Old truck vs new truck

[wvu_traveler]

Maybe like many others - the thought of upgrading trucks comes with the dread dealing with all the new emission issues, or skipping diesel and go for a gasser. I have a 2005 Silverado 2500 LLY and have had it for a long time but only has 120k miles…however the last 10-15k miles have been expensive. Oil sender failed, cluster failed, transfer case seal failed, front hub/bearing failed…now I believe I have an FPR or some other fuel related issue creeping up on me with a slight pulse while in gear, near idle. Dealer wants 1-2 hrs to diagnose. While this is not my DD, if I trade it….whatever I end up with will be. We tow mostly April thru November about once per month. The thought of tossing more $ into this truck is starting to bother me due to its age….but I have to think even a 15 year old diesel still tows better than a modern gasser. So what say you – is it worth the money to upgrade to a modern truck with payment or just keep repairing what is paid for?

[wvu_traveler]

True, but I tend to hold onto them beyond the warranty period....and as a daily driver ill be beyond the warranty in 4 years. I don't worry too much about normal upkeep but its the big ticket items that scare me. (turbo, injectors, etc) I cant tolerate much of that. Maybe my current setup has spoiled me, even with its recent rash of expenses...some of its 1k repairs are nothing compared to having to replace a turbo, etc at dealer cost.

[shum02]

wvu_traveler wrote:
I don't think i'm brave enough to jump into a diesel of any brand with all the emission junk to deal with.

That is what warranties are for.

[wvu_traveler]

Thanks all for the responses. May go out and drive a new F250 with a gas and see if I like it. My 2005 is completely stock other than AFE mouthpiece I had installed. If I had the tools and someplace to work on my own truck...id likely just keep my Chevy a few more years. With wife and kids....I just may buy new for piece of mind and go on with life. I don't think i'm brave enough to jump into a diesel of any brand with all the emission junk to deal with.

[4x4ord]

Fixing and running your 05 will definitely be less expensive than buying something newer. I'd buy a new diesel.

[shum02]

I have over 250k miles on my 6.0L. The starter let go on me totally out of the blue while up at the yard bringing the camper back to the house to restock.

Long storey short it was 20 minutes to get the tow truck there to flat tow it home, so while waiting around phoned around for a starter, found one. 3 hours after having made the call for the tow truck I was back on the road having installed the starter myself which on the 6.0L took all of an hour to R&R.

Yea, once in a while....but I`d rather do that that spend almost 1K a month for the next 5 years on a new truck. It runs like a champ but wear items like starters, bearings, brakes, ball joints, tie rods, alternators........ are wear items, they wear out, can`t be avoided.

Your truck in my view is almost new. Maybe a little preemptive maintenance would be in order.

[Dave_H_M]

Move back to gas in 2013 and couldn't be happier.

Yep i did the same thing in 12. Happy Camper :B

[ib516]

For that size trailer a 3/4 ton Gasser will do the job just fine. I had a 12000 pound fifth wheel and towed it with a 2014 6.4 liter hemi and it did a great job. The new ones would be even better with the new 8-speed transmission.

That said it is always cheapest to keep the old truck and fix it. The new diesels will tow even better than what you have now. All depends on how much money you have to throw around.

[ppine]

I am still driving a 2002 Ford 7.3 I bought new. Every mechanic that has looked at it says the same thing. "Never sell it."

In 170k miles, I have had one issue with the wiring harness, that sagged and disconnected 2 cylinders. I drove home through the mountains towing a boat on 6 cylinders. It is the most dependable vehicle I have had in over 30 that I have owned in my lifetime.

[Me_Again]

Go drive the new generation of new trucks from all three mayor manufactures and then make your decision. We bought a new 2015 RAM 3500 in Sept of 2015 and got it for 11K+ less than sticker. Our 2001.5 RAM was 14 years young with a little over 105K on the clock.

Never looked back, as the 2015 is a great truck and with 3.42 gears is a freeway cruiser when not towing, that tows at 24,500 combined in Western mountains just great.

