Ford or GM?

I did extensive research on used diesel trucks and I would not touch a Ford diesel built before 2010. GM has had its problem years as well and other than the 2011 and later LML engines the safest one to get is the 2006-2007 (Classic version) GM/Chevy truck with the LBZ engine.

With an older Ford I would look for one with the v-10 gas engine and not the diesel. Very easy to find more posts about pre-2010 Ford engine problems, more than you could read in a lifetime.

With the earlier GM there were problems with the head gaskets and with fuel injection and both entail very expensive repairs in the thousands of dollars and are best avoided.

That 6.4 Ford is a fuel hog, it will be expensive to run. If you want to stick with a Ford diesel, spend some more $$$ and go with the 6.7. World of difference, and it will pay in the end. Their 6.2 gas is a winner too, if that will work for you, and a LOT less expensive.

We've owned all three Ford, Dodge and Chevy ....of them all Chevy holds up better . The 2006 is one of the best .

The 6.4 is problamatic. I had an 2008 for 3 years. It performed well but theres way to many potential issues with this engine, I changed over to a 6.2 2011 gasser. Much happier, the gasser is cheaper to run overall. The 6.4 was not economical at all. Aside from the big maintainance costs compared to the gasser, the 6.4 on its best day got 12.5 mpg on the highway withh the TC on. The 6.2 gas gets 10.5 to 11 mpg hauling the same camper. Factor in 45 cents more per gallon for diesel , the numbers do the talking.

Different strokes for different folks. What ever fits your needs.

New Ford 6.7 Diesel.... You can find some deals on used ones.

My $0.02
Ford - gas
Dodge - diesel

Haven always been a GMC guy and looking at truck that would carry heavy TC I was forced to try a F 350 ford , the load capacity of fords can't be beat.
Must say love this truck now

I currently own a 2005 Ford F450 with the 6.0 diesel engine, bought it used at 50,000 miles. Luckily it still had the factory warranty on it, because it needed head gaskets along with a new oil and egr cooler. Since then no problems, but it dose show that what can happen even with a low mileage truck. If you find a nice ford truck that you like, you can go to the dealer with the vin number and try to get an oasis report. This will tell you all of the work done at the dealership on the truck. Here are couple of sites that have allot of information on these trucks. Good luck on you search.


http://www.powerstroke.org/forum/
http://www.ford-trucks.com/ford-diesel.html

J&C, It appears you don't have a camper yet and if that's the case, I'd highly recommend that you pick that out first. We just went through this and found that there are plenty of surprises in what these beasts weigh and the 1,000 additional "stuff" figure people recommend to add to the dry weight of campers is pretty close when figuring full water tanks, gear, etc.. I too am a Chevy guy, but have owned Fords (cars) in the past and have been happy with them. In doing all the research, I really wanted to go with Ford, but although it had more creature comforts, (power folding/telescoping mirrors) and maybe a bit nicer interior, the Chevy is hands down winner in the power train dept. for reliability of platform that they've been using for years. I drive a 2008 2500HD for work and absolutely fell in love with the power and effortless grade flattening torque of this engine. I too looked for a DEF free model (2010 or 2011 depending on who you talk to), but with all the incentives to move out the 2013 models, it didn't make sense to buy a used truck for just a few thousand less. There are a lot of rumors about how an empty DEF system will stop you in your tracks (not true), but you remember to put fuel in your truck don't you? Isn't any different so I wouldn't let that concern me. We got a AF996 (see sig for details) and our Chevy handles it like a dream. Fuel mileage wise, we're getting 18 empty and 12.6 or better with the camper and the truck only has 3K on it and from what I read, it will only get better as the miles pile up. Good luck on your decision!