Diesel to Gas Power Observation

[FishOnOne]

I continue to see more and more 3/4 ton Ram Hemi's on the road and I'm starting to see some 7.3 Super Duty's on the road as well. I suspect this trend will continue as this couple have made the change for their towing needs.

Link

[blt2ski]

You all can take this to the stuck deezals vs gazer thread!

But what suits you best, not what someone says you should buy....

Marty

[mosseater]

Grit dog wrote:
Now we’re cookin with gas…..or diesel:…
We got the 20mpg HD gasser club, roflmao, you do realize that’s not a thing,right? Vs the diesel has been more expensive for 20+ years, also umm not true.
And the guy who “won’t chime in” but followed that statement with a paragraph of chiming in…
This is the makings of a good old fashioned geezer.net debate!

How is it not a thing? And I chimed in with my assessment for ME. Y'all can tell yourself whatever you need to hear. I have no need to fabricate anything. Do you understand averages? Or were you eating paste that day?

[Grit_dog]

^Agree, not even a contest.
Like comparing the taste of a basketball and a watermelon just be use they’re both round and the same size.
A good exhaust brake on a smaller displacement diesel will blow the doors off the biggest gasser under your hood in grade braking. Hands down.

[mosseater]

IdaD wrote:

mosseater wrote:
I don't chime in on diesel vs gas. I personally don't see a need for ME to pony up another $10k for a diesel. My '22 F-250 Supercrew is quite nice with the 7.3. For those comparing peak torque 6.6 v 7.3 you may want to see when that torque curve comes in. About 1000 rpm for the Ford and about 4k rpm for the 6.6 to reach the same number. The 7.3 is a great combo with the 10 spd and has gotten about 20 mpg on decent highway, about 15 average. Around town and idling in 4 wd about 12-13, and 10-11 towing my 8000lb trailer. I'm very happy with it so far.

I suspect the 11.3 average MPG figure on Fuelly for the 7.3 in a Super Duty is a more realistic expectation most folks should have. The 10 speed certainly helps which is why it doesn't average single digits. I think my 2015 Cummins overall MPG average over 100k miles is about 15. A big gasser won't do as well as it regardless of the transmission.

Towing with any weightlYes. But I took this truck with about 1000 lbs on board to Nashville and running 70-80 most of the way averaged 17.8 on the way down and 16.9 on the way home. My 150 wouldn't get 15 mpg off a cliff. This engine runs about 1750 rpm at 80 in 10th and has enough torque to not shift into 8th or 9th unless it's a decent hill.
Nothing get good mileage towing any weight.

[wnjj]

JRscooby wrote:
I would still like to see side by each comparison, equal weights, displacement, gears, and wind resistance, diesel with exhaust brake to closed throttle on gas engine.

The exhaust brake should outperform the closed throttle. The closed throttle can only pull at most a perfect vaccuum on the top of the piston. The exhaust brake can build a much higher pressure by compressing a full charge of air. More pressure difference = more resistance and more stopping power.

[MFL]

Going off my 6.2 gas 6-speed with 3.73, towing my FW, I think the "gold standard gas" that Fish mentions, and using 4:30s, will handle anything a SRW can carry. If you need a DRW to carry your FW trailer, you likely need a diesel to pull it.

I do think a 7.3 gas in a DRW would work fine for a TC.

Jerry

[Grit_dog]

^At least GM will get a 10 speed to go with the lowest powered gasser, next year.
But bottom line all the gassers now with 8-10speed gear boxes pull real well compared to anything in the past.

10 speeds is the practical limit though. Actually 9 is. My 10 speed half ton is only about 150rpms between 9 and 10. Virtually imperceptible and it never really downshifts to 9th. If you need a downshift from 9th it hits 8th right away.