Chris

[ksss]

It likely comes down to disposable income. Your 05 has the potential for many more miles in it. That doesn't mean it wont need some attention here and there, but the likelihood of a major repair is not zero but not very likely. If you would rather upgrade now, rather than later, your truck will have excellent resale assuming its in good shape, miles are certainly right. I would think that should be worth 25K and if so your 1/3 the way to a fully equipped '19 3500 diesel and even better on full option gas version. Just comes down to what it is worth to you. Like the saying goes your trading your time for money and how much of your time (life) is worth paying for a new truck. Me its worth what it costs, but everyone is on different path.

[BenK]

Yup....just like Boeing hiring the low bidder software contracting firm who used $9/hr software coders (not engineers) that has killed many and side lined their next gen best commuter plane...

No thanks from a guy who worked at a $17billio per year computer Corp....and also worked for 12 years in their research labs

To many failure points and systems in today’s Vehicles for me

colliehauler wrote:

SidecarFlip wrote:

Rwake901 wrote:
Personally I prefer the reliability of a newer truck. When traveling I don’t want to worry about what’s going to break down next on the road and ruin my vacation. I know payments suck but so does sitting alongside the high way broke down spending your vacation there instead of where you want to be. I guess ether way your paying someone the bank or the repair guy. lol

You need to distill that a bit to diesel or gas. New diesels may (or may not be) issue prone. Lots of lowest bidder hardware and software to break.

My sister tried to use that argument to convince me to purchase a new truck. Her new GM product was in the shop 8 times compared to 1 time for my old Ford truck. You hit the nail on the head for software issues.

[falconbrother]

I would keep that truck. In my book it's a great truck. 2005 was a good year for that model and yours has an easy 100,000 miles left in it based on my experience with GM trucks. All mechanical things need repairing eventually.

[Grit_dog]

New FPR is like $150 and 1/2 a beer job.
Agree, that newer/low miles is preferable for piece of mind, but the reality is, if your older, mid miles truck is well kept, the odds aren't really against you.
Case in point (knock on wood). Old Dodge, 170k, only 1 F O R D (found on road dead, lol) failure and it was at about 50k miles. #4 injector line.
Newer 2016 company Silverado, trans puked at 60k miles. Still drive able, but nonetheless, a low mile shouldn't happen type issue.
Of the 25 or so new company trucks I've had in the last 25 years, about 15-20% of them had some unexpected problem with low miles and almost new that left the vehicle somewhat or completely incapacitated.

Of the 10 personal trucks in the same amount of time, half of them run to 150k or a bit more, 3 on the road breakdowns and both were low miles at the time. Same percentage.
And 2 of the failures were not end of lifespan of a component stuff, but rather freak stuff. The 3rd failure was injectors on the Dodge, but it still ran, it just wouldn't start at -30F after sitting for 3 days.

So it's flip a coin. $ vs peace of mind if you have a good truck.

BTW, the LLY bone stock will tow a little better than the best new gasser on the road. Throw a little tune at it and it'll embarrass the new gassers.

[colliehauler]

SidecarFlip wrote:

Rwake901 wrote:
Personally I prefer the reliability of a newer truck. When traveling I don’t want to worry about what’s going to break down next on the road and ruin my vacation. I know payments suck but so does sitting alongside the high way broke down spending your vacation there instead of where you want to be. I guess ether way your paying someone the bank or the repair guy. lol

You need to distill that a bit to diesel or gas. New diesels may (or may not be) issue prone. Lots of lowest bidder hardware and software to break.

My sister tried to use that argument to convince me to purchase a new truck. Her new GM product was in the shop 8 times compared to 1 time for my old Ford truck. You hit the nail on the head for software issues.

[NWnative]

You are right to be concerned about all the emissions junk on the post 2007 Diesels. I had a Ford 08 and a Dodge 2010...all Diesels and all...saw a lot of time in the shop. Move back to gas in 2013 and couldn't be happier. My per mile costs are much less with the gas engine than they were with any of my previous diesels.