Looking at New Trucks - need input/help

[AZ Vic]

I have really been researching the Duramaxes recently... here is my take.

Dodge - best engine, bad transmissions and rearends, POOR quality manufacturing.

Ford - Many problems all around - look on their forums and they have problems with everything.

Chevy/GM - There are two model duramaxes - LB7 and LLY. LB7 is the early model that had the injector issues. It is in 2001 to 2004. They changed to the LLY model mid year 2004 and it is refered to as a 2004.5. The injector issues are covered in a 200k warranty from what I understand. Many people that have had the LB7 and LLY agree that the LB7 had more power and better gas mileage.
Right now, there is a big issue with a number of people having overheating issues with the LLY. There are many changes to address this with the new 06 model.
The Duramaxes have the Allison transmission, which everyone seems to agree is one of the best around. The 06's have a new 6 speed tranny. On the other hand, GM's standard tranny is junk.


Any model you go with, there are chances of having problems out the door as well as going 200k with oil and tire changes. Whichever make you go with, make sure the DEALER is a good one. They will be the ones you go to if and when you have a problem.

All the big three are having employee pricing right now, although I don't think you can get it on the 06's, just the remaining inventory of 05's.

Vic

 

[scottyb]

I have 4 friends that drive Dodge Cummins. With the things they are doing with those beasts (one of them bought his at 225k miles, and now runs 12s), I will consider no other when I need a truck.

 

[SinistrV6]

Not a diesel but I LOVE my Avalanche!! Room for 6 and a 9 ft bed when I need it!

 

[darb]

Here's a comparison between the Ford and the Dodge. You can see that the Ford pulls with ease.

http://trucktrend.com/roadtests/pic...lbox/index.html

Uhh, they tested a 6spd vs. and automatic? Like testing apples and oranges. Don't know why they would not test an automatic vs. and automatic or vice versa. The NV5600 6 spd is not a racing tranny and shifts very bulky and slow because it's a VERY HEAVY DUTY tranny. It's not meant for 0-60 times. I'd stay away from the 6.0 liter Powerstroke. Go check out a few of the Ford Diesel sites, there are more blown 6.0 than there are ones that are running. Well, maybe not quite that many, but go check the sites for yourself. Good luck.

 

[Nashty]

This may not be a good delivery vehicle suggestion but here's what I just did. I drive 60 miles round trip to work each day, 17mpg in my Sierra wasn't too bad but still expensive. I sold my truck and bought a class C motorhome. It is on a 1 ton chassis with a V-10. Has 42,000 miles on it and is 24' long. I can take a whole group with me this year and stretch out (and have a cocktail or two en-route) to Nats or wherever we go racing. It should get 9mpg towing my trailer and has good power for hills. My truck got about the same mileage towing (1/2 ton 5.3liter w/ 3.73 gears.

I got it on eBay for $10,000 under LOW retail. I spent a lot of time shopping for it, many of them went for more than what I wanted to pay. I did have to fly to Florida to get it though. The kids love it and we've got a new avenue of fun on the weekends.

I'm getting a commuter car for work. If I have to haul something, I'll use the trailer or put in in the commuter car. I'm salivating over the reduced gas expenses I'll have day to day.

 

[TurboDave]

<snip>
I'd stay away from the 6.0 liter Powerstroke. Go check out a few of the Ford Diesel sites, there are more blown 6.0 than there are ones that are running. Well, maybe not quite that many, but go check the sites for yourself. Good luck.

You'll forgive me for saying so, but that's probably the worst thing a person could do to get a feel for the quality of any vehicle. Going to these bulletin boards is what people do to resolve issues they have. Almost everybody that participates in these board has an issue to get resolved, that's why they're there.
Using your logic, the same could be said about Turbo Regals of any type. They obviously must be a piece of junk, since there are so many people on the board complaining of problems.
I visit all the Ford Diesel boards, I can assure you, like any other board, the participants are just a tiny drop in the bucket compared to the hundreds of thousands of Ford, Chevy or Dodge people that are out there perfectly happy with their vehicles and have no need to post to a board.
Trust me, If I were interested in the reliability of a vehicle, a forums board would be the absolute LAST place I would go, or send someone for that kind of info.
Use these boards for what they were intended, getting or giving advice (assuming the advisor knows what they're talking about. As we all know that isn't always the case either).
Being a GM guy, it was quite a leap for me to move into a Ford truck, but after doing my due dilligence and research, it was obvious who really does make the highest quality, and most dependable truck to suit my needs. I've never regretted that decision.

BTW, for the uninformed, virtually all of the 6-oh's teething problems are pretty much resolved.

 

[HRpartsNstuff]

It's been EXTREMELY HARD to sort all this out, especially with limited time available (with everything else going on here). The message boards can be helpful, but have to be taken into context of who is posting there & what their intent is. Plus, if there are 2x the Fords out there, you should expect 2x the posts with issues.

