diesel pick-ups

[Anonymous-0]

I want to thank you all for your replies at my earlyer post. After reading all the replies,and looking at the big picture,I came to this conclusion,which was where I was to begin with. They are all close. Chevy: good truck. Best ride. Ford: good truck. Hard on fuel. Dodge: Good truck. Super Good engine. New transmission also very impressive. I've had them all throughout the years. My all around experience has favored chevy. Ford would be next in line , then dodge. I have to admit,the 6.7 cummins w/built in engine brake is an eye openner. I like the high torque at low RPM's. Most of my driving is up and down hills on county roads,state highways,and back roads in northern pennsylvania/NY. Has dodge made that much of a turn around? Should Fords poor milage and iffy engine be over looked for other qualities? And how about Chevy? Anything?

 

[notadeere]

since the early 80s chevy had built there own eng 6.2 not the best but was there own ... ford used IH diesel while dodge used cummns & dodge had best one now in the late 90's ford ,,,( u probly didnt know this) tried to buy cummins out from under dodge to put in there trucks... didnt work go cry a river ford...
now ford tryd to keep up with gm when gm went to the new duramax eng & that is what started the all new quite engs less noise gm had it first i think for 4 yrs befor the others startd gettn lesss nose. anyway gm did a great thing in the diesel race dodge * thre cumms would be second in my book not that ford .. anyway gl if i was you id go with the GMC serria slt hd thats what i own & wouldnt go back to any of the others if paid to do so by them...

 

[sean showalter]

If new is what you are after the new cumins is not what it use to be. They changed the engine in middle of 07 so if dodge is what you want get one the has the old engine. Plus with the Dodge I have never thought much of the transmissions. You are right thought the Chevy does ride the best but I have heard mixed stories on their toughness. Not sure the engine will hold up. With Ford the 6.0 engine was not much at all and who knows if the new 6.4 will be any better. My guess is that it will be but only time will tell. For me I have two ford diesels one with 336000 and the other with 151000 miles both are the 7.3 powerstroke. with both I am getting between 15 and 19 mpg but they both ride like a truck. I guess the best advice I can give is that go with what ever truck you have had the most luck with in the past and good luck.

 

[Doug in Illinois]

Not going to say much more to cloud the issue,BUT need to read the December 2007 Popular Mechanics before you buy a new one. I want the new GMC diesel, but can't afford ANY new pickup. The specs will blow you away. GMC mpg empty 18.26, load 10.50. Ford empty 11.24, load 7.60. Dodge empty 13.00, load 8.70. Just read the article. I do have a friend who has the Duramax diesel with the Allison automatic who was making 6.5 to 10 mpg with his gasoline dually who is now making 18 towing and 23 empty now. I am giving a lot of thought to putting my old 87 Chevy 4x4 6.2 diesel back in use. Makes about twice the MPG my 2001 2500 6.0 4x4 does. Just need to convert the old 87 to a flat bed and gooseneck hitch, the body is literally ready to fall off.

 

[DJM75]

as kinda mentioned by the last post but not quite right Ford did buy cummins but the contract had to be finished with dodge. I don"t remeber if it is 08 or 10 but that will be the end of cummins in dodges.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Nope not close, Cummins designed the original B series engine for FORD. In the end Ford thought it was too expensive that the truck wouldn't sell for that much more. Lee Iaccoa(sp)? was with Ford at the time he knew all about the engine 'course we know where he went which is why the Cummins engine is with Dodge now. In my opinion lucky for Chevy and Dodge that Ford didn't get the Cummins or they would not have sold any trucks since the early 90's. Dodge never owned Cummins, Ford does now own Cummins. Cummins must complete contract with Dodge.

