Diesels Hassle

[diver110]

I have been going back and forth between gas and diesel. I drive enough miles (often over 20,000 miles per year) to justify diesel and think I would like the extra torque. I also spend time in the Rockies, where the extra umph would be nice, if not mandatory. What is holding me back is (1) I know, more or less, how gas engines work, I know nada about diesels beyond the ultra basic, and (2) when I go on diesel forums, there is usually someone complaining about how his diesel died, or had something exotic happen to it that they (well, usually Ford) could not fix. I suspect, though, that I am getting a highly skewed sample. Keeping in mind that I make it a point in life to let dealers do all the work, how big of a hassle is it to own diesel. I would like to use it as a DD. About 25 miles to work.

[Jeepers92]

I love my cummins. Heavy camper in the Rockies or running the Fla interstates with camper on and pulling 24'pontoon, never a problem. I don't need or want a programmer. I drove it to work for 1 year with no problems.

[diver110]

Gray1Ghost wrote:
I had a 2008 Dodge Ram 3500 CTD SRW Laramie which hauled my NL 8.5 while pulling my drift boat. It had 71,000 miles on it. Except for having to replace a U-joint I had no problems with the truck until May. It hauled the camper and boat easily. I had all of the routine maintenance and the U-joint replacement performed at Dodge dealerships. I started on a 4 month trip May 20 of this year. On the first night of my trip on the interstate in the middle of Louisville the service engine light came on, the truck lost power, the engine died and I coasted down an off ramp. My rig was transported to a Dodge dealership the next morning and a problem was found in the diesel particulate filter. I was told they would have to replace the diesel particulate filter and if that didn't solve the problem they would have to replace the turbo. The dealership did not have either part so they ordered the filter. I asked them to order both so I would not have to spend an additional day in Louisville waiting on the turbo if changing the filter did not solve the problem. My truck had three weeks left on the warranty. They told me Chrysler would cover the cost of the repair but Chrysler would not let the dealership order both the filter and the turbo at the same time. The charge for replacing the filter at the dealership was $1800 and the cost of replacing the turbo was $7000.

The dealership replaced the filter but it did not solve the problem. They notified Chrysler to get the turbo but Chrysler told them to try cleaning the turbo and see if that corrected the problem. They were going to charge me $250 to clean the turbo but I balked at paying that because the only reason they had to clean the turbo was due to the faulty filter or exhaust system. I told them to go ahead and clean the turbo and we would decide who would pay for it later. They sheared a bolt while attempting to remove the turbo to clean it so it ended up needing to be replaced anyway. By this time in the day it was too late to order the turbo for arrival the next day. It arrived on Friday and was replaced. Chrysler's service representative told me they would have paid for the cleaning if it had been required.

I had been a member of the Cummins Turbo Diesel Registry and had known about the exhaust problems with this generation of Cummins engine. Some owners had after market fixes performed at auto shops. The fix involved removing the filter and inserting chips into the trucks computer instructing the computer to ignore error messages from exhaust sensors. This fix actually improved the engines power and fuel economy. While hauling my rig I only got 12 mpg in the Dodge CTD, not anywhere close to the 5.9 CTD's mpg. Dodge dealerships would not inform you of this fix or perform the fix. There were warnings that doing so would void the engine's warranty.

While my truck was being repaired I looked into this generation of Dodge CTD and found many other owners have experienced the same problem, the same sudden dying of the engine leaving the owner stranded. When I talked with the Chrysler Customer Service Representative (not the dealership where the work was performed ) I was told it was Chrysler's policy to not allow the dealer to order the filter and the turbo at the same time because replacing the filter or cleaning the turbo had corrected the problem in "hundreds of cases". The dealership told me they had four previous cases and replacing the DPF and cleaning the turbo did not solve the problem. That dealership had to replace the turbo every time.

It was actually to my benefit the engine died when it did. If it had died 3 weeks later I would have been out at least $8800 dollars ($1800 for the DPF and $7000 for the turbo).
I believe Chrysler should have owned up to the problems with this generation of engine/exhaust and recalled and fixed the vehicle. They know many owners of this generation of CTD have been left stranded and they should have had a repair process that was consumer friendly and not more economical for them. I left Louisville in a new gas truck and it wasn't a Dodge. During the four months I was gone I drove the haul road to Prudhoe Bay. I hate to think what the price for towing the Dodge truck would have been on that road.

The Dodge truck had more power than the new gas truck. I could tell the difference on a couple of the climbs in the mountains of Colorado. However, the new truck handled the load of my rig fine from Louisville to the Arctic Ocean and back well. I do miss the exhaust brake coming down the mountain grades but the transmission in the new truck does allow me to gear down to a specific gear. The cost of a diesel engine is several thousands of dollars more than a gasser. In NC where I live, regular gas is consistently 35 to 45 cents less per gallon than diesel. Routine maintenance costs on the diesel were also higher than on the gasser.
Note, I'm reporting what happened to me and why i made the decision to go gas and not Dodge.

