Diesel vs gas......................
OK folks, there have been a few to many diesel vs gas threads that have shall we say gone to "Hell and a hand basket"! So if all of you would put in you BEST, no flaming reasons for going gas vs diese...
Forum Discussion
I enjoy chatting with open-minded folks as well. Often people are so defensive of their choice that they publicly declare anyone who chose otherwise to be foolish.
I've never had nearly that much weight on my truck. I pull occasionally, and have averaged over 13 mpg for the 80,000 miles I’ve driven it. I compare that to a friend of mine who had essentially the same vehicle with a PSD and used it about the same as me. He averaged just over 18 mpg. When I did the math (at the time diesel was less expensive than gasoline) the payout on fuel alone was over 100,000 miles. No more than I drive in a year’s time I couldn’t justify it that way. (I tried, believe me, because I really wanted the diesel.) I just couldn’t ever make a good dollars and cents argument to myself to get one. If I pulled a trailer a lot more often or put more miles per year on my truck I would have done it. (I want 4x4 too, but that’s another story.) Maybe when the boys are out of college and my finances are obviously set for retirement I’ll splurge and buy what I want for a change. In the mean time my V-10 (okay, so maybe I did splurge the $600) will have to keep getting the job done.
I respectfully disagree with you on a couple of your points. I don’t believe over the road trucks have diesel engines because of longevity, service intervals, or ease of maintenance. Those factors do bear on the decision, but the trucking companies are in business to make money. The main factor that drives their engine choice decision is fuel cost. And for what they do, diesel is cheaper. If it was less expensive to deliver the goods with gasoline they’d be lining up to buy them. If gasoline was half the price of diesel wouldn’t you buy one too? All you’d need is a larger fuel tank to get the same range between fill ups. That’s the reason almost every natural gas compressor station is powered by natural gas. As fuels go, it’s not as efficient as diesel but it’s a heck of a lot less expensive for the producer.
I also question the idea that diesels are a simpler engine than gasoline because of the lack of an ignition system. I think the injection system makes up for that. Today’s diesels are way more complicated than those we used to have in our M-F tractors. There wasn’t a wire on those old engines except for the ones going to the starter and generator. You could usually fix them with a crescent wrench by bleeding the injector pump. Nowadays, it’s just as cluttered under the hood of a diesel pickup as a gasser. From a maintenance standpoint I miss the days of the simple engines, but I know the air is cleaner because of the additional complexity.
I wish you well and hope you have an abundance of trouble free miles. Enjoy the highway and savor the stops.
I've never had nearly that much weight on my truck. I pull occasionally, and have averaged over 13 mpg for the 80,000 miles I’ve driven it. I compare that to a friend of mine who had essentially the same vehicle with a PSD and used it about the same as me. He averaged just over 18 mpg. When I did the math (at the time diesel was less expensive than gasoline) the payout on fuel alone was over 100,000 miles. No more than I drive in a year’s time I couldn’t justify it that way. (I tried, believe me, because I really wanted the diesel.) I just couldn’t ever make a good dollars and cents argument to myself to get one. If I pulled a trailer a lot more often or put more miles per year on my truck I would have done it. (I want 4x4 too, but that’s another story.) Maybe when the boys are out of college and my finances are obviously set for retirement I’ll splurge and buy what I want for a change. In the mean time my V-10 (okay, so maybe I did splurge the $600) will have to keep getting the job done.
I respectfully disagree with you on a couple of your points. I don’t believe over the road trucks have diesel engines because of longevity, service intervals, or ease of maintenance. Those factors do bear on the decision, but the trucking companies are in business to make money. The main factor that drives their engine choice decision is fuel cost. And for what they do, diesel is cheaper. If it was less expensive to deliver the goods with gasoline they’d be lining up to buy them. If gasoline was half the price of diesel wouldn’t you buy one too? All you’d need is a larger fuel tank to get the same range between fill ups. That’s the reason almost every natural gas compressor station is powered by natural gas. As fuels go, it’s not as efficient as diesel but it’s a heck of a lot less expensive for the producer.
I also question the idea that diesels are a simpler engine than gasoline because of the lack of an ignition system. I think the injection system makes up for that. Today’s diesels are way more complicated than those we used to have in our M-F tractors. There wasn’t a wire on those old engines except for the ones going to the starter and generator. You could usually fix them with a crescent wrench by bleeding the injector pump. Nowadays, it’s just as cluttered under the hood of a diesel pickup as a gasser. From a maintenance standpoint I miss the days of the simple engines, but I know the air is cleaner because of the additional complexity.
I wish you well and hope you have an abundance of trouble free miles. Enjoy the highway and savor the stops.
