Buying budget/used TV with high mileage...

[memilanuk]

...how much is too much?

I'd like to 'upsize' from our current '06 Sierra 1500 5.3l to something in the 3/4-1 ton range for towing our TT, with an eye towards getting a larger TT down the road a bit, or a small-to-medium 5'er. Have to have more truck before we can start looking for a bigger trailer, so...

For a variety of reasons, a new, or even late model truck ain't in the cards. Period.

When I start looking around in our price range... pretty much everything has 100-200k miles on it. Sometimes more.

Traditionally, I've usually taken the approach that if someone is racking up 30-40k miles per year on a rig, it's likely *all* highway, and probably very little of it towing. Granted there is not really any way to *know* that, unless you are literally buying from your neighbor or friend... but does that sound like a reasonable assumption?

Talking primarily diesel here, and largely (but not exclusively) Ford. 6.0l with 100-150k vs. 6.4l with 150-200k or 6.7l with 200K+

On the one hand, our use would be fairly light... probably <5k miles per year, *maybe* 7k in an exceptional year. On the other hand, we are in the western states (WA/OR/ID/MT) so... mountain passes are the norm, not the exception.

Yes, I know it's not ideal. But its the hand I'm currently dealt.

[Grit_dog]

That should be a great truck for you! Lots of like for the 2 6.2 Super duty’s I had at work.

[APT]

Congrats on the new-to-you truck! I have also heard only positive on Ford's 6.2L. Happy camping!

[memilanuk]

Well, it's a done deal. Traded the '06 Sierra 1500 5.3l extended cab 4x4 in on a '12 F250 crew cab short bed 4x4 XL/FX4 with the 6.2l gas engine and 6-spd transmission - 102k miles on it.

Everything I've read on the 6.2l gas engine seems super positive - apparently they just *work*, without all the drama. Guess we'll see.

Got the WD hitch set up for the new vehicle, and took the current trailer (2013 Salem T21RBS, dry weight of about 5000 lbs) out for a spin up and down the steepest grade available locally (pretty steep, if not very long). The 6.2 pretty much pulled like the trailer wasn't even there - yay!

Thanks to everyone for the advice and support! Now to start shopping for the next trailer 😉

[Jarlaxle]

memilanuk wrote:
So 7-8 mpg towing for the 8.1L... more like 9-10 for the 6.0L gas?

I see some people think the 6.0 is a dog; others say it's a beast (maybe not compared to the 8.1...}. Some say it gets decent mpg; others that it's not any better than the 8.1 for mpg. Very confusing. Is the difference that some have different gearing (3.73 vs. 4.10)? Would that be enough to cause the contradictory opinions I've been seeing?

I'll check out the 8.1L; also started running down some leads on 6.0L in the area.

Yes...gearing is a big factor. The 6.0 needs deeper gears than the 8100.

What, exactly, are you towing?

[Jarlaxle]

memilanuk wrote:

carringb wrote:
For 5,000 miles a year, I'd look for a V10.

For the sake of argument/discussion... at what point would you consider a V10, or even a V8, gasser, as not worth getting? 100k? 150? 200?

I might hesitate over 350,000 miles unless it had a rebuilt transmission. I would not have a problem with 300K on the engine. (Yes, the V10 is THAT tough.)

[Jarlaxle]

memilanuk wrote:

carringb wrote:
The 6.7L is by far a much more reliable overall package, but if the fuel pump goes, that's a $10k+ repair.

$10k for a fuel pump replacement?!? How does that work?

When it fails, the shrapnel contaminates the fuel system. The only repair is replacing EVERYTHING, tank to injectors.

[anw7405]

I think the 8.1 is what you are looking for. I have pulled with the Gm 5.3 like you have and its pretty gutless. I pull a 9k loaded TT with mine and you can just tell that is what the 8.1 was built to do. Like others have said the only down side is MPG's. (and they are pretty hard to find)

[colliehauler]

Older Cummins had a couple of issues as well, dow pin and 5th gear in manual transmission. If I were to purchase a cheap older Diesel it would be either the Cummins or 7.3 Ford. Parts are cheap and readily available.