Sorry for your troubles. I have read similar stories. I suspect the proportions are what we are seeing on this thread. It is likely rare to have these troubles, but it sucks when they happen.

[flipskid]

go to diesel bombers website or any diesel website. They all have some type of issue, wether it be injectors, head gaskets, oil cooler, etc newer ones seem to be working out the magority of the issues. I have an 04 f350 6.0, the "worst" labeled of all the ford engines. It did have issues, then i researched the issues and took care of the problem before it took care of me. I also did a tune on it, not a crazy tune but wow did it make a difference. i was told diesel motors dont like short trips, and not to baby them. drive them like you stole it. who knows. I do know it has more power and gets better mileage then any gas truck doing the same work. First moon rocket motors were diesel. Noone changes plugs on gas engines anymore either. computers have these things running so good, you dont need to change plugs all the time. The one issue is sometimes it takes a little longer finding fuel for my diesel. Good luck,

[Old-Biscuit]

billtex wrote:
Our 06 Duramax is our first diesel. Apparently I am doing something wrong.
I am supposed to pay more for maintenance, have a hard time finding fuel, and not get very good mileage.

I will have to re-read the manual and see where I got off-course, because none of this has been true in the last 7 yrs.

Diesels will pull a battleship, the mileage is clearly better, and my maintenance cost have been LESS than driving a gasser.
Diesels are made to work...period.

I can't imagine going back to gas!

Bill

It was in a 'supplemental pamphlet' for the gas engine manual :B

Diesel is where towing gets done.

[Buzzcut1]

going on 11 years and 130,000 miles on my F350 with a 6.0 I tow or haul heavy all the time and mostly in the hills. I have worn out a few things but nothing with the engine proper or transmission. I did replace the turbo at around 105,000 with a newer generation version due to worn adjustable vanes. At the same time I replaced the fan clutch. At 125,000 I replaced two faulty fuel pressure sensors and the EGR Valve. Any other issues have been worn out ball joints and tie rod bushings, all 4 disc rotors, new shocks tires and 5k oils and 15k fuel filer changes plus the 30k tranny fluid and filter change and 60k air filter changes...I'm happy

[Bedlam]

100K miles after 8.5 years on my 6.0 PSD. No problems for the first 50K miles until the EGR cooler leaked and was replaced under warranty. At 85K miles, high pressure oil line connection failed and required my first paid repair. Due to low batteries from the above, my FICM did show potential failure (low voltage when cold) which I addressed proactively at the same time. Typically this truck is operated with a 13-19K lbs GCW and is rarely used for short errands or commuting.

[Desertboy]

Ill never buy another gasser. I think most of the problems you read about are people trying to add more power and torque.

[powderman426]

wallaceb wrote:
OK, the topic has open the door to the use of "chips" to boost torque, etc. How many of us diesel drivers have added chips and what kinds of problems have evolved??? How many have only "pushed" their rigs with say mid range chip boosting and found problems??? How many are pushing their rigs to chip max and what problems are you having??? Is some of this related to newer vs. older diesels (2010 on vs pre 2003)???

Just get the RAM with the Cummin's Turbo diesel and you wont need to mess with chips. :B

[billtex]

Our 06 Duramax is our first diesel. Apparently I am doing something wrong.
I am supposed to pay more for maintenance, have a hard time finding fuel, and not get very good mileage.

I will have to re-read the manual and see where I got off-course, because none of this has been true in the last 7 yrs.

Diesels will pull a battleship, the mileage is clearly better, and my maintenance cost have been LESS than driving a gasser.
Diesels are made to work...period.

I can't imagine going back to gas!

Bill

[RZAR66]

My F350 is gas. My wife's Jetta is a Diesel. Go figure. 🙂

[Led_67]

Well you certainly opened up a can of worms here...Now my two cents worth. I have grown up around semis and drove them OTR and OO I have seen the class 8 trucks go from the old 2 stroke to the 4 stroke and yes there was an improvement when they did so and the improvement with the advent of computerized engine controls was also good however you now have so called deisel doctors with handheld programmers that will "tune" your deisel for a fee and have no liability implied or given. Same goes for the medium to light duty deisel trucks that are being discussed here now, why do you think the majority of these upgrade and performance items have a disclaimer attached to them, and do not get me started about these kids that like to " roll coal " I will be here till next month.
OK tyrade aside when properly maintained and used any vehicle will definatly last longer than one that is used and abused and the advantage that one has over the other also its weakness in the other so ultimatly the decision comes down to personal choice so decide what and how you will be using the vehicle, what investment are you comfortable with, what do you want.
Good Luck

[misskate]

I have a Chevy 07 Classic. Can't see ever going back to gas. Wish my Suburban was diesel. I've had no problems. Regular filter and oil changes. Gotta watch the rear tires for wear though!

