Dodge - Diesel or gas?

Supercharged wrote:

Sue Bee wrote:
You're both being silly, and not helpful. New diesels smoke way less and stink way less than the good old clatter trucks of years past.

To my way of thinking, if you plan on putting many, many miles on the odometer every year, and/or if you plan on hauling or towing heavy items, and if you want your truck to last more than 150-200K, and you plan on keeping it until it pukes, or reselling it at some point further on down the line (like when it has 200K on it), you will recoup the extra cost of the diesel engine, and the exhast brake will make you happy. If you plan on driving it less than 10K a year, aren't doing much heavy hauling or towing, plan on selling it within 6-8 years, go for the gasser.

I sold a 1979 Chev 1500 with a 454 last year, I didn't drive it for the last 10 years is why I sold it. It had 440,000 miles, it had a steel crank, 7 qt. oil pan, only did the values ones, nothing else ever. 3 trans, 3 rad., 6 or 7 starters, but nothing to the motor. It pulled a 36 ft. goose neck around picking up old cars in the late 70's and 80's. I don't see that many diesel doing that today. Paid $7200 for it new sold it for $2500. Cost $3700 to own for 33 years, Gas good, diesel less good.

An entire industry built around hauling things would disagree with you. Diesels by very nature require stouter parts, both as secondary items (transmission) and in regards to their internals. The mechanisms of how they run is also more conducive to longevity and reliability. It's just the way it is.

To use your comparison, I recently sold my 99 7.3L Powerstroke with 428,000 miles on the clock. It still ran like a top. I put one transmission in it and that's all I ever did besides basic maintenance. It did not smoke nor did it smell. It would however leave a quarter sized oil spot after 2 nights of sitting. The interior was falling apart and the body was beat up. It was a farm truck that hauled feed, hay, cattle, firewood.... Everyday was a hard day for that truck. When I sold it, it still got 16mpg empty on the highway.