Used Truck Options?

Which to get?

  • Dodge with Automatic

    Votes: 4 14.8%
  • Dodge with Manual

    Votes: 13 48.1%
  • Chevy with Automatic

    Votes: 7 25.9%
  • Chevy with Manual if they it can be found.

    Votes: 3 11.1%

  • Total voters
    27

TJDukit

I.Y.A.A.Y.A.S.
Location
Clearfield
I love the duramaxes. I won't repeat any of the advice I've given since it's all here already. One thing to look for is a truck without any sort of tune on it doesn't matter if you go with the dodge or duramax. You never know what the previous owner put it through. When I bought the one I sold last year I didn't know it had a tune on it because the switch was hidden so pay really close attention. Pretty much on a duramax if it smokes when you hit the throttle it has a tune. You could be alright with one but if I were to do it again I would have bought a bone stock truck and left it alone.
 

STAG

Well-Known Member
I'll never chip a truck again, I too would stay away from trucks with "performance work" my new '07 drivetrain is bone stock and that's how I'll leave it
 

Tonkaman

Well-Known Member
Location
West Jordan
Around how many miles do the injectors have before they need to be replaced. Also I am trying to find one with decent miles but how many miles is too many miles on the duramaxs?

I've heard stories as low as 100,000 and some that never go bad, most expect bad news around 200,000. There are many Duramax trucks that are over 600,000 miles as long as they have an excellent maintenance record
 

skippy

Pretend Fabricator
Location
Tooele
I am a fan of the cummins my self I wouldnt trade my one ton with the 6 speed for anything the back seat isnt the greatest but it is ALOT better than an extended cab truck like some lead you to believe
 
Seems like most of these conversations end with: Put a Cummins and Allison in a Superduty and be done.

I'm a chevy guy and I've been converted to the ways of the Superduty. I like the frame and body better than the other two, and the cab is very roomy, more than the other two. The megacab has a reclining back seat and storage behind the seat, but the legroom is about the same. The Chev feels cramped to me.

The 7.3 is very reliable. If you go auto, plan on rebulding it ($3500). That's pretty much what I did when I bought my eXcursion, and I love it. Find a 7.3 that is stock and add your own power doodads and it will have the power of a 6.0 without the reliability issues. Drive one and see what you think.

There have been a couple real nice Superduties lately for a little less than you're talking about.
 
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STAG

Well-Known Member
90% of the trucks at the construction company I work for are the 6.0 powerstroke. We also have a 2001 duramax, two 7.3 powerstrokes, two 2011 powerstrokes and a 2009 powerstroke. And a cummins with the 12valve. Also a handful of vehicles with gas engine but that's not the discussion. Granted they are all construction vehicles and pull heavy loads every day but they are also well maintenanced.

The cummins has 328k miles on it and still goes, but is on its last leg. It will stall the engine if you tap the throttle then let off. It leaks oil and is noisy and gutless.

The duramax had its Allison rebuilt last year at 150k miles (from pulling too much weight daily to park city) and it had its injectors replaced 5 years ago but it was covered in the Chevy 200k/7 year warranty on the leaky injector issue). Also with a duramax you HAVE to replace the fuel filters at their intervals and highly reccomend a dealership fuel filter, if the duramax doesn't get enough fuel flow it will kick it into limp mode and max you out at 1500 RPMs until you turn the key off, remove it from the ignition and open the drivers door (this resets the engines computer and allows you to continue in full power mode.) it usually happens when you are floored with a heavy load and the engine is trying to get more fuel. However we have since switched to OEM fuel filters instead of Napa fuel filters and have not had it go into limp mode ever since.

We have had zero issues with the 2011 and 2009 powerstrokes.