[Gray1Ghost]

I had a 2008 Dodge Ram 3500 CTD SRW Laramie which hauled my NL 8.5 while pulling my drift boat. It had 71,000 miles on it. Except for having to replace a U-joint I had no problems with the truck until May. It hauled the camper and boat easily. I had all of the routine maintenance and the U-joint replacement performed at Dodge dealerships. I started on a 4 month trip May 20 of this year. On the first night of my trip on the interstate in the middle of Louisville the service engine light came on, the truck lost power, the engine died and I coasted down an off ramp. My rig was transported to a Dodge dealership the next morning and a problem was found in the diesel particulate filter. I was told they would have to replace the diesel particulate filter and if that didn't solve the problem they would have to replace the turbo. The dealership did not have either part so they ordered the filter. I asked them to order both so I would not have to spend an additional day in Louisville waiting on the turbo if changing the filter did not solve the problem. My truck had three weeks left on the warranty. They told me Chrysler would cover the cost of the repair but Chrysler would not let the dealership order both the filter and the turbo at the same time. The charge for replacing the filter at the dealership was $1800 and the cost of replacing the turbo was $7000.

The dealership replaced the filter but it did not solve the problem. They notified Chrysler to get the turbo but Chrysler told them to try cleaning the turbo and see if that corrected the problem. They were going to charge me $250 to clean the turbo but I balked at paying that because the only reason they had to clean the turbo was due to the faulty filter or exhaust system. I told them to go ahead and clean the turbo and we would decide who would pay for it later. They sheared a bolt while attempting to remove the turbo to clean it so it ended up needing to be replaced anyway. By this time in the day it was too late to order the turbo for arrival the next day. It arrived on Friday and was replaced. Chrysler's service representative told me they would have paid for the cleaning if it had been required.

I had been a member of the Cummins Turbo Diesel Registry and had known about the exhaust problems with this generation of Cummins engine. Some owners had after market fixes performed at auto shops. The fix involved removing the filter and inserting chips into the trucks computer instructing the computer to ignore error messages from exhaust sensors. This fix actually improved the engines power and fuel economy. While hauling my rig I only got 12 mpg in the Dodge CTD, not anywhere close to the 5.9 CTD's mpg. Dodge dealerships would not inform you of this fix or perform the fix. There were warnings that doing so would void the engine's warranty.

While my truck was being repaired I looked into this generation of Dodge CTD and found many other owners have experienced the same problem, the same sudden dying of the engine leaving the owner stranded. When I talked with the Chrysler Customer Service Representative (not the dealership where the work was performed ) I was told it was Chrysler's policy to not allow the dealer to order the filter and the turbo at the same time because replacing the filter or cleaning the turbo had corrected the problem in "hundreds of cases". The dealership told me they had four previous cases and replacing the DPF and cleaning the turbo did not solve the problem. That dealership had to replace the turbo every time.

It was actually to my benefit the engine died when it did. If it had died 3 weeks later I would have been out at least $8800 dollars ($1800 for the DPF and $7000 for the turbo).
I believe Chrysler should have owned up to the problems with this generation of engine/exhaust and recalled and fixed the vehicle. They know many owners of this generation of CTD have been left stranded and they should have had a repair process that was consumer friendly and not more economical for them. I left Louisville in a new gas truck and it wasn't a Dodge. During the four months I was gone I drove the haul road to Prudhoe Bay. I hate to think what the price for towing the Dodge truck would have been on that road.

The Dodge truck had more power than the new gas truck. I could tell the difference on a couple of the climbs in the mountains of Colorado. However, the new truck handled the load of my rig fine from Louisville to the Arctic Ocean and back well. I do miss the exhaust brake coming down the mountain grades but the transmission in the new truck does allow me to gear down to a specific gear. The cost of a diesel engine is several thousands of dollars more than a gasser. In NC where I live, regular gas is consistently 35 to 45 cents less per gallon than diesel. Routine maintenance costs on the diesel were also higher than on the gasser.
Note, I'm reporting what happened to me and why i made the decision to go gas and not Dodge.

[Rockrash]

I'm old school, running a 7.3 6spd. I have 165k and she runs like a dream with 0 problems other than GM. 100% stock, but thinking about a towing tune now that I have a tc to go along with my usual pull of jeep. I don't like the dealer or his prices either so that's my story.

[Reddog1]

diver110 wrote:
... While on the subject of hassles, is bad diesel a big deal? That is something else I hear a lot about.

I have had my '96 Dodge Cummins since 2001. Over 250,000 miles in several states, never an engine problem and really question "bad diesel". That is assuming you are getting your diesel from a Service Station pump.

My 12-valve does not have a computer for the fuel. I have personally modified the mechanical fuel system. Started with stock 150 HP on the dyno at the rear wheels, more modifications up to just under 400 HP. No decrease in MPG, no repairs on engine. I have over 175,000 miles with the HP boost, by far most with the TC.

Wayne