I would start having second thoughts about getting a CTD. I have been reading the horror stories about trannies, burned pistons, clogged oiling nozzles, pumps, etc... and the money spent to fix things when they go is up there! I have been a wrencher for almost 17 years but don't have any diesel experience. Trannies and rears aren't bad at all but can be a little costly for rebuilds (more so on the tranny end). My biggest concern on all of it is the motor! I saw one guy paid 10,000 for a new motor I can't afford to do that so failure is not an option for a long while. Can someone make me feel better about my chances on making out okay if I go CTD?

 

I think what you're hearing about are isolated, but worst case scenarios. The vast majority of Cummins engines last hundreds of thousands of miles. A lot of the problems (KDPs, nozzles, pumps) could be prevented with a little care and/or preventive maintenance.

KDPs are easily killed, a lot of injection pumps could probably be saved by monitoring fuel pressure, and the only problems I've heard of with the cooling nozzles were from foriegn objects plugging them - usually the sealing foil from oil jugs or bits of a "four letter" name brand oil filter.

I've seen reman Cummins engines for a heckuva lot less than $10k, and you can pick up used engines for good prices. With the reliability of the Cummins engine, I wouldn't hesitate to drop in a used engine with 100k miles on it.

As far as the Cummins vs. Ford or Chevy, a friend convinced me that the Dodge was the way to go. He works for a large construction company that has used all of the Big Three's trucks, and the Dodge has turned out to be the best, hands down. They also use Cummins engines in a lot of their equipment, and they have proven to be very reliable. He is a die-hard Ford guy, but he will likely put a Cummins in the motorhome he is building, so that should tell you something.

Another plus of the Cummins is the fuel economy. I routinely get 17-18 MPG around town. I don't drive the freeways much, but 21-22 MPG isn't uncommon, at least for the 12-valve trucks (not sure how the overvalved trucks compare). With a small cabover camper on the truck, I still averaged well over 16 MPG on the last two trips to Oregon.

I always told myself I'd never buy a diesel truck - they smoked too much, smelled bad, and couldn't get out of their own way. Getting rid of my gasser and buying my CTD was the best decision I ever made.

 

Just buy it, I'll work on it.

 

To most people who have one, these trucks are just a pickup truck. They don't go on the internet looking for information unless they are having a problem with the truck. It's that way with GM and Ford diesel pickups too. Most diesel pickups live up to the owner's expectations, so they never go onto a forum like this one and you don't hear about the positive experience most people have. Nobody complains when the sun is shining, so you tend to hear much more about stuff that can go wrong.

If you get the red one, put a fuel pressure gauge on it and have fun. It'll be the best truck you ever have.

 

Not all but most of the problems you read about are after years of abuse, BOMB's, and mods. Buying used is a gamble, but if you know the previous owner and how he used it you should be okay. I have 170K miles with minimal repairs.

Reading this site will give you sleepless nights, but they are mostly isolated problems.

 

Outside of routine maintanance, I haven't spent much on repairs on the engine at all. 99.9% has been BOMBs. Did replace the tranny this year @190k miles.

 

when you read about burned piston you are reading about a truck that has been pumped up.
yes there some blocks you shoul stay away from (# 53).
and autos....well you know the story.
I have been very intimate with my CTD and they are built tuff, but the prior owner had gave it no mercy......I got to pay.
On the plus side they are just a little 6 banger,not hard to work on.and probly will never give you much trouble.

 

Once you figure out a sure-fire, guaranteed way to make absolutely sure that you won't fail, forget buying the truck and buy a lottery ticket.

Life it all about taking risks and usually about minimizing the risk in each decision. Cummins is one way of minimizing that risk. Can you have problems? Yes, without a doubt. Same is true of Ford, Chevy, Toyota, Mazda, and buying a horse. You can futher minimize the risk by watching out for red-flag issues like snow plows, indications of poor maintenance, and indications of heavy towing (5th wheel hitches,etc.) but there will still be risks. I saw a thread recently about a late model truck that trashed a cylinder at 53K miles. Definitely the exception rather than the rule. There's even a risk if you buy a brand new truck. Ever heard of Lemon Laws? You're doing a lot to minimize your risk by reading and researching here on DTR and other similar sites but you'll never totally eliminate it. The best you can do it make the smartest decision that you can and then move forward.