However our 6.0 powerstrokes have ALL had major issues that if any one was my personal vehicle I would be both irate and broke. Anything from replacing injectors because they stick and make the truck run like crap on several trucks to a couple trucks having the EGR cooler go out, dumping coolant into the intake, through the engine and blowing white smoke out the exhaust. We put the EGR delete kit on them from RKL diesel and it makes the check engine light stay on for "insufficient EGR pressure/flow". Also have had issues with diesel fuel in the coolant of a few trucks, had an oil cooler go out on one with 76k miles and pumped engine oil straight into the engine coolant. My work truck (2006 6.0) has had the transmission rebuilt a month ago at 135k miles and is in the shop again now because it went out again last Friday on the way home from Vernal. I don't think I could buy a 6.0 because of my experiences with them at work. But like I said, they all are worked hard daily.
 
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I Lean

Mbryson's hairdresser
Vendor
Location
Utah
90% of the trucks at the construction company I work for are the 6.0 powerstroke. We also have a 2001 duramax, two 7.3 powerstrokes, two 2011 powerstrokes and a 2009 powerstroke. And a cummins with the 12valve. Also a handful of vehicles with gas engine but that's not the discussion. Granted they are all construction vehicles and pull heavy loads every day but they are also well maintenanced.

The cummins has 328k miles on it and still goes, but is on its last leg. It will stall the engine if you tap the throttle then let off. It leaks oil and is noisy and gutless.

The duramax had its Allison rebuilt last year at 150k miles (from pulling too much weight daily to park city) and it had its injectors replaced 5 years ago but it was covered in the Chevy 200k/7 year warranty on the leaky injector issue). Also with a duramax you HAVE to replace the fuel filters at their intervals and highly reccomend a dealership fuel filter, if the duramax doesn't get enough fuel flow it will kick it into limp mode and max you out at 1500 RPMs until you turn the key off, remove it from the ignition and open the drivers door (this resets the engines computer and allows you to continue in full power mode.) it usually happens when you are floored with a heavy load and the engine is trying to get more fuel. However we have since switched to OEM fuel filters instead of Napa fuel filters and have not had it go into limp mode ever since.

We have had zero issues with the 2011 and 2009 powerstrokes.

However our 6.0 powerstrokes have ALL had major issues that if any one was my personal vehicle I would be both irate and broke. Anything from replacing injectors because they stick and make the truck run like crap on several trucks to a couple trucks having the EGR cooler go out, dumping coolant into the intake, through the engine and blowing white smoke out the exhaust. We put the EGR delete kit on them from RKL diesel and it makes the check engine light stay on for "insufficient EGR pressure/flow". Also have had issues with diesel fuel in the coolant of a few trucks, had an oil cooler go out on one with 76k miles and pumped engine oil straight into the engine coolant. My work truck (2006 6.0) has had the transmission rebuilt a month ago at 135k miles and is in the shop again now because it went out again last Friday on the way home from Vernal. I don't think I could buy a 6.0 because of my experiences with them at work. But like I said, they all are worked hard daily.

What about the 7.3 Powerstrokes in that mix? (just curious since I have one...)
 

STAG

Well-Known Member
What about the 7.3 Powerstrokes in that mix? (just curious since I have one...)
Both are 1999, one has 190k miles and has had zero major issues, but will sometimes crank over for 5-8 seconds before firing (yes after letting the glow plugs cycle) and the other had its engine replaced about 5 years ago because of lack of maintenance. After replacing that engine (@ 125k miles) is when we hired a full time mechanic (my dad) Its just that it went ~15,000 miles on one oil change because we neglected it. So completely our fault. But all the other trucks have had regular scheduled maintenance. Fwiw before I bought my 2002 duramax I had a 1999 7.3 powerstroke with 300k miles. I got rid of it just before it died I'm sure. It was starting to be pretty unreliable. But my dads driveway still holds the evidence that I owned it (rear main oil seal) it had the 6 speed manual trams and I loved that transmission it was definitely a good trans. Speaking of manual trans' we have two F-450s with 6 speed manuals and seem bulletproof so far. The clutch pedal sometimes sticks on the one 450 but it hasn't slipped yet.
 