 

[Midwest redneck]

A very good friend of mine is an engineer at Ford. He is been both a diesel eng. and Gas engineer. He is also an engine engineer.
Here is what he has told me. All of this is factual info.
1. The warranty for the IH diesel in the Ford trucks is costing Ford motor comp. $1 Billion/year. (yes that is 9 zeros)
2. The base motor is good but the turbo, fuel rails system and other stuff goes bad.
3. Ford has a contract with IH so it has to stay with IH for a few years.
4. If stuff breaks on the truck after "x" miles You will have to pay for it and you wouldnt want to.
My opinion
5. Research the warranty on the GM and Dodge.
My neighbor has a Chevy 2500 duramax 2003 model, he needed a new allison trans and it cost several thousand dollars. could have been a bad luck case. The truck had 80K miles on it at the time.
His diesel mileage is about 19-city/hwy.
GM has the 100K power train warranty.
I have never owned a diesel PU but with the cost of diesel fuel, and the cost of a new truck I couldnt afford a new one. Diesel in my area is now $3.40/gallon. Gas is $3.05.
I remember when diesel was cheaper.
Good luck.

 

[Bob]

Take a look at the last FAQ on the page linked below, from the CUMMINS website:

"Does Ford own Cummins?

No, Ford does not own any part of Cummins Inc."

Are they lying on their own corporate website??? Better report them to the SEC, ASAP!!!
NO Ford, NOPE, NOT here...

 

[Anonymous-0]

There are businesses that put Cummins engines in Ford trucks.

 

[Steven f/AZ]

Again, if you want a good truck, get the F550 or F650 with the CAT engine, or go with these guys: http://www.fordcummins.com

 

[JDemaris]

I'll offer my two-cents although it may not apply to your question. Unless someone has to make their living with a truck - I think it's nuts to spend $40,000, $50,000, and sometimes more for any new diesel truck.

I've got over 20 diesel trucks - all older, all mechancially injected. I've got many GM 6.2 diesel rigs, two Fords - an 85 with a 6.9 and a 94 with a turbo 7.3. Also got a 92 Dodge with turbo-intercooled Cummins 5.9. Even got a couple of little Isuzu diesel mini 4WD trucks.

I've got many friends near me that have bought new diesel trucks and also kept their old ones. None of the new trucks get the fuel mileage the older trucks get - and the new ones are incredibly diffcult and expensive to repair.
It's a no brainer to me - especially for someone with some mechanical skills.

I was just joking with the guy that owns a saw mill near me. He's still got - and was driving his 1982 1 ton 4WD 6.2 diesel Chevy. The driver's door is almost falling off. Almost no metal left on it - a real rust-bucket. Still runs great, has 375,000 miles on it and still gets 19-20 MPG on a highway cruise when not worked hard. He recently bought a new Chevy Duramax and is totally disgusted with it. He took a long trip with a fifth-wheel camper and got 10 MPG. He drives it empty and gets 14 MPG. If it ever breaks - there is much he cannot fix himself since it's so complicated.
I have another farmer neighbor that also bought a Duramax. Same story. He went back and forth to the dealer complaining about fuel mileage. He gets 13-14 MPG highway when empty. He kept his old rusty 95 Dodge Cummins which consistently gets 20 MPG on the highway. It also can be run on farm-fuel and his new Duramax will not. He tried it and it went into limp-mode.
Another neighbor traded in his 93 Dodge Cummins that got 20 MPG plus and got a brand new Dodge Cummins that is getting 16.5 MPG. It's aready been back under warranty for a head gasket.
For my older trucks - I can do any repair myself including rebuilding an injection pump. I can buy brand new injection nozzles for my Ford-IHs, or GM 6.2s for $5 to $9 apiece. I can buy a new (not rebuilt) water pump for $45. Used parts are easy to find (except for my Dodge Cummins engine). My 6.2 rigs all get over 20 MPG highway. My Dodge Cummins does the same and with all the towing power I'll ever need. The Fords are worse on fuel when empty - but do as well as the rest when towing or being worked hard. My first 6.2 blew to pieces last year at 520,000 miles. My 7.3 Ford has 340,000 miles on it and runs like new. The Dodge-Cummins seems to be the best of them all - but the truck itself rides - like a truck built in the 60s unless you put a load on it. I just came back from a 2000 plus mile trip with a heavy slide-on camper on the back and got 17 MPG average - that's pretty good. I drove a through a lot of mountain roads and the truck has more power than it needs in 5th gear overdrive and - it has 3.50 axles. I find that amazing - and I suppose if it could be geared down more - it would get even better fuel mileage.
If someone wants a good diesel truck - I can't figure why they wouldn't seek out an older one in nice shape. Easier to buy, and much cheaper to drive and maintain.
Maybe I'm missing something here. Besides the extra power - what is supposed to be the benefit to buying a new one?

