I still really enjoy the torque and sound these beasts put out but I'm also generally just tired of the whole ordeal. They're not daily driver or city friendly. Gassers... Just jump in them and go. No plug in, no slow warm-ups, no expensive fuel, no expensive maintenance, no driving 67 mph on the hwy to conserve fuel, no worries about idling, no worries about remote gas stations carrying diesel, no anti-gel or other fuel additives, no engine noise on those long trips, cheaper performance parts, etc. Frankly, the way it is for me now, I feel like I spend more time fixing little things on the truck (that probably don't need fixing but I like things to work solid) than I actually drive it. I only use it for leisure activities now. Last time I went up to the mountains I loved how I had 4wd in the snow. But seriously, if I would've taken our Honda Accord and spent 20 mins. putting chains on it, it would've been cheaper and less of a hassle altogether.

I bet you guys think I'm crazy. If you need the truck for work then all of the above is justified but I really don't. I'm thinking about selling sometime in the future. I just feel sorry about how much time I put into this thing without getting much out of it; basically for someone else to enjoy. So far this has probably been the worst investment I've made in my life. Sometimes you gotta put logic ahead of desires. But hey, live and learn. I'm only 23.

 

I agree with you on a lot of the cons of owning a diesel and recently bought a little Toyota for daily driving duties a couple months back, and the scary thing is....I don't mind driving it at all. Getting into high performance diesels and calling it an investment is probably your first mistake. Everyone knows it's not an investment. If you look at it like that, I invest $200+ dollars a month to my electric/gas company

 

I LOVE my truck and the cool factor of the diesel, but I completely agree with your points. After a year with diesel, I sure like jumping in my wifes z71 surburban at times. At other times I cant wait to drive the old beast. Love/Hate relationship is probably the best description.

 

A man has GOT to know his limitations...

LoL

 

Not me. Generally during the weekend my family cruises around in my wifes leather seated, DVD and navigation equipped 4Runner. But by Monday morning I'm itching to jump into my truck, even though I'm half way to work before it warms up.

 

Living in California and talking about cold warm ups?? I daily drive my rig and our ambient temps are nowhere near what you are dealing with.. They aren't old 3406 Cats, they can be driven cool without a problem. This is my third unit and wouldn't trade it for a gasser. The mileage with mine is at least 3 points above any gasser, including my minivan and I can haul all my tools doing it. As far as cheap mods... You are telling me that for $500 you can get another 200 Hp and 300 Ft-lbs out of a 5.x Litre gasser?? Thats another entire engine!!!

Diesel isn't for everyone...

 

I drive and work out of my ctd all week long. And when the weekend comes, we always for some reason drive my truck some more to wherever we are going?? The boys actually will just throw a fit if we dont take "dad's truck"!!!!

 

I truly like all types of cars/trucks for what they have to offer. The diesel is another one of them. I know vehicles aren't a good investment, but I didn't think the truck would cost so much when I bought it.

Exactly how I feel!

LOL! My friend lives in Alberta as well, I was talking to him a couple nights ago and he told me to check your weather forecast. -17 F and with wind chill equivalent to -46 F .

I guess you're right on the mods. Can't beat the mild mods you can do to these engines. But once you start getting into heavier fueling I feel it's cheaper to do it on a gasser... Maybe one day I'll find out the hard way.

I think I feel like this because I bought the truck used and had to deal with the little problems that arose. At the time when I bought it, I didn't know nearly as much about these trucks as I do now. And frankly, the truck was in good shape when I went to buy it and still is. I believe it's just the nature of any vehicle (minus the Cummins) to start requiring attention at almost 200k miles. Never again will I buy a high-mileage used vehicle unless I know exactly about the vehicle and how it's been taken care of.

 

I Love driving my truck. The kids love it too. They would rather take my truck anywhere than take Mom's 07 Volvo xc90 with DVD entertainment system. They will actually whine and fight when we drive in Mom's car. In my truck, they only fight. I am totally happy with my truck and wouldn't trade it.

 

Much more satisfying to change girlfriends - then, when you feel better you'll still have your truck...................

 

Hey, that just leaves more diesel out there for the rest of us!


well, I bet that a full size gas truck isn't very city friendly either. What about the diesel part makes it more city unfriendly? i agree that a full size truck isn't the best daily driver, but if I HAD to choose a full size truck for that, I wouldn't go near an equivalent gasser...

In California? I've never used the plug in on mine and I am quite a ways north of you. I just drove mine to town in the snow and I did what I always do, I let it warm up long enough to build good oil pressure, plus another 15 seconds or so. Sometimes it does run a little ragged and smoky for a minute if it has sat for a long time, or if it is exceptionally cold.

Last I looked, ALL fuel was expensive! True, 87 octane is usually cheaper than diesel these days...

In 85,000 miles, I've done very little to this truck that a gasser wouldn't have also needed (oil cooler replacement) and I love never having to buy and change out plugs, wires, cap and rotor etc etc.

Gassers use more fuel when you speed in them too... But even if I was speeding in my cummins, I would still get better mileage than my parents' gasser chev with half the miles on it.

what are the worries about idling?

you got me there! but if I'm going that far, I usually carry a 6 gallon jug of diesel with me in the tool box.

You got me there too, but the additive thing isn't much of a burden for me.

you definitely got me there, but I run a straight pipe. I still think I would rather drive this truck with no muffler than a 454 with no muffler!

I haven't really done anything to tweak my truck, but from what I read here, you can get a lot for almost no money on a cummins. I guess gassers just use a chip now, but back in the old days you needed new manifolds, carburetor, distributor, internal engine components like cams and high dome pistons. The cummins seems WAY easier and cheaper to tweak than an old school gasser.

hey, you've got plenty of time to come back around to a cummins again!

 

What problems did you have with your '96?By now all problems should be fixed.I know my '95 with 256K miles required the basics like brakes and other items.Which seem to be common for any used vehicle.Have you done all the repairs yourself?I know a garage would of charge me a arm and a leg if I had to take it in...

 

If you bought your truck as a play toy, then got sick of it, I understand that, We use our trucks to make money in our business, & I want the best, so this is why I have the cummins. I got a good basic work truck that performs & looks good, also reliable & economical to boot.

 

Just all the stuff you know about. Front end parts, starter... Nothing major (plus the hard shifting in the tranny). Plus all the stuff I added to the truck for fun. I'm afraid to think about what's next... Lift pump? Alternator? Water pump? Differential? U-joints?! And YES I have done all the repairs myself on weekends I could've been hanging out with friends. That's why I'm tired of it now. It was my first time doing everything and everything always takes the longest the first time.

 

Personally, I just haven't seen any "cons" on owning and driving my CTD on a daily basis. Yeah, it's slow to warm up; so I just don't "get on it" intill it is. ALL vehicles burn more fuel fuel at higher speeds and RPM. Yeah, a Honda will give you great mileage. But for a 7,000 lb brick cruising down the road, my truck gets great mileage. My dads Chevy HD2500 gas 6.1 Liter 2 wheel drive only gets 8 to 12 mpg....EMPTY!!! Comparing a Honda sedan or a Ford Focuss to a full size Dodge, Chevy or Ford 2500 is an apple and oranges situation. Yeah, sometimes it is nice and easy just getting around town in a smaller car. But I'd rather just drive my truck. I just don't really like being in small cars. Well, if I had a Corvette, a CTS-V, a Viper, a Charger SRT-8 or even a '70 396 SS El Camino or Chevelle, I'd being drive it around. But I'd still use my CTD as a daily driver. Then again, I did grow up with trucks in my life, whether pick-ups and/or 18 wheelers. To each their own........right?