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kmboren

Recovering XJ owner anonymous
Location
Southern Utah
I am getting closer to making this happen. I am seriously considering a 2004 2wd GMC quad cab with 160,000 miles. Anyone have anything bad to say about them. I would think it would be less maintenance on the front end. The prices seem right and they appear to be in good shape. I expect better fuel mileage with a 2wd truck also. I am sure there will be some times that I wish I had 4wd but I think the benefits will out way those times.
 

kmboren

Recovering XJ owner anonymous
Location
Southern Utah
Earlier someone said to watch for black smoke. The owner said it is not chipped but does have cold air on it with muffler and does blow black smoke only when it is accelerated hard. Does this mean it is chipped or is this a normal response? If there is a hidden chip where would it be. He purchased it at auction so I suppose one could be hiding somewhere that he does not know about.
 
I am getting closer to making this happen. I am seriously considering a 2004 2wd GMC quad cab with 160,000 miles. Anyone have anything bad to say about them. I would think it would be less maintenance on the front end. The prices seem right and they appear to be in good shape. I expect better fuel mileage with a 2wd truck also. I am sure there will be some times that I wish I had 4wd but I think the benefits will out way those times.

I'm debating the same thing. The only other thing to take into consideration is how likely you are to sell it vs keep it a long time. It is considerably harder to sell a 2WD in Utah.
 

tisjeep

Member
Around how many miles do the injectors have before they need to be replaced. Also I am trying to find one with decent miles but how many miles is too many miles on the duramaxs?


We have a 2006 /2007 (09/06)Duramax work truck with 260k on the clock. This truck has had more abuse than any other vehicle I have driven. I get in all the time with several thousand miles over on oil fuel filter changes. Probably has never had anything else flushed. Driven on the worst types of roads conceivable the majority of the time. Like 100 daily miles of west Texas dirt roads that have not been maintained since the day they were created type of roads. So in other words if you could imagine the worst type of way to treat a truck and then treat it worse.

This truck is still fantastic. It will still outrun my chipped 6.0 powerstroke.
It still gets 20+ MPG
It still starts and below 0 temps.

I would go Duramax any day of the week especially if one is taken care of.
 

tisjeep

Member
I'm debating the same thing. The only other thing to take into consideration is how likely you are to sell it vs keep it a long time. It is considerably harder to sell a 2WD in Utah.

Might as well park it every time it snows unless you want to add serious weight to the rear end. That Diesel motor is HEAVY and 2wd diesels are the worst thing ever in the snow. Like load it up with sandbags and chain up just to drive on the flat kind of suck in the snow.
 

kmboren

Recovering XJ owner anonymous
Location
Southern Utah
I have my jeep I can drive in the snow. My truck will mostly be used as a tow rig with other around the house duties. Plus I plan on moving to st. George when in the future.
 

benjy

Rarely wrenches
Supporting Member
Location
Moab
If this is going to be a tow rig for a crawler, DO NOT BUY A 2WD! I know it's tempting for the price, but it's not worth it. You'll be kicking yourself over and over and over.

Don't overlook the gas motors. Just sayin' ;)

In the next week or so I will be posting my 2004.5 LLY GMC Duramax 2500. It's been well taken care of and is in great condition for the miles (115k), that I could probably make work for your price range. If you're interested I could dig up a picture.
 

benjy

Rarely wrenches
Supporting Member
Location
Moab
This is a pic, before we did bushwacker pocket cutout flares, painted to match.

pics 001.jpg
 

kmboren

Recovering XJ owner anonymous
Location
Southern Utah
If this is going to be a tow rig for a crawler, DO NOT BUY A 2WD! I know it's tempting for the price, but it's not worth it. You'll be kicking yourself over and over and over.
Why will I be kicking myself? I know the Gas engines could work but want the pulling power and better MPGs of the Diesel.

I sent you a PM.
 
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