Choosing Gasoline or Diesel Powered?
I realize that this is a long thread but if you are pondering the Gasoline versus a Diesel based on power consideration or are wondering about adding an after market performance enhancing kit to a Gas...
Forum Discussion
I really didn't intend to get into the old discussion about older engines - yes, it is possible to get the older engines to work well, but they were notorious. So my take is to stay away from them. Besides, it is getting harder to get parts for them, while the V10 are more available and are well known to be reliable. My point to the mrlightrail was to stay away from older ones for those reasons, not because you couldn't find a good one. Most people wouldn't know a good engine from a not so good one - they only know they were 460 cu inch and assume it is a good engine - that is not so. The 'good' 460s were for trucks, not cars, but they were treated interchangeably though they weren't interchangeable. I know because we dealt with that at an institution I was involved with - engine after engine burned up in our bus until we just gave up on it. They were all 460s. I am pretty sure they were putting car 460s in the bus and they couldn't stand the load.
About diesel mileage - the old diesels, B series Cummins for example, do not get as good mileage as the newer IS series. I have had the Cummins B w/275 hp, I think, and it averaged 8 mpg or so. The newer ISB Cummins I had in my Dodge 2500 was better and would get 11.5 - 12 most of the time towing a 39' or a 34' 5er. I kept mileage religiously on it. But it depends a lot on how you drive; speed and taking advantage of the lay of the road, not racing up hill etc etc. I have nursed as high as 13.5 and had as low as 8 on that PU though towing both the 39' Cedar Creek and a 34' Open Range. (Got the highest mileage towing the Cedar Creek, BTW). That PU would get over 20 mpg when not towing. So I would recommend to mrlightrail that he get an engine of that age range - the systems and design are better than in the old ones, parts are readily available and they are very reliable.
Gassers on the other hand have not been reliable until the age of the V10 and the Chevy Vortec. Individual experience will vary, but I am unwilling to risk it. Just be forewarned.
About ownership costs - I think in the long run I would go with a diesel pusher if I possibly could swing it. I happened to find a gasser that has the engine cover almost flat on the floor which to me was a big plus. It is a 2004 Fleetwood Flair 33R. We have done very little traveling with it. I bought it with 19000 miles on it last spring. It runs real well, but the mileage is atrocious at 7 mpg as expected. But compared to the 1993 Itasca dp it did very well (the Itasca had no slides 35') - but the price of fuel is a killer.
Anyway the point I was going to make is that the trip to Salt Lake City is a breeze for the diesel and it will get its best mileage. Throw in some mountains and the gasser will still get 7 mpg average while the diesel will drop down to 8 or so average. That is my experience anyway. (I still prefer the diesel pusher if you feel you will get enough use to make it worthwhile to have the expense of getting the best. The best just isn't that much better to make it ideal for an occasional user - that's all). And individual situations and experiences will vary.
Update: I erred in stating 'OP' - it should have been 'mrlightrail' I edited it in at least two places and can't find any others, so make the correction if you see more.
About diesel mileage - the old diesels, B series Cummins for example, do not get as good mileage as the newer IS series. I have had the Cummins B w/275 hp, I think, and it averaged 8 mpg or so. The newer ISB Cummins I had in my Dodge 2500 was better and would get 11.5 - 12 most of the time towing a 39' or a 34' 5er. I kept mileage religiously on it. But it depends a lot on how you drive; speed and taking advantage of the lay of the road, not racing up hill etc etc. I have nursed as high as 13.5 and had as low as 8 on that PU though towing both the 39' Cedar Creek and a 34' Open Range. (Got the highest mileage towing the Cedar Creek, BTW). That PU would get over 20 mpg when not towing. So I would recommend to mrlightrail that he get an engine of that age range - the systems and design are better than in the old ones, parts are readily available and they are very reliable.
Gassers on the other hand have not been reliable until the age of the V10 and the Chevy Vortec. Individual experience will vary, but I am unwilling to risk it. Just be forewarned.
About ownership costs - I think in the long run I would go with a diesel pusher if I possibly could swing it. I happened to find a gasser that has the engine cover almost flat on the floor which to me was a big plus. It is a 2004 Fleetwood Flair 33R. We have done very little traveling with it. I bought it with 19000 miles on it last spring. It runs real well, but the mileage is atrocious at 7 mpg as expected. But compared to the 1993 Itasca dp it did very well (the Itasca had no slides 35') - but the price of fuel is a killer.
Anyway the point I was going to make is that the trip to Salt Lake City is a breeze for the diesel and it will get its best mileage. Throw in some mountains and the gasser will still get 7 mpg average while the diesel will drop down to 8 or so average. That is my experience anyway. (I still prefer the diesel pusher if you feel you will get enough use to make it worthwhile to have the expense of getting the best. The best just isn't that much better to make it ideal for an occasional user - that's all). And individual situations and experiences will vary.
Update: I erred in stating 'OP' - it should have been 'mrlightrail' I edited it in at least two places and can't find any others, so make the correction if you see more.
