Diesel vs gas......................

Trucktech wrote:
But, for the money spent, It would take years for me to recoup the extra $$ laid out for the diesel as the MPG are very close versus the price of diesel vs. gasoline.

That kind of sums it up it you buy new or near to new. I think someone did a real world calculation many pages ago but I do not have enough bourbon to sit and do that research.

On the other-hand, google made it easy and found a great article from truck-trend. It's from 2002 but talks about the same thing. In summary:

Fuel Economy
Advantage: Diesel
Diesel fuel has a higher energy density than gasoline. One gallon of diesel contains approximately 147,000 BTUs of energy, while a gallon of gasoline only has 125,000 BTUs. This means it takes more gasoline to equal the power output of diesel, making diesel engines more efficient per gallon of fuel burned. Also, because diesel engines use the more efficient direct fuel-injection method (fuel injected directly into cylinder) compared to the port fuel-injection setup in gas engines where gas is mixed with incoming air in the intake manifold, the diesel system has little wasted or unburned fuel. Diesels also use about one third as much fuel at idle as gasoline units. Even though there are no official EPA-mileage figures for 3?4-ton and bigger trucks, we've seen diesels get six to eight more mpg than similar-weight gas pickups. Over the life of the truck, this advantage could be significant, especially if you drive a lot of miles.

Initial Cost
Advantage: Gasoline
Because of the high-compression ratios and resulting high cylinder pressure in diesel engines, they must be built to withstand more punishment than gas engines. Beefed-up parts include a thicker block and cylinder heads and stronger connecting rods, pistons, crankshaft, and valves. These parts can be costly. As an example, if you want to upgrade an '02 F-250 from the standard 5.4L V-8 to the 7.3L turbodiesel V-8, you're going to spend around $4800. However, to go from the 5.4L to the 6.8L V-10 gasoline engine, the price is a more manageable $600. Another diesel disadvantage that comes as a byproduct of needing heavy-duty components is increased weight. A diesel engine can weigh several hundred pounds more than a comparable gas model.

Noise/Vibration
Advantage: Gasoline
Despite huge improvements in noise isolation and engine-noise technology in pickup trucks in the past 10 years, diesels are still louder and shake more than their gasoline brothers. However, a recent back-to-back drive in two Ford trucks, one equipped with a 5.4L gas V-8 and the other fitted with a 7.3L diesel V-8, demonstrated that diesels aren't that far behind. At idle, the clatter and shake of the diesel are clearly noticeable, while it's tough to tell if the gas engine is even running. Under low-speed acceleration, the diesel still makes more noise. But once you're up to speed, there's little difference between the two even when accelerating on the highway.

Cold Weather
Advantage: Gasoline
Anyone who's tried to start a diesel engine on a cold winter morning knows the winner in this category. Diesels don't have spark plugs like gasoline engines do. The fuel is ignited spontaneously once it's injected into the cylinder that's already under pressure. When it's cold (below 30), the air isn't hot enough to ignite the diesel fuel. To help counter this, today's diesel pickup-truck engines use a computer that senses cylinder temperature and injects the fuel later in the engine rotation. By injecting the fuel when the piston is closer to top dead center, the cylinder is under more pressure and the air inside is hotter, which aids combustion. As an added measure, most modern diesels come equipped with a 110-volt heating element designed to keep the engine block warm when the truck is parked.

Exhaust Smell/Emissions
Advantage: Gasoline
Despite petroleum companies best efforts at producing diesel fuel with lower sulfur levels, burned diesel fuel still smells much worse than burned gasoline. Beyond the smelly tailpipe, diesel lags behind gasoline in the areas of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and particulate matter emissions. It's the particulate matter that causes the black soot seen emanating from diesel-vehicle tailpipes, while NOx is one of the components of smog. The next generation of diesel fuel is generally thought to improve on this situation.

Short-Term Maintenance
Advantage: Gasoline
Regular maintenance on a diesel is more costly, thanks to several items including the larger volume of oil in the engine and the fact that fuel filters and water separators must be serviced more often. Modern gas engines have an even bigger advantage thanks to extended service intervals on spark plugs, engine oil, and antifreeze.

Long-Term Maintenance and Durability
Advantage: Diesel
The flip side of a diesel-engine's expensive initial cost is its excellent durability. Dodge, Ford, and GM learned long ago they were better off buying diesel technology from experts such as Cummins, International, and Isuzu than spending tons of money developing it themselves. These manufacturers all have years of experience building heavy-duty, over-the-road diesels that have to log 100,000 miles a year for years on end, routinely haul heavy loads and may have to idle for days at a time. Think of the diesel engines found in GM, Ford, and Dodge pickups and SUVs as mini big-rig engines. The average gas engine is good for only around 125,000 miles before needing a rebuild and isn't designed to constantly pull a heavy load. A diesel can go more than three times this amount before needing an overhaul.

Fuel Cost
Advantage: Diesel
Because diesel fuel is easier to refine, taking less time to get from raw petroleum to final product than gasoline, it's usually priced lower than gas. However, occasionally in the U.S., diesel is priced the same or more than regular unleaded gas. This is often because diesel isn't as desirable in some areas leading to higher diesel prices. However, diesel advocates say that if more people drove diesel light trucks and cars, the price would drop dramatically in these areas--and possibly throughout the country.

Fuel Availability
Advantage: Gasoline
The lack of fuel availability is the reason we hear most often why people don't choose a diesel engine. Only about two percent of the nation's cars are diesel powered, compared with 25 percent for European countries such as France and Italy. The number is larger for light trucks and SUVs in the U.S., but the overwhelming majority are gasoline-powered. It's a chicken or the egg scenario. The car manufacturers say they'll build more diesels if people will buy them. Consumers say they'd consider diesels if there were more diesel fuel stations. Fuel companies, in turn, say they'd produce more diesel if consumers wanted it. Diesel pumps are easy to spot (they're the one's with the green handles) and can be found in most areas that have a large amount of commercial truck traffic.

Conclusion
Choosing between a gas or diesel engine comes down to what you'll do with the truck and where you live. If you use your truck like a car, desire quick, quiet acceleration, rarely haul a heavy load, and you don't plan on keeping it past 100,000 miles, you may want to consider a gas engine. They run smoother, fuel is easier to find, and they're easier to start in cold weather. However, if you use your truck for towing, value good fuel economy, and plan on racking up loads of miles, diesel is for you. In the end, the leading disappointment regarding diesels is that the price to add a diesel to a 3?4- or 1-ton pickup is still quite high versus a more powerful gas engine. But you'll make this back in fuel savings over time. On the flip side, we were pleased to find that manufacturers continue to develop diesel technology, especially in the areas of cold starting, combustion smoothness, and emissions. Now we need diesels in 1?2-ton pickups and midsize SUVs.

Read more: http://www.trucktrend.com/features/tech/163_0210_diesel_vs_gas/viewall.html#ixzz2QUpvjNsk