Are diesels worth it, for costs per mile?
Was at a car dealer out of town, and the dealer (name with-held to protect the guilty) was trying to warn me away from a diesel on the 3500 models he was selling, unless I had at least $15,000 a year ...
Forum Discussion
It is hard to justify a diesel on numbers alone. There is no one size fits all answer some people will come out dollars ahead with diesel and others with gas.
However the diesel will get 2-3 mpg better than gas and tow at 1800-3000 rpm instead of 2500-5000 rpm that a gas truck will. If you put your foot to the floor towing up a grade with the gas and the diesel they will climb within a few mph of each other with a slight edge to the diesel.
To some people the 8-10k upfront cost of a diesel that some of which may be gotten back at resale is worth it for the lower rpm towing and better mpg.
However be advised that while 15k a year for maintenance is nowhere near accurate that there is a chance that the diesel truck will have an engine problem that may not be covered by warranty that can run from 10-20k to repair. So a buyer does need to consider if they would be able to handle a 10k+ repair bill even if the chance is pretty small.
However the diesel will get 2-3 mpg better than gas and tow at 1800-3000 rpm instead of 2500-5000 rpm that a gas truck will. If you put your foot to the floor towing up a grade with the gas and the diesel they will climb within a few mph of each other with a slight edge to the diesel.
To some people the 8-10k upfront cost of a diesel that some of which may be gotten back at resale is worth it for the lower rpm towing and better mpg.
However be advised that while 15k a year for maintenance is nowhere near accurate that there is a chance that the diesel truck will have an engine problem that may not be covered by warranty that can run from 10-20k to repair. So a buyer does need to consider if they would be able to handle a 10k+ repair bill even if the chance is pretty small.
