Travis1963
Tennessee
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I have read a large amount of this forum and have enjoyed most of it, for it's great info and sometimes humor. I do understand this is almost impossible but i would like to hear comments on my current situation. I am looking at a 2500 Ram 6.4liter gas and a 2500 Ram 6.7. Both new. I will buy one of these. I have a small one man lawn service. 16' work trailer, 5000 lbs. I will also load the bed with sand, dirt or mulch to its over flow many times a summer. It will also be my daily driver, 20,000 miles a year. My wife and I are looking for our third camper, a fifth wheel this time. I guess 10K to 12K weight. We live in flats of west Tn. but will go through Smokies regularly and over the Rockies a few times and plan for one trip to Alaska or Alberta. I think diesel fuel here is about .80 over gasoline. I am 50 and would like this to be my last new truck. I am truly on the fence and don't like being there. I have had an 8.1 Chevy with Allison, 95 cummins, 08 cummins lemon-lawed that one. The above info about usage of the new truck is as accurate as I can make it. I feel like I am right at the flipping point from one or the other. Thank you very much for any info on this very debated subject. I do appreciate it.
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Hannibal
Tampa Bay Area
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Joined: 04/12/2002
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I would much prefer the 6.4L Hemi for all but the Rockies. High altitude and NA engine with 12k~ lb 5th wheel could get pretty sluggish. Even the diesels are pushing 3k rpm peak HP climbing the grades with 12k ~ lbs. Like you, I'm over the diesel novelty but there are circumstances where it's actually needed with it's turbo to maintain power at high altitudes. If we go back to Seattle from Tampa Fl again with the 5th wheel, we'll suffer the slow lane with the OTR trucks on the grades. I thought I was growing more tolerant and patient in my old age. Turns out I just don't give a sheet! ![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/biggrin.gif "biggrin") (humor intended)
2020 F250 STX CC SB 7.3L 10spd 3.55 4x4
2010 F250 XLT CC SB 5.4L 5spdTS 3.73
ex '95 Cummins,'98 12v Cummins,'01.5 Cummins,'03 Cummins; '05 Hemi
2017 Jayco 28RLS TT 32.5'
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Tvov
CT
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Joined: 07/19/2003
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Travis1963 wrote: ...I have a small one man lawn service....
From the experience of myself running a small landscaping service, if you are a local service the diesel will cost more to run. If you are driving highway miles between jobs, the diesel is better. The better fuel mileage of a diesel is lost in around town driving. If you haven't run diesel before, you will be surprised at the increased maintenance and specialty antifreeze, oil and filters.
Most of the local contractors that all seemed to switch to diesel 10-15 years ago have all gone back to gas motors.
_________________________________________________________
2021 F150 2.7
2004 21' Forest River Surveyor
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Travis1963
Tennessee
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Thanks Hannibal. I have a close friend who is the truck buyer at a Dodge dealer near here and who is also a salesman that averages about 22 cars a month. I am going to see him today and ask his lowest price for both. I assume the diesel will cost about 7K more. I don't want to buy a diesel and be a guy that only needs it 1 or 2% of the time. I know from past trucks that the 1 or 2% is very nice to have a diesel but does that sway me? Also, I think he can discount his diesels more than gas so that might make the decision a little more tight. I think his price of purchase will be the biggest factor. We have been through the rockies near Denver, Leadville, and the San Juans by Ouray and Telluride in the southwest. Also, California, Arizona, Utah and New Mexico. I just don't want to be the guy in a gasser on the steep or long inclines we have seen that is screaming to climb it. You all know there are some monster climbs in those states. So, have more truck than I need 98% of the time and be very happy for the 2%, or proper truck 98% of the time and a little regret 2% of the time.? Am I starting to go crazy? Is cost of ownership cheaper for this gasser? With diesel my note will be higher and my monthly fuel will be higher. Hard to decide. I have been on forums for years and this thread has got to be top 2 or 3 I have ever seen. Thanks, Travis.
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Travis1963
Tennessee
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Tvov wrote:Travis1963 wrote: ...I have a small one man lawn service....
From the experience of myself running a small landscaping service, if you are a local service the diesel will cost more to run. If you are driving highway miles between jobs, the diesel is better. The better fuel mileage of a diesel is lost in around town driving. If you haven't run diesel before, you will be surprised at the increased maintenance and specialty antifreeze, oil and filters.
Most of the local contractors that all seemed to switch to diesel 10-15 years ago have all gone back to gas motors.
I drive 15 miles in to the area where all my customers are. They are all in a 8 mile radius. Then 15 back home. Close together basically. Thanks.
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Supercharged
Az.
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Joined: 01/01/2005
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ilovetocamp wrote:Paying $1.55 a gallon for diesel and getting over 20mpg. Get over 20 mpg on gas and pay less, cost less, no smell, doesn't have to be a block long. And stop bring in all that oil on the carpet.
So big a world, so little time to see.
