What things should a first time Diesel Owner know or do?
 

As this is my first Diesel I'm just wondering what things I should know that are different than my previous gas engines. I know about oil changes, but are there other things you can suggest to ensure a long life on my new truck?

Thanks.

welcome to the diesel world! The difference in the gas vs. the diesel engine it that you can have 800 hp and still get 18mpg's[guitar] . Bigger tires help ur mpg's. A chip can give you 200hp unlike the gasses 20hp[guitar] . Diesels smoke black and its a good thing unlike the gas. Services are about the same. Change oil every 5-6k miles. 15w40 rotella widely known. Do it urself or you'll pay 85$ Change fuel filter every other or every 3rd oil change. Genosgarage.com sells top of the line cheap filters. Dont buy from dealer. 40$ vs. 15$ shipped. other than that.

Stay OFF this site or you'll get hooked and spend LOTS of money on upgrades and you'll love every minute of it[guitar] . Good luck!

you may have already noticed a seat of the pants change going from a gasser to diesel.[guitar] The two react a bit differently when the peddle is depressed.

I would suggest using the search engine to read answers for just about every question you might have. It's a great place to start. Things like mileage, oil changes, popular types of products used, dare I say.... performance mods, warranty issues, what ruins a warranty.

Enjoy the ride!

Reading the owner's manual from cover to cover can answer a lot of questions and give you a lot of nice to know facts.

This Cummins motor is one tough machine. Treat it "decent" and it'll last for ever. Heck, treat it like you stole it and it'll out last the rest of the truck! Just remember to be clean when changing filters and oil. I even keep my fuel cap clean. Injection systems don't play nice with dirt, but that goes for gasers too. Just enjoy your ride, you can't really hurt it!

dont put gas in it

brett

A couple of things that you should know are the diesel has a turbo on it and after you drive it you should give it a cool down period of time. I bought a turbo timer from right here on the site . It has three setting 2-4-6 minutes. According to how hard you have been using your truck. You just set the time push a button, turn off the key get out and lock your truck. The timer will alllow it to cool down and shut it off.
Also almost every one including me adds an additive to thier fuel. I add Power source. According to the instructions on the bottle.

That is the most important thing to remember. If you're used to filling up with gasoline, it may be an adjustment for you. Other than that, I'd recommend changing the fuel filter every 10k miles instead of the 15k recommended by DC. You'll know if you're overdue for a new filter when you don't have as much power, white smoke, and hard starting. If it gets to that point, you could be causing damage though, so don't wait.

My truck had 15423 miles when it started doing the symptoms above. I changed the fuel filter, and after 5-6 miles or so, it ran fine.

dont drive it like a grandmother, this isnt a grocery getting commuter car. you MUST occasionally load it heavy and tow something big with it. if you have trouble flogging your new very expensive truck, I'll do it for you. Seriously, drive her like it was meant for.

As a first timer I agree with the above post about making the truck work hard. My rig got 12-13 mpg for about 7k miles until I did my first Jeep haul to Moab. After getting back she was getting 15-16 mpg. And I picked up another 2 mpg over the next few months...

Modding only costs you more money. If you have it spend it. If you don't I suggest don't start it all adds up quickly one thing leads to another. I know I will never go back to what I had at the begining its just to much fun now but it was at a cost. Good luck with you CTD and welcome to the Diesel World of power and longevity.

Welcome first off. These guys have given you some good points. But on top of the oil changes buy you a grease gun and lub your front-end, that includes front drive shaft (you will need a needle adapter for your gun) and your tierod ends! https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...d.php?t=127834 a pictureof the front driveshaft lube point and needle attachment. Have fun with it and 35" 05' said it in his last sentence......beware [coffee]

Michael

Talking about mods, I spent less than $1000 on all of mine, and it was well worth it. The Quad box was the most expensive so far, and I got a deep discount on it (dealer cost, and no, I'm not a dealer). The RokkTech crank sensor was around $70, and the 5" pipe I used to delete the intake baffle was a free piece of scrap pipe from a diesel truck shop. And the K&N filter was about $70 at Auto Zone. So actually, I paid a little over $500 for all of them. I'm now planning on gauges, possibly a muffler delete pipe, and a FASS. I know that I could have spent a lot more than I did, but I have a wife that likes to spend money too, so I have to take it easy.

The power add ons are addicting when you get started, so if you can afford it, go for it. If you can't, stay away from it, you'll just keep spending more and more.

From personal experience, when the time comes to change your air fliter, I would recommend a AMSOIL EaA 189 dropin filter.
I put one on mine and the first thing I noticed was the EGT seemed to be cooler than with the previous filter I had.

Dont be afraid to leave your truck running when you stop dont turn it off every time you get out of it, they like to be hot. Also will save your turbo too. Also let it idle for... ohh... id say 5-10 min before you get in and put it too the floor. Its my opinion i know everybodys is different. But congrats and welcome to the diesel world.