Newbie here, advice on tow rig?
To preface, sorry for the long first post. I've read about 50 pages of the diesel vs gas thread and it's exhausting, so I thought I'd start my own in hopes of getting some realistic non-biased advice....
Forum Discussion
Diesels manufactured in the last 10 years (I base that because I owned a 2005 diesel) do not have to go through the warm-up and cool-down process like diesels in the long-ago past. The glow-plug takes about 10 seconds to go off, even in extreme cold weather, and then you're ready to crank over the engine. Once started, you're pretty much good to go. I never do anything special for a warm up. I let it warm up, just like my car, depending upon the extremes of the weather. The nice thing about my new diesel, is the fact it has a separate heater that runs off diesel fuel and will turn on to warm the cab quicker when the outside temperatures reach a certain point, even though the engine isn't "hot" yet. Which also makes me feel comfortable, it's OK to start driving before the engine is 100% up to temperature. No, the long warm-ups are absolutely not necessary with today's diesels.
Having owned comparable Chevy 3500 diesel and gas, I much more prefer the diesel. But sounds like, for the style of driving you're doing a good 2500 or F250 gas (or) diesel would serve you well. 1500's or F150 are OK, but when your pulling 7000 tp 9000 pounds, you're going to want at least a 2500 or F250.
I've not had to deal with the DEF yet. My new truck has less than 3000 miles on it. It's not even had it's first oil change. But from what I understand, if you do routine oil changes, that's the time to check the DEF.
But just for argument sake, you should consider new also. We thought we'd never be able to afford "new" either. But after all the numbers were crunched, we found out we still had plenty of wiggle room for a higher loan payment, and the comfort, power, and joy of the new truck is well worth it every time we ride it. And for towing the trailer, it's priceless!
Having owned comparable Chevy 3500 diesel and gas, I much more prefer the diesel. But sounds like, for the style of driving you're doing a good 2500 or F250 gas (or) diesel would serve you well. 1500's or F150 are OK, but when your pulling 7000 tp 9000 pounds, you're going to want at least a 2500 or F250.
I've not had to deal with the DEF yet. My new truck has less than 3000 miles on it. It's not even had it's first oil change. But from what I understand, if you do routine oil changes, that's the time to check the DEF.
But just for argument sake, you should consider new also. We thought we'd never be able to afford "new" either. But after all the numbers were crunched, we found out we still had plenty of wiggle room for a higher loan payment, and the comfort, power, and joy of the new truck is well worth it every time we ride it. And for towing the trailer, it's priceless!
