I hate to admit it, but if I NEEDED a new truck I would seriously consider a gasser. The new chevy 8.1 with the allison is tough to beat. The new diesels do not get the fuel economy to offset the additional cost and the trouble. The 8.1 is sooo simple too, very easy to work on. A new gasser or find a decent Gen 2 ctd and completely refurbish the entire truck. Sad, but the new diesels have completely lost their appeal.

 

What kind of fuel economy do these chevies get? It doesn't take much better to offset the costs, but sometimes I do wonder. Give us an example please!

 

Stay away from the windows and doors of where you are, the lightening is coming! It’s a shame you feel that way, dig deep and find the reasoning that’s leading you down that long, dark hallway! Express yourself and maybe…collectively, we can help you thru this!

 

I s this the truck in your Sig that's not giving you the mileage you want?
What are you getting? You tow anything?
What's expected out of the 8.1 gasser, mileage wise and towing?

Next, what have you had to replace on the diesel that has made it unworthy of the initial cost?

 

For the bulk of the world, the diesel engine was a great buy, when diesel was cheap, economy was up, and darnitalltoheck, the neighbours had one, so you had to as well.

Of course, that mentality led us to today, where diesel pickups can be out of the price range for people who want / need work trucks, so those of us who need work trucks go to bigger stuff, where bang for the buck is greater.

Now, diesel is expensive, diesel engines are expensive, repairs associated with diesels, from weight related problems in the front end, to fuel system problems, to just about anything else are expensive...

Lets face it, just for once. For Joe Average, his wife, and his 2.3 kids, he doesn't NEED a 1 ton diesel pickup. (Unless the entire family is morbidly obese, in which case we can disregard that. ) Gassers are getting better fuel mileage numbers ( finally) and the cost of owning and operating them over the short term, are usually somewhat less than the same term for a diesel. This is not talking out my butt, rather this is what I see in the automotive sector, from dealing with auto technicians locally.

As for the towing argument, I will concede that nothing beats a 1 ton truck for towing a 5er that should be hauled by nothing less than a kenworth. That being said, unless you are on the road all the time ( FiverBob style ) Do you need a diesel? Think about the extra cost associated with the initial purchase of the diesel engine in your truck. Now, for the 6 times a year that you pull your trailer/quad/boat to the lake, or the 1 time each year that you take a road trip, is the extra cost worth it. How much gas can you buy for that added $X,000,00. I bet over the life of the truck, or the time that you will own it, its pretty darn close. Add in the fact that the new diesel engines in pickup trucks, across the board, appear to be getting lower economy numbers all the time, and the gap really starts to narrow up.

I realize that I am off on one of my tangents here, and I am going to shut my cake hole before someone gets upset. But this is just food for thought, wheaties for the synapse, kibble for the neurons.

I will continue to drive diesel, as a work truck. I will continue to drive my gassers for non-work applications. Best of both worlds.

LovePeace'nChickenGreasePindOut

 

Aside from keeping up with the Jones’s, you have some good points, I'll give you that. Diesels are like the kids in school that got picked on and beat up; through out the years they have grown up into BILL GATES, BRAD PIT and ....wait I got side tracked, where am I going with this? There are always ups and down in life, you have the "key" and will end up on the up side of things. Keep with a Diesel; you'll win in the end. We drive a vehicle that needs the least amount of refining as far as fuel goes, the "tune up's" are still the simplest and the power to weight ratio isn’t even comparable! Have I even made a point?

 

The 8.1 Chevy gets half the mileage of my truck and has no where near the longevity.

I would buy the new Dodge/Cummins in a heartbeat. I may not be saving a huge amount but I love the package. My second choice would be the new Tundra...not the prettiest package but neither is the Chevy.

