Diesel vs gas......................

jevanb wrote:
The owners and drivers of camper delivery companies (owner operators), might need to rethink buying a gas motor tow vehicle since they are by far a better platform for towing. and I mean (better platform) as less cost to purchase, operate, service. ect... Why in the world would anybody need a diesel?? if everything in these posts point out that the gas tow vehicle is superior in every category.. But I guess if you make money driving, you buy something that will last and make money to feed your family, this a a RV forum and I would bet every member has a camper and it prob was delivered to a dealer by a diesel equipped tow vehicle. Indiana to the upper parts of canada and the north east is a long way to tow and not make money doing it.. 1 thing I forgot to point out these delivery companies don't allow gas tow vehicles according to my step dad that used to drives out of elkhart with campers in tow

To try and answer a sarcastic question in an accurate manner as best as I can.

The 3 mpg or so mpg advantage a diesel engine has adds up over 500k miles. While the design life of a pickup engine either gas or diesel is much less than 500k the life also has lots to do with the operating parameters. The miles are put on in a short amount of time and time is as much a killer of engines as mileage. The engines aren't started and stopped very often lessening start up wear and probably average 60 mph while running while an average use engine might average 30 mph. So at 500k miles they have the same amount of hours as a 250k mile engine, add to this very little stop and go and it increases the likelihood that in this application your truck may live to high miles and get a payback from the fuel economy. Remember the fuel cost payback is a lot of miles. If you anticipate a lot of miles then you can get the benefit of the payback. Most rv-ers won't own the truck long enough for a fuel cost payback.

Gas vehicles used as taxi cabs and courier vehicles also can live to see high miles for some of the same reasons.

Other possible reasons are that everybody else uses them so that must be what you use. Remember diesel a decade ago only cost 4k more than gas and got 5+ mpg more (pre hp war and EPA) and were far less expensive to repair than the current ones. A much better case could have been made for diesel a decade ago than now, but old wisdom can live on.

Another reason may be the expectation that a pickup diesel lasts longer with or without supporting evidence. Even with design lives within 20k miles of each other between diesel and gas there is strong support among the members of this forum that light duty pickup diesels are "forever" engines. I'm sure this belief is held elsewhere.

It may also be auxiliary fuel tanks are legal on diesel and not on gas. Stops at the pump cost time and time is money.