I got feedback from previous owners as well, but hard to figure in. Most problems with ALL the brands have been solved or improved. Can't compare cold start issues from a pre-'02 truck & todays trucks. Same with trans & turbo's, etc. Seems like you just have to pick one & deal with it & take your chances. Don't overload it & do mainenance regularly or sooner. From my past experience & TB experience, you have to wait for OIL temp to get up there before loading or full throttle. If not, expect bearing/engine issues sooner than necessary.

As for us, my neck seems to be VERY sensitive to certain kinds of vibrations & bumps. What one person would say was a super ride, may not work for me. Here is what we came up with:

Looking at crew cabs only, that's what fit's our use year round.

1500- 5.3 - ride was great & didn't bother me at all. Bed seemed REALLY small, storage in rear seat was great, power was fine for towing if it has the 4.1 gear. Don't think it would give up any mpg on city (might improve it), but hwy unloaded may suffer 1-2. Towing would improve, and trans wouldn't shift in/out as often. Z-71 & reg suspension rode fine. Average $27-28k with setups available.

2500 - duramax - ride was smooth, but most in-town bumps sent a vibration right to my neck & couldn't deal with it. Tried a couple, but just couldn't take it. Power was great, build seemed great, be supurb for anyone else. Only down side we found, on 90-93 degree day, with it running for 15 min before we got in (with air on) and after driving for 30 min with air on max, vents concentrating on rear seats, my bud was sweating back there. Average $36-40k. For xtra $$, you get a LOT more truck.
==========

F-150 - 5.4 - Motor feels WAY more powerful than Chevy, has a ton more low end. The chevy has more up high, but going by the numbers, the ford 5.4 is about the same as chevy 6.0. Higher tech 3 valve w/variable iming & intake runners etc. Inside, build, looks, etc all excellent. Rear seat storage was a bit less than 1500, but OK. Needed the 3.73 min to get towing done, 3.42 was a dog. With all the buzz, it should have rode like a dream. It unfortunately was a bit harsh for me. Worse than 2500, bugged me 1 min down the road. Built almost too stiff & good IMO. Most others would be fine with it, just gets me where it hurts. Air was awesome.

F-250 SD 6.0 turbo diesel- Rode (for me) better than all the others. Actually couldn't believe the difference, wasn't even going to try it in the beginning. By the "book" it should have been worse than the rest. With the FX4 pkg though, it was way more harsh though. The 6.0 was comparable (more/less unsure) than duramax, and trans seemed to shift better than allison. It was in-between shifts & recovered faster. I assume they have the power cut-out on both brands to help save trans life. Motor is WAY more noisy than duramax, but inside it was fine. Duramax made some noise & was less muffled inside when getting on it. Idle = duramax better noise, pulling down hwy windows up = ford better IMO. Inside storage was setup nice & plenty of it. Sits a little higher & feels more like a monster truck until you get used to it. Numbers don't show it, but the feel is there. Air was awesome. Price $35-38k

Didn't really consider Dodges because not as partial to them, didn't have ANY good (local friends/family) experience with them, and local dealers suck on them. Seems build is not as good, but cummins is hard to beat. Seen many with high miles going fast. Some new hemi 1/2 tons look cool with added effects, but not really for me. Gettin old I guess

So, it was either 1500 & not really be able to pull big trailer with car/display/parts etc, but have less payt/maintenance/fuel costs/parking problems, -- OR -- get the F-250 diesel & have basically the opposite.
We had our Expedition 5.4 for 7 years now, and overall loved it. Wish it had a bit more power, but plenty for what it was designed for. Just couldn't pass towing or lug the hills as good as I would like. Seems like the 250/2500 diesels hold their value MUCH better too. So, figuring we will have this vehicle for 5-10 more years, and hopes of racing a car sometime in the future, we went with the F-250. If it weren't for my neck, I think I would have got the duramax, but just couldn't do it. Deb thinks I think too much, but have to make sure it's the best way to go on a purchase (payt) like this.

A HUGE THANKS FOR ALL THE INPUT/HELP here !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Then came trying to find color preference & such, without being too picky. All trucks are selling like hotcakes, hard to find anything. We actually searched for dealer trades within 600 miles with 2 dealerships. Finally went to third one (with friends cousin there) and did our own search, dropped a couple preferences, and found one 260 miles away. With no dealer trades going on now, we did the deal yesterday over the phone, and picking it up Mon. Kinda scary without actually seeing it or riding in exact truck, but should be fine based on what we tested out locally. Pull anyone off any toilet (that was funny cwelk87gn), and take the house with it. I am sure it's more than I need for now, but be good for future use too. Might actually do m neck some good over my expedition, but time will tell. Deb didn't have any issues driving either "big" truck, but wouldn't want the long bed AND crew cab. Got fingers crossed until it's in my driveway (especially since sale is off Mon), just got to sell exp now. None would give much for it in trade, they got WAY too many trades right now. They would advertise it on their lot for $13,500, but wouldn't give more than 7k for it. It should be worth 8500-10500 without a problem. Hate to see it go, but need the truck bed more & more lately, for skids/crates of parts (n-stuff)

THANKS again! Hope something here helps others looking.