OK, enough pep talk. I can't tell you which truck it right for you. If you have a bad feeling about it, wait for another one to come along. I can promise you that if you get your hands on a good Cummins (which is the majority of them), you'll be wearing the perma-grin very soon.

Good luck and keep asking questions.

 

Since I like to work on my own cars totally I haven't had a vehicle to the dealer since 1989. I guess my only fear in the CTD is that it will be something I can't tackle. Are the motors very hard? I heard it is a 16 hour job to just pull the timing cover and you have to be carefull of things can fall down in the motor. I can pull the trans, rear, etc.. and work on them. The trans is about equal to any other vehicle for rebuild cost since I checked. The rear is about the same too. My concern is the motor! Say I smoked it. How much would a rebuild kit cost me to do it myself? How about the lift pump and injection pump? Those are the only other obstacles which have me concerned. Anyone do the pumps and know how much of a PITA or time it takes to R&R them?

 

You also have to remember Dodge has sold 1,300,000 diesel pick ups. There are only 10,000 members here. Out of that 10,000 what has been the failure rate? Run that percentage to the whole amount and it still less than 1/2 of the failure rate of the competitors. The cost of repairs on the others is still the same as the Cummins. Buy a Dodge/Cummins and enjoy life. Too much worry just makes you old. Seeing that you are mechanically inclined these engines are a breeze to work on. Maybe it takes longer to do certain jobs nothing on them is hard to do. Like the timing case just a lot of bolts and aluminum. instead of two gears like stove bolt there are 6 but the timing is the same.

 

Take it from me

a 22 year old college kid can work on these engines, then anyone can. They are a piece of cake, provided you have patience, and the tools needed. Hardest job for me has honestly been either removing the screws to tinker with the fuel plate, which were stripped, or changin the fuel filter.. bein that the truck is tall. other than that.. No problems really... Buy a truck, take care of it, and enjoy it, im sure it will last you a very very long time.. My truck just turned 162K and honest to say it runs like a bat outta h e double hockey stick..

Tx

 

Never been sorry I traded off the S-10 gasser for the Dodge. Needed the full size truck and mileage is same or better than the S-10.

All my problems have been more or less self induced. Double the RWHP and expect to pay the price. Mine was head gasket & trany (an auto).

I guess the problem may lie with an over educated group here. When you ask for problems they will give you very frank replies of the known conditions. That doesn't mean every truck has these problems.

 

Dont forget that most people come to this site to solve problems, not to say that they just love their truck, which alot of CTD owners do So, check out the other sites and see whats up. (ford and Chevy) Cant remember their addresses though. All i can say is that your not going to find million mile reliabilty, 4cyl gas milage, and stump pulling tourqe in a powerstoke or duramax. Sorry.
Trust me...im a freak about long lasting industrial quality, big parts, heavy duty, over built, etc. The Cummins is a prime example.

Also, this very motor is available from cummins in a 370hp marine version also. So, at stock or higher HP ratings in our pick-ups, this thing can easily handle the extra juice when properly modified.

 

That's the whole reason that I chose a non-LE 1st gen with a manual trans. Minimal things to go wrong and it's something that I can fix myself. Not to knock the 2nd & 3rd gen trucks but I didn't want the potential problems that the later model pumps can have and I didn't want the extra computer controls. That's just MY personal preference. Underneath it all, the Cummins (regardless of year) is not much different than most internal-combusion engines and you have a LOT more room to get to things because of the straight-six design. I looked at a mid-90's Taurus SHO the other day and it was so full under the hood that it looked like it would take 5 minutes for water to reach the ground if you poured water on top of the motor!! If you do your own work, the Cummins is the way to go. Invest in the factory shop manual ($70-$100) and keep asking questions here on DTR and you can do anything that you could do on any other vehicle.