Diesel Truck Vs Gasser- Which is a better choice?
Should I Buy Diesel or Gas?
You know for me a truck is a tool, not a toy. As soon as I take my truck off road to have fun with it, I'm basically playing with my money. When I buy a work truck, I want to make sure that I'm absolutely maximizing the bang for my buck. I want to try to get the absolute most return out of my initial investment for that truck. What we'll talk about is the concept do you want diesel or do you want gasoline. When I think about diesel trucks, the thing that I think about is that I have about a ten thousand dollar initial investment over a gasoline truck. But if that's a truck that I'm going to be using long term, then I don't mind investing in that truck. If I plan on holding on to that truck for ten or fifteen years, then I'm going to look at buying a diesel truck. If you can prove fuel economy is there, you have good power in the diesel truck. Between the fuel economy and the improved power, a diesel engine is a great way to go. Plus they are typically rock solid, but not always.
Research Engines
Make sure you do research on the individual engine. But I know this is a truck that I know is probably going to get used and abused and I don't say that light-heartedly, but I say that realistically. When you give a truck to your crew they get small dings, dents, chipped glass, torn seats. Nobody is responsible for the truck. The unfortunate truth is, those trucks are kind of throwaway trucks, which means when you buy the truck you expect it to come back and within five, maximum ten years looking like it's been through a battle.
Battle Wounds
It's going to have wounds, it's going to show its scars and in that case when I know that truck's going to be going out to various crew members not assigned to one individual. Well, I know that I'm going to probably have to sell that truck to get my money out of it, within, I always think of it as a five to seven-year window. Then I opt for a gasoline engine because I know a gasoline engine will hold up fairly well for that five to seven-year window. And that's usually about the time when everything on the truck, the drive lines, the brakes, electrical system, everything starts to nickel and dime you to death. And so, about that five to seven-year window, you want to get rid of the truck. If you plan on holding on to that truck for a longer period of time (whether it's a personal truck for yourself or maybe it's a dedicated truck to a foreman), then you may want to consider investing in a diesel engine. But I say that with a very high level of caution. Not all diesel engines are made the same. I absolutely love the Cummins diesel engines, and those things across the board have always been one of my favorite diesel engines.
Ford Diesel Engines
Now Ford diesel engines - a sketchy history. OK, I've had way too many Ford trucks to even count. They have all been diesel up until the last two which I purchased, which were gas. But I've had more problems with Ford diesel engines than that I've had good results. The only good Ford diesel engine that I've experienced within the last fifteen years is the 7.3 liter diesel engine. Those things are absolutely bulletproof. Phenomenal engines; if you have an opportunity to purchase one of those, I would highly recommend it. But if you were looking at a six-point one or a six point four that Ford makes, proceed with caution. In fact, recently I just sold a two thousand and four, six point one Ford diesel, and I almost gave the truck away. Because I wanted to get out from underneath it, it only had one hundred fifty thousand miles for a diesel engine. But, I knew from the history of that engine that it was on its way out and I even made sure that the guy I sold to was very familiar with six point one liter engines. And he knew what was coming down the pipeline. He got one hell of a bargain; he called me up and thanked me for it. Four weeks after he purchased it, he still couldn't believe what he got. But I was able to get out of this.
Paying Through the Nose
The unfortunate truth was, I paid through the nose for that diesel engine right out of the gate, thinking that I was going to be getting something rock solid. So be very cautious; just because you're getting a diesel engine doesn't mean you are getting a good engine. We're not here to talk with the individual engines though, what we're trying to talk about is the concept, do you want diesel or do you want gasoline. So let's recap what we know. If this is going to be a truck that you're using for a long time, you may want to invest in that diesel engine. Typically, not always, diesel has better fuel economy and better power than a gasoline. But on the flip side, this is going to various crew members. It won't be assigned to any one person. That's when I would highly consider getting a gasoline engine. The rest of the body is going to fall apart about the same time the engine is going to fall apart. You consider that more of a throwaway truck.
What do You Prefer?
It's going to show its battle wounds, it's going to have the scars to show that it was a work truck so you're going to want to decrease your initial investment of that truck as much as possible. Because when you go to sell it at the very end of its life, it isn't going to have a whole lot of value between the scars on the body and the wear on it and just selling it for whatever you can get out of the truck. So, my big question to you guys is, what do you guys prefer? Do you prefer gas or do you prefer diesel, and tell me why. What truck, what engine and what's been your experience, both good and bad. I want to hear both scenarios from you guys, then we can all make a better decision. God bless you guys.