 

My friend had a chevy avalanche 8.1, he got 8mpg city and 13mpg on the highway. My truck gets about 14mpg city and 17-18mpg highway. He ended up selling it and getting a PSD, wasn't the greatest move but it's a step in the right direction

 

I will have to say that I have been somewhat disappointed with the reliability of my truck. I bought a diesel for 2 reasons. Longevity and reliability. It now has 140,000 miles on it and has been towed 5 times. Once for a starter, once for a front wheel bearing that failed catastrophically, once for a VP-44, once for a new HX-35 that flew apart at 35psi that was 1 month old (The previous HX-35 lasted 110,000 miles running up to 45 psi of boost) and twice for computer problems.

I have owned a '94 Mitsubishi Mirage, a '95 and '96 Trans Am and a Kia Optima. These cars had between 60,000 and 100,000 miles on them when I owned them. Never not once did any of these leave me stranded or have to be towed like my truck has.

I wish I could say that putting a box on my truck caused the problems but with the possible exception of the turbo that failed I think that is a hard argument to make. I have an old 1960s bulldozer that is more reliable than my truck is.

I hate to say it but it seems like gas cars/trucks are just as reliable as diesels, at least up to say 100,000 to 150,000 miles.

Keith

 

Don't get me wrong, I really like my Dodge truck and I love driving a diesel, but if Ford would have had a Cummins engine as an option, I would be driving a Ford. If I was going to replace my current truck, at this time I KNOW I would move a cab size up and order a Ford with the Cummins engine. The nice part about the cab-up is that you can go to either Ford or Cummins depending on what you need done. Not like DC who has you shut off from Cummins.

I would never go back to a gasser, diesel IS the only way to go for power towing, etc. I have yet to have any real/big problems with my truck but I have been into the dealership for some small stuff. The service department does not impress me at all. From what I've seen so far I hope I never have to go there for anything.

CD

 

I've had to tow mine three times in 80k miles. Once a wheel fell off on the highway (possibly loosened on purpose by scumbags who were mad at someone i was working for), once when the transfer case coupler failed because the guys who installed my NV didn't lube it, and once when the oil cooler sprung a leak far from home.

Not too bad really and those things could have happened to any gas truck (well, except the oil cooler).

I had a pretty cool gas truck before this one, but it got 8mpg all the time, and was an auto, which I hate. So I know I've saved money just in the mileage difference alone. In 80,000 miles, I've saved buying about 5000 gallons of fuel over what I would have put in the gasser truck. Even at just $2.00/gallon, that is $10,000, more than I paid for the truck.

Luxury interiors and comfy seats aside, you couldn't run fast enough to saddle me with a new truck, diesel OR gas. Too complicated and expensive to own and work on either way. And the payments? I could buy a nice plot of land or a really nice deepwater fishing boat for what one of those new trucks cost!

 

I glad I have a diesel. I get abou 13-14mpg in town and 15.5-16 on highway, much better than the 8-10 I got with the big-block Chevy duallys I had before.

 

Luckily, I don't NEED a new truck at the moment. I have been completely blessed with my current ctd and aside from the cracked dash, I have had ZERO trouble. I haul @1200 lbs of tools daily and I avg 17 to 20 mpg. This is the best truck I have ever owned, period. I tow a 10K lb enclosed trailer regularly and the truck handles it beautifully. Unfortunately, everyone I know with a newer diesel only gets 15 or so mpg and ALL OF THEM have had reliability problems. ( all three brands) My good friend with a 06 dmax only gets 8mpg towing a 18K enclosed. Granted it tows it better than his V10 F350 did, but the dmax has left him stranded twice with only 12K miles on it. The reason behind this post in the first place is I was planning on upgrading to a dually later this year but all of the new diesels have simply lost their appeal. Oh, and don't even get me started on the price!!

 

why dont you start looking around for low mileage 12valves while you still have a chance of finding one? my father and i already decided that if we find an old 12 valve 5 speed (preferably a 96 or 97 ) in great shape with low miles (its a dream, i know) that our 03 is getting traded in.

 

im with you hotrod82 i will miss the turbo but when my warranty is over on my 06 it will be going bye bye. maybe i will try a 5.7 tundra.