 

[Anonymous-0]

Cummins did not design any engine for Ford, the B series engines weren't designed for lighty duty truck use at all and it was several years after they had been on the market before they got Dodge to try them in a pickup. This information came right from engineer's at Dodge and Cummins. Cummins was wanting to find new markets for their 5.9L engine and offered it to Ford to use in their pickups but they were happy with the Navistar engines and weren't interested in it, it was also offered to GM but they weren't in the market. Dodge rejected them at first too but later agreed to look into it if Cummins would do the R&D work to bring it to market.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Heres the test from popular mechanics
Big three test

 

[jokers]

Sean,

Can`t say why you never thought much of the Dodge transmissions but I have yet to have any problems in the several that I have owned. It might be that too many people aren`t reading the owners manuals where it states that the tranny fluid and filter should be changed every 30K and while you`re in there, you need to adjust the transmission bands. Everyone I know who does this, myself included, has not had a transmission problem. As far as I know, Ford and Chevy are also having problems with modern transmissions that aren`t maintained.

 

[jokers]

Just looked at the "test" and it looks like the typical whipped cream on scat that the magazine is noted for. Many of the comments nailed it, sure the Chevy/GMC is a nice truck and has snappy performance but don`t buy one if you want a work truck that will last. If you want one, more power to ya, at least maybe buying a truck from one of the old "Big Three" will help keep an American employed in some capacity.

 

[toolz]

I don't pay a lot of attention to magazine tests- The results vary so widely that none of them mean much. I prefer to use my own experience, as a former mechanic, and as an owner. I have a 2008 Ford loaded up dually crew cab 4x4, and it gets 17mpg empty, 9-10 really loaded, and has more power than I can use. Most comfortable and quietest truck I have ever driven, with all the creature features I would ever need. I was at a GM dealership last week, and a friend was replacing a bad turbo on a duramax. He showed me the first step in the service manual for this operation- "remove transmission". I think it called for 24 labor hours. Sorry- no Isuzus for me.

 

[Anonymous-0]

I thought Ford owned more than this but this was in the paper today.
Untitled URL Link

 

[Anonymous-0]

Let me shine a little light on that wonderful 5.9L in the Dodges! Cummins did NOT solely design that engine. Wasn't for Ford, Dodge, or even Chevy. Heck it wasn't even for a pickup at all. Who was behind its development? JI Case! Thats right. The company was CDC, Consolidated Diesel Corporation. Case wanted a good engine for their tractors and construction equipment and they made one heck of an engine. One of the few smart things Dodge ever did was put that engine in their truck.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Uhh... the 6.2 was kinda a GM engine but more like a Detroit Diesel since that is who manufactured it. Of course at the time GM owned Detroit and Allison.

 

[RodinNS]

BANG ON!
The "B" was a development of the Consolidated Diesel Corporation, jointly owned by Cummins and Case Corp with each holding 50% of CDC.

To take this thought process one step beyond... The development of the new "B" series (6.7L) engines dates back to the mid/late 90's and at that time was a joint project of Cummins, Case Corp AND NewHolland. This was before the Fiat buyout of Case and it's merging with NH. That's how long that engine has been in the pipe. At that time I think they called the project the "European Engine Alliance" or EEC. What's more I think one will notice that most of the engines in the red and blue tractors both carry the same specs as the "new" Cummins engines and displace 4.5L and 6.7L for the 4 cylinder and 6 cylinder engines respectively. Seems to me that those engines have been on the move since late '04, and I haven't heard tell of any problems with them to date... so unless they bugger the fuel system/electronic engine controls on them when they put them in a Dodge truck, I don't see that there should be many problems with them other than that they're likely to burn more fuel. That's true of any of the new engines that meet the new emmissions regs. Makes a lot of sense. Reduce emmissions by burning more dinosaurs......

Rod

 

[jlmtractor]

my cousin owns a 2006 2500 longbed quadcab dodge and he gets fifteen to eighteen miles to the gallon on backroads in farm country in ohio checking traps and that is even running through thick mud (oh it is a cummins and man is it quiet)