I was debating the same question that you are now when I was a senior in high school. I ended up getting a diesel to pull trailers and because I was interested in running biodiesel. I am now a junior in college and there are a bunch of us with CTD's and one 7.3 ford. My answer would be, if you need a truck, get a diesel and if you don't, don't get a truck. Trucks are very expensive and unfriendly daily drivers.

At college, it is handy to have a vehicle if you like to do stuff off campus but there are a ton of other people with vehicles that you can use if you are smart. It will end up being much more expensive than you expect and eat a lot more of your time working on it, buying parts, and dealing with registration, inspection and insurance than you expect.

Regarding the 7.3 versus the cummins, it comes down to what you are going to do with it and personal preference. Both are good and reliable engines. I chose the cummins because it was simpler and was something that I could do my own work on. While it is time consuming, it is a great education and much cheaper to get a vehicle that you can work on yourself.

Since you are probably going to school in Iowa soon, I would wait until you start and figure out what your needs really are. Good luck with whatever you end up doing.

catmandoo

i live in iowa and diesel right now is 23 to over 30 cents cheaper then gas,how long that will last is anybodies guess.where ya going to school??

pick

If you are going to school and putting yourself through it, I'd say wait on the diesel, get something that will be reliable and not pricey.

on a personal note: You don't want to have to deal with class, homework, making sure you have enough hours in at work to get by with the bills, pocket money and truck payments. Trust me Class to work back to homework just to get up and do it all over again isn't a real fun way to spend 4 of the best years of your life.

Joe T

Don't strap yourself down with a note in college. I got out a couple years ago, there are other things more important than working a job for $6-9 an hour trying to make a note.

If you need a work truck get a gasser.

If I were to buy a used heavy duty truck I'd find a V10 or big block. You can find V10 gassers of the same era for much cheaper... That's the way to go since you won't have much of a drive to class most likely and if you're doing farm work then they'll have to compensate you some way for the extra gas... Expect about 30% loss in economy. I'm still kicking myself in the butt for not buying a V10 gasser last summer... I might buy one this summer. I found a 2001 2500 V10 reg cab SLT with under 10K miles on it on ebay and it went for around $7,000. I really wish I would have bought that truck but it was too far away.

tmleadr03

Its still cheaper to have a car rather then a truck and durring school thats more important in my book.

96_12V

One of the best posts I've seen - I couldn't say "Amen!" quickly enough!

I guess like most others on here I have to second the idea of evaluating your needs and buying something after you've considered all your factors & finances. One other thing to think about is that there will always be trucks. If you hold off and save some money now, you may be able to pick one up after college with very little debt incurred. I also agree that taking on debt on a truck while in school really will tie you in ways that you don't want to be.

Good luck with your decision.

Dieseldude4x4

Look at the banner at the top of the page and you're asking about a Ford!!!
Definately not, do not buy a diesel truck. (unless that farm job pays very well)