Tow Vehicle

I had a couple of diesels in the past, and they most certainly tow wonderfully....cannot be beat. I have also towed with a v10, which towed almost as good, but cost more in fuel at the time.

Today diesel around here costs $.50 a gallon more than gas.

So, it depends on what you tow and how often and where.

In July, I bought a new Ram 3/4 ton. Drove both diesels and gas, and opted for the hemi gas engine. The rational was that I only tow about five time a year, mostly lesst than 300 miles. We usually take one or maybe two major trips of up to 1,200 miles or so. I live in Illinois, which is pretty flat, and most of the places we typicall go are relatively flat....planning a trip ti northern Wisconson in July which is mostly pretty flat.

Also, the truck is my daily driver, and I really dont need a diesel to go 14 miles to work.

We are thinking about going to Arizona next year...I know it will be an issue towing 8,000 pounds through the mountains, but to buy a diesel for one trip seems silly to me. While I wont like running 4000+ rpms at 45 mph up hill, but, again, for a one time shot I can deal with it. If we decide to do it quite often, I am certain the local Ram dealer will be glad to sell me a new Ram...hahaha

Anyway, for now my hemi suits me fine....no DEF to deal with, cheaper fuel costs, now fuel filters to change, no fuel additives to deal with, cheaper oil changes, and I get about 18-19 mpg hiway unloaded.....same or better than some diesels.

My old gas engine truck went in for oil change at 3-4 k. My diesel goes in at 6-8k. I get 20-21 miles mixed city/hiway empty and 13-15 pulling loaded trailers. I haven't pulled my 5th wheel enough to get a decent reading on mileage but I have pulled thousands of miles with loaded flatbeds, tractors and cargo trailers up to 10k. The diesel has 177,000 on it and it has never had an engine or drive train repair. It is 9 years old this year and still looks nearly new in and out. When I go to a car show and hear some one say "They don't build them like they used to" I say "hallelujah". My point is, The newer diesels get very good mileage and have a longer service interval and the extra years they will serve more than makes up for the higher price not to mention the much higher resale value. In the long run the diesel is by far the cheaper ride. IMHO

I figure my break even point from my F150 5.4 to my 2500 CTD is .50 a gal in cost difference. If I drive equal amounts for towing and DD then I break even. The more I tow the better it gets. The more I DD the worse it gets. That's using a 2-2.5 mpg difference towing and .50 max fuel difference. The 5.4 and CTD both got the same non towing.

I traded my 2500 chevy in at 95K miles for a dodge diesel truck with 40K miles.

but finding a low mile dodge diesel truck is really hard as most people keep them until 100-125K + miles.

if you go new with a diesel, they are nice, but you pay a lot extra, if you really do not need that much power and torque.

my dodge has 325 hp and 610 lbs of torque, wow will it pull,
the new diesel trucks, all brands have much more power and torque.

just depends if you need that much power and are in a position to pay for the extra power, also it takes a bit more up keep.

5 qts of oil verse 12 qts of oil, filters are more, antifreeze 8 gals, etc:

but, I sure do enjoy pulling with all that power and torque.

It costs me $70 to fill up my daily driver. But that gets me 600-700 miles down the road and I do it about 3x a month. $/fillup is not a useful measure. Filling up a diesel truck will cost you more per tankful most of the year. Now, it's about 20%-25% higher, so it will be $120-125 per fillup. Will you travel more miles per tank? probably. Will a diesel cost more to purchase than an otherwise similarly equipped and condition gassser? Yes. Will you notice and appreciate the difference in towing experience? Absolutely. Should you spend an extra $8k for a new diesel vs. gas? No idea.

If you want us to help you, you'll have to provide more information. How many miles per year towing vs. not? What is your current truck and does it not perform (besides fuel cost) to your expectations? Do you want to replace it anyway if is it just curiosity and annoyance about those $100 fillups?

bamafeaver wrote:
I pay approximately $100.00 to fuel the truck. Is it worth the money to get the diesel or should I just stick with the gaser?

I'm sure this is a "one hit wonder" but I haven't spent $100 in fueling my truck since November. So much for vague questions :B
Kidding aside OP, we need more info. But paid for is almost always cheaper than not paid for.

I switched last year from an '04 Chevy 6.0 Gasser to a '13 Ford 6.7 diesel. Pulling the same trailer, I went from an average of 8.5 mpg to around 11.8 mpg. Based on my local fuel prices, this is about 36.4 cents per mile for gas, and 31.3 cents per mile for diesel.

Then, on the newer diesels, you must purchase Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF). This runs me about $28.00 to fill up my five gallon tank. However, I can go approximately 5500 miles on five gallons. So this adds another 0.5 cents per mile.

However, the diesel engine requires quite a bit more oil than a gas engine. So oil changes are more expensive. In my case, I purchased a lifetime oil change plan from my dealer that cost the same whether it was a gas or diesel truck. So this did not affect my decision

For me, the differences in fuel economy were not worth paying the many thousands of dollars more for a diesel engine. The reason I purchased the diesel was two-fold. First, the extra horsepower and torque are worth every penny when you're climbing steep mountains while pulling a heavy load. With the diesel I can maintain a reasonable speed on the steepest grades. The second reason for the diesel purchase is the average life expectancy of the engine. It's not unreasonable to get 300K or more miles on a diesel without major repairs. I retired late last year, and plan on doing a lot of traveling. I'll be putting on a lot of miles, and the diesel will give me confidence to keep the truck longer.

I had a 2013 2500HD Gas.. Just traded on a 2014 GMC 2500HD Duramax. Love it thus Far. If you got it. DO IT!!!!

Depends upon what you tow and how much you tow..to figure if it makes sense.

For caparison, I tow a 31 footer, loaded weighing +-9000K. I get pretty much 12mpg towing and about 15 mixed driving empty..maybe more on a long cruise control run.

You don't buy a diesel for economic reasons, you buy it because it's a pulling beast or if you tow in the mountains then the exhaust brake is worth the price of admission.