[FishOnOne]

stsmark wrote:
In 2020 the TFL guys did the Ike with a 7.3 10sp. with 4:30 gearing. They used large living quarters horse trailer loaded to 16k. On the downhill it took 9 brake applications to hold their 50-60 test. On the uphill it did it in 8:47 secs which is close to perfect 60 mph constant. Trucks fuel meter said 2.2 mpg during the climb.
Same setup with GM 6.6 6 sp. did 10 brake and uphill was over 11 min. at 2.3 mpg.
Just an fyi.

The Ford 7.3 with the 10 speed transmission is looking like the gold standard gas engine for towing. I've read several reports who tow heavy with this setup and are completely satisfied.

[stsmark]

In 2020 the TFL guys did the Ike with a 7.3 10sp. with 4:30 gearing. They used large living quarters horse trailer loaded to 16k. On the downhill it took 9 brake applications to hold their 50-60 test. On the uphill it did it in 8:47 secs which is close to perfect 60 mph constant. Trucks fuel meter said 2.2 mpg during the climb.
Same setup with GM 6.6 6 sp. did 10 brake and uphill was over 11 min. at 2.3 mpg.
Just an fyi.

[Huntindog]

mosseater wrote:
I don't chime in on diesel vs gas. I personally don't see a need for ME to pony up another $10k for a diesel. My '22 F-250 Supercrew is quite nice with the 7.3. For those comparing peak torque 6.6 v 7.3 you may want to see when that torque curve comes in. About 1000 rpm for the Ford and about 4k rpm for the 6.6 to reach the same number. The 7.3 is a great combo with the 10 spd and has gotten about 20 mpg on decent highway, about 15 average. Around town and idling in 4 wd about 12-13, and 10-11 towing my 8000lb trailer. I'm very happy with it so far.

8K is not much of a load. Gas is fine for that.

[Grit_dog]

^What he said.

[Huntindog]

valhalla360 wrote:

Huntindog wrote:
It is not suprising. Gas is cheaper right now.
I have been driving diesels since 2000. The price of diesel vs gas has swung back and forth many times since then. Twice there was a pipeline
problem and gas just wasn't availible. There are two constants. Gas propenents will always crow about how smart they were when gas is cheaper, and fall silent when it is not.... And diesel ALWAYs gets about 30% better MPGs

When was gas not available? I've had a drivers license since the 1980's, never had an issue where there wasn't gas available.

Also, it's been at least a couple decades since diesel was cheaper than gas per gallon. The last year or so, it's been more than enough to cover any MPG improvements.

It was regional shortages in Phoenix and outlying areas. Pipeline trouble, I was good as I have both gas and diesel vehicles at my disposal.
And no, I did not mark it on the calandar as important dates to remember, and I do not have any links for ya.
I will how ever always enjoy the memory of getting fuel for my diesel and cars almost getting in wrecks when they saw me, and they thought I had found the only station in town with gas.

My pricing experience has been mostly local as well.

[lawnspecialties]

I think gas and diesels have their rightful place in our lives. I have two F350s right now that I use for my landscaping business. They both have the 6.2.

Although no astronomical powerhouse, they do me very well. My landscape trailers virtually never exceed 10,000 lbs and often are around 5500 lbs. These trucks are hooked up to trailers probably 98% of their life. But they do the job, are easy to service and maintain, and easy to find gas anywhere.

That being said, I wouldn't dare try again gas with a camper. The only time we tried was back in 2014. The 2013 F350 I have now was used to pull a Work & Play 30WRS. For a travel trailer toy hauler, they were on the heavier side. Although the truck could handle the job, long trips just got really old. It took half a year and I bought a new 2015 F350 6.7.

If I do buy another truck for my business before I retire in a few years, I would upgrade to a 7.3 gas. But if I buy another truck for our next RV purchase, hands down it will be another diesel.

[Grit_dog]

Now we’re cookin with gas…..or diesel:…
We got the 20mpg HD gasser club, roflmao, you do realize that’s not a thing,right? Vs the diesel has been more expensive for 20+ years, also umm not true.
And the guy who “won’t chime in” but followed that statement with a paragraph of chiming in…
This is the makings of a good old fashioned geezer.net debate!