Diesel vs gas......................
OK folks, there have been a few to many diesel vs gas threads that have shall we say gone to "Hell and a hand basket"! So if all of you would put in you BEST, no flaming reasons for going gas vs diese...
Forum Discussion
Taco wrote:
Sure there are examples of vehicles that make it past their design life both gas and diesel but I wouldn't make a purchase expecting it to happen.
You have to admit there is something a little foolish about a truck selling for 70% of it's original purchase price that has 30% of it's design life left and has it's most trouble free and lowest maintenance miles behind it. It might last another 200k or it might last 10k. I don't want to pay $30,000 to find out.
Some of you guys are fortunate enough to be able to sweat a fully depreciated asset in taking a truck past it's design life, but don't pretend that it is a sure thing.
The wrench in the works is that the purchase of a vehicle and even more so diesel trucks goes beyond a reasoned decision to purchase a vehicle for it's utility. There is lots of emotion that goes into it. It is what makes a Harley Davidson cost more than a functionally superior yamaha, and keeps the harley resale high. I just cannot bring myself to financially justify a purchase based on the hope that someone will overpay for it above it's actual utility value based on a desire for its intangible emotional value.
It's not an emotional value all the time. I'm sure there are people that buy and pay a premium for a diesel because they think it will last long because of what it is but from my own records at work for 20 years worth of trucks. Diesel engines don't really where out because of miles as much as they do for time. I would buy a 2012 diesel with a 150,000 miles on it before I would a 2005 with 50,000 miles on it. Our gas engines have shown to be the opposite. No matter how new or old they start getting the little knocks and pings and running problems around 150,000 miles. We did have a V10 though that was still running good at 150,000 when we sold it. We have one 6.2 Ford and I ordered another that is suppose to be in this week. The jury is still out on this motor for us. No problems as of yet but it is a dog with a tool trailer hooked to it.