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flat_twin
Ohio
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Joined: 02/08/2012
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Travis1963 wrote:I have read a large amount of this forum and have enjoyed most of it, for it's great info and sometimes humor. I do understand this is almost impossible but i would like to hear comments on my current situation. I am looking at a 2500 Ram 6.4liter gas and a 2500 Ram 6.7. Both new. I will buy one of these. I have a small one man lawn service. 16' work trailer, 5000 lbs. I will also load the bed with sand, dirt or mulch to its over flow many times a summer. It will also be my daily driver, 20,000 miles a year. My wife and I are looking for our third camper, a fifth wheel this time. I guess 10K to 12K weight. We live in flats of west Tn. but will go through Smokies regularly and over the Rockies a few times and plan for one trip to Alaska or Alberta. I think diesel fuel here is about .80 over gasoline. I am 50 and would like this to be my last new truck. I am truly on the fence and don't like being there. I have had an 8.1 Chevy with Allison, 95 cummins, 08 cummins lemon-lawed that one. The above info about usage of the new truck is as accurate as I can make it. I feel like I am right at the flipping point from one or the other. Thank you very much for any info on this very debated subject. I do appreciate it.
That's a tough decision but it sounds like you have all the important facts on the table. If there's any chance your new 5th wheel or any future RV will exceed the weights you mentioned I'd go with the diesel. I think a gas powered truck would be a better fit for your one man landscape business but when you mention towing larger RV's on a regular basis on grades like those in the smokies or rockies, more torque and better fuel mileage while towing point to a diesel.
I had a similar choice to make and moved on it two months ago when we found the right truck for the right price. With retirement roughly five years away I wanted to upgrade our TV (from a 1/2 ton extended cab to a 3/4 ton crew cab) and go into retirement with no vehicle payments. I do not use the TV for daily commuting and do not anticipate towing more than 10k lbs. Towing on steep mountain grades or at oxygen lean elevations will be a rare event.
For us a gas engine made more sense. I ended up with a slightly used F250 V10 CC. I've towed our toy hauler once with it and was very pleased with the difference over the 1/2 ton. The family loves the extra room of the CC. Mileage while towing is the same 8-10 I saw with the 1/2 ton. Otherwise we get 13-14 mpg vs 17-18 mpg we used to get but I fully expected that.
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waynec1957
North Central Indiana
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Joined: 06/25/2009
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I went from a 1/2 ton Silverado with a 5.3l to the Duramax last November. I haven't towed anything yet and like I said a few pages back I'm losing 2.5-3 MPG doing the same city/highway driving I was doing with the 5.3l. But at the same time I've got a whole lot more truck than I had before and I knew it was going to be more expensive to run the diesel.
At least until the other half retires I'll probably be that guy who needs a diesel 2% of the time. Again, I knew that ahead of time. For us though, everything just came together where it was time for me to buy a new truck anyway. The 1/2 ton limited us to what TTs we could upgrade to and it was getting to the point where if I didn't do something with the old truck I wasn't going to get anything out of it.
We need a 3/4 ton And I didn't want to do it again in another 5-6 years. So I decided to bite the bullet on the extra cost of the diesel now. We'll still get good use out of the diesel between April and October. We just won't pull in the winter until she stops working.
2013 Chevy Sliverado 2500 HD LS Crew Cab
Duramax/Allison, HD Tow Package, GCWR 24,500
2017 KZ Sportsmen S330 IK
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Travis1963
Tennessee
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Thanks for the comments. I did some figuring. If I get similar mpg's gas to diesel(my last 6.7 never got more than 15, I bet the 6.4 will get no more than 15) my fuel bill will be appx 80.00 more per month with diesel. 20,000 miles a year divided by 15 mpg x 3.90 for diesel=6000.00 divided by 12 = 433/mo. The same formula for gas at 3.15 = 350/mo. I believe an equally equipped diesel will cost 7K more than gas. 7K divided by 72 for a 6 year note is a 97.00 increase for the diesel. So, if I figured right, the diesel will run me appx. 177.00/mo more until payoff. 177 x 72 = 12,744.00. That is the initial premium I will have to pay for the diesel. After payoff is when the scales will begin heading the other way. I wonder how long I will have to keep the diesel to make up for the $12.7K. I guess another way to look at it is, is it worth 12.7K to drive a Cummins and enjoy its benefits for 6 years before the value pendulum truly starts swinging back toward diesel? Have I lost my mind or does this make sense? I do love that low end torque and resale but thinking the gas may make more sense for me. Thanks, Travis.
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Jarlaxle
New England
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Joined: 11/18/2006
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Tvov wrote:Travis1963 wrote: ...I have a small one man lawn service....
From the experience of myself running a small landscaping service, if you are a local service the diesel will cost more to run. If you are driving highway miles between jobs, the diesel is better. The better fuel mileage of a diesel is lost in around town driving. If you haven't run diesel before, you will be surprised at the increased maintenance and specialty antifreeze, oil and filters.
Most of the local contractors that all seemed to switch to diesel 10-15 years ago have all gone back to gas motors.
I even see the larger trucks (F-450/550, Isuzu/GMC cab-forward) going back to gas power, lately. Bonus: it's worth an extra 4-500lbs payload!
John and Elizabeth (Liz), with Briza the size XL tabby
St. Bernard Marm, cats Vierna and Maya...RIP. ">
Current rig:
1992 International Genesis school bus conversion
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