[mowermech]

I just purchased a Dodge CTD (see sig.) with automatic, due to left leg pain when operating the clutch in my old truck.
The best bang for the buck I could find was a truck with 407K on the clock. It ain't perfect, of course, but it gets me where I want to go and brings me home. I figure that's all I need.
Of course, one can always do what my neighbor did. He got so disgusted with his Ford diesel that he ripped the V8 out, and replaced it with a Cummins HO out of a Dodge. He initially had a few minor glitches, but he is very happy with it now. Just goes to show even a die-hard Ford fan can learn a little from Dodge!

[kw_00]

My opinion, if your on a budget like most of us are, I would chose a gas 3/4 ton. If anything breaks it's cheaper to replace and even cheaper if your doing it. Generally a used 3/4 gas is cheaper to purchase then a used diesel. It will do what you need it to do and be cheap overall to own. It can sit for periods of time if not used without issues., especially if you used non ethanol gas. It requires next to nothing to keep up. Just my take, I have pulled with both diesel and gas and stuck with gas.

[Grit_dog]

It’s all opinion. If one drives like a turtle, a particular engine may seem like a powerhouse. If someone else is used to pulling a light load at high alt with a hopped up diesel, another particular engine may seem like it can’t get out of its own way.
Pride of ownership might factor in once or twice too........lol

[mrad]

memilanuk wrote:
So 7-8 mpg towing for the 8.1L... more like 9-10 for the 6.0L gas?

I see some people think the 6.0 is a dog; others say it's a beast (maybe not compared to the 8.1...}. Some say it gets decent mpg; others that it's not any better than the 8.1 for mpg. Very confusing. Is the difference that some have different gearing (3.73 vs. 4.10)? Would that be enough to cause the contradictory opinions I've been seeing?

I'll check out the 8.1L; also started running down some leads on 6.0L in the area.

It may have to do with the model year. I drove a buddies 2004 6,0 to oick up a 18.5 fiberglass boat that weighed around 3,800 lbs. I was not impressed. constantly downshifted on smallest of inclines. A coworker had a 2012 6.0 that he pulled a skid loader with. He said he never had an issue with power

[BurbMan]

carringb wrote:
My V10 has 450,000 HARD miles. Engine is fine. It's incidental stuff that's been more of a hassle, like heater hose fittings, worn-through air conditioning lines etc.

Just turned 180k on the 8.1, never opened the motor for anything, just replaced everything attached to the motor LOL.

[soren]

I would caution the OP about his theory that high miles are a sign of plenty of gentle highway use. In a car, probably, but in a heavy pickup, it could lead you to make a bad decision. For example, my son is in the fracking industry. His company truck is typically a high end Ford, currently a '17 King Ranch. Like most of the fleet, his truck gets used HARD And often. It runs 40k+ miles a year, and it gets replaced at the three year mark. At that point, it's got 120K or so, of brutal miles, and it's being unloaded to avoid the massive depreciation and high dollar repairs that are coming.

Sure there are privately owned, heavy trucks out there that are not beaten hard, every day, but they are going to take some real work to find. Having owned countless trucks for my business and RV needs, IMHO, would look for the cleanest, least thrashed, Chevy or Ford with a gas engine, that you can find. As carringB shows, the Ford V10 can go forever, if given a modest amount of care, and it's a great choice for somebody who is only planning on using it a few thousand miles a year. Gas engines are FAR more durable than a lot of folks on this forum are willing to admit. I know plenty of Ford and GM gas motors that lasted well into the 400-500K range. At that point, typically a result of hard commercial use, the entire truck was basically scrap, and not worth fixing. My mechanic just had a very unhappy customer who lost his Chevy van as a result of a red light runner. He had 525,000 miles on the original 5